63. Rob

63

ROB

R ob stewed quietly while Marina went to get them coffee and pastries. He was angry, hurt, and didn't know how to make himself feel better so he could at least be cordial to Mia, who was a sweetheart and didn't deserve his temper.

It wasn't fair to her.

"So, Rob," Lusha said, leaning forward, "what's your story? How did you end up in our little corner of the world?"

Rob hesitated, unsure how much he wanted to reveal about the tumultuous events that had led him here. "It's a long story. The short version is that my life took an unexpected turn, and then my sister and her friends made me an offer I couldn't refuse and brought me here." He gestured vaguely, encompassing the café and the village beyond.

Lusha nodded, a knowing look in her eyes. "Life-changing revelations seem to be a specialty around here. I remember when I first learned about the existence of gods and immortals. It was quite the adjustment."

Rob's curiosity piqued. "You're not originally from the village?"

Lusha shook her head. "No, I was born and raised in Karelia. Do you know where that is?"

"I think I do. Russia, right?" Lusha and Marina both had slight Russian accents, which now made sense.

"Very good, Rob. Not many people have heard of Karelia. It is a region that is mostly Russian territory, but a portion of it is under Finnish control."

"How did you end up here?" he asked, but what he really wanted to ask was if she was human or immortal.

"That's a really long story," she threw his words back at him.

"We have time." He leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest. "Right, Mia?"

Mia shrugged. "I don't know how long the council meeting will last. Toven said that he would come over here when he was done."

As Marina returned with a tray of coffees and a bag of pastries, she put them on the table but didn't sit down. "I wish I could stay and chat with you, but I need to get back to work." She smiled at Rob. "It was nice to meet you. If you ever feel lonely and need to talk with a fellow human, you can find me here Monday through Friday, from eight in the morning until six in the evening."

"Thank you. I might take you up on your offer."

Now that he knew Marina was human, he was pretty sure that Lusha was, too.

When she left, he turned to Lusha. "So, Marina works at the café. What do you do?"

"I'm an attorney, and I work for the clan's judge. Right now, she is also in the council meeting with Toven, so I have some time off."

"An attorney. That's interesting. Where did you study?"

"The same place most of us from the compound studied. The University of Helsinki."

"Your English is very good."

"Thank you." She smiled. "I'm working on it." She leaned closer to him as if to tell him a secret. "I'm trying to get rid of my Russian accent."

"You're doing a good job of it. It's barely there. Did you pass the bar in California?"

"Not yet. I'm studying for it and working for the judge in the meantime. But even without a local license, I got to defend a group of accused murderers and got their sentencing reduced from beheading to community service."

For a moment he thought she was joking, but the expression on her face spoke of pride, not teasing.

"I have to hear that one again. Did you say beheading?"

She nodded emphatically. "That's the Kra-ell way. They are not merciful people, but I got them to acknowledge that those males had no choice."

Rob listened as she launched into a fantastic tale about the Kra-ell settlers, the purebloods and the hybrids, and the powerful compeller who held all of their lives in his hands until the clan rescued them. Rob was captivated by her intelligence, spunk, and humor.

Lusha possessed a spark that outshone all the beautiful immortals in the café, and she had more charisma than most people he knew.

More importantly, though, Rob didn't feel the need to carefully measure his words or dumb himself down as he often had with Lynda. Lusha's quick wit and sharp intellect were refreshing, inviting him to engage in a way he hadn't in a long time.

"That's incredibly impressive," Rob said when Lusha finished speaking. "It must have taken a lot of courage to take on their case."

Lusha shrugged, but there was a pleased glint in her eye at his praise. "It was challenging, but it was the right thing to do. Everyone deserves a fair trial, and they had no one to speak for them. For me, it started as a challenge to see how well I could do, but it ended up as much more than that. Those males were truly innocent of the crimes they'd committed, and I had to do everything in my power to save their lives. They were sentenced to a very long community service, which is good for them and also for the people who lost loved ones to them. It's a healing process."

Rob nodded. "I agree."

She beamed with satisfaction. "What do you do, Rob?"

"Guess," he challenged.

She narrowed her eyes. "Something scientific or math related."

"Very good. I'm a data scientist. I research and collect data for building software programs and creating algorithms."

As their conversation continued, Rob found himself relaxing for the first time since his world had been turned upside down. Lusha had a way of making him feel at ease. Her teasing and interest in his thoughts were like a balm to his battered self-esteem.

He caught himself laughing at her witty remarks and teasing her back, but instead of getting offended by every word that didn't perfectly align with her worldview, Lusha laughed and teased him in return.

It was a stark contrast to the walking-on-eggshells feeling that had characterized so many of his interactions with Lynda.

Before he realized what he was doing, Rob heard himself asking, "So, are you seeing anyone?"

As soon as the words left his mouth, he felt a flush of embarrassment. It was too soon, too forward, and probably entirely inappropriate given his current situation.

Lusha, however, didn't seem offended. "Yes, actually. I'm seeing one of the Guardians," she said with a note of pride in her tone.

Rob nodded, trying to hide his disappointment. He wasn't entirely sure what a Guardian was, but from the tone of Lusha's voice, it was clearly an important position. "He's a lucky guy," Rob said, aiming for a neutral tone.

"Thank you. What about you? Are you seeing anyone?"

"I... well, I was supposed to get married this week," he said, the words feeling heavy on his tongue. "But it turns out my fiancée had other plans. With someone else."

"Ouch." Sympathy flickered across Lusha's face. "I'm so sorry. That must be incredibly painful."

Rob nodded, surprised to find that while the hurt was still there, it didn't feel quite as raw as it had just the day before.

Experiencing this new world, meeting Mia's fiancé, who turned out to be a god, coming to this hidden oasis, and talking with Lusha had provided a distraction and a glimpse of a much better future than the one he had envisioned before.

Rob had a moment of clarity. Yes, he was attracted to Lusha, and talking to her made him feel good in a way he hadn't in a long time. But he also recognized that he wasn't ready for anything more than friendship right now.

He needed time to cool down and to process the hurt and grief of his broken engagement. Jumping into something new, no matter how appealing, wouldn't be fair to anyone involved.

"It's been difficult," he admitted. "But being here and talking with you is helping. It's giving me a new perspective on life."

Lusha leaned over and put her hand on top of his. "Sometimes a change of scenery is exactly what we need to heal and grow. And you've certainly come to the right place for new experiences."