Page 14 of Deck the Skulls
Will nodded his head to one of his bags. “This one needs to be refrigerated.”
“Cram it in the fridge in there as best you can,” Zan said with a shrug. “Titan’s donkey won’t care if some carrots get squished.”
“I don’t know. Earl Gray is a picky donkey,” Jesse said with a grin as he headed for the office, followed closely by Will.
“Earl Gray?” Rissa asked as she put the finishing touches on the drink. “That’s a weird name for a donkey.”
“He’s gray, and he thinks he’s royalty, it works,” Zan said with a laugh.
More familiar faces walked in and stopped just inside, all staring at Rissa with surprised expressions. Any of the shifters could smell she was fully human without a whiff of the magic that she’d have when she shared souls with Anatoly. She didn’t even smell like him or Anatoly because they hadn’t had a chance to rub their scents on her.
It was then that Zan realized how much dancing he was going to need to do to keep anyone from saying something that would make Rissa suspicious. They needed time for her to trust them before revealing their world to her.
“I’ll see what they want to order,” he said. “Could you see if Will and Jesse want anything when they finish in my office?”
She nodded and waved at the guys to sit in front of her as they walked back into the main area. A pair of druids walked in, followed by a group of four coyote shifters.
He couldn’t wait for nightfall so Anatoly would be down here to help him with Rissa.
***
Anatoly
The bar was full when Anatoly entered. He’d been tempted to come down earlier, but didn’t want Rissa to see him weak. There were heavier wards on the third-floor apartment, which allowed him to move better as the day progressed, but down here in the bar, he’d stumble and might even seem drunk during the day.
Now that the sun was fully down, there was nothing keeping him from being with his cat and human.
Both Rissa and Zan were behind the bar fixing drinks. Every table was full and all the seats at the bar were occupied except for the one Zan kept empty for him.
Sliding into it, he cleared his throat. “I’d like a drink, please.”
Rissa paused in her task to smile broadly at him. Zan didn’t look up from what he was doing but grinned.
“What can I get you?” she asked.
“Zan will get it for me,” he said, realizing his mistake. She shouldn’t be handling the blood wine he drank. “Why don’t you take a break and join me?”
He moved his gaze to the gargoyle drinking a beer next to him. The gargoyle wasn’t impressed. Gargoyles were one of the only species of supernaturals that vampires couldn’t put in thrall.
“Ask nicely,” the gargoyle said.
“Heya, Mason,” Zan said, pointing to a newly empty chair. “You could move here so Rissa could be next to Anatoly.”
The gargoyle’s harsh expression gentled when he looked at the human. “Sure, Zan. No problem.” He moved his bulk away as Zan urged Rissa to take a break.
The moment she sat down next to him, Anatoly could see how tired she was. He wanted to pick her up and carry her away which felt odd because caring about a human was new territory for him. Zan was a shifter and far more robust than a human so he rarely witnessed the mountain lion as tired as Rissa appeared.
“You’re done working for the night,” Anatoly growled, casting an accusing glance at Zan. The mountain lion shrugged and went back to serving drinks.
“I’m not done,” she argued even as she rested both elbows on the bar in front of her. “My shift isn’t over.”
Then Zan was in front of them, pushing two glasses across the bar top. “Smokey and smooth for Rissa and a fresh vintage for Anatoly.”
“I probably shouldn’t drink this,” Rissa said even as she accepted the drink and chuckled. “Fresh vintage. You’re funny. I bet that’s old as fuck. Probably from some fancy French winery that supplied kings or something.”
“It’s not French, I promise,” Zan said, opening a bottle of beer and taking a long draw. “Damn, that tastes good,” he said, leaning against the bar, holding the beer loosely by the neck.
Rissa frowned at him. “We can’t all take a break at the same time.”