by S. E. Babin
Until one night I'd seen him exit the back of a club dragging a blond woman behind him. I'd been hired by the owners of the club to do some work on their roof and my day had gone long. I was just packing up my truck when the door slammed and I looked up to see Harry and the strange woman. She was trying to get away from him, but he growled and his eyes went yellow. The woman meekly followed him. I couldn't make out what he was saying but he was angry and she was terrified. He raised his hand to her, cowering beneath him and a violent slap rang out in the night. I almost stepped out from behind my truck, but I was no match for a werewolf at the time and I knew I would only make the situation worse. I'd quietly removed my cell phone from my pack and was poised to dial for emergency services when he stalked back into the club. I'd ran over to the now unconscious woman, scooped her up, and placed her in my truck. I stayed with her until she was released from the hospital with a smashed cheekbone and bruises covering the entire side of her face. She allowed me to drive her home, but when I begged for her to contact the authorities, she beseeched me not to. She said Harry would kill her and her family if I did.
I didn't like it at the time, but I'd agreed. To this day it still stuck in my craw.
I never told Lila, but at our next appointment I beseeched her to look deeper at the man she married. From what I knew, he'd never abused her, but there was something deadly lurking in the supposedly mild mannered man, and him being out with Katie killed something inside of me.
About an hour later, I heard a key inside of the lock and I stepped out to see one of my assistants letting themselves in. He looked completely freaked out and rattled something off in Spanish. I shook my head. "Crazy, I know. Make sure you lock the door." He did, and in a hurry, before he crossed himself and bolted from the door.
I snickered to myself. I'd avoided answering the door for the last hour even though the bell had rang multiple times. It was a total shitshow out there.
I told my assistant where to pick up, and I did my best to concentrate on my job. My actual job. Worrying about Katie had taken up too much of my day today. I needed to pick up the pace and get my head back in the game. If I saw anything concerning about Harry, I'd become involved, but it was too early right now. I didn't want to overreact and make her think I didn't question her judgment.
I snorted at myself. Look at me, a modern man, not being all dickish and macho. I wanted to respect her space, but I also kinda wanted to smack myself.
11
The doorbell finally stopped ringing at 7 p.m. I'm not sure if there was some kind of unofficial truce time, but I was grateful for the reprieve. My house was full of flowers and the aroma was beginning to get downright overwhelming. I'd have to toss some of them tomorrow.
My lunch date, though I hesitated to call it that, with Harry went surprisingly well. He appeared to be kind and concerned on the surface, but my radar was on constant alert since Jeff. I think he knew it, too. Harry approached me hesitantly and a little bit sheepish. Part of me appreciated it, but the other part of me wanted him to be a little more assertive. Perhaps that would come in time. When he got to know me a little better.
I scoffed at myself. Like I was ready to get into another relationship. He'd just offered me lunch, not a diamond and a honeymoon cruise.
I was in the kitchen whipping up a batch of pesto when Martin finally emerged from the bathroom. Sheetrock was buried in his hair and he looked a little more disheveled than usual, like he had been fighting with something in the bathroom.
"How's it going?" I asked.
"Good enough." His tone was short and to the point. "I should be finished in a few days and I can move on to other projects in the house. A few weeks from now I can start on the outside."
I nodded. "Good to hear." I pointed at the food processor. "I'm making pesto. Should be done in a few if you want a bite to eat."
"No thanks." He picked up his bag and slung it over his shoulder. "I have an early morning ahead of me if I want to stay on track."
I studied him. Something was off. Especially in his manner. It was a complete 180 from where it was this morning. "Is something wrong?" I asked.
Martin shrugged. "I don't want to overstep my bounds here, but I just want you to know that one day, there's going to be someone who loves you despite the things you can do for them. You aren't meant to solve other people's problems. When you love someone, you stand by them, not solve things for them."
As I stood there goggling at him with my dirty pesto spoon up in the air, he snagged two fresh cookies from the batch I made earlier, rapped on the counter twice, and left as if he hadn't just said something completely profound and honestly kind of assholish to me.
Profound in that I needed to hear it. Assholish as in he was questioning going out to lunch with Harry today. Though I could be reading too much into it. Men didn't actually think that much, did they? Pesto dropped onto my bare foot and I cursed as the sauce squished between my toes.
As I cleaned my feet up, I pondered what Martin said to me. Did he know something I didn't? Was today as exhausting for him as it was for me? I stood up, tossed the rag into the sink, and leaned against the counter staring at the closed door. Martin was an interesting man, though I needed to remember to keep this professional. Well...as professional as I could considering our rocky start and me almost bashing his brains in with one of my good rolling pins.
The next morning I rolled into work a little late. I wasn't going to come at all, but I still needed money. I decided early this morning that I could deal with whatever life threw at me today. But when I entered my office and saw Harry sitting there waiting for me, it totally discombobulated me.
I stopped with one foot in the door. "Harry?"
He spun around and gave me a charming grin. Today he was dressed in a pair of slim fitting black slacks and a white button down shirt. Two buttons were undone at the top, giving me a tantalizing glance of golden chest. His lighter hair was style a little less messy today and his eyes had dimmed from a bright golden to more of a coppery color. He had his beast well in check today.
"Hey, Katie." He gave me an awkward little wave.
"Do you have an appointment?" I couldn't hide the suspicion in my voice.
Surprise widened his eyes. "No! I mean no, I'm not here for an appointment." His chuckle was self-deprecating and if I wasn't mistaken, he looked a little nervous. "I'm here to see if you'd like to have a drink with me after work."
I stepped into my office and shrugged off my jacket. He hurried over to help me with it and hung it neatly on the coat tree. I wasn't feeling all that great today. Making the trek into work today was strange to say the least. Everyone was staring at me and one person even had the nerve to run up to me to ask if I could give them the winning lottery numbers. So to say I was pissed off would be a slight misinterpretation of how I was really feeling.
And Harry...he'd thrown me off balance today and I wasn't sure if I liked it. "Oh, um..." I hedged as I bent down to stow my purse under the desk.
"Oh God," Harry said. "You're weirded out." He scrubbed a hand over his face. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to come on so strong." He gave a nervous laugh and grabbed his jacket.
"Harry."
He waved a hand at me. "No. No, this is my fault. I'm intruding into your personal space. Don't worry about it. I'll stop being creepy and try to think about how to approach this differently next time."
I couldn't help it. Nervous Harry was adorable. I laughed. "No," I said on a sigh. "Please. Come back in." I slid into my chair and sighed as my back hit it. "This week has been... a lot."
"No kidding," he said as he cautiously came back in and sat in front of me. "I can't even imagine. Do you still have an audience at your doorstep?"
I let out a snort. Boy did I. "I had to contact the police this morning. They set up barriers for me."
Harry winced. "It's like The Bachelorette with possible restraining orders."
I let out a snort laugh. "It's the worst, that's what it is."
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"Yeah," he agreed. "So about that drink..." Harry let out a loud chuckle and looked at me hopefully.
He was cute. It was too soon, but Harry was cute. And self-deprecating. And he had a good smile and an even nicer butt. A girl like me could do a lot worse than Harry. I pretended to think about it, but I'd already made my mind up but was trying not to sound too eager. "I guess," I said.
He clapped both hands over his chest. "I've never heard a more ringing endorsement!" He winked at me and stood. "I'll leave you to your work. How about I pick you up at 7?"
I nodded. "I'll be ready. Where are we going?"
He waggled his eyebrows. "It's a surprise. I'll tell you when we're on the way." He slid that adorable grin my way and slipped out of my office.
"Cute. Super cute," I murmured to myself as I helped myself to staring at his butt on the way out.
The rest of my day was kind of weird, but it went by pretty fast so I couldn't complain. My clients who came in were polite and professional, though I did know one of them who seemed super nervous to make her wish. I finally had to reassure her that the paperwork she'd signed before even stepping into my office contained a non-disclosure agreement and anything she wanted to discuss or ask of me would be covered by it. Except crimes. She let out a sigh of relief and relaxed. The other people who came in were strangers to me, so they were unaffected by the weirdness that was now my life.
When it was time to go home, I gathered up my stuff and stepped into the bar area. It was almost like a record scratched with the way silence mostly fell. I knew a lot of people in here this time, so I did the only thing I could do. I waved at them like an idiot, smiled, and hurried my way out to my car.
The only shining spot in my life right now, my car was a beauty. And something I'd never been able to drive to work because it would have given my identity away. It was a deep black, 1967 Chevelle in close to pristine condition. The transmission was standard, but I could live with it and had, in fact, gotten used to it, but I had it modified with a modern air conditioning and radio setup. It rumbled like a contented cougar and ran like a dream and every day I got to drive it made me want to hug it. I trailed my fingers over the shiny black hood, unlocked the door, and got inside.
I smiled to myself as it started up with a purr. I didn't have a lot of things, but my father had restored this for me and given it to me when I was supposed to get married the first time. When I tried to give it back after Lance had left, my father pulled me into a hug and whispered that he would have given it to me anyway, but my mother made him hold on to it because 'a woman wouldn't appreciate this car as much as her husband would.' We'd laughed because we both knew my mother didn't have a clue about the attachment someone could have for a car and then we'd taken off on the highway screaming rubber and blaring tunes for the next two hours. It made me smile every time I thought about it.
I made my way home and rushed into the house to get ready before Harry showed up.
Martin was still inside hammering the gods knew what. I waved at him when he glanced up and pushed my way into the bedroom to get ready.
Thirty minutes later I looked more than presentable. I'd let down my dark hair and brushed it with a little coconut oil until it gleamed under the light. My eyes were lined with black kohl and I'd pumped up the amount of mascara I wore. A little nude lipgloss and a bronzer, and I was ready to go.
I stepped out of the room and made a turn to go to the kitchen, but Martin was in the way. His eyes widened when he saw me and he dropped his paintbrush. He let out a harsh curse and rushed into the bathroom to get something, assumably to clean it up. I grinned at his back and went to get myself a glass of water. Martin came out with a rag and something else and proceeded to wipe every bit of paint up. When he finished he stood and color was present on his cheeks.
"Sorry about that. I was just surprised." He smiled at me. "You look amazing, by the way."
I felt amazing. "Thanks, Martin. A friend is dropping by to pick me up for drinks."
There was subtle change in the atmosphere. Martin's expression darkened for a moment before he gave me a grin. "Awesome!" he said, his voice too cheery for the moment. "Have fun! I'll just clean up here and get out of your hair."
"No hurry," I said, confused about the change in his demeanor.
Martin stalked away from me and I watched as he threw things into his bag. The doorbell rang, startling me. I watched for a second as Martin stalled, stiffened, and continued packing his bag as if he couldn't get out of here fast enough.
When the doorbell rang again, I moved away from him to answer it. Harry stood there, casual yet chic in a pair of dark wash jeans and a pullover sweater.
"I'm a little early," he said. "Sorry."
I motioned for him to come in. "No problem. I need to get a few things and I'll be ready."
I glanced over to see Martin standing in the doorway of the bathroom an absolutely murderous expression on his face. I frowned at him but he wasn't looking at me.
He was looking at Harry.
Harry, to his credit, seemed completely oblivious and was looking around at my place. Granted, it wasn't in the best condition right now, but it was starting to come together.
I excused myself, shaking my head at Martin's odd behavior. I grabbed my purse from the bedroom, took a final glance in the mirror, and slid a pair of low heeled kitten heels on my feet.
When I came back out, Martin and Harry were standing in front of each other. Harry reached out his hand and Martin paused a little too long before taking it.
I stepped in to defuse whatever situation was brewing and introduced them both. They shook hands, grudgingly on Martin's part. Harry tilted his head and a small look of confusion turned his brows up.
"I'm pretty sure I know a friend of yours," Martin said as he adjusted the bag over his shoulder.
Harry's face brightened. "Oh! I'm sure you do. I'm involved in quite a bit of charity work around the town."
Martin's smile was positively feral. "She doesn't live in this town. Her name is Lila."
The smile fell of Harry's face like ice cream sliding off a cone. He blinked for a couple of seconds and blanched bone white. I stared between them wondering what the hell was going on.
"Lila?" I inquired. "Where's she from?"
Harry stammered for a second before recovering admirably. "She's a woman I helped with a...situation. It's delicate." He gave a weird chuckle. "I'm not at liberty to discuss it, but I also wouldn't call her a friend."
Martin smirked. "It was nice to meet you, Harry," he said. He nodded to me, told me he'd be back first thing and left us standing there.
Harry stared at Martin's retreating back with an expression on his face I didn't particularly like. "Everything okay?" I asked gently.
He shook himself out of it. "Yeah," he said with a self-deprecating laugh. "Just a total blast from the past. None of my mutual friends know Lila. It was a long time ago." He opened his mouth to say something else, but then closed it and let out a harsh laugh.
"What is it?"
"It's not a big deal."
I rolled my eyes. "From whatever that was, it seems like it's a very big deal."
Harry rubbed the back of his neck. "Well, Lila wasn't exactly a friend. She's an ex-girlfriend."
Now that made a lot more sense. "Oh?"
"Things ended pretty horribly between us. I...ended up having to move because she was stalking me."
One of my eyebrows rose at that one. Why in the world would Martin bring something like that up? Perhaps he didn't know the whole story. I tried to gauge Harry's sincerity. On one hand it seemed like he was leaving a whole lot out. On the other, if this situation were true, I wouldn't want to talk about it either.
Suspicious, but unwilling to push things tonight because I really wanted to get out of the house, I scooped my keys out of my purse and headed to the door.
"Ready?" I asked.
He nodded, though I could tell he was still thinking about his encount
er with Martin. "Of course." He motioned for me to go first and pulled the door shut behind us.
Thoughts of Martin finally died off when we arrived at the newest Mixology bar in Midnight Cove. I'd read about this place in the paper, but I wasn't someone who liked a lot of mixed drinks. The concept seemed fun, too, especially since it was ran by a witch who supposedly could guess your favorite food and drink combinations just by looking at your palm. It was like fortune telling with a twist.
We walked into Madame Choice's and snagged the first table we saw. If we'd gotten here any later we probably wouldn't have been able to sit because people were starting to arrive in droves. I took a menu and started to peruse it when a tall, dark-haired woman arrived at our table. Her eyes were the color of a midnight sky and power swirled around her. When she spoke in her deep timbred voice, I sat my menu down because all I wanted to do was listen to her. When she smiled, her entire face lit up in joy.
This was a woman who enjoyed what she did. She explained the concept of the restaurant to us, told us we could order whatever we wanted from the menu because they had a full service bar, or she could have the bar create a special cocktail based upon our tastes.
I, of course, jumped at the chance to sample an original drink. Harry hesitated, but after some ribbing, he also accepted.
The woman pulled up a chair and reached for my hand. "My name is Charity Melange," she said. "I'm pleased to make your acquaintance."
I smiled at her and introduced myself as she studied the lines on my hand. After a moment, she looked at me, then back at Harry. She leaned in to whisper something to me. "All is not as you see it, Ms. Harper. Heed this advice for you will see the truth soon." Then as suddenly as she'd leaned in, she was sitting up straight in her chair and beaming at me. I blinked in surprise.