Page 56 of Nicolette

She grinned. “Hell yeah, I’ll take a ride with you.”

Seconds later, she was pressed to my back with her arms around my waist, ready to ride. Throttling the engine a few times just to make her laugh, we tore out of the parking lot and onto the main street. Knowing The Great Catsby was only ten minutes away, I decided to take the long route so I could enjoy the feel of her as we rode.

Chapter 22

Nicolette

We pulled up to the diner, and I laughed. There was a cartoon face of a lady cat all dolled up like she was going to some flapper party. I supposed with a name like The Great Catsby, it made sense to play off the classic novel.

The inside was your basic diner with the booths along the wall, tables in the middle, and a counter to eat at. Rambler led me to a booth tucked in the corner and would only fit two or three people at once. As I looked around, the place was clean and well kept, but it had that diner feel you didn’t get at any other type of restaurant.

A woman dressed in jeans and a T-shirt, with the typical server’s apron, walked up to us, setting down menus. “Can I get you two anything to drink? Coffee, water, we even have fresh orange juice today since it’s Saturday.”

“I would love some coffee,” I answered. “But I might need some of that orange juice once I figure out what I’m eating.”

“Sure thing, love. You want cream and sugar?”

“I’m good with it black,” I shared.

With a nod, she looked at Rambler. “I made sure your special glass was washed and ready to go if you decided to come by this morning. Anything other than the orange juice?”

“No, I appreciate you looking out for me, Ellie,” Rambler said with an affectionate smile.

While I didn’t think they were blood-related, I got the feeling they were family to each other.

“I’ll be back in a minute with the drink. Don’t rush her to pick just because you’re hungry,” she warned. “I’m sure she’s going to need a minute to look over things. Love, if he gives you a hard time reading all six pages of the menu, you tell him to shut the hell up.”

A bark of laughter burst out of me as I offered the woman my hand. “Ellie, I’m Nicolette, and I think you and I are going to be wonderful friends.”

“It’s a pleasure,” she said and gave my hand a firm shake. “From what I’ve heard from the early morning gossipers, I think you might be right about us being friends. Now I’ll go get your drinks.” With a nod, Ellie headed back to the kitchen, leaving me to tackle this menu.

She hadn’t been kidding about the six pages of food to choose from, and breakfast took up four of the six. Finally deciding on the sampler to get a little of everything, Ellie dropped off drinks, took my order, and headed back to the kitchen.

“Aren’t you getting anything to eat?” I asked, watching as Rambler took a sip of his orange juice. “Also, I’m going to need you to explain the story behind this fucking massive cup you’re drinking out of.”

He chuckled and sat back, kicking his feet up to rest next to me on the seat. “This is going to take a bit of backstory, but I promise it will make sense. As you know, shifters don’t have a specific age. They have their first shift since there are many factors that can make it happen early or later. I shifted for the first time at sixteen when my mom’s deadbeat loan shark tried to beat the shit out of me when I didn’t know where she was. My tiger decided that I needed backup, making my first experience as a shifter rather brutal.”

“I’m guessing the guy didn’t survive that meeting,” I deduced.

“You’d be correct. So not wanting to be thrown in jail or put down for being a feral shifter, I ran. Lived on the streets for a bit doing odd jobs here and there under the table or stealing when I got desperate. Then one day, I hit a new low and was dumpster diving for food behind this diner when Ellie found me,” Rambler explained, with a sad smile on his face.

“She knew what I was instantly and coaxed me into the diner, fed me, and called Viking to come over so he could talk to me. Since I had no idea who my father was and my mom was a witch, I didn’t know anything about the feline community. Come to find out, I could’ve gone right to the Savage Pride that first day and been offered protection from the authorities. Guess there’s a law about shifting in self-defense, and since I was a minor, it proves I truly was in fear for my life. So I took the long way around to get where I’m at today, but I managed it in the end,” he said with a shrug. “As for the cup, I was so malnourished, being a new shifter with no consistent meals, that I had to take supplements. After seeing what addicts are like, I fucking hate taking pills for anything, and refused to even though they were vitamins. Ellie decided to take control of the situation and ground them up in orange juice since I loved the damn drink so much. To make the whole experience special, she got me this cup.”

He twisted it around so I could see what was written on it. “I’m not obligated to tell you what’s in here.”

I had to quickly cover my mouth so I didn’t burst into hysterical laughter. “Oh, my God. That is the best fucking thing I’ve ever seen. You’re right, though. Without the backstory, it wouldn’t have been nearly as funny.”

“You could say Ellie is like my adoptive aunt in a way. She looked after me but also understood I was my own person who didn’t need to be smothered. Now that I’m part of the leadership, we don’t see each other as often, but I try to come by the diner once a week for breakfast,” Rambler shared.

Then something about what he’d just said struck me. “Hold up, did you bring me here to meet her? Are we at the point of meeting family?”

“No, Nic, that’s not why I brought you here,” he assured me. “I wanted to have breakfast with you, just the two of us. Plus, I figured it would kill two birds with one stone for you to learn more about the pride.”

I let out a relieved breath as I sat back. “Phew, because I’m not looking to add more people to the list that hate me right now.”

Rambler frowned. “Why would introducing you to Ellie make her hate you?”

“Isn’t that what mothers or parent figures do? They hate the women their kid’s date?” I reasoned.