“Of course,” I smile as I jot down the order. “Is there anything else I can get you?”
He turns his face toward me and grins. “Your smile has definitely brightened my day already. If that milkshake comes close to doing that, I'll be ordering more.”
I nod as I'm about to leave the table, but not without noticing that the man keeps his eyes on me. Even as I turn, the fine hairs on the back of my neck prickle as if he's still watching.
Shrugging off my wariness, I dismiss the feeling to the fact that I've been on edge all week. He's just a man whose date didn't go well, and he's here for a pick-me-up. That's all.
I take his order through to the kitchen when I see him signaling for me from his table. Returning, I'm ready with my pen to take his next order, but he barely gives the menu another look.
“So tell me, Miss Arianna,” he begins as he reads my name off the tag on my apron. “Are you seeing anyone?”
I gasp in shock at the direct question, which is way too personal for my liking. The last time I saw someone was a fewmonths ago, and he proved to be a creep who wanted too much, too fast, and I got rid of him just as quickly.
But that's none of the stranger's business.
Frowning as I lift my eyes to the stranger at table three, I tilt my face to one side, wanting to remain professional but also needing to set a clear boundary.
“I'm sorry, but I don't believe it's appropriate to be discussing my personal life, sir.”
“Naturally.” He chuckles nonchalantly as he leans back. “But I mean, pretty girl like you working in a place like this…” He leans forward and folds his arms on the table. “You must have many secrets, right? What is it that you're hiding? A child?”
My eyes widen with horror at how intrusive the stranger is being, my blood boiling just beneath the surface. Who does he think he is? It's no wonder his date didn't go well!
Just as I feel my pulse quickening and I'm about to snap at the stranger, a hand lands on my shoulder.
“Is everything alright, Arianna?” Warren asks as he steps forward.
“Y-yes,” I say as I narrow my eyes at the stranger. “This man wasn't sure what to order, so I guess he'll be leaving now.”
The strange man hesitates as his eyes flit between Warren and me, but he seems to get the message when he stands up, the chair's legs grinding against the tiles.
“I'll see you around, Miss Sanchez,” he says with a curt nod before leaving the diner.
As soon as he's gone, I let out the breath I'd been holding. I'd put on a brave face with the stranger, but I’m flooded with anxiety.
“Arianna?” Warren whispers gently as he turns me around with both hands on my shoulders. “What was that all about? Are you okay?”
“I—I don't know…” I fumble for the right words, overwhelmed.
Just because the stranger is gone doesn't mean that I'm not overthinking every bit of what just happened.
Why was he suddenly so invested in my life? Why was he asking me those questions?
I can’t shake off my wariness, the past few days keeping me on high-alert. I can’t let the slightest red flag pass me by, especially after my last encounter with a human man that shook me to the core. I’m extra cautious now.
Is he the one following me? The dark being haunting my mind at night?
Is he the reason why my inner wolf has been nagging me to go back home?
It feels as if my inner wolf reawakens in the wake of the peculiar encounter with the stranger, warning me that I need to get to my son quickly.
I look up to meet Warren's concerned eyes, and without hesitation, I ask, “Can I go home?”
The question seems to echo in my mind as if my inner wolf is clinging to it, reminding me of all the times it whispered that I needed to go home.
Not to my cottage behind Lyra's house in Salem, but the home I fled when I was rejected by Noah's father.
I gulp as I await Warren's response, expecting him to reject my request as he's done in the past. But there's somethingdifferent in the way he stares at me, as if he can sense my panic, my desperation, the urgency in my tone. He probably can see how spooked I am by the strange man, and he nods slowly.
