15. Kitty

15

KITTY

S eated at the bar, I drum my fingers against the wood while watching Melanie busy herself with something out of sight. She’d called me yesterday after dress shopping and told me she needed a girls’ night, so I had come here all dressed up in a knitted dress, ready to drink pink drinks and forget about the stress of life with my father for a night.

Only, ever since I arrived, Melanie has been busy doing something else. Even Rook stepped away to use the bathroom and hadn’t come back.

“Honestly, what are you even doing? Digging to Australia?”

Melanie’s head snapped up, and she leaned through the doorway. “I want you to remember that comment when I’m finished, okay?” she remarked, pointing one long finger at me. “Just remember that.”

“Why, are you actually going to Australia! Oh, my God, are we going to Australia?”

“No!” Melanie snorted. “Now you’re thinking too big.”

“Austria?”

“Girl, no. We’re not going anywhere.”

“Oh.” I whined softly and slumped in my seat. “So you’re just going to leave me here drinking by myself all night?”

“Not all night.” Melanie ducked back through the door and continued to work with only her back visible. Occasionally, an elbow would flash through the door, but that was all. I toyed with the stem of my champagne glass and watched the bubbles rise up to fizz along the rim. This was quickly becoming the opposite of what I had planned for tonight.

“Ready?” Rook appeared back at my side, and I groaned.

“No.”

I glanced at him and then did a double-take. He was no longer in the black suit and white shirt combo required for security. He was wearing jeans with a cornflower blue shirt that was buttoned halfway. A cream scarf was draped around his neck, and a leather jacket over his shoulders.

“You… wow, you look… why do you look like that?” I stammered, caught slightly by how good he looked. He looked normal for the first time, and he was gorgeous.

“Here!” Melanie slammed one hand on the bar to get my attention, and when I turned, she thrust a small bouquet of roses and honeysuckle into my hands. “Australia, indeed,” she muttered.

“Australia?” Rook quizzically glanced between us.

“Long story,” Melanie grumbled. “Enjoy date night!”

“Date night?” Mouth agape, I stared down at the flowers for a few long seconds and then looked back up at Rook. “What is happening?”

Rook flashed Melanie a small smile as she headed back to work, then his eyes fixed on me. “I’m taking you on a date.”

“Wha… why?”

“Because I want to? Do you not want to?”

“Oh, my God, no, I do. I’m just… these flowers?”

“Ah, yes.” Rook crooked his elbow and offered it to me. “Melanie was in charge of those. Mostly because this was thrown together so quickly that I needed all the help I could get from her. Do you like them?”

“They’re gorgeous.” I pressed my face into the flowers as I took his elbow and breathed deeply. “I love the scent of honeysuckle.”

“Melanie told me it was your favorite.”

“Mmhmm.”

Rook guided me out of the bar, and as the crisp, sharp cold of the late evening air bit into my bare ankles, I huddled against Rook and finally lifted my head. “So. Date night.”

“Are you surprised?”

“Very. Where are we going?”

“Well, I thought the first thing we could do is take a look at the Christmas market. As consumers. Just soak it up, enjoy it, and try to embrace what this time of year is all about.”

“That’s very soft of you,” I teased. “Does the rugged attitude come with the suit?”

“Oh, no.” Rook chuckled. “It’s still there. I’m just trying to be a touch more mellow so we can enjoy spending time together. As us. As people rather than…” He trailed off and shrugged, but I understood him completely. He wanted to be Rook and Kitty. Not bodyguard and charge.

“Christmas market it is, then.”

With a smile that didn’t fade, Rook’s elbow under one hand and flowers in the other, we headed for the Christmas market that was a few streets down from The Anchor. It wasn’t as big or as lively as in previous years, but it was still beautiful.

The biting cold was kept at bay by heaters lining each stall, and there were still countless stalls to explore. We slowly walked over cobblestones and investigated each one thoroughly while giving Rook a chance to meet more people from the town.

One stall was weighed down with so many festive candles, and the mingling scents of mint, cinnamon, vanilla, and spice were enough to make me a little dizzy. I purchased a small candle scented of marshmallows and vanilla. The next stall had mouth-watering pastries, desserts, and cakes all laid out under protective covers. The smells were enough to make my stomach growl. One stall was covered in handmade snow globes, one had twigs from local fir trees pruned and decorated to look like miniature Christmas trees, one had an extremely detailed collection of snow baubles and paper tinsel. Rook’s eyes lit up when we stopped at a wood carving stall, and he purchased a small wooden squirrel. It was adorable, and he slipped it into his pocket with a secret smile.

We walked for hours, chatting to people about their Christmas plans and the holidays. We bought hot chocolate covered in whipped cream and marshmallows and browsed all the stalls selling delicacies from around the world. Even the fishmonger’s stall was decorated in theme with Christmas lights around the roof and little Santa figurines in the ice around the fish.

It was so heartwarming to see that even in the wake of everything, there was still a strong sense of community through the market, and it warmed my soul to see so many people still fighting.

If my father got his way, this would likely be the last Christmas market. With the lack of tourist foot traffic, I couldn’t see any of these businesses surviving the next year.

The best part of the evening was Rook. Whether accidental or intentional, he was a different man. He smiled more. He carried my bags, kissed the whipped cream off my nose when he was sure no one was looking, and was the perfect gentleman in letting me spend as much time at each stall as I wanted.

So, when we eventually walked back to his truck, I was fully prepared for a goodnight kiss. Only, it didn’t come.

“What, no kiss?” I pouted as Rook held the truck door open for me.

“We’re not done.” Rook smiled. “Come on, get in.”

I slid into his truck and immediately huddled down into the seat as the lingering cold crept up. With no heaters to warm me, I had to wait for Rook to start the truck and turn on the heat to be comfortable.

“Where are we going?” I asked, carefully placing my shopping bags in the back seat.

“Do you want me to tell you,” Rook said, “or do you want it to be a surprise?”

“I want a surprise,” I decided. “Did you rent this?” The truck wasn’t the usual car I’d seen him drive, and the inside still had that faint new car smell that tickled my nose above the gorgeous scents lingering from my parcels.

“I did. Where I want to go next wouldn’t be possible in my old car.”

“Your car is pretty old.” I laughed. “Is my dad really not paying you much?”

“He is. It’s not that.”

“You’re just attached?”

Rook’s grip tightened slightly on the wheel and he nodded. “You could say that.”

“Wanna elaborate?” I didn’t want to press him, but there clearly was a story here and we were on a date. What better way to get to know one another than like this?

Rook glanced over at me and his lips flickered slightly. “Okay. My car is my brother’s car. He passed away about four years ago. I’d lost touch with him while I was in the military, and when I came back and started to track him down, all I found was a death certificate and that car.”

“Oh, my God…”

“It’s not as bad as it sounds. We weren’t close. I just… I feel like I should keep the car for as long as I can because it’s my only connection to him, y’know? I sometimes wonder if he thought about me at all or if he simply didn’t care because he was too caught up in his own life.”

I reached across and laid my hand on Rook’s thigh. “You’re a hard man to forget.”

“Maybe.” Rook laughed. “I was a dick when I was a teenager, though, so who knows? Either way, I guess the car has some sentimentality that I’m not ready to let go of yet.”

“I understand. Thank you for telling me.”

Rook glanced at me with warm eyes. “Yeah. Easily.”

It warmed my soul to know he found me easy to talk to, and I replayed that tidbit of info about him around my mind. He had a past, just like me. He’d just lived a lot longer so his past was more seasoned. But getting to know him more intimately was part of the fun, and I was going to take everything I could.

We eventually came to a stop in a clearing that looked out toward one of the lakes surrounding the town.

“We’re here?” I asked.

Rook nodded. “Don’t move yet, though.” He hopped out of the truck and hurried to my side, then opened the door and scooped me up into his thick arms. “Don’t want to ruin your heels.”

“What a gentleman.” I grinned as I kissed his cheek. “Where are we off to?”

“Not far.”

It literally wasn’t. Five steps, and Rook was depositing me in the flatbed of the truck where lots of blankets were piled high. To chase away the cold, I dived under them immediately after kicking off my heels, and I was pleasantly surprised to find several hot water bottles creating a pleasant heat.

Rook joined me a few seconds later, and he cuddled up to me with a smile. “I thought we could watch the stars together.”

“Aw,” I gasped softly. “That’s so romantic.” Cuddling into his chest, I turned my attention skyward. “Do you know why this place is called Silver Hills?”

“Are there werewolves roaming around?”

“No.” I laughed, pushing against his ribs. “Because of those two mountain peaks.” I pointed to them in the distance. “When the moon is at the right height, it sits in between them and there’s this gorgeous silver effect down the faces of both mountains. At the right angle, the silver pours off them and into the lakes. It’s really beautiful. Of course, it’s more beautiful when there’s snow everywhere, but I guess we’re not getting that this year.”

“You like the snow?” Rook asked, gently kissing my forehead.

“I love it. To me, that was always the sign that Christmas had started. But this year?” I grumbled softly and nuzzled into his chest. “This year, we’re clear skies all the way.”

“Rubbish,” Rook said softly. He trailed his fingertips back and forth across my shoulder and sighed. “You know? I think I really like you, Kitty.”

I lifted my head to look him in the eye. “You do?”

“Yeah.” He nodded. “I really do.”