“It suits you.”
I looked in the mirror. “What was that?”
“The beard,” she said. “I had a werewolf friend, Conan, who’d always scratch his face like that right before he’d give up and shave. But you should keep yours.”
My heart lodged all the way in my throat, and I found it difficult to get a word out as my cheeks flamed red. “Oh, um. Thanks. Maybe I will.”
She looked out the window for a bit, and her stomach rumbled.
“Getting hungry?” I asked. It was an easy question, but once it left my lips, I suddenly had no greater desire than to feed her. She looked so thin, so tired. A meal would perk her right back up. The alpha in me was already purring at the idea of providing for her. “There’s a diner about twenty miles from here, if I remember correctly.”
Her eyes moved towards mine in the mirror. “As long as you’re paying. I’d consider it the very least you could do, given the circumstances.”
“If there’s one thing my bounties always say, it’s that I’m very generous.”
She gave me a curt nod, and a hint of a smile grew on her lips. “Then I accept.”
We started talking about books and movies, joking about how terrible most reality TV was, and arrived at the restaurant outside of Elmaris just as the sun set.
The building, wrapped in vines, squatted low beside the thick, towering trees it was nestled beneath, a neon sign readingThe Redwood Dinerflickering like a beacon in the growing darkness.
Inside, the evening rush was only just starting, and we were able to snag one of the last open booths. The air smelled like hot grease and coffee, and the sharp tang of pine-scented cleaner wafted from the sticky table.
An omega elf in a baby blue uniform dropped off our menus and took the order for our two drinks before heading off to tend to her other customers, and I began to look over the dinner options.
“I think I’ve been here before,” Sage said quietly, sticking to the all-day breakfast section.
“Oh yeah?”
“Yeah…” She didn’t look up, her eyes still scanning. “I came to Elmaris a lot as a kid.”
“Orithiel Blessed Hospital, I know.”
She stopped looking at the menu, her eyes narrowing as her gaze rose to meet mine. “How?”
“I found your purse at Sable Mansion. You left a hospital bracelet inside.”
She rubbed her hand on her chest, her expression sad for a moment before returning to her previous playful annoyance. “Wow. Do you have any idea how weird it is for a stranger to tell you point-blank they stalked you like it’s no big deal?”
“I didn’t stalk you,” I scoffed. “That would imply I was watching you from a distance or something. Itrackedyou. There’s a difference.”
She shivered, going back to the menu. “Still super creepy. I insist you let me snoop through your phone so I can drop some random, unshared fact about you into the conversation. Seems only fair.”
I unlocked my phone and slid it across the table. “Knock yourself out.”
Her face lit up. “Wait, really?”
“Sure. I’ll give you one minute of complete, unfettered access to my personal life.”
Sage gave me a suspicious glare. “What’s the catch? Aren’t you afraid I’ll call someone to save me?”
“However I answer that, I’ll probably sound like a real asshole. Let’s just go with a simple ‘no’ for now.”
Reasons being there were no higher authorities for her to get in contact with since I was legally allowed to have her in my custody, Morgana could still be sleeping off her attempt to stop me, and everyone else she used to know was, well…
So yeah, pointing all that out was just salt on an open wound.
She stuck out her bottom lip and shrugged, grabbing my phone and instantly tapping and scrolling away.
