“Flowers,” he said as he gathered his things.
Lucas frowned for a moment.
“What?”
Sergius looked over to him. “Flowers,” he said again. “You’re supposed to bring flowers on a date.”
Lucas looked around the table for some sort of confirmation, but the others had already moved outside.
Was that really a thing? It seemed like such a strange thing to do, but he wanted to follow the rules for dating.
Lucas clapped his friend on the back and grinned at him. “Flowers it is.”
Chapter Eight
Taylor sighed loudly as she sipped her hot coffee. The drink and her apple pie were about the only things keeping her going.
She was beyond exhausted. Her evening out hadn’t helped matters, but her distress mainly came from her constant worries over the ranch.
The day had been difficult. She’d forced herself to smile at the very people she knew talked about her and her family behind her back.
Though a large part of her wanted to tell them to stuff their heads up their asses, the ranch counted on the money. So she was trapped for the moment.
That truth didn’t just burn her ass. It hurt deeply, knowing the town she’d lived in her entire life had no problem turning its back on her family when they needed them the most.
If she’d done something to deserve their scorn, maybe she could understand, but leaving Dave? All because she dared to not stay with the hometown hero while he ran across the country screwing every woman who threw themselves at him. So much for small-town values.
Sure, there were a few people that had stood by her family, but they were few and far between. And even they had their limitations in the whole situation. They might empathize with her family, but when it came to day-to-day issues, they couldn’t be counted on to defend her or her father, like it would bring on more trouble than they wanted.
Dave and Doris walked around like they owned the damned town. Dave traded off his Minor League baseball fame. You’d think he was Mike Trout, the way he carried on.
His mother had made it her business to be in everyone else's business. She was involved in just about every committee in town, and if you were on her bad side, she had the means to make your life hell.
Taylor sucked in a breath. Courtney had taken a risk standing up to Doris. She only hoped it didn’t come back to bite her friend.
Taylor hated Dave, Doris and everything they stood for. It was people like them that gave small towns a bad name.
“Busy night?”
Courtney raised a well-manicured brow and poured a little more coffee into her cup.
Taylor sighed. She knew her friend was just trying to figure out what was going on. She’d been distant lately, unable and unwilling to unload all her problems onto her few remaining friends.
“If by busy, you mean sleeping, well, yes I was.” Taylor said and smiled sweetly back at her friend.
Courtney rolled her eyes. “Don’t give me that.” She frowned. “I want all the naughty details. I’m the only one not getting any around here, at least I should get to hear how amazing he was.”
Taylor chuckled. For being so sweet and girly-girl, Courtney always managed to surprise her with how upfront she could be with her feelings.
It was a breath of fresh air really. So often people tried to hide what they were feeling, but Courtney always said exactly what she thought. If anything, it made it easy to trust her. You always knew where she was coming from.
“I’m sorry to say there are no details to tell,” Taylor said and gave a defeated sigh. “All we did was kiss, and he tricked me into a date.”
Courtney set down the pot of coffee and frowned. “How exactly did he trick you into a date?”
Taylor’s face heated. Saying that he distracted her sounded lame, and she knew it. Although that’s exactly what had happened. Then he’d told her and run off.
“He didn’t give me a chance to say no,” she said finally before rubbing her temples.
Courtney gave a knowing grin. “And you would have? Said no that is?”
Taylor looked down at her cup. She’d been caught. It was doubtful she would have said no. Not after those kisses. Even now she could still fill his lips on her, more forceful than she would have thought for someone so easy-going naturally. His passion called to her.
The door to the shop chimed loudly.
“Shit,” Courtney mumbled.
Taylor looked over to the door to see who could make her friend, who normally didn’t curse, swear on sight.
An older woman in a white robe stepped into the place. She smiled at both of them, but the smile didn’t quite reach her eyes.
“Good afternoon,” the woman said.
She folded her hands in front of her as she stepped further in, some papers clutched in her hands.
“Can I get you something?” Courtney asked stiffly.
Courtney’s attitude surprised Taylor. As far back as she could remember, her friend had always been the warm and outgoing one of their bunch. The Azilians were odd, sure, but as far as Taylor knew, they kept to themselves and didn’t cause anyone any trouble.
Taylor didn’t exactly want to hang out around a bunch of crazy people obsessed with Atlantis, but at least the Azilians weren’t backstabbing her like most of the people in town.
“Coffee, please,” the woman said and sat on the stool next to Taylor.
Not really sure why Courtney would take issue with one of the Azilians, Taylor offered a small smile. The last thing she needed was more enemies.
The woman turned to look at her while Courtney gathered a cup and brewed a fresh pot of coffee.
Taylor turned into the woman’s awkward stare.
“You are at the ranch just outside of town?” the woman asked, her voice flat.
Taylor nodded, not really sure how much she wanted the strange woman to know about her.
“We have been thinking about seeking you out as a local supplier,” the woman said with a small smile.
Taylor wasn’t overly fond of the idea of working with some crazy cult, but money was money. Also, given their already strange beliefs, she doubted the Azilians would care that much about the opinions of Dave or his mother.
Taylor smiled politely. “We’re always happy to add new customers.”
The woman nodded, as if she were considering the possibility and went to drinking her coffee.
Courtney and Taylor maintained their silence, not really wanting to continue a private conversation about dating with another person so close.
The other woman seemed to not mind the silence as she sipped on her own drink. She gave them both smiles on occasion.
Taylor downed her coffee and gave a knowing look to Courtney. “We’ll talk more later.” She placed a couple bills on the counter.
Courtney nodded.
Taylor stepped out into the bright afternoon sun, welcoming the heat. Something about the Azilian woman seemed to suck all the warmth out of the air. She couldn’t quite figure it out. The woman hadn’t been rude, but she rubbed Taylor the wrong way.
Taylor pulled down the tailgate and hopped into the bed of her truck to check her cooler. The dry ice was holding well. The last delivery of the day was to the local market. Although they didn’t carry the ranch’s meat in the store anymore, the family still purchased meat for their personal use.
Before she wondered if the family was trying to help them out while avoiding annoying Doris. Upon reflection, Taylor thought it likely their patronage had more to do with their grown daughter Grace being in charge of the family finances than real interest in the ranch’s meat.
The sweet woman didn’t say much and wasn’t really one to go against her family, but this seemed like a sort of rebellion. Maybe when her parents were gone, Grace would stock their meats once again in the store.
“Excuse me.”
Taylor nearly fell out of the back of the truck in surprise.
She turned and found the
strange Azilian woman standing just on the sidewalk.
The situation had crossed into creepy land. She hopped down to the ground, closed the tailgate and approached the woman with caution.
“Yes?” Taylor asked. She crossed her arms over her chest and waited.
“Do you know my people?” The woman stepped forward but stopped when Taylor narrowed her eyes.
“I do,” she sighed. “And if you’re here to sell me religion—”
“No,” the woman said quickly. “I meant what I said about buying meat. We want to be careful about whom we purchase from. We understand that many of you are suspicious of us. You seem like a good person though.” She nodded once. “Mother Anassa would like to meet with you to discuss the terms.”
Taylor frowned. Mother? Were they like the Catholics? Maybe they had branches of holy people like that. She’d seen Azilian men in brown robes much like monks.
“Well, just tell Mother Anassa to give me a call and—”
“Oh no,” the woman said in a panic. “She only meets the people we do business with in person. That way she can better assess their characters. You must look someone in their eyes, she says, to know their true character.”
Weird. Not unreasonable but still weird.
“Please,” the woman said. She handed over a pamphlet. “Take this and just call the number listed. Mention your name so we can set up a time.”
Taylor took the folded paper. An odd symbol was on the outside. She hesitated for a moment, and it must have come across in her face because the woman stepped forward.
“You will be compensated for your time,” she said quickly. “We know that our ways seem strange, but you’ll find we can be good, honest partners.”
Taylor cursed herself for being so easily bought but couldn’t stop herself from stuffing the pamphlet in her back pocket. “I’ll give a call later.”
The woman gave a firm nod before stepping back. She walked back past the cafe to where she’d parked her car.
Taylor shook herself. As creepy as the woman was, the cult might help save the ranch.
She stopped a snicker. Doris would probably have a field day with the ranch supplying meat to the Azilians. Oh, well. Everyone had to eat.
It didn’t matter. Right now wasn’t the time to deal with this. She had meat to deliver.
Chapter Nine
“Can I help you, sir?” a store employee asked.
He shook his head, not wanting to draw more attention to himself than need be.
Lucas looked at the different plants on the shelf. Was there a certain protocol on what sort of flower to give Taylor? Sergius hadn’t been forthcoming with specific details.
A pretty purple flower caught his eye, and he placed it into the cart. He smiled widely, certain that she would like it either way.
He made his way to the front of the store and listened to the people around him. It always fascinated him how the people of the town could smile at one another and then talk about each other the moment their backs were turned.
Even when he was a tool of the Group, he was still expected to support the other hybrids. All this back-biting and personal politics, what did it get any of these people? He pitied them in a way.
An older woman loaded her groceries on the belt as she chatted with a teen girl behind the register.
“I’m surprised they do business with them at all,” the old woman said. “What is Gracie thinking?”
“She told me she doesn’t like being called Gracie. She wants to be called Grace.”
The other woman snorted. “So sensitive.”
The teen smacked her gum as she scanned the items.
“I think she just feels bad for them,” the girl said. “She’s always buying way more than they need.”
The old woman stopped loading the groceries and clucked her tongue.
“Not helping them one bit,” she said. “My nephew says that Mills Ranch will be lucky to survive another month.”
Lucas’s ears perked up at the mention of Taylor’s ranch.
“No one wants to buy meat from them,” the woman said. “Doris says it’s rancid anyways. They keep the best cuts for themselves and sell the rest.”
“Of course Doris is going to say that,” the teen said. “She’s Dave’s mother. Maybe she’s just telling stories.”
The other woman sniffed disdainfully. “Her being Dave’s mother doesn’t change the truth. If what she was saying was a lie, then why are so many people avoiding Mills Ranch?”
Dave’s mother. Lucas resisted the urge to scoff. That douchebag’s mother was poisoning the town against Taylor and her father?
Though an angry flame burned in Lucas’s heart, there was a better way to deal with this situation. He’d protect his woman whenever and wherever she needed it, however she needed it.
Lucas cleared his throat and smiled warmly at the two women.
“We’ve had nothing but the best from them,” he said. “And we buy a lot of meat from them.”
The old woman huffed, somewhat flustered at being caught gossiping, but the younger woman smiled back. A slight blush tinted her cheeks.
At least he could change the opinion of one of them. The other, he suspected, was friends with that hag Doris and wouldn’t believe anything that didn’t come from that horrid woman.
The woman opened her mouth to say something but stopped when the office door near the entrance opened, and Taylor emerged with another woman.
Taylor smiled warmly at the other woman, and he could only assume she was Grace.
She was a little thing. Her light brown hair was pulled back into a bun, and large glasses took up much of her face.
Matronly was the only word that came to mind, and he instantly felt bad for thinking it. Grace was obviously a good friend to Taylor.
Lucas hoped he would catch her attention, but Taylor seemed to be on a mission. He turned back to the checkout and was glad to see the hateful woman was already paying.
He had an opportunity. If he hurried, he might be able to catch Taylor.
Like they had all the time in the world, the cashier checked out his few items. Lucas strummed his fingers as he waited for her to make change.
She smiled brightly as she placed it in his hand, with far more contact than necessary. While he appreciated the attention, there was only one woman for him, and he needed to catch up with her.
Not interested in delaying, Lucas placed the items back in his cart and raced out the door. He unlocked his car and gathered everything quickly to shove in the back.
When he glanced around, his eyes instantly found her soft strawberry blonde hair as it peeked out from the bed of the truck.
He smiled widely as he stepped forward. Her tight ass was on display in her jeans as she leaned over in the truck bed.
“Need some help?” he asked slightly closer than he needed to be.
Taylor knocked her elbow against the side of the truck as she dropped back to the ground. She cursed.
“What the—” she began. She stopped when her eyes landed on him. “Lucas.”
He loved the way she said his name. Always like the breath had been knocked out of her. The sound of it made parts of him want to stand up and take notice.
He offered a relaxed smile. “Out on delivery?”
She looked back over to the bed. “Last one.” She hoisted herself back up. “Just securing everything.”
Lucas frowned as he noticed the paper sticking out of her pocket. The symbol was what really caught his eye. It couldn’t be a coincidence. Azilians?
“What’s this?” he asked and pulled the paper out without asking.
Taylor frowned at him, her arms crossed over her chest.
“You can’t just take things from my pocket,” she said.
Lucas ignored her and flipped through the folded paper. Much like they’d heard about the Azilians, the pamphlet expressed their passion for the lost city of Atlantis. The Atlantean gods were meant to rule the Earth they claimed.
The cult offered spots for select few, and many people willingly paid for those positions.
He looked up from the pamphlet to her in shock.
“What the hell is this?” he asked, shaking the paper. “You seriously are interested in talking with those people?”
Taylor snatched it back from his hand.
“I’m not converting. They just want to buy some meat from us,” she said and folded the paper back into her pocket.
Fear lanced through him. The hybrids had witnessed first-hand what happened to people who worked with the Azilians. People hadn’t just been killed, but liquefied into puddles. His heart pounded.
“You can’t,” he said quickly. “It’s too dangerous to work with them. You can’t trust them.”
Taylor froze, hand still in her back pocket as she stared at him. “Dangerous?”
He glanced around. There were too many people to expose secrets here. From what he’d seen, the townspeople turned on their own easily, let alone strangers. They obviously couldn’t be trusted yet.
“I can’t tell you more, but they are dangerous,” he said quickly and took her hands into his.
Taylor stared at him for a moment before shaking her head. “Don’t be so closeminded. They can’t be that dangerous if they are living here.” She pulled her hands from his. “Besides, it’s just business.”
Lucas frowned. She had to listen to him. “I won’t let you deal with them.”
Anger flashed in her eyes the moment the words were out of his mouth, and he knew he’d said the wrong thing.
“Listen here.” She stepped a little closer to him. “No one tells me what to do with my family business, especially someone I’m not even dating.” She poked a finger into his chest. “I don’t answer to anyone and especially not you.”
She spun on her heel and stomped her way over to the driver’s seat.
“Taylor, I’m—” he started.
It was too late. She was in her truck. It kicked up gravel as she peeled out of the lot.
The sound of carts being slammed into one another pulled him from his thoughts as he turned to see the small woman Grace gathering the few shopping carts in the lot.
Lucas: #3 (Luna Lodge: Hunters of Atlas) Page 5