“Good luck there.”Cha stood.“Let’s walk through the stalls.I need a birthday present for Phin Jr.that isn’t a complete scam.”
“Good luck withthat.”
Cha chuckled.“I’m thinking about one of those wizard hats that make you look like a fae monster.Think that would scare the littles?”
“Yes,” Dy answered fervently, “but he’ll love it.”
“Damn straight.”Cha felt a bit more like herself.She’d get over this episode and on with her life.She might not want the cottage and babies, or even the same human man night after night, but she’d been happy before and she could be happy again.This had been a good adventure, but it was over now.
Happy-ever-afters came in all shapes and sizes.She’d get her life sorted out and move forward.
She linked arms with Dy and headed out of the restaurant and into the rest of her life.
~32~
Not Quite the Ending You Expected
Lenorae was standingin the doorway.
“Well, fuck my life,” Cha said, coming to a shocked halt.She felt stupid with the heavy meal and exhaustion.She glanced at Dy.“Am I hallucinating?”
Dy shook her head slowly, looking equally stunned.“I’m pretty sure not.”
“What have you done with him?”Lenorae ground out, pretty rose gold hair snaking in her ire.
“I thought you were watching him,” Cha retorted.
“Excuseus,” one of the parents who’d been sitting beside them said pointedly, glaring at Cha as if the fae demon in the doorway was her fault.“There are other people here who’d like to exit.”
“Waddafuck!”one of the children yelled, jumping up and down, giggling madly.
“Wrong usage, kid,” Cha advised.“You want something more like ‘fuck you’ or ‘get the fuck out of my way’ in this instance.”
“Bandit,”Dy said, half in warning, half on a sigh.
“Fuckayoo!”the kid exclaimed in delight.
“Much better,” Cha allowed.Maybe she was a little punchy.
The parent glared harder at her.“You have a potty mouth and shouldn’t be in places with children.”
“Me?”Cha blinked innocently and pointed at Lenorae.“She’sthe fae demon.”
The parent made a sound of disgust and shepherded their kids around Cha and Dy—and walked straight through Lenorae.
“Not really here then?”Cha muttered to Dy.
“Not fully corporeal,” Dy corrected.“Let’s take this outside.”
“Surely that’s my line.”
“Neither of you humans are going anywhere until you tell me in detail what you’ve done with Prince Azulejah,” Lenorae snarled.
Cha looked around to see if anyone else had heard.“Does your fiancée—husband?—know you’re throwing around his real name in theme restaurants?”
“I decide for him,” Lenorae asserted tossing back her hair.“I have control; not him.”
“Then how did you lose him?”Cha really wondered what was going on.Also, she wasn’t too excited about escalating this fight with Lenorae, not with all these kids in here.