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When he reached the employment office, he peered through the window and Bryanna sat in a wooden chair across from a large desk. Her chin rested in her hand and she looked beyond bored. With a chuckle, he looked at the goblin, Nevin, who was saying something to her that Zeke couldn’t hear, but that apparently didn’t interest Bryanna either.
Raising his hand, he waved and Nevin caught sight of him. He clearly sighed, as his small shoulders heaved. Zeke would owe Nevin a huge thank you later for stalling her like he’d asked.
Nevin gestured toward the window and Bryanna instantly glanced over her shoulder with a smile. She leapt out of her chair, said something quickly to Nevin, then rushed from the office.
The second the door slammed behind her, she glared at him. “Where did you send me?”
He arched an eyebrow. “Nevin wasn’t helpful?”
“That goblin,” she pointed back toward the office, “spent the last two hours talking about absolutely nothing!” She drew in a very long, ragged breath. “And I still don’t have a job!”
“Hmmm…” He rubbed his jaw. “I never took Nevin to be a talker. Maybe he liked you.” At her worsening glare, he chuckled. “This isn’t the only employment office in town. I’ll take you to the other one tomorrow.” He gestured down the street. “Let me walk you home. It’s a beautiful night.”
She glanced down the street, her eyes widening as she took in all the supernaturals, including vampires and ghouls. With a long sigh, she smiled at him. “Thanks for walking me home, I’m not quite used to seeing…” A Phoenix flew by, a blur of red and gold feathers. “Well, I’m used to my coven and need to adjust to my new surroundings.”
“No need to be afraid of anything here.” He leaned down toward her. “You’ll only get bitten by request.”
She laughed and fell into stride with him. As they passed the Scaredy Cat Café, loud music poured out into the night and she glanced up at him. “It’s nice, you know, being surrounded by so many supernaturals. I’m so used to being around witches. I guess I forget how big the world really is.”
He nodded, glancing toward the café, curious what brought on her thought. Instantly, he spotted a vampire at a table, drinking blood from a goblet. Now he understood—in a larger city, a vampire would never drink blood in public. “The town is very accepting.”
Her eyes lit up. “It’s magical.”
As the music faded away behind them, he glanced down and noticed her hand resting so close to his. Without hesitation, he wrapped his hand around hers and she tensed. When she glanced up at him with huge eyes, he asked softly, “Is this okay?”
She stared at him so intently, he wondered if she would refuse him, which he didn’t quite understand. He’d been touching far more intimate places than her hand not too long ago. “Sorry…I…” She laughed, shaking her head and squeezing her hand around his. “I forgot what this is like.”
He stopped dead. “Having your hand held?”
She nodded. “It’s been so long since anyone held my hand in public. I guess it startled me.” She pulled on his hand, forcing him to continue down the street, and smiled at him. “But I like it.”
“I’m glad.” He smiled back, even if he didn’t understand it. Christ, he hadn’t known her long and he couldn’t keep his hands off her. “Can I have a turn to ask you some personal questions?
She grinned. “Depends.”
“On?”
Her eyes twinkled. “If I’ll still look good after I answer?”
He chuckled, lifting her hand to kiss her palm, thinking it cute she used his words back on him. After lowering her hand, he sighed away his smile, since the subject he wanted to discuss was anything but funny. “I realize that you have…” he hesitated, searching for the right words, “a history with another.”
“Mm-hm,” was her response.
He had wondered how to approach this conversation, but he knew treading lightly wouldn’t do them any good. “Do you love him?”
She studied him for a long minute before she looked toward the sidewalk, watching her steps. “I guess part of me still does. Now, though, I wonder if that part of me should forever stay in Shreveport. To know that he lied to me and never accepted me, it’s hard to imagine why I loved him.”
Zeke considered how he felt over what she had told him. Did he rage with jealousy? No, he didn’t think so. She proved she was exactly as he thought her to be, caring to the point of fault. Her ex-boyfriend Layton didn’t deserve her love, yet she still offered at least a part of herself to him. “Is there room for another in your heart?”
When she looked to him, her eyebrow furrowed. “Meaning?”
“I know that this…” He squeezed her hand, finding it hard to explain, only knowing he needed more time with her and didn’t want to let her go, “feels good and I like being with you.”
“I like it too.” A lovely blush filled her cheeks. “Like I said, I’m not sure I even understand why I love Layton. Maybe it’s the idea of it all. The dream that I could be happy and that he loved me back.”
He witnessed the intense longing in her eyes to be loved and his chest tightened. Such a simple desire that she undeniably deserved. But he stayed silent while they strode down the street, allowing her to continue, “You make me feel like it’s okay to be me.” She heaved a long sigh, gazing up at him with such pain, it was as if someone had punched him in the gut. “I’ve never felt like that before.”
Looking away from him, she smiled at the dragon shifter who strode by, then she continued, “Truthfully, I’m not even sure I know what love is. I’m not sure I ever experienced it.” Tears welled in her eyes and she glanced down to the sidewalk again. “So, do I have a place for you in my heart where Layton is? No, I don’t. But I’m not quite sure you belong there.”
