5
Seated at a tiny table for two beside a window that overlooked the streets crowded with tourists, Kaz felt as if he were being watched. And not by the gorgeous witch across the table, who was digging into her crème brûlée. Her blue eyes flashed up to his and she smiled before forking in a generous bite.
“Want a taste?” She tilted her head. “Kaz? You seem distracted.”
“Uh, sure, I’ll take a bite. Anything that makes you smile that big must be great.”
She served him a taste.
Kaz didn’t indulge. Didn’t have the time for it. Since joining the Order ten years ago, his life had become disciplined, and his diet militant. Picard’s grocery was his usual stop for frozen meals he could pop into the microwave. He rarely ate in restaurants, unless he was on a date, and dates were few and far between because he never had a day off to actually meet women. He was always on call, which meant he didn’t hang out in nightclubs or bars.
Instead, he had to beat up vampires to get the girl.
Apparently, that method worked for him.
Zoë devoured the dessert, and Kaz split his attention between her and his surroundings. It was difficult to completely let down his guard in public. No wonder his relationships never lasted long.
What was a relationship?
Whatever it was, it was beginning to appeal more and more. Had she been in many? Did he appeal to her as much as she did to him? Could a knight ever attract a woman looking for stability? Did she want stability?
Well hell, who didn’t?
It had been a long time since he’d thought about that night Tor had found him behind Madame du Monde’s Dance Emporium, bloody chair leg clutched in his white-knuckled grip. Man, had his life taken a one-eighty for the better since then. Though, most certainly a strange turn.
“Is it something outside?” she asked. “I’ve not had your full attention since the salad. I’m sorry to bore you—”
Dragging his gaze from the window, Kaz forced himself to pay attention to the only thing that he should have in focus. “It’s not you, Zoë.” She was all kinds of pretty to command his attention. “Do you know how exciting it is watching you eat? I’m trying not to stare at you so much you want to start calling me a creep.”
“I could never do that. You’re too handsome to be creepy.”
He wished he’d never said that about witches. It would remain a sore spot for her, he felt sure.
“Do you ever feel like you’re being watched?” he offered as a means to change the conversation. “I can’t put a finger to it. I usually can tell when vampires are nearby. This feeling I’m having is...out there. That’s not a good way to explain it, but it’s the only words I can summon.”
She nodded knowingly, and set down her fork. “You’re sensitive to the paranormal breeds. That’s why you can feel it.”
“It? Feel what?”
“FaeryTown, of course.”
“Faery—”
While the Order had only touched on faeries during training, Kaz did know FaeryTown existed within Paris. It was sort of a fourth dimension overlaid upon the mortal realm. A place where faeries lived amongst mortals, yet could not be seen by them. It was also where vampires in the know went to get their dust fixes.
“Why didn’t you tell me where we were?” He darted his gaze around the small restaurant and out the window, but wasn’t sure what he expected to see. Wings? “Right now?”
She nodded.
“I should have been told.”
“Wow. You hop right up that anger scale with little provocation, don’t you? I didn’t think it necessary because it’s not as if most people are aware of it. And you’re not a vampire, so—”
“So, it’s important to me to know these things, Zoë. Don’t keep significant information like that from me.”
She leaned back, toyed with her fork, but left her half-eaten dessert alone. He’d offended her, had spoken harshly when she could have no reason to understand his anxiety. It had been a bad idea to go out for lunch during a job. Did he want to hook up with her that badly?
Yes.
“Sorry.” Kaz turned his focus to her pouty pink mouth. “Once again, I said the wrong thing to you.”
“I’m not taking offense, but I am surprised at your reaction. So we’re in FaeryTown. What of it?”
A lot of it, actually. Especially since Kaz was tracking the source of the Magic Dust. Could it be in FaeryTown? Made a hell of a lot of sense. Why hadn’t he considered this angle of investigation until now?
Probably because he had no known way of accessing such a realm.
“Let’s say I’m curious about my surroundings and this very obvious feeling of unease I mentioned to you. I mean, can they see us?”
She nodded.
“But we can’t see them.”
“Not unless they want you to see them, which is rare. A faery could be standing right next to you, or even sitting in that very spot.”
Kaz jostled on his chair, but didn’t go so far as to stand up. The idea of someone sitting in the exact spot where he was right now... “You have to admit that’s disturbing.”
“Not if you don’t think about it.” She was so calm about the possibility their conversation was being observed.
Kaz propped a concealing hand along the side of his mouth and spoke quietly. “Isn’t there some way for a human being to see faeries?”
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