Are you with Silva? Are you okay?
Lurielle if I don’t hear from you in the next fifteen minutes I’m reporting you missing to the resort
It had only been a few minutes since Ris had texted last, she noted in relief, thumbing a quick reply.I’m alive, you don’t need to call out the hounds.
ok, that’s a relief
I didn’t want to have to tell your mom where you were abducted
Lurielle snorted at the image of her mother’s horror. She imagined her mother would decide to move away, possibly sequester herself, becoming a priestess on some remote island versus facing her friends at the club after news got out that her only daughter had been elf-napped in an orc nudist colony.
I can’t wait to tell you everything on the way home
We have to be out of the room by 11, I’ll put our bags in the car
She felt a slight pang of guilt, leaving Ris and Silva to pack up her things, but she’d made a point to keep everything relatively neat in her bag. She’d simply have to do the walk of shame in last night’s dress...
Silva said she’ll meet us for brunch at that same cute place, ok?
Let’s shoot for noon
It was a few minutes before eleven, she noted. The walk from the resort to the little Main Street was less than fifteen minutes, and Khash’s cabin another fifteen beyond that...she had at least another twenty-five minutes to stay snuggled at his side, she decided, setting the timer on her phone and tucking back under the blanket.
The minutes seemed to elapse in a handful of seconds. Lurielle felt an uncomfortable thickness in her throat, felt the rush of heat in her face that indicated tears would be forthcoming as she silenced the vibrating alarm. She stared at his face pressed to the pillow beside her—his strong jaw and dimpled chin, thick black hair and expressive eyebrows. He was charming and handsome and completely out of her league.
She’d never been terribly good at goodbyes. Khash barely stirred when she slipped from the bed, tiptoeing to the bathroom to shimmy into last night’s dress. His breath seemed to stutter when she leaned back over the bed, pressing a soft kiss to his wide forehead, tears burning at the edges of her vision, but he remained asleep as she quietly pulled the door shut behind her with a click.
♥♥♥
Please tell me you didn't actually turn into a pumpkin
Her phone had buzzed shortly after the plate of food she didn't actually want was placed in front of her. Lurielle distracted herself with a bite of the orange blossom-infused crepes, closing her eyes to savor the delicate flavor, sipping her Bellini slowly. The sight of his name next to the notification on her phone's screen didn't surprise her, but she still felt her stomach flip all the same as she thumbed open the text.
I didn't
I had to meet my friends
checkout was this morning and the girls want to hit the road
There, she thought. Simple and straightforward, nothing to which he could take offense.
Why didn't you wake me up?
The question was accompanied by a frowning emoji with cross eyebrows, and she could clearly imagine his own thick, expressive brows turning down in the same fashion. Regret twisted her stomach as she pushed her plate away, feeling her face heat.
You looked very peaceful, I didn’t want to disturb you
It wasn’t a lie, she argued with herself. Hehadlooked incredibly peaceful, sound asleep as he was, not even stirring as she’d kissed him goodbye…Lurielle bit her lip, turning her attention to the big window and the street beyond as tears threatened her vision. There were several clusters of patrons outside waiting for tables, and she immediately recognized the harpy and her gaggle of friends, all looking worse for wear from the previous evening.
The small restaurant had been crowded each time they’d been there, but that morning it was positively bursting with patrons. Sightseers, like them, toasting their debauched weekends before heading back to their lives, putting the events of the last forty-eight hours behind them. Here and there were tables for two: women of varying species sitting with orcs, playing at gallantry after having their fill of the nymphs and goblins and were-folk all weekend. She wondered if Khash would have taken her somewhere that morning, had she stayed; amusing her with his stories and charm before bidding her an awkward goodbye on the sidewalk. Best that she’d left it as is.We’re all just pieces of meat,she reminded herself.You don’t need to feel guilty, none of this was real.
Ris asked if there was anywhere else they wanted to go and Silva excused herself from the table with a squeak. Lurielle contemplated that she ought to join Silva, knowing herself well enough to say with certainty that the two Bellinis and glass of ice water would make themselves known approximately five minutes after they’d pulled out of town. Before she could remove the napkin from her lap, her phone buzzed again, as their fork-tongued server dropped the check on the table.
I wish you would have woken me up
♥♥♥
“Silva?”
