Page 43 of Amber: Deja Brew

Chapter 16

Amber

“What did I say about holding on to your balloon, Rae?” A man standing in line chuckles. I look over in time to watch him capture a purple balloon that’s starting to float away.

“I was holding on to it, Daddy.” The little girl, Rae, pouts and wraps her tiny fist around the purple ribbon.

Just by looking at the pair, I can tell that both father and daughter are unicorns—pretty hard to miss the brilliant, sparkling silver horns jutting from the tops of their heads. The unicorn dad’s hair is a sparkling, look-at-me-silver with brilliant purple tips, while his little girl’s hair is a brilliant purple with a few strands of sparkling silver.

Unicorn Dad ruffles little Rae’s hair around her horn, and my heart melts as the two of them move to the front of the line.

Watching the pair makes me think about having kids of my own. It’s Julian’s mom’s fault for putting the idea in my head, talking about babies the way she did. I don’t know why I’m even considering it, when it’s obviously too soon.

Chase, Wes, and I only just met. Sure, Juli and I have known each other for a long time, but we’re still way too young to have kids. Plus, we need to focus on keeping Jewels Cafe in business, not on starting a family. Which means that, realistically, kids won’t be on our radar for at least a few years. Still, I can’t help picturing each of my guys with our own little girl.

Wes would childproof the entire apartment—probably the cafe, too—and he’d always keep our place clean and make us home-cooked meals. He’d probably be over-the-top protective, too, but that also means he’ll keep our little girl safe.

After the way Chase grew up, I bet he’d answer all her questions—even if she asked a gazillion. And I can totally picture him waking up in the middle of the night if she ever started to cry.

Then there’s Julian. My childhood crush turned mate would love our little girl no matter what—even if her magic was wonky like ours, or if she didn’t have any magic at all. Would she be a chameleon like me? Or a witch like Juli? Or maybe a shifter, like Chase or Wes?

I freeze.

How would we even decide which of my guys should get to be the father? Do we leave it up to chance? Do they come up with some sort of contest? Do I have to choose? And if I can’t even figure out which guy to hold hands with or sit next to, how will I ever pick which one I should have a baby with first?

“Amber.” Julian nudges me as he slides a to-go cup to a waiting customer. It’s just the two of us running the cafe right now, while Chase and Wes are upstairs making dinner. I smile at the thought of my two shifters, only to realize that I just completely zoned out on Unicorn Dad.

“Sorry, could you repeat your order?” I ask.

“You weren’t paying attention.” Little Rae giggles.

“Sounds like someone I know,” Unicorn Dad teases her, then turns back to me with an apologetic smile. “I’d like an Angel Coffee, and my little angel would like an Angel Hot Milk.”

“With extra cloud.” Rae looks up at me with brilliant blue eyes that have purple flecks swimming in their depths. “The cloud is the best part!”

“It is the best part,” I agree. “And I like your balloon.”

“Thanks.” Rae grins and holds her tiny hand higher so I can get a better look.

“We were just at a birthday party,” Unicorn Dad explains, looking away from his little girl for a split second too long. And that’s all it takes.

The purple ribbon slips through Rae’s little fingers. She tries to catch the ribbon as the balloon floats away, but she just isn’t fast enough. I try to reach over the counter to help, but I’m not Liam the Troll which means I’m too short.

Then, everything goes wrong.

The balloon hits one of the sprinklers and bursts.

Rae opens her cute little mouth and starts to wail.

And the fire sprinklers activate, spraying water everywhere.

I always assumed the fire sprinklers were only supposed to kick in when there was an actual fire—or at least some heavy smoke—but I guess that isn’t the case. I also always thought they sprinkled water, like the name implies, creating some gentle rain. Obviously, that isn’t the case either.

It seems like within seconds, the floor is flooded with water. The sprinklers keep dumping buckets of cold water on our heads, and I’m shivering, and sucking in water, and getting completely drenched.

This can’t possibly be normal! The words echo in my head as I start to cough. Then it hits me. Cursed! They’re actually cursed!

Zoe never got to do a sweep of the ceiling which means she never checked the fire sprinklers. And whoever got to the table and sink probably got to them, too.

In the time it takes me to realize what’s going on, I’m already knee-deep in water. The unicorn dad is scooping up little wailing Rae, but the rush of pouring water nearly drowns out her cries.

Panicked customers try to wade toward the door, but the water’s pouring down so fast it’s almost like they’re moving in slow motion. Julian manages to reach me, and starts tugging me after them, but by now, the water’s already to my waist.

Someone finally pulls open the front door, and I exhale in relief. Only to inhale and nearly choke on a lungful of water. I start to cough as I wait for the water to pour out onto the street, but very little splashes out after the escaping fae.

It’s almost like there’s an invisible barrier keeping all the water from going outside... or into the stairwell, or into the back room. The only place that seems to be flooding is the cafe... and all our expensive equipment.

Our new coffee machine! Our custom mugs! Our beautiful Cafe! Everything, including all our dreams, are quickly getting submerged.

I want to break down and cry, but right now, we’ve got much bigger problems. Like the fact that the water’s already up to my chest and many of our customers are still inside.

Unicorn Dad is wading toward the door, but he’s only half-way there. Soaked little Rae is on his shoulders, wailing as she clutches onto his horn. There’s a panicked cat shifter squatting on the bar, and a middle-age woman balanced precariously on a stool. At the front of the cafe, there are two businessmen standing on a table. One of them jumps down, and I realize there’s a woman, who obviously can’t swim, in the middle of the cafe. And she’s trying to wade toward the tables, instead of heading for the door.

“You need to get out,” I shout, only to take in another lungful of water. I doubt anyone even hears me!

Within seconds, even the door is completely submerged. Unicorn Dad gives up on it and starts treading water, holding up Rae so the little girl can still breathe.

And it’s in that moment that it hits me. We’re not just going to lose Jewels Cafe. Another minute, and we’re all going to drown. The customers. Me. Julian. If I don’t think of something fast, none of us will live to see another day.