Page 4 of Shiny Things

I looked into his big green eyes and gulped.

“Did you need something else?”

“Yeah, I need to know what’s wrong with you.”

“Nothing.”

“Don’t lie to me, Kim. I can explain about last night.”

“There’s nothing to explain,” I told him as pain shot through my chest.

Just then another couple walked in and sat in my section.

“I have other customers and need to get back to work. If you need anything else, just let me know.”

I forced myself to walk away from him, while everything inside of me just wanted to yell and scream at him. I had no right, but it didn’t change how I felt.

Elias

Chapter 2

I hated how Kim was looking at me. She was cold and stiff. I wasn’t used to it, and I didn’t like it.

Logically I understood all her reasons for steering clear of me. I got it. My mother wasn’t exactly quiet in her praise of the class system amongst ravens. My family sat at the top of that list and Kim’s at the very bottom.

It was a ridiculous archaic system that had no room in modern society. The division it caused within my immediate family alone should have been enough for her to get a clue, but that was Helena Dean Davenport for you. She was stubborn and stuck in the past.

I didn’t care about any of that. Still, it didn’t seem to matter how I felt because Kim was making it clear today that she didn’t want anything to do with me. I didn’t like it one bit.

I didn’t really have anywhere to be today. I could oversee my part in the family business from here, so I pulled out my briefcase and took out my laptop to check my emails.

If Kim was too busy to talk to me now, then I’d just sit here and wait for the breakfast crowd to pass.

Normally she was happy to see me. But today it was like she was upset about something. I tried wracking my brain, trying to put the pieces together, and couldn’t fathom why she was upset, yet I knew in my soul she was.

It was times like this that made me certain she was my true mate. I was drawn to Kim in a way that I had never beenwith anyone else. There was a connection there no matter how many times she tried to deny it.

Unfortunately, there was no way for me to confirm my suspicion without letting my raven meet hers. It was a raven thing. I spent a lot of time in my feathers, even more so lately in hopes of catching Kim in hers. I think she was onto me though. She refused to shift in front of me and had been walking everywhere since I had asked her to.

“What difference does it make when we can never be together anyway?” she’d insisted.

It infuriated me, but even then she hadn’t distanced herself from me, not like today.

Two hours passed by quickly as I watched her flit around the room, only stopping by my table long enough for the occasional drink refill with not a word or glance in my direction.

I hated this distance between us and just wanted to pull her into my arms and kiss her senseless. To hell with them all. I didn’t give a damn who saw us or if we were the talk of the whole Flock.

Didn’t she know that I only cared about her?

I hadn’t meant for it to happen. For years she’d just been a face in the crowd. I hadn’t given her a second glance, especially knowing she was below my station according to my parents. But then Gia started working with her.

Gia was my baby sister, and as the oldest in the family it was my responsibility to look after her. She’d always been my baby. So I’d taken it upon myself to get to know everyone she was spending time with. I still had no idea how David had slid under my radar, but he made Gia so happy that I couldn’t even argue it.

When Gia starting working at the diner, I was led to Kim. I had honestly just wanted to make sure she wasn’t going to be a bad influence on Gia, but the more I got to know about her,the more I liked her. It hadn’t taken long because the beautiful raven-haired girl had captured my heart and become my very best friend.

I had always been a bit of a loner, but it was sad that I literally had no one to even ask for advice when it came to Kim. I’d even tried talking to Gia once, but she’d begged me not to act on my feelings, noting how our mother would just make Kim’s life a living hell. Of course she was right, yet I just couldn’t seem to stay away.

Gia swung by my table.

---