Chapter 7
Ada
My damp cheeks dry in the sun as I walk away from town hall. I need to put all of this behind me, in every sense, because crying in front of an audience wasn’t the least bit cathartic. Ashes, emotions are overrated.
Walt and Acton invited me to lunch today.
I suppose there’s no point in hiding out anymore, so I agreed.
After a few blocks of distance between me and that hurrah’s nest I left behind, I finally send a text to them saying I’ll be at The Roaring Wood a little early and there’s no need to rush out the door if they’re not ready yet.
Lately, Acton is planting a veritable rain forest on their property.
Even for a dryad living in a humid subtropical climate, it’s proven challenging to achieve his exacting vision.
Walt texts back that Acton is just finishing up outside and they’ll leave in a few minutes.
My eyes roll when I realize I’m still carrying those croissants from Norrell.
I’m tempted to drop them in a garbage can along the street, but I don’t have the heart to do that to these edible flaky masterpieces.
Walt may want one. They’re absolute perfection as always except for the fact they were purchased by a heartless excuse of a male.
He deserves to go in the trash, not the croissants.
I won’t let him taint my favorite breakfast.
The Roaring Wood is already bursting at the seams with a lunch crowd.
But I appreciate how lively it makes the place.
The interior always cheers me up, which I sorely need right now.
Living vines and branches weave across the ceiling, and the tables are cut from wide logs showing their rings, resembling stumps in the ground.
Colorful details like boldly patterned pillows on the wicker chairs and bright murals on the walls provide playful touches.
The hostess, Talullah, a nereid who lives along the beach, runs out from behind her podium and throws her arm around me in an overly tight hug me.
“Oh, Ada. You’re a sight for sore eyes. I wasn’t sure if I should call you, but I didn’t want to seem like I was sticking my nose in your beeswax,” she exclaims. She abruptly releases me and steps back to look me over with probing eyes.
“How are you feeling? You look good. But I know that may not mean anything. Well, we were all just so devastated that you and your human friend were attacked by that fae. I would never have fathomed one of those things showing up here. You are so courageous for fighting it off.”
Offering a dazed smile, I respond, “Thank you, Tallulah, truly. I’m feeling just fine but I’m still dealing with the loss of my magick. It’s been a long week. And those meals you and the team sent over were just wonderful. The last thing I wanted to do was cook, so they were exactly what I needed.”
“I’m so glad to hear that. Let us know if you need anything else. I mean it. We care about you,” she insists.
“That means a lot, thank you.” And it does. Everyone here is so gracious.
“Listen to me rattle on. You’re here for a reason. Let me take you to a table,” she titters melodiously as she ushers me through the restaurant that’s reminiscent of a whimsical picnic in the woods.
She leads me to a table that will be the perfect size for the three of us.
I settle into my tall wicker seat and close my eyes for a minute.
The chatter of everyone around me, going about their day, calms me in a way I had been craving.
Holing up in my house all week, with only a few exceptions, maybe wasn’t my brightest idea, but it was the best I could do at that moment.
Sometimes grief makes irrational decisions.
“Who do we have here? Why I believe it’s sleeping beauty!” Walt’s voice proclaims from next to the table. I grin toward the direction it came from and dramatically blink my eyes open.
“My princes are here! I won’t lie and say I wasn’t close to nodding off,” I admit as I stand up and hug them both. “Sleeping almost won out over lunch, so you know I’m exhausted!”
“Let’s order you a coffee, then,” he frets, looking around for a server.
“I’ll be okay but thank you. Do you think you’d want some raspberry chamomile croissants for later? I have extra from this morning.” I dangle the pink bag on my finger. He seems hypnotized by it.
“Well, I may take one or two for the road,” he answers demurely.
The three of us sit down and a server comes over to fill our water glasses and take our order.
We dine here frequently enough that we only need a cursory glance at the menu just to see the specials.
The staff remember our preferences, which often comes in handy like when they delivered a few meals to me last week.
Walt leans in close, studying my cardigan. “Is that Estelle’s brooch? I remember her wearing it long ago. It looks stunning on you.”
I move my fingers across it. “I wanted her close to me today.”
“How did it go this morning? Did your old friend take it easy on you?” Walt’s expression looks concerned.
“He tried.” I sigh loudly. “I was going to cross a mine field regardless. I can still barely breathe a word about it before the waterworks start. I drink calming tonics every day, and they’ve helped.
But seeing my parents and grandparents… or images of them…
whatever they were, it’s really shaken me up.
Made me realize you two are my only living close family. Everyone else is gone.”
Walt shakes his head. “Nobody thought badly about you showing emotion. And if they did? That says a lot about them. Grief dulls over time but never fully goes away. No one would ever confuse you with a robot, as vivacious as you are. They certainly don’t expect you to act like one now.”
Acton’s willowy voice chimes in, “Take solace in knowing that their magick, fed into the ward for so many decades, made them your protectors that night. It is their way to take care of now that they are gone.” His downy soft moss-covered hand settles gently over mine.
Some of the vines that grow along his skin curl lovingly around my fingers.
I brush wetness from my eyes with my other hand. “You’re right, I don’t know why I’m beating myself up. With Norrell here… Ashes, he saw everything.” A wry laugh escapes me. “Mother Earth, I need to catch a break”
Walt looks livid. “He has no right to come back here and hassle you now. He should be ashamed of himself. When you were together, you barely asked anything of him. Hell, you even offered to go with him to that frozen wasteland and stay there as long as he wanted,” he argues.
“I wanted to meet his family and see where he lived.” I shrug. “Maybe he never took me there on purpose so he could plan his escape from me. What could I do, drive a snowmobile around and hope I run into another yeti to give me directions?”
“Exactly,” Walt agrees, his pointer finger stabbing the table in emphasis.
“So instead of appreciating all the generosity and compassion you showed him, he saved his worst traits for you. But for me? Acton? Any random person off the street? He’d show up for us in a heartbeat and give his full attention and energy.
I remember how it affected you. Your parents never really caught on to that.
They loved him like a son so maybe they had blinders on.
Maybe we should be glad about that, at least. It would have broken their hearts had they known he was hurting you long before he left. ”
“I haven’t forgotten,” I huff. “That’s what I get for falling for the mysterious type.
Turns out I barely knew him. Intentional or not, he’d commit a huge chunk of time to someone else on almost every special occasion and holiday.
There was never an emergency, but he always treated it like it was more important than our time together.
I don’t think he really wanted to be my mate anyway.
It makes sense he didn’t try very hard.” I try to shrug away the heartache.
“What is going on at the house? I know you didn’t want to make waves with that group, but someone should have stepped in and made him switch,” he asserts, sounding upset on my behalf.
With my elbows on the table, I put my head in my hands and groan.
“He was trying to be helpful last night. I guess I’m finally getting that infamous special treatment now that I’m not his mate.
Regardless, I don’t trust it. He tried to talk to me, but I shut him down.
Hopefully he’ll be gone in a week or so and life can return to relative normalcy. ”
Our server returns with our meals, and we delight in how delicious everything looks.
My crispy chicken salad is hearty, with juicy chicken that’s indeed quite crispy.
I needed something a little healthier to balance out the two croissants I ate earlier.
Walt seems to be enjoying his vegetarian curry dish.
Acton delicately sips from a bowl of flower nectar with colorful petals floating on the surface.
Walt leans into him and uses his thumb to rub a stray drop off his mossy lips.
“Thank you, my bluebell,” Acton trills. Walt’s striking blue eyes sparkle at the endearment. Acton closes the distance between them and presses a kiss to his lips. They share a loving look before returning their attention to me.
“Ada, our experience partaking in this meal together would be incomplete without an offer to share. Mayhap you could dip your chicken in it?” Acton asks, holding out the bowl to me and giving me his version of puppy eyes.
I bark a loud laugh in surprise. Acton hasn’t made a plant food joke in a while. It sends a bubble of warmth through me, reminding me of happier times.
“Almost as good as honey mustard sauce, I imagine,” I quip. Walt squeezes his mate’s shoulder affectionately.
After a few more bites of food, Walt’s face grows serious again. “Did he bother you during the interview?”