Kindling Flames: Granting Wishes (The Ancient Fire Series Book 5) (4 page)

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Looking up from her counter, Cathren smiled as Patrick came into her shop. Her joy faltered for a moment as she took in the dark-skinned man that followed a step behind him. Tall with beautiful, black hair, he was dressed in jeans and a dark leather jacket.

“Hello, cailín.” Patrick beamed at her and leaned on the counter.

The man behind him stopped and studied her. He had the most beautiful, silvery-blue eyes.

Patrick caught up her hand from the buttons she was sorting and kissed the back of it. “I’d like you to meet a friend of mine.” Turning slightly, he nodded at the man behind him. “This is DeMarco.”

The man nodded in greeting, but he didn’t say anything.

Cathren gave him a pained grin and looked back at Patrick. “Can I talk to you for a minute?” She tried to keep her smile from slipping to a grimace.

Seeing her distress, he agreed. “Of course.”

Pulling her hand back, Cathren led the way over to the far end of the store.

DeMarco busied himself by looking over the case of patches and stickers on the counter.

“You have really got to stop this,” Cathren said quietly to Patrick. “You can’t just throw random men at me and hope things work out.” It had been two weeks since she had gone to visit him at his shop. Every day since, Patrick had either brought or sent a different man in to meet her. Cathren looked over at the newest candidate. “It’s not that I don’t appreciate what you’re trying to do, but it’s not working.” She was starting to tire of the endless line of suitors. “Don’t get me wrong, they are all nice, but we just don’t have anything in common.”

Patrick paused as he thought about that. “I see your point.” He looked back over at DeMarco, thinking.

Cathren could see him sizing the man up.

“You’re right. This isn’t working. He’s not right either.” Patrick turned from her and went back to the man flipping through the CD rack by the counter. “Thanks, DeMarco.” He patted him on the arm.

“I can go now?” DeMarco asked in an almost bored tone. Patrick nodded, and the man turned and left without another word.

Cathren came over to stand next to Patrick. “Please,” she begged. “Just stop this.”

Patrick turned to her. “I can’t.” Taking up her hand, he pressed it to his chest again. “I am sworn to grant your wishes.” His fingers spun the gold chain still wrapped around Cathren’s arm. “I have never failed before, and I will not fail in this.” He studied her face for a moment.

“Patrick…” Cathren said, exasperated. She needed to put her foot down or he would never stop throwing men at her.

“Have dinner with me,” he said, cutting her protests off.

“What?” she asked, shocked.

“This evening. Have dinner with me,” he begged again. “I think I know why the people I’ve picked haven’t worked out.”

Cathren just gave him curious eyes.

“I don’t know you well enough. I could take you out and get you those waffles.” He pressed her hand into his chest harder. “Please.”

Cathren shook her head in amusement. It was hard to tell him no when he got that look on his face. “All right.” Even with him throwing random men at her, she always found Patrick’s company pleasant.

A smile lit his face, and he pulled her in for a hug.

She stiffened in surprise.

“Thank you,” he whispered right next to her ear.

Cathren couldn’t help but notice how solid he was as he squeezed her against him. “You’re welcome.” She relaxed in his grip. Her arms moved up his back, and she melted into his embrace. He was warm and felt so right wrapped around her.

“I’ll pick you up after work.” The way his voice vibrated through her set her insides quivering. They pulled apart slightly as he leaned back to look down at her.

Cathren’s eyes latched onto his lips. They were sensual and full. For just a moment, she wondered what they would feel like pressed against hers. The urge to rise up and claim them raced through her. Their eyes met, and she could almost see the same thought rush through him. A pang of desire hit her, melting her insides.

“Well.” Patrick shifted his grip on her and stepped away, breaking their contact. “I’ll see you later.” He patted her on the upper arms and was out the door before she could say anything to stop him.

Cathren staggered at the sudden lack of warmth and support. She gasped at her uncontrolled feelings. It took her a few moments of standing there to straighten her mind up enough to go back to organizing her buttons. Realization smacked her in the head as she shifted the pins around. She hadn’t found anything in common with any of the guys he had brought her, because she found
Patrick
more interesting than all of them.

***

“Are you ready to go?”

Cathren looked up at her coworker.

Sarah twirled her gum around her finger, waiting for Cathren to finish bagging up the money from the till. The teen bounced a little in excitement.

“What are you so hyped up about?” Cathren asked as she waited for the credit card report to print out.

“Your man should be here any minute to pick you up.” Sarah grinned and leaned on the counter between them. “Aren’t you excited?”

Truthfully, Cathren was terrified of the prospect of spending the evening with Patrick. After her earlier revelation, she was thinking about canceling on him. There was no way she would be able to sit there and tell him about the types of guys she liked. Not when they would all point to him. She had considered just telling him that she liked him, but the look on his face after their hug and the fact that he bolted like a startled colt made her think twice about that move. What if he had seen the desire in her eyes and had left because of it? That would really make dinner awkward. It hadn’t taken her very long to decide that the best thing to do was to not say anything and just let it ride. These weird feelings were probably just some strange form of indigestion and not the desire she thought they were. Or that was what she was trying to convince herself of.

“Not really,” she lied to her coworker. “He’ll probably forget.” She tore the ticket off the machine and tucked it into the bag.

“I don’t know about that.”

Cathren could hear the smirk in Sarah’s voice. She looked up to see Patrick standing just outside the door to the shop in a bright red windbreaker. She chuckled. He really did look good in red. Waving to let him know she saw him, she went to the back of the shop to put the money away.

“Good evening,” Patrick greeted Cathren as she pulled up the metal grate that protected the shop at night.

“Hello,” she said, trying to ignore the way his hair was ruffled. It gave him a slightly rumpled and sexy look.

“Do you have a coat?” he asked, concerned.

Cathren chuckled as she let Sarah out. “No.” She leaned on the gate to close it.

Grabbing onto the wire mesh, Patrick helped her push it down.

“It’s summer,” Cathren explained as she stooped to lock the gate. She usually didn’t think about a jacket during the warm days. Sure, the nights cooled off a bit, but she didn’t mind. She stood up to find Patrick hadn’t stepped back when he released the gate. Her pulse raced at his closeness.

Patrick reached out and took Cathren’s hand. He tucked it into the crook of his arm. “It’s going to be cool out tonight.”

“That’s fine,” she answered as he pulled her away from the gate. She could already feel her temperature rising from his touch. The cool night air would help to keep it down.

Patrick just nodded and patted her hand.

“Have a good time.” Sarah smirked at them as she waved and turned away.

“Good night,” Cathren called after her before turning her attention to the man next to her.

He grinned, making Cathren’s breath catch slightly. “Walk or drive?”

Cathren gave herself a mental shake, trying to drive his image out of her head. Now that she had acknowledged she had feelings for him, she couldn’t help but notice him physically. “Walk,” she answered, trying not to stare at the cute dimple in his cheek.

His smile widened, showing he only had the one dimple on the right side. “Then shall we?” Patrick turned them in the direction opposite the one Sarah had taken and led Cathren down the corridor.

She matched his walking gait with ease. Just the feel of him so close set her heart thumping faster than usual.

He glanced at her as they walked. “How was your day?”

“Good,” she answered vaguely.

“Oh no.” Patrick patted her arm. “This night is for learning about you, so no short answers.”

Cathren gave him a cross look. “What do you want me to say?” she asked. “Other than your earlier visit, there was nothing really notable about it.”

“I’m sure that’s not true.” Patrick said. “What did you have for breakfast?”

Cathren thought about it for a second. Breakfast had been a long time ago. “Oatmeal.”

“And do you usually have oatmeal?”

“No.” Cathren sighed. “I usually have a bowl of cereal, but I was out of milk.”

“See.” Patrick rubbed her hand, encouragingly. “That’s something notable. A change in a normal pattern. What else was different about today?”

Cathren thought about it for a moment, and then proceeded to ramble on about the things she had done during the day.

Patrick listened intently, urging her on when she started to wind down.

“Where are we going?” Cathren asked as they came upon the front doors to the mall.

“To get waffles,” Patrick answered as he released her arm. He pushed the door open and held it for her to exit.

Cathren chuckled. “I know that, but where?” she asked again.

Patrick nodded towards the parking lot as he opened the second set of doors. “Just across the way.”

Cathren stopped as soon as she stepped outside and looked up at the sky. The summer sun was just setting, painting the clouds a fiery red. “Beautiful.” She gasped, taking in the sky.

“Yes.” Patrick said softly as he came up and stood almost against her back.

She could feel his heat radiating up her back. The desire to lean back into him washed through her, but she resisted the urge and took a step away instead. The last thing she needed to do was make an advance on the man trying to find her a true love. That might prove to be a tiny bit embarrassing. “Where are we going?” Cathren turned to face Patrick. What looked like a sad smile slipped across his face for a second before turning into something warmer.

He took her arm again, and they started out to the parking lot. “It’s just over there.” They walked in silence for a few minutes, enjoying the way the setting sun lit up the world.

Patrick looked around at all the buildings and concrete of the shopping area. “I wish there was a good place to watch the sun set.”

“I know this great place over in Sharon Woods.” A pleasant feeling warmed Cathren as she recalled the area. “In one of the higher ends of the park, there’s this slight, west-facing cliff. A storm took out a few trees, and now it frames the sky splendidly.” She walked a few steps, thinking about the beautiful spot. “But it’s at the end of a very long trail, so getting out after sunset can be tricky.”

“That wouldn’t be an issue for me.” Patrick grinned. “Maybe you can take me out there sometime.”

Cathren’s heart skipped at the idea. She would love to take Patrick on a romantic hike in the woods that culminated with a beautiful sunset, but if his plans worked out, he would find her a true love long before they could find time to get out there.

“Sure,” she agreed, knowing it would probably never happen. Turning her mind from the lost possibilities, she gave her attention to the end of the day. The red sky signaled the possibility for a storm, but the air felt clean and light at the moment. The wind cut across the parking lot, pulling a shiver from Cathren.

Patrick looked down at her. “Are you cold?”

“No,” Cathren lied. With the sun going down, the wind had picked up a cool nip that was exaggerated by the speed it raced across the parking lot.

Patrick pulled her to a stop and took off his coat. “I can tell when you’re lying.”

“Another one of your leprechaun quirks?” she teased as he wrapped the warm material around her.

“Just the uncanny ability to notice the obvious,” he smarted back at her. “Why didn’t you say something?” He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her into the line of his body.

She sighed as his warmth drove away the shivers. “What was I supposed to say?” She peeked up at him as they started walking again. “I’m cold—give me your coat?”

Patrick chuckled. “That would have worked.”

Cathren slipped her arm around his back, making it easier to lean into his side. “I know a lot of women like that, but I’m not that rude.” She tucked her finger through one of his belt loops, enjoying the way he felt against her. “Besides, it’s always nicer to have a guy offer without having to ask. It shows he’s paying attention.”

Patrick chuckled again. “I am most definitely paying attention.” He squeezed her lightly. “See, these are things I need to know.”