“I spent most of it trying to pick up on all the town gossip with Lerana. Did you know the minotaur and the florist like to havesex in their greenhouse? Do you think they know people can see them?” Her face is honestly eating up every juicy tidbit that Lerana feeds her.
“You’ll be caught up in no time with that faun at your side, I have no doubt.”
“I hope so!” She nods toward the ground so I’ll put her down. She walks away from me, putting her bag on the dining room table. Suddenly, she snaps her head back to me, as if remembering something important.
“Also, Briarlee wanted me to tell you that she’s sorry—and also that she was right, and you should be thanking her, but I think we should focus more on the apology aspect of the message. Don’t you?” She looks at me hopefully.
That fairy has been on my shit list and rightfully avoiding me since she got Daphne drunk on that fairy wine.
“Well, I don’t know if I forgive her yet,” I huff.
“Hey! You’re not allowed to be grumpy.” She puts her hands on her hips and pouts in a way that drives me wild.
“And why is that?”
“Because I’ve got a date planned—I figure we’re far enough away from our first date now that we deserve a better start, don’t you?”
“I wouldn’t change a thing about our first date. It led to this—fairy meddling or not—and I wouldn’t trade this for all the snow on the mountain.”
A fierce blush spreads across her cheeks.
“Just lemme put on something cozy and I’ll be right back. We can head out after that, okay?” She rushes into the bathroom.
When she returns, she’s wearing a white oversized sweater and leggings. She swings her heavy coat over it all and grabs a basket covered with a large fleece blanket.
“Am I okay to wear this?” I gesture to the usual.
“As long as you’re comfy.” She winks.
What on earth are we doing? I’ve never had a woman take me out on a date, so I really have no idea what to expect.
“To the truck,” she announces before marching back out the door that she just came in.
“I assume I’m driving?” I grab the car keys off their hook by the door and follow her. “Doesn’t that mean I need to know where we're going? Or is the surprise just me riding around in the truck all night?”
“Well, I suppose I have to tell you now, don't I?” She enters the gondola cab and winks at Briarlee. “We’re going to the beach!” Filled with glee, she claps her leg with the one not holding the picnic basket.
I open the front door and a chilly, stiff wind sweeps into the cab and I shut the door. I sniff, something in the air has the hairs on my neck standing up. But I shake it off and turn back to the beautiful creature behind me.
“Daphne, it’s the middle of winter.” I’m confused on what’s supposed to happen on this date.
“Oh shush, it’ll be fun, promise!”
“Go right over there!” She points to a spot on the snowy beach that overlooks the lighthouse, and I steer my way to her preferred parking spot.
“You’re lucky I’ve got all-wheel drive,” I tell her as we bump over a few small dunes. Once we’re parked, I’ll admit the view is more impressive than I thought it might be.
“God, this whole town is so beautiful.” Daphne grins as she grabs items out of the basket.
The waves fall onto the shore, feeding the ice dams that are building right where they break. The effect of constantly building piles of ice makes it look like some kind of crystal fence.
“You know I’ve never been here before,” I say as she hands me a mug and pours steaming spiced cider into it.
“Really? You’ve never come down to the beach that’s only twenty minutes from your house?” She blinks slowly, her head cocked to the side.
That is until I remind her, “You know, snowmen don’t really love the warm weather. And no one’s invited me down in the winter, which makes sense. I think Ted’s the only one that comes close to my cold tolerance.”
“Oh duh, yeah that makes sense. Are snowmen and bigfeet like cousins?” She stuffs her mug into the truck’s cupholder. I follow suit, and she grabs her laptop—now freshly adorned with a variety of stickers—and puts it on the dash.
