Edge of Night (33 page)

Having Luca at her side made her feel more relaxed than she had in a long time, but she squelched that thought. It was just because he was armed and dangerous and playing the role of her bodyguard.

Yeah, right. Even her mental protestations were weak. She was
so
going to get her heart drop kicked before this was all over.

“This way.” She grabbed his arm and pulled him toward her favorite vendor. He followed along easily enough, but she noticed his gaze swept the people around them constantly, and he positioned himself between her and the crowd. Protecting her from any possible attack. Her heart tripped and she had to fight the urge to shove him out of harm’s way—to protect
him
.

A foolish idea, considering their wildly divergent training and abilities, but the need to keep him safe was strong, and she wished once more that he hadn’t insisted on sticking around. What would she do if anything happened to him? Emotion tightened like a band around her chest, squeezing the breath out of her. It was all she could do not to double over with the sudden lance of pain to her heart.

“
Tesorina mia?”
Luca’s warm hand closed around hers. “What’s wrong?”

She realized she’d stopped in the middle of the walkway, and she had no idea how long she’d been standing there, staring into space. Shaking herself, she tried to smile, but doubted it came anywhere close to the real thing. “Sorry. Let’s get moving.”

She made a beeline for the fish market and tried to tug her hand free from Luca’s but he held firm. The turmoil within her was overwhelming. She wanted to escape the developing feelings she had for him, and she wanted to keep him closer and quit fighting a losing battle with her heart. It was a relief to be slapped in the face with the scent of fish, to haggle prices over rockfish fillets and live oysters, to see familiar faces that welcomed her with a smile—to feel like her usual self for just a little while.

Luca stayed close but didn’t interfere. Not that a man as imposing and gorgeous as he could ever be ignored, but she was able to focus on her job while she let him do his. How sad was it that she’d become a
job
for him? She sighed, agreed on delivery times for her purchases and turned to leave.

“Did the fish bargaining go as well as you hoped?” He leaned closer so she could hear him over the crowd.

She nodded. “They had some good seafood today. Friday is fish day at the bistro, and I like to buy fresh and know exactly what I’m getting. Plus,
seeing
what’s here can inspire me to try new stuff, create new dishes.” She gave him a sheepish grin. “Which is why I’m going to drag you through the farmer’s market to snag some fruits and veggies next. This will be for us instead of the restaurants, but if I come up with anything good, it goes on the list for future specials. Don’t worry, I promise to buy you brunch—and Gregor, if he shows up.”

“He won’t. He’ll drink some elixir and watch from a distance.” Luca’s arm slid around her waist, and their hips bumped as they walked. It should have been uncomfortable, but it wasn’t. “You can bring him some leftovers after we get back to your place, if you like.”

“From here, I go to the café to start my shift.” She shrugged and paused to pick up a tray of strawberries. Not ripe enough. She set the berries down. “I split my time between the two restaurants, and with Holly clamoring to open a third, I’m going to have to start promoting some of my sous chefs.”

“Will it be strange not to be the main chef at your restaurants?” His hand slipped down to clasp hers again, their fingers twining as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

She nodded. “Yeah, I like running my kitchens. But I’m going to have to learn to step back a little to let other people run them while I oversee the new endeavor the business whiz wants to launch. She’s thinking about opening a tearoom, with scones and pastries for high tea, plus sandwiches, soups…stuff like that.” She shrugged. “It’s a lot of work, and I can’t do that and run two kitchens.”

“Choosing team members is challenging, but getting it right and having it all come together has its own rewards.” His smile was a little self-deprecating. “A leader can’t be in charge of every little detail, no matter how much she or he might want to.”

“The voice of experience,” she teased. She doubted anyone could hear her in this crowd, with so many people talking and the fishmongers nearby yelling as they tossed fish back and forth over their counter, but she lowered her voice anyway. “Is it weird to have werewolves on your team? Aren’t they, you know, kind of your enemies?”

“No,” he said emphatically, then he switched to sending telepathic thoughts.
“I don’t support the animosity between vampires and werewolves. I think in-fighting amongst Magickals weakens us all. There aren’t enough of us out there for us to turn on each other. Plus, the more we let our fighting get out of control, the more likely we are to be found out by humans. That would be an utter disaster.”

She tugged on his hand, drawing him closer to another farmer’s stand to check out their produce. Nope, still nothing that measured up to her exacting standards. “I wasn’t sure if having wolves on your team was a choice, a practicality or a decision made over your head.”

“A choice. My choice.” His voice rang with conviction, even though it was barely above a whisper. “I hand selected every single member of my team, and they all know it. Each of them brings different strengths to the group.”

She liked that. Then again, there was very little she’d ever found about him that she disliked. It was a real problem when trying to keep a man at arm’s length. Emotionally, anyway. Physically, she wanted him a lot closer. “What strengths does my Normal cousin bring to your team?”

“Aside from his military training? His Normality.” He glanced around, and she wasn’t sure if it was to see if anyone was following them or if anyone was close enough to overhear their conversation. His thoughts filtered through her mind.
“Jack sees things in a way that people who were born or have become Magickals don’t. Also, many Magickal criminals have ways of sensing other Magickals. They tend to ignore Normals as harmless nuisances.”

“So Jack can fly under their radar.”

He nodded, pulling her out of the path of a portly man who carried a case of strawberries. “Something like that.”

But the portly guy had caught her attention. She flagged him down. “Excuse me. Where did you get those?” She pointed to the luscious red berries, and her mouth almost watered. Some beautiful dishes could come from strawberries like that and she wanted them.

The guy half-turned and pointed with his elbow. “Over there, second to last one.”

“Thank you.” She stepped out of his way with her brightest smile. “I really appreciate it.”

“No problem.” He grunted and continued on his way.

Before they’d gone ten more steps, she veered left and dragged Luca behind her. He laughed and lengthened his stride to keep up. Delight filled her. “Oh. Oh, yes. This is exactly what I was hoping for.”

She picked up the reddish-white stalks and held them up for his inspection. He shrugged. “What is it? Red celery?”

He was serious. Shaking her head at his ignorance, she picked out multiple bunches of the leafy plant. “
Rhubarb
, and it’s ripe and fresh and perfect. A bit of experimenting and I might do a strawberry rhubarb tart for the bakery soon.”

“Ah.” He picked one up and sniffed it. “I had no idea this is what it looked like raw.”

“Sadly, I doubt you’re the only one. People should know more about the stuff they consume.” She caught the eye of the teenager manning the booth and motioned him over.

While they talked produce, Luca stepped away from her, presumably to keep an eye out for bad guys. A few minutes later, she had a several bags loaded down with not only the rhubarb, but some fantastic green beans and summer squash. She made a mental note to stop by again next week and check out their stock. All in all, an excellent new find.

Pleased, she turned to look for Luca and came face-to-face with a bunch of flowers. Looking up to meet his gaze, she found him grinning.

“For you.” He handed her the bouquet of purple, pink and white sweet pea blossoms and took her bags of vegetables.

She bit her lip, wanting to protest, but also wanting to bury her nose in the fragrant flowers and let her heart flutter with pleasure. A blush scorched her cheeks. “Um…thank you.”

“See, that wasn’t so hard, was it?” He tweaked the tip of her nose.

“Yes, it was.” Because, damn, he couldn’t get more amazing, and she couldn’t keep him. That was the plain, ugly truth. It wasn’t that she couldn’t fall for him, wasn’t that she had any issue with him being a vampire, but that being with him for real would cause problems for her family, and she loved her family more than anything in the world. Even then, her family might have been willing to deal, but
his
family? She doubted it. Vampires didn’t mix. Sure, they might mess around with another Magickal race—except werewolves—but they didn’t commit to them. They might be willing to turn a Normal in order to avoid mating with non-vampires, but she knew she wouldn’t fall into an acceptable category of Normal. She’d bring the whole wolf pack along with her, because she wouldn’t turn her back on her family for any reason. She sighed. “You don’t have to do things like this, you know. I don’t expect flowers. I never have.”

“I know. Maybe that’s why I like buying them for you so much.” He tugged on one of her curls, then swooped in for a quick kiss.

She suspected he used a little vampire speed to capture her lips before she realized what was happening. The warmth of his mouth made her sigh, and just that quick sip of his lips was enough to make her want more.

“Erin!”

The sound of her aunt’s voice snapped her head up and around. Every drop of blood drained out of her face. Oh. Shit.

“Aunt Angela,” she said faintly. “Uncle Darren.”

Her luck couldn’t possibly be this bad. No wait, she was being stalked and her secret vampire lover had barged into her house. A run-in with the future werewolf pack leader was
exactly
the kind of luck she’d had lately.

“Hello, Erin.” Darren Kerr was a mountain of a man, with a voice so deep it rumbled like thunder. “And if it isn’t Luca Cavalli.”

And that contained, controlled tone was enough to make her fight a wince. Aunt Angela gave her a one-armed hug, but the older woman’s gaze was pinned to the two men. The cellophane wrapped around her bouquet crinkled as Erin fidgeted. She prayed the ground would split open and swallow her whole. There was no way to pretend she hadn’t been kissing a vampire in public. Not just any vampire—a Conclave leader’s son.

The tremor of disquiet in her stomach wasn’t helped by the fact that Darren and Luca were eyeballing each other like two dogs ready to fight over a bone. Their white-knuckled handshake would have crushed a Normal’s fingers.

“Darren, Angela—it’s good to see you both again.” Luca managed a smooth smile, which was more than she could do.

“Oh, that’s right. You guys have met.” During a case where Darren and Selina had almost been murdered by Gregor’s serial killer brother. Best not to mention that. “Luca and I were just headed over to buy strawberries for some tarts I want to make. For the bakery.” Erin tried for a cheerful voice, but it came out squeaky and anxious instead.

“Well, then. We won’t keep you.” The thousand and one unasked questions on her aunt’s face meant Erin was getting an uncomfortable and probing phone call later. Maybe even an in-person interrogation.

Great. Just great. She tried not to whimper. “It’s nice to run into you. You’re doing some shopping?”

Of course they were. Seattleites didn’t come near Pike Place unless they wanted to shop. Too many tourists otherwise.

Aunt Angela’s grin was crooked and a little forced. “I had a craving for some raw oysters, and Darren let me talk him into coming down to this zoo. It sure is crowded today.”

No more than any other day, but Erin nodded anyway. “Tourist trap, but I like coming to peruse the fresh ingredients.”

Awkward silence. Uncle Darren didn’t seem to feel the need to fill it, but he’d always been a man of few words. Then again, he didn’t require words when his disapproval was radiating off him in waves.

“So…” Erin rocked back on her heels.

Angela hooked her arm through her husband’s but arched an eyebrow at Erin. “You’ll need to come by for dinner on your next night off. We
really
should catch up on what’s going on in your life, sweetie.”

That was about as subtle as a sledgehammer. Interrogation invitation issued. Either that, or they’d have a
The Bachelorette
style dinner party with every eligible werewolf the pack had to offer. God save her. Luca gave Erin a pointed look, reminding her that she either had to bring him or Gregor or both along everywhere she went for the foreseeable future. After Uncle Darren’s run-in with Gregor’s brother, bringing him was out of the question. Which meant Luca was her sole option. Which meant her family was now going to think she was
dating
her fuck-buddy.

Might as well get it over with. Her chin lifted. “If you invite me to dinner, I’m bringing Luca.”

Angela drew in a deep breath. “Of course, Luca is welcome to dinner. We’d love to have him.”

Well, she’d almost managed to keep the pained note out of her voice. Almost.