Page 96 of The Charmer

"Where's the restaurant?" I asked after locking up.

"Toulouse Street."

"Hmm. I'm trying to guess which one it is...” But I wasn't such a restaurant connoisseur that I knew all the places in the Quarter, and there were a lot of them. "Does it belong to your family?" I asked.

He turned to me, grinning. "Of course. I know most people love LeBlanc & Broussard, but I like this one more. It's more intimate."

"I can't wait to see it."

Music resounded through the streets, along with the sound of chatter. It was surprisingly warm, and the air wasn't as humid as usual. Even the weather wanted us to have a great date.

"Spring is in the air," I murmured.

Julian squeezed my fingers. I loved that he wasn't letting go.

"What makes you say that?"

"I get this feeling when the air changes slightly. I'm usually not wrong."

"It is a very pleasant evening," he agreed as we arrived in front of The Apothecary.

I blinked a few times, then glanced through the window again to make sure I wasn't having vision problems.

"This is a restaurant?"

Julian nodded. "Yeah. It used to be an apothecary. When my family took over the lease on the building two generations ago, they decided to keep the name. It had been an apothecary for hundreds of years, and I think it’s fair to honor that.”

"Your family is big on tradition, huh?"

"We usually try to keep the name of the places we acquire. And there’s even an entire wall dedicated to the family who owned it."

"Do they still have heirs?"

"No. That's how my family ended up snapping up this place. They wanted to close it down. Couldn't find anyone to continue their business. Ready to go in?"

"Sure."

Julian opened the door for me, and I looked around in wonder when we stepped inside. The tables were generously spaced out, and even though half of them were occupied, it was still pretty quiet. Jazz music played in the background.

I immediately noticed the ode to the apothecary in the decorations. They had shelves filled with all sorts of bottles on every wall.

"Julian, hi," an elderly man said.

"Good evening, Oliver. May I introduce you to Georgie," Julian said, then asked, "Is everything ready?"

"Yes, sir, follow me."

He was taking us to the back—maybe to the inner courtyard?

Nope, we walked up a staircase, where there was nothing except for some boxes and other supplies on the next level. But then we went up another flight, and Oliver opened a door to the rooftop.

I instantly smiled. There were two big trees in huge pots that were completely leafless now. But they looked absolutely romantic with twinkle lights entwined among the branches.

A table for two was set in the middle of the space, and there was an ice bucket next to it. We were completely alone up here.

"I've taken the liberty of bringing you a bottle of white wine." Oliver pointed at the bucket. "The red is on the table."

"Thank you," I said as Julian held the chair for me. It was a bit chillier up here, and I was glad I had my jacket on underneath my coat. I did take off the coat but kept the jacket on.

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