Gypsy Magic - J.R. Rain Page 0,31

nodded. “Hmm, it appears you do.”

Finn turned to face me and smiled broadly. “You ready, mom? I’m starving my nuts off!”

“Finn!” I said, shocked as Marty and Henner erupted in chuckles.

I watched my son beam at both of our new friends and something strange happened. A tingling started just above my breastbone and warmed me from the crown of my head to the tips of my toes.

Chapter Ten

From the outside, the Half-Moon Bar and Grill looked more like an old barn than a restaurant. A faded wooden sign hung above the entryway, script done up in big, block letters and punctuated with a silvery crescent moon. A set of creaking wooden stairs led to a side entrance and a screen door. My mouth immediately began to water as the smell of barbeque wafted out to greet us.

We’d invited Henner to join us, but he said he was too busy with the ghost box, which he’d packed up and loaded into the truck in the back of the shop. We’d left all the boxes and bubble wrap in the store, to be dealt with another day.

Now, Marty held the door for Finn and me, allowing us to step inside, ahead of him. Several unvarnished pine benches sat just to the side of the door, occupied by a happily chatting couple, a family with a squalling baby, and a group of gossiping teenagers. A perky blonde stood behind a hostess podium and beamed at us. She was young, probably not much over twenty-five and dressed in distressed jeans, a pair of cowboy boots, and a plaid top. She immediately smiled at Marty as we approached the podium.

“Marty! Look at you, mingling with the living!”

He returned the smile. “Hey there, Shelby. How’ve you been? How are Stanley and the kids?”

Shelby shrugged. “Same as usual. It’s the running of the bulls every day at the Stomper house.”

Marty’s smile was as bemused as mine. Ah, small town eccentricity at its finest.

“I had a reservation for three. Is the table ready?” Marty asked.

“Sure is,” Shelby said, giving him a glittering grin. She’d barely glanced at Finn or me, her focus all on Marty. Maybe that ought to have made me jealous. After all, I was here with him. Then again, she’d basically admitted she was married with kids, so I was probably just being silly.

Besides, Marty and I were just friends.

Right. And why did I have to keep reminding myself of that?

Shelby sashayed toward the back, gait long, leggy, and confident like a show horse that knew its paces.

The booth Shelby led us to was set just beneath a rounded window in the back. If you squinted, you could see a large pergola patio, sheltering a much nicer dining area outside. It allowed guests to dine al fresco and afforded a view of the sprawling countryside beyond. Water features decorated the lawn, alongside a few wicked looking garden gnomes. I could have sworn one of the little buggers stooped down to pick up a tree frog but, when I blinked next, the tiny bearded man was stationary.

Hmm.

Must have been a trick of my mind.

Kind of like the creature I’d seen in the graveyard and in my nightmares?

Yeah, that was a subject I’d firmly placed inside a tomb and sealed shut, never to see the light of day again. After I’d decided I couldn’t help the murdered man, even if he was posthumously reaching out to me, I’d changed the subject whenever my thoughts had returned to him or the nightmare visions. And, luckily, I hadn’t had the nightmare in a while.

Still looking through the window, I watched as the wind tossed yellow, orange and red leaves in the treeline beyond, dislodging several and carrying them to land elsewhere. This town really was beautiful.

And small. Really small.

The booth itself was built like a pew, low to the ground, with a wooden back and a padded bench seat. The table was unvarnished wood, topped with a napkin dispenser, ketchup and mustard bottles, and a sugar dispenser. All of which were pushed up against the faded red planked-wall. The paint job was peeling, but strangely, it didn’t detract from the decor. A glance up revealed the bare beams of the rafters. The whole place was rustic and charming, honest and without pretense. I found it oddly refreshing.

Shelby slid three shiny menus beneath our noses and gave us all another of her professional smiles. “Seraphina will be your server tonight.”

Marty’s eyebrows bounced up. “Fifi? She’s working here now?”

“Sure is,” Shelby