by Sara Stone
"Let me just go grab some wine, and I will follow you home," he said, brushing a kiss to my forehead, "What are we having?"
"Lasagna and molten chocolate cake," I stated proudly. I had never cooked for a guy I was dating. Potlucks at work didn't count as everyone ate it. The time Judson was over, he had cooked for me, so that didn't count either. I tried to ignore the thought of him and move on. I knew Brad liked Italian food, so I had lucked out with my pick.
"That sounds delicious. I'll just go grab a bottle of wine and meet you in the parking lot." He strode off with his usual confident swagger. I noticed he was dressed down more so than usual. He had on a collared t-shirt instead of his typical dress shirt. His pants were dark black faded jeans with dark sneakers. Relaxed clothes looked good on him.
Hattie instantly turned to me with a giant look on her face wiggling her eyebrows. I rolled my eyes, and we both fell into a fit of giggles as we checked out. The cashier was laughing as we egged each other on. I was grateful for the distraction. I was even more nervous now that Brad would be joining us. I didn't know Ronan, so if he didn't like my cooking, it wouldn't be too bad, but if Brad didn't like my cooking, and we were sort of dating, that would be embarrassing.
Chapter Eleven
We loaded up the groceries and headed to my place with Brad following behind us. He had grabbed a bottle of cabernet sauvignon, which he claimed would go great. I wouldn't know.
Pulling up to my house, Ronan was already there waiting with a six-pack of an orangey Belgian ale, which I loved with a nice orange slice. Brad parked behind his work truck. When he got out, the guys did that sizing up thing that they do and eventually shook hands, putting Hattie and me at ease.
When I walked up to the house, the guys stood just outside the wards for a minute, lost in conversation, making me wonder if Ronan somehow had magic. As Brad stood there, he was cracking his knuckles on each hand while tapping his foot. His energy was off-putting while he tried to look impassive in the conversation.
I pulled Hattie inside to get dinner going instead of standing watching the guys interact all night. She got to work searching for mixing bowls while I cooked up the sausage and then helped me get the lasagna started, so it wouldn't take forever. I went out and pulled some tomatoes for the garden along with garlic to roast while we cooked the noodles and mixed up the ricotta.
When that was finally in the oven, we went to work on the cakes; well, she did anyway. She had me watch as she wanted to make sure they were perfect. The guys were left to their own devices as we did our thing in the kitchen. Their idle chatter flitted in and out of the kitchen.
At one point, I started laughing as I was doing dishes. I had looked over at Hattie, who had chocolate smeared across her face. It wouldn't have been so funny, but she seemed so intent on getting the cakes right. She looked at me like I was crazy until I showed her what she looked like with a picture, then we fell into another round of laughter as we cleaned up our mess and put the cakes into the oven.
The guys came in and sat at the table with us. We saved the wine for dinner, drinking the beer instead. When Ronan produced an orange to go in the glass, I could have kissed him or had Hattie give him one. It wouldn't have been the same without it. Brad passed, stating he didn't like beer, which caused Ronan and me to choke on the frothy goodness. Hattie was all for the wine, so she waited until we brought the food out.
I tossed up a quick salad for a side dish, and we all chatted around bites of food.
"Ugh. I can't stop eating. If I had known I was going to be fed this well, I would have made sure to fix more than your window," he said, heaping his plate with seconds.
"Which window?" Brad asked.
"Oh, one upstairs," I said, trying hard to seem relaxed about it. Being different now and having to keep secrets would take some getting used to.
"You could have called me. I would be happy to help you out," he said.
Although it was a sweet offer, there was an undertone hinting he didn't want me to ask other men for help. Ronan jumped in to save me from floundering on what to say. Brad didn't look like the manual labor type, and I didn't want to point that out. I wasn't sure how he thought he would help, but seeing the damage would have brought up questions I didn't want to answer.
"It was no problem to help out. That's what I do." He smiled at Hattie, who then returned the smile. It was clear they had some chemistry. So clear, in fact, that it was heating up the room.
Brad looked physically uncomfortable at Ronan's declaration. I wasn't sure what part made it so, but I tried to ignore it. Hattie was stuck on Ronan and not really interested in Brad even being there. Not so far as ignoring him, just too distracted to notice.
"How did you meet Ronan?" Brad asked, filling his glass up with wine before leaning back in his chair.
"He is a friend of a friend," I wasn't happy with Judson, so thinking of him and our fight made me want to change the subject. I had to bite the inside of my cheek to keep myself from saying anything further or bringing up that we weren't friends anymore. Hattie gave me a sad smile as if she could read my thoughts.
"I am happy that Judson sent me over to help out these beautiful ladies. Look what a great meal I got to enjoy in their company." Ronan was speaking to Brad. I couldn't tell if he was being sincere or using it to rile him up.
"And Judson is who again?" Why was Brad so concerned with who my friends were and how they helped me out? I didn't want him to be jealous as there was no reason to be, but some guys could be weird like that.
"He is a guy my gram hired to take care of the house. We just sort of became friends after that." I was only explaining myself to put his unease at rest. His attitude about it was putting a damper on my night. I had already dealt with so much stuff that I was ready to send him on his way.
"We have been friends a long time. He is a good guy but very much taken, so no need to be worried about him in that department," Ronan added. My heart stopped as my stomach fell to the floor. I tried to put a mask on so my unintended disappointment wouldn't show at Ronan's comment. It's not like I was really interested. I was dating Brad.
"I wasn't worried about that. Just wondering why she called a friend instead of her boyfriend." Well, that was awkward. I had no explanation other than magic for that one. I couldn't help but feel excited and peeved that he assumed to be my boyfriend, having never consulted me with that information.
"She called him because he knows this house since he fixes it. It had nothing to do with her not wanting to call you," Hattie said, gently. That was a little bit of a save. At least she thought quickly on her feet because I was still sitting there wondering why this was even happening. I didn't like Brad being upset about not being called over. Not because of his feelings, but the insinuation of me wanting other guys over. I snarkily wondered what he would think of Ulric constantly training me.
"That makes sense." Brad used those words to try to smooth out my ruffled feathers as he reached for my hand. I let him hold it although I had to restrain myself from pulling away. This was not how I pictured this going, and my reaction to him was not the one I was looking for.
The oven dinged as the cakes were ready to come out. Hattie flew around the kitchen, topping them off with ice cream before putting one in front of each of us. I wanted to do it all for her, but I could tell she was on a mission.
The rich hot chocolate cake hit the spot. Eating my feelings was usually how I did it. The hot cake with a bite of cool vanilla ice cream was easing away the tension that had inadvertently built up. By the time we had all finished up the cake, we were leaning back in our chairs, wondering how we all ate so much. I thought everything seemed to have been smoothed over. I started to relax again until the conversation picked up in another uncomfortable topic.
"So, Brad, how do you know Dahlia?" Ronan asked.
"You can call me Lia," I added before Brad answered, after his eyebrow perked up, and he glared at the other man for a split second.
"I kno
w Lia from school. I was in her math class," he smiled at me as he said it. It was a boyish smile. It made me feel all warm and fuzzy until it hit me that before he had said it was chemistry that he had with me.
"You must have been in a few of my classes. That makes me feel worse that I still don't remember you." His eyes widened for a moment, glancing around at us. He fidgeted in his seat, looking suddenly uncomfortable.
"I was, you wouldn't remember me since you kept so much to yourself." He said it almost in an accusatory manner before laughing it off. For a second there, I thought he had been serious. It had been such a strange day I figured I was looking too deep into things. My imagination kicking in over nothing.
We all tried to chuckle along with him, but it was past the point of being lighthearted. I hadn't been the only one to notice the misstep on Brad's part. Ronan glanced at Hattie before excusing himself for a moment.
Hattie and I chatted about exchanging recipes while Brad generously started clearing the table. I offered to pack up leftovers to which he declined. We went about cleaning up before heading into the living room. Hattie made a point of sitting on the loveseat with a spot open for Ronan. Brad sat beside me with his hand on my thigh. I wanted him to move it, feeling suddenly too close to him.
Ronan came back down the stairs with a severe look on his face. Something in those few minutes had changed. His easy-going banter seemed to have been switched off. His mouth slightly drooping in a frown instead of showing off his laugh lines around his eyes as it had before. He sat next to Hattie but left some space between them. She looked slightly disgruntled about it while her demeanor changed along with it.
"Let me grab everyone something to drink," Brad offered. I should have been the one to do it since it was my house. Gram would be disappointed in my hostess abilities.
He left the room to fetch the drinks, and Ronan leaned forward, putting his elbows on his knees and linking his fingers together.
"Lia, is he normal?" he asked, in shock.
"What?" It was like ice water being grilled by him. He was Judson's friend, though, and he was never happy about my dating situation.
"Is he normal? As in non-magic?" He asked again, in a slight whisper.
"Yes, not that you should be worried about it. Shhh." I had no idea why it was any of his business. His question rubbed me the wrong way.
"Do you really not remember him?" he asked, raising his eyebrows. Hattie squirmed in her seat.
"No, but I didn't hang out with anyone in school, so I wouldn't remember anyone."
"Hmm."
"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked, just as Brad came out with a couple of beers and two glasses of wine. He passed them out and sat down, taking a slow sip of his drink.
"What is what supposed to mean?" Brad asked. Crap.
"I was just telling her that I will have to come back to inspect her other windows to make sure they don't need to be replaced too," Ronan answered, leaning back and putting his free arm around Hattie before taking a long swig of his beer.
"Uh yes, I was just concerned the other windows would have an issue too," I tried to add to Ronan's quick thinking cover but faltered to the point where I started downing my beer, looking anywhere but at Brad. This was going just swimmingly. It was becoming draining, and I hoped the night would end soon.
Brad just nodded. It was getting harder and harder not to give anything away. I wanted to think I could date someone normal while not being so myself. I had a flash of Bewitched and everything always going wrong with Samantha. There was the possibility of him warming up to it, I hoped. Not that I knew where this was all going, but maybe he was someone I could see in my future if I could keep everything from falling apart at the seams.
When it was time for him to go, I walked him outside, away from prying eyes. Not that they were nosey, but the change in Ronan had thrown me off. I just knew Hattie would ask for all the details anyway.
"Promise you will cook for me again. That was delicious," he said, rubbing a hand across his belly.
"I promise." I couldn't help but laugh. I could only cook a few things, so he would get tired of them quickly.
He leaned in and gave me a quick kiss on the cheek and walked down the steps. He turned around and came back up.
"Who am I kidding? I can't leave without a real kiss." He kissed me softly for a moment. It was tender and heartwarming. I put my hands around his neck as he leaned into the banister pulling me with him so that I was flush against his body. My heart started to race as the kiss went from timid and soft to intensely hungry.
By the time we pulled away, I was breathless, and my lips felt swollen. His hair was a mess as I had been running my hands through it. We both laughed a bit as we straighten ourselves up.
After he drove away, I walked inside feeling like I was floating on cloud nine. The kiss at the end of the night made up for all the issues throughout, but then again, he wasn't aware of half of them. I walked in with a silly smile on my face, which fell away quickly as I saw how Ronan looked at me. Uh Oh.
I really wanted to avoid whatever it was and let the night end on that perfectly acceptable toe-curling moment, but I knew that wasn't going to happen. I plopped onto the couch the opposite of them, waiting for whoever was going to spill the beans first. They looked at each other as if they couldn't decide who would tell me which one ran over my cat. Not really, as I didn't have a cat, but I could see uneasiness in the way they were looking at me with a mixture of pity and concern.
"Lia, I know people that went to school with you, and there was no one with his name that went there," Ronan blurted out.
"What?" I asked, not understanding what he was saying to me.
"Brad is a popular name, and yet there are no records of him ever going to your school."
"How would you even get that information?" I asked. I racked my brain, trying to figure out what classes he took with me. Ronan's statements hit me like a ton of bricks. I was instantly put on edge.
"I went to school years ago. Whoever you got that information from was wrong." I sat there with my arms crossed, feeling defensive.
"Part of my job is to get information like this. I am never wrong when I get a gut feeling on someone, and that guy is trouble," he said.
"Look, I don't really know you, and I appreciate the help, so I am going to try to say this as nicely as possible, but you have no right to look into my background or his for that matter."
"It is, though. I work with Judson, and when we did a background on this guy, nothing came up. No records at all of this guy existing anywhere. Everyone leaves a trail even when they don't want to. This guy is a ghost."
Of course, he worked with Judson. He was the one that sent him over to fix the window. I wasn't surprised Judson would stoop to this level, but I was surprised that Ronan was here in my house telling me such bullshit.
"You came over to fix a window, not play FBI on someone I am seeing. My dating life is none of Judson's business or yours, no matter if he sent you over under the guise of helping me," I said through gritted teeth. It was getting hard to keep my temper in check. Even when Judson wasn't talking to me, he was sending someone else over to play protector.
"I did come to fix your window, but Judson's job is to protect you. When you are dating someone that is so far off our grid that he doesn't exist, that spells out trouble, and you need to be on guard with him. Or just not see him at all." He didn't seem bothered at all that he was sitting in my house telling me he is Judson's spy. He was serious and no nonsense, the polar opposite of how he had been, like it had been a ruse to get my guard down.
Hattie was staying out of it, and I appreciated her for it. She had heard the fight with Judson earlier, so it was easy for her to see why this was rubbing my last nerve. Ronan, however, sat there like his word was law. He was sadly mistaken if he thought I was just going to take his word for it. I had known Brad a bit longer than I knew him, and I wasn't going to sacrifice my dating life for him or Judson, no matter w
hat they said.
Ronan took my silence as a sign he outstayed his welcome. He said his goodbyes and made his way out. Not before making a last stand on his gut instinct.
"Lia, I really hope you listen to me. I'm seldom wrong about someone. Hattie, it was pleasure darlin'," he said, giving me a sad smile and sending a wink Hattie's way before closing the door behind him.
I refused to react to any of his information. I wasn't going to be suspicious of Brad or let Judson continue to upset me. I instead wiggled my eyebrows at Hattie, instantly sending the tension out the door with Ronan as she swooned in her seat, fanning herself. We chatted a bit about her crush on him as we went about getting the house picked up from dinner. I kept teasing her by calling her darlin' or sending her a wink, which would end up with us laughing or her smacking me on the arm for teasing her.
We ended up just lounging about, browsing channels on the TV when she went stock-still. Her eyes went white as they rolled into the back of her head. Her mouth was moving as if she were talking, but no sound was coming out. She stood up rigidly as she climbed the stairs into the witching room. I couldn't help but just follow along quietly. I watched in fascination from the doorway as she held her palm towards the bookcase, moving her arm from left to right shelf by shelf. Her face twisted into anger as she went to the table with a few books on it, including Gram's grimoire. She passed her hand across those with the same outcome. Whatever she was looking for wasn't there.
She walked around the room quietly, still mouthing words, her face marred with frustration as she paced. Suddenly she stopped over a floorboard, holding her hand straight down. She fell to her knees and started to try to pry the floorboard up. I ran to the desk and grabbed a flat head screwdriver that had been left there.