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He laughed at that. “We all have a track record of failed relationships, Poppy,” he said softly. “Until we find the one we’re meant to be with and then that record of failure ends.”
I swallowed hard. “What if I screw this up?”
“What if you don’t?”
Andre wanted to try. He thought it was worth the risk—that I was worth the risk. If I couldn’t be brave for myself, maybe I could be brave for him?
I licked my lips, trying desperately to work some moisture back into them, and brought my other hand up to put over our clasped palms. My heart was leaping in my chest, to the point where I was half afraid it was going to burst free and take off like a bird out of a cage.
Andre watched me, so still I couldn’t even tell if he was breathing. His pupils were wide and dark, expanding until only the thinnest ring of blue was visible.
He was waiting for an answer. He deserved an answer.
I just had to, as Wanda would say, hike up my big girl pants and give him one.
“Andre, I–”
The power suddenly went out, plunging the restaurant into darkness. The only lights were the little candles on every table, little pinpricks like distant stars.
I jumped and turned around, watching the rest of the diners doing the same. “What…?”
Andre glanced around, peering out one of the windows. “I think it’s just a hiccup in the power. The place across the street still has lights on.”
And just like that, the street lights outside flickered once and went out, followed by the lights on the rest of the street until everything inside and outside was bathed in darkness.
Andre sighed.
The servers hurried to the kitchen, and there was some quiet talking that I couldn’t quite make out. Finally, our server made his way over to the table, picking his way through the dark room.
“I’m so sorry, but the power is out, and it doesn’t look like it will be coming back for some time. For your own safety, we have to ask everyone to leave. Your dinner is, of course, on us.”
Andre put a few bills down on the table, and we slowly and carefully made our way between chairs and other customers, and out into the parking lot.
Andre laughed ruefully. “Well, that wasn’t quite how I pictured this evening going.”
I caught his hand, feeling like if I didn’t, he might slip away from me. “I had a really nice time. I mean, before the…” I waved a hand back at the dark restaurant. “Thank you for bringing me.”
“It was my pleasure,” he said as he handed me into the passenger seat of his black Range Rover. “And might I say, that is a truly stunning dress and you look more lovely than I’ve ever seen you. I meant to tell you as much when I first saw you, but I suppose my nerves got the best of me.”
I grinned as he shut the door. In the back of my head, I could practically hear Wanda’s ‘I told you so’.
As Andre slid into the driver’s seat, I realized I’d never actually given him an answer. Would it be weird if I brought it up now, though? It felt odd, like the moment had passed.
As we pulled out of the parking lot, I picked at the hem of my dress and tried not to feel like I’d taken a wrong step somewhere.
That night, once I’d finished tossing and turning, I dreamed of fire.
Chapter Ten
Exactly forty-five minutes past sunset the next day found me hammering on Wanda’s door.
Well, technically it wasLorcan’sfront door. Well, one of them anyway. But since he and Wanda were pretty strictly co-habitating those days, because she and Lorcan were all gooey and in love (though she’d never admit as much), it was also Wanda’s front door.
I took a deep breath, waited for fifteen seconds, and knocked again.
It was after sunset. Even with Wanda adopting vampire hours, she should have been awake. It had been painful enough, waiting on pins and needles all day, for her to wake up. I would have called earlier, but it was usually safer to let sleeping witches lie.
The door wrenched open, revealing a very disheveled looking Wanda in a plum silk dressing gown, her dark hair a wavy tangle spilling over her shoulder. She scowled at me, the nails she’d curled against the doorframe suddenly looking like mulberry painted talons.
