Page 16 of Haunted Eclipse

“You say you want to see the new episode ofPromise At The Altar? I can go for that.” I selected the newest episode and we settled back to watch the couples who had barely met decide whether they wanted to sign up for life at an extremely staged wedding. It was schlock TV, but I liked it.

An hour later, my head filled with the latest drama of the six couples, five of whom had decided to go through with the experiment, I headed into the kitchen to start dinner.

As I put the water on to boil for the noodles, and began to grate cheese, my thoughts returned to Brenda.

Nobody was more surprised than me that she was meant to be with a star witch. Shifters and witchesdidhook up together, but when you were dealing with the more conservative shifter types, it wasn’t nearly as frequent of an occurrence as some people might think.

Bear shifters tended to be among the most conservative, along with wolf shifters. Although, I thought, some of the wolf shifter packs were starting to move into the modern age. As the world grew smaller and people from all walks of life interacted more, it was bound to happen.

The water was boiling at a brisk rate, so I poured the elbow noodles into it, added a splash of oil and a spoon of salt, and put the lid on, turning the heat down enough so it wouldn’t boil over. I loved my pots. The lids were made of glass and metal, and the nonstick pots had lips on them. The lids fit down into the pan securely, and on the sides, the lids had a self straining capability.

I grated a mound of cheddar, added some gouda to give it a smoky taste, and took out a skillet. I placed it on the burner, turning the flame to medium. Adding a good dollop of butter, I stirred it with a whisk until it melted, then sifted in enough flour to make a roux. I paused to stir the noodles to keep them from sticking, then began to whisk in half-and-half to the roux.

As it bubbled up, I added the cheese, salt and lemon pepper, a little dried parsley, and half of a teaspoon of paprika. I drained the noodles, poured them into a casserole dish, stirred in the crab and then poured the cheese sauce over the top. After that, I added a layer of cracker crumbs and popped the casserole into the oven to bake.

I opened the bag of salad and poured it into a bowl, then diced a pint of cherry tomatoes and added those to the mix.I had bought a lemon streusel for dessert, so everything was about ready.

Right on time, the doorbell rang. I went to answer it.

Crystal was standing there, a large flower-power tote bag over her shoulder.

Where I was short and curvy, Crystal was tall and athletic. She was wearing a pair of distressed blue jeans and an oversized lavender turtleneck sweater. And, as a nod to the weather, she had stuffed herself into a parka.

Crystal’s hair was ashen brown, and she kept it pulled back in a braid. It set off her deep blue eyes, and she looked like the quintessential country girl.

“I brought wine and chips for later,” she said, holding up the tote bag.

I stood back so she could enter. “Dinner’s almost ready. I made macaroni and cheese with crab, salad, and we have a lemon strudel for dessert.”

She licked her lips. “I’m hungry, so I hope you made enough. You know I eat like a linebacker.”

“That’s probably because you work out more than anybody I know.” I tried to keep in shape enough to where I could do a day hike without wheezing, but Crystal hadmuscles.

“I love the gym. I love hiking. I’m amazed that I actually decided to open a coffee shop, because I always thought about being a physical trainer. But I like interacting with my customers, and I love coffee.” She shrugged off her coat, hanging it on the coat rack. Then, she carried her tote bag into the kitchen and pulled out a bottle of red wine, along with two bags of corn chips. She sniffed the air. “That smells incredible. What can I do to help?”

“Why don’t you get out the dishes and silverware, while I take the casserole out of the oven. We can eat in front of the television.”

We worked in silence for a few minutes, readying our dinner. Finally, we served ourselves and carried our plates into the living room, setting them on the table trays that my aunt kept around. As we settled on the sofa, ready to eat and watch a movie, Miss P. began to pace back and forth in front of us.

“No, mooch. Silly girl, I gave you your dinner,” I said.

“She’s so pretty,” Crystal said. “I remember when we were kids and you use to beg your aunts to let you get a cat.”

“Well I finally have one, and you know the funniest thing? Astraadoresher.” I paused, then said, “I don’t think my aunt wants me to move out. I think she likes having me here.”

“Do you think you might stay?” Crystal asked.

“You know, I’m considering it. I love having my own house, but since Dan died the house has been awfully empty. I wish we’d had more time together.”

“You tworeallyloved each other, didn’t you?” Crystal’s voice was gentle.

“Yeah,” I said, staring at my dinner. “Dan loved me forme. And I knew that he always would. No matter what I looked like, no matter if something happened where I got hurt or gained weight, or even aged naturally, he would be there.”

“That’s a keeper, for sure.”

“Dan was the type of man that I always dreamed of marrying.” I let out a long sigh. “I keep telling myself I should be grateful because Ihadthat wonderful, immersive love that so many people dream about. But sometimes…” I stopped, not wanting to voice the next thought.

But Crystal could tell when I needed to get something out. “Go on. You know you can say anything to me.”

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