Chapter 19 #2
I glanced around and only saw smiling faces.
A woman shrieked with laughter, a little boy stuck his tongue out at me from beneath a table, and I spotted several familiar faces of people I’d done business with.
Atticus briskly made his way through the room in his black trench coat, greeting guests and nodding his head at people before going into the next room.
Faces blurred by as I touched the chair again. Across the room, one man shoved another against a pillar.
“Jerk!” he shouted. “Don’t touch my woman!”
I released a breath. Yep, that had to be the guy who was previously sitting in this chair.
When I recognized Scott walking around the divider wall on the far side, I bolted like a startled deer in hunting season and dove into the bathroom.
Bracing my hands on the sink, I stared at my reflection.
“That man is not giving up.” Since Salem and I weren’t mated, he could still call on the favor. “What am I going to do?”
A violent blast knocked me off my feet, and everything went dark.
Salem cast his gaze over his shoulder and watched the exquisite redhead sashaying toward the restaurant kitchen to use the restroom.
Quinn looked phenomenal in that dress, and he wished he could be as expressive with his words as other men.
Maybe reading his emotions wasn’t enough.
He was worried his praises would either sound rehearsed or unromantic.
Candlelight danced on the colorful window beside him.
He pondered how all those broken pieces came together to make something beautiful.
Then his heart sank when he imagined himself sitting here in the future, only Quinn wouldn’t be across from him, and all he would have was this window and their memories.
Lately, those intrusive thoughts had been creeping in, so he took Tak’s advice by spending more time with her than researching.
Salem laced his fingers together and rested his chin on them.
He regretted how harshly he had treated Joy for choosing a Vampire as her mate.
At first, he thought she only wanted Atticus for protection.
Who falls in love that fast? Now he understood.
The devotion he felt for Quinn was beyond reason.
It wasn’t pheromones or lust or all the things he once attributed to love.
It was a deep longing for more, and a sense of completeness when she was near. A sense of home.
Time had become both his friend and enemy.
Behind him, a group noisily bustled in. The footfalls grew closer until someone clapped him on the back.
Tak’s head appeared next to his, a cheesy grin on his face. “How did the date go?”
“If you don’t mind, it hasn’t ended yet.”
Tak rested his arm on Salem’s shoulder. “Hmm. Empty chair says otherwise. Not a good sign.”
“She had to excuse herself.”
Tak laughed and sat across from him, arms folded on the table. “Need any advice? I’m here to offer my services.”
Lakota swaggered up. When he leaned forward and flattened his hands on the table, his long brown hair fell forward.
“Are you trying to offer love advice, brother? I have to hear this.” He smiled at Salem before straightening up and crossing his arms. “Did he ever tell you about the last girl he asked out on a date before my sister?”
Tak shot out of his seat and clutched Lakota’s arm. “Go find a table in the green room. Hurry, before the baby shifts.”
Salem glanced over his shoulder at Joy. She was using a compact mirror to fix a curl of her blond hair while Robyn made silly faces at the baby, who was in a carrier on top of a table.
Montana tipped his hat at a server. Meanwhile, Catcher was scratching his ear as if he had fleas.
When he finished, he gave his foot a good sniff.
Lakota flashed a bright smile. “Ask him about the bugs.”
Tak shoved him toward the front before returning to his seat.
There was no way Salem was going to let this dating story slide. “Either you can tell me your side now, or he’ll tell me later.”
Tak sighed. “Crickets are lucky. When I heard she lost her cucumber crop, I wanted to give them to her as a gift. I had the children collect as many as they could find and then put them in a small cardboard box. I went to her home, and before I left, I sneaked into her bedroom and left them beneath the bed.”
“Why there?”
“So she could hear them singing at night.” Tak leaned back in his chair and adjusted his silver bracelet. “They got out.”
Salem stroked his beard while pondering how many bugs that meant. “How big was the box?”
“Just a small box, like what they put cookies in at the bakery.”
Salem chuckled. “That’s a lot of bugs.”
Tak admired his turquoise ring. “Not lucky for her but lucky for me. All things led to Hope.” He held up his finger, signaling to the pack he would be a minute longer. After a quick glance at the decorative window, his brow furrowed. “Are you going to choose her as your mate?”
“What’s the point?” Salem asked in all honesty, his suit jacket suddenly too warm. “She’s dying. It feels like false hope.”
“The ceremony is to honor your love. No one knows what the future holds. It’s committing yourselves and sharing that love with everyone. You do love her, don’t you?”
Salem’s heart did a quickstep.
Tak gave a warm smile and leaned in. “I know that look. Carpe diem, my friend.” He stood and touched his shoulder. “Seize the day like there’s no tomorrow. Speaking of seizing, there’s ice cream downstairs with my name written on it. We’ll be in the green room. Enjoy your date.”
Salem twisted around to watch the pack cut through the kitchen and out of sight. It was good to see Joy bringing her baby out more often. Too bad Cleo hadn’t come along too. It might do her good to eat out once in a while.
Someone in the kitchen shouted, a plate crashed, and a man rushed out the front door.
“No flashing in the kitchen!” a man boomed.
Through the colorful window, Salem saw a warped image of the man standing in front of the restaurant.
A flurry of laughter came from two women who had been seated nearby. One of them flashed to the door while the other left a tip on the table.
He stared at his glass of ice water. Before his fingers touched the condensation, an ominous boom erupted from underground, sending a tremor through the entire building.
His stomach dropped when he heard muffled screams from downstairs.
“Get everyone out!” a man shouted.
Salem rushed into the kitchen and fought past a throng of people pouring from the stairwell, some bleeding. One man had a piece of metal protruding from his neck.
Salem jogged down the stairs into a dimly lit room.
The acrid smell and debris particles made it difficult to breathe without coughing.
He rubbed his eyes, which burned from the black smoke pouring from the fire to his right.
Candles were still flickering on tables, protected by their votive holders, but the emergency lights were flashing.
Once he got his bearings and worked out the location of the bathroom hall, he realized it was next to the burning carriage booth. Without another thought, he ran toward the smoke and flames.