The Whimsy Witch Who Wasn't - Donna Augustine Page 0,71
me on the streets, with nowhere else to go? We weren’t friends. We certainly weren’t more than that, but still, I’d felt some loyalty toward him for reasons I couldn’t fathom. I had to know if he’d be so callous and toss me out, if any of that loyalty was reciprocated.
Was he going to press me or tell me to pack a bag now and leave?
“Did you hold back?” he asked, leaning back, staring at me where he remained in the shadows.
There was a weird tension in the air, but with only the single candle, it was hard to read the expression on his face.
“No. He caught me off guard.” Would that do it? Would he kick me out now? I shouldn’t have explained.
He stood and walked closer, stopping a few feet shy of me.
“Maybe you can sleep on it,” he said, a gleam in his eye before he turned and left
That was it? No “get out”? No ultimatum? Just “sleep on it”? Had I somehow shown my hand? I must’ve, but damned if I knew how. Worst was, why did I constantly feel like I was playing patty-cake with a pro boxer?
26
I walked over to the table I’d claimed as my own, as if yesterday’s meeting with Raydam had never happened. It was business as usual, as far as I was concerned. I’d avoid answering Raydam for as long as I could, and I’d avoid telling Hawk my answer for even longer. And in that time? Hawk would eventually come to his senses, realize that there was zero I could do for him, and that would be it. I’d leave. I’d go back home and happily live in the shadows once again.
Zab put a mug of cocoa on my table with a smile. “Figured you might need it after last night.”
I smiled. “More than you can imagine.”
“Oh, I think I can imagine just fine. Was it as bad as I feared?”
“I’m sure it wasn’t good,” Musso said as he passed us on the way to his desk. “That slimy Raydam is never up to anything good. I’m sure our Tippi figured that out, though.” Musso gave me one of his rare smiles, and I returned it, not confirming what he already seemed to know.
Our Tippi. I’d never been an “our” or even part of a group. I’d always kept everyone at arm’s length, even Loris to a certain degree. It had been easier that way. When you got close to people, they asked you things, and my entire life had been an awkward secret. No people meant no questions and no awkward explanations.
But here, there was nothing to hide. Everyone was like me, with weird in their veins. Here, I had people. My life was an open book. Somehow it felt like maybe I had a place. Of course, it was only temporary, and I couldn’t let a hot cocoa and a smile make me crazy. This was not the place I should be.
“So?” Zab asked.
“It was okay, I guess,” I answered, glancing around and wondering why Rabbit wasn’t harassing me for answers, too. I’d thought she’d beaten me down here when I hadn’t seen her upstairs.
“I think she’s sleeping in,” Zab said, reading my mind.
I caught a glance between Zab and Musso. Before I could delve deeper, Hawk walked in.
He nodded at Belinda. She stalked him with her eyes but didn’t chase him around the office. She normally put on her running shoes when Hawk was around. Maybe she’d heard about the meet-and-greet, the awkward touch at the restaurant? Hard to know without crawling into her brain, but something had definitely shifted.
Hawk stopped in front of my table. “Go get your jacket and meet me outside. We need to go somewhere,” he said before leaving without any further explanation.
Belinda’s gaze met mine. Her eyes narrowed, and I could hear the list of mental curses that were being spewed my way. I went to get my jacket, all too aware that Belinda now stalked my steps.
I threw on my jacket, telling myself to not look Belinda’s way. That worked as well as expected, but what I saw threw me. Her stare had dropped to her desk as she sat there, slightly slumped over, not doing anything.
As much as I wanted to walk past her, something about her broken form stopped me. I’d been there. Maybe not over a man, but the hole she was in looked awfully familiar. Instead of walking out, I walked to her desk.