Chapter 10 #2
“What can I say? Some of us are born charismatic.” Oban proceeded to shake his head and lift his snout, as though he was preening for me.
“Why can I hear you talk?”
“Because you’re magick, aren’t you, Faelan?” With that, Oban trotted to the door and waited, glancing back over his shoulder to see if I would join him.
“I have so many questions.”
Oban didn’t respond and I took that to mean that he wouldn’t be the one answering them.
Which was fine, really, as it wasn’t his job to explain the workings of the magickal world to me, and Eriska had always impressed on me to be grateful for any communication that an animal chose to give me.
Hounding them for answers rarely worked in my favor, and if anything, closed them off more.
Opening the door, I stepped outside and crossed my arms over my chest, raising an eyebrow at Luch.
He just gave me a cheeky grin.
Damn it, but why was this man so good-looking? A part of me wanted to slurp him up like an icy-cold lemonade on a warm summer’s day. But I was going to ignore that part of me and wait for him to speak.
“Good afternoon, Dr. Fletcher. Fancy a picnic?”
“I suppose so. As you mentioned, I do have to eat.” I surprised myself by answering. I’d been certain I’d tell him that I was busy, yet that smile of his was weakening my defenses.
“Fantastic. Need a moment to change?”
“I do.” I glanced from where he leaned against his car to the stairs to my flat.
It would be rude to leave him sitting outside if I planned to go out to lunch with him.
A normal person would invite their friend inside to wait.
I was taking a stab at normalcy here, settling in, making friends and all that, so it would be the expected thing to do to ask him to come upstairs.
“Would you like to come up while I change?” I asked, reluctance obvious in my voice, and his grin widened.
“Love to. Thanks.” Luch snapped his fingers at Oban. “Come on, lad. The dragon is inviting us to her inner sanctum.”
“Bloody hell. I am not a dragon,” I growled and Luch chuckled, the sound warming my core, and I stomped upstairs. I was not my normal self around this man. I ran into doors, growled, and always felt like I was off-kilter. Or one step behind. Either way, he unsettled me.
A bundle of flowers sat at my doorstep.
Grabbing them, I whirled, and came face to face with Luch. I was one step above him, the height difference aligning our eyes, and my breath caught.
“Are these from you?”
Luch’s lips quirked.
“Charming flowers for a charming woman.”
My eyes squinted. Did he know? Why did he phrase things that way?
Fumbling with my key, I unlocked the door, trying to ignore his large presence at my back even though every nerve in my body seemed to tingle when he was around.
There was this palpable energy about Luch, like he was a fire to warm my hands with, and I blew out a breath as I stepped inside my flat and flipped the kitchen light on.
Crossing inside, I put my tote bag and keys on the kitchen counter and turned to Luch.
“I’ll just be a minute.”
“Take all the time you need.” Luch wandered toward the windows that overlooked the loch, Oban sniffing the blanket on the couch. The dog’s ears perked, and he turned his head to meet my eyes.
I suspected he smelled Gloam.
Bloody hell, I’d forgotten to warn the fox we were coming. He was nowhere to be seen in the living room, but that didn’t mean he might not be curled up in the bedroom. Darting over to the bedroom door, I eased it closed behind me and looked desperately around for Gloam.
“Why are there dogs in here?” The way Gloam said it told me everything I needed to know about his thoughts on dogs. Mortal enemies the two were.
“I’m sorry,” I whispered as I crossed the room to stroke his head. He was curled between my pillows, just his wee snout sticking out. “For what it’s worth, I think he’s one of us.”
“I’m not interested in finding out.” Gloam glowered at me, and I couldn’t blame him in the slightest.
“Just stay here then. I’ll get them out quickly.”
Gloam buried his head again, effectively hiding himself, and I dug out a pair of jeans and a loose blue jumper to change into.
Pausing to look in the bathroom mirror, I debated unplaiting my hair and running a brush through it, but then I didn’t want Luch to think I was trying too hard for this date.
Even so, I couldn’t help but dash a bit of mascara on and put a touch of gloss at my lips.
Stopping at the bed, I reached into the pillows and gave Gloam’s ears a scratch, before I grabbed my handbag and left the room, pulling the door almost all the way closed.
Luch stood by the windows, arms linked behind his back, staring out at the loch.
“I’m ready.”
He reached down and picked up the picture. “Is this your mum?”
“It is.”
“She’s beautiful.”
“She was, yes.”
“Och, I’ve stuck my foot in it, haven’t I? I’m sorry, Faelan.”
I shrugged one shoulder, never certain what to say when people I didn’t know all that well offered condolences for someone they’d never met. Luch put the frame down and turned to gesture at the bare walls of my flat.
“How long have you been here now?”
“Um, I don’t know. Two months?”
“Place is a bit spartan.”
That was the understatement of the year.
Aside from the flowers I had in a vase by the picture frame of my mum on the table, I had no other decorations in the room.
Remembering the new bundle of flowers he’d given me, I went to a cupboard and opened the door, considering my options.
There were more coffee mugs than glasses, and even at that I had five to choose from.
Picking a chipped green mug, I filled it with water and added his new bundle of flowers, crossing to put it on the windowsill.
“I haven’t had much time to decorate.”
“Is that so?” His tone suggested he had a lot of questions. “You didn’t move any of your household stuff with you? Rugs? Art?”
I shrugged again, noncommittal. “My practice consumes my life.”
“I get that. But even I have had time to decorate.”
“You don’t run your own business, though, do you?” My voice had a sharp edge, warning him to back off, and he seemed to understand he was treading on difficult territory.
“What would you do here?”
“Huh?” I turned from admiring the flowers to see him staring at the blank wall next to the small bistro table set.
“Like in here? If you had the time to decorate?” Luch waved a hand at the living space and even though I really wanted to bundle him out the door, particularly because Oban was sniffing around my bedroom door, I paused to answer his question.
“Paint,” I said, tilting my head at the plain white wall. I’d lived in enough boring places now to crave color and character. “I’m sick of white walls. I’d do something dramatic, like maybe a deep navy. And then pop colors with pretty rugs and cushions, maybe some colorful art prints.”
“Do you lease? Did this come with the practice?”
I moved to stand by the door, picking up my keys and jingling them, the international signal for I’m ready to leave.
“It’s mine.”
Luch whistled for Oban, and I opened the door, ushering them out, and then closed and locked it behind me, letting out a small sigh of relief.
I couldn’t say what would have happened had Oban found Gloam, but the last thing I needed was for a chaotic dog and fox chase around my flat all while trying to explain to Luch why I had a pet fox.
“Surely you can paint then? Since it’s yours?”
“Huh? Oh, the decorating?” I pulled my thoughts back to the conversation as I followed Luch down the stairs, trying not to fixate on his broad shoulders. “I suppose I could, yes, if I find the time.”
“What are your hours?”
“Every weekday. Half-day Saturday. Closed Sunday, though I’ve been putting in half-days because I often end up dealing with emergencies anyway.”
“Busy lady.” Luch held the back door open for Oban, and the dog jumped dutifully in the back seat.
He hadn’t spoken to me again, keeping his thoughts to himself, but I still had so many questions for Luch.
If I could work up the courage to ask him.
Did he know his dog could talk? Maybe not.
That was also a strong possibility. Maybe I was assigning potential ideas to Luch that weren’t even a possibility.
Now that I thought about it, surely there were plenty of pet owners that had no idea that their animals could communicate.
Luch was likely one of those, not some hidden witch like I was, which was also why he was so suspicious of my powers.
If he was a witch, or had any type of power, he’d just identify himself and ask me about it.
Like Sophie had.
Getting into the front seat, I waited as Luch rounded the bonnet and slid inside the car, turning to smile at me.
“Ready for an adventure? We can’t go far, as I’m on call, but just a wee hike to show you a favorite spot of mine.”
“Sounds good. If the weather holds.” Glancing at the sky, I noticed the clouds that clustered over the hills in the distance. The only thing predictable about Scottish weather was that it was unpredictable, having a mood all its own.
“Don’t worry. It’s not far, and I’ve got umbrellas.”
“Prepared for everything, are you, Dr. Carmichael?”
Luch slid me a grin, his eyes full of heat, and winked.
“Always.”