Page 61 of The Lone Wolf Café
“I made you tea!” I declared, setting the forest critter teacup in front of Rowena. Before she could open her mouth and reply, I added, “And it’s got maple syrup. Just the way you like it.”
Rowena chuckled, lifting the teacup from its tiny plate and inhaling the steam that wafted off the hot liquid. “Thank you. You’re the best.”
She turned to me and smiled, placing a hand on the curve of my shoulder and rubbing gently. She insisted we sit down by the fireplace, since it was mid-afternoon and business was slow. I relished the way she pressed her fingers against my upper back as she did so.
It had been a few days since the pumpkin carving contest when we took our chloromancer-grown pumpkins back to the café and had our own festivities. Our sloppy but menacing jack-o’-lanterns were perched out on the front porch, and Rowena placed tiny tea candles within the hollowed gourds for us to light them at night. It always made me smile to walk past our creations, side-by-side, illuminating the front porch of the café.
Since that night, Rowena had been more affectionate than ever. Whenever we were close – which happened often when we were running the front counter during the morning rush – she’d always offer subtle touches. A hand on my arm, or my shoulder, or my upper back. I swore that whenever we were prepping orders, she’d brush against me on purpose.
I easily fell into the flirtation, welcoming her little touches and gestures, drinking them up like the sweet honey wine we werewolves made back home. But as I sat next to Rowena in our high-backed chairs, teacup steaming in my cold hands, my full, happy heart sank. Because it never went past those littlemoments. There was no conversation, no confession of feelings. No hug, or kiss, or anything past the subtle hints of affection.
I knew why. We both had secrets to hide, and we feared that revealing them would shatter the beautiful, sweet façade we’d built for ourselves.
Plus, I was supposed to be leaving soon. It was less than a week until Halloween – and the full moon – and I’d promised myself I wouldn’t stay much longer. It was already a risk to remain in the town during a full moon frenzy, but I was desperate for more time with Rowena.
I just didn’t know if I could risk a second full moon. Or a third. Every passing month would bring an even greater risk of being caught.
“You’re quite enjoying the pumpkin spice tea,” Rowena commented as I took a long sip.
I nodded as I settled the teacup back in my lap. “I guess I do like tea after all. Just not Earl Grey.”
A sly grin crept across Rowena’s lips. “I question that.”
“What do you mean?”
“Whether or not you really like tea,” Rowena pointed to my teacup. “The liquid is practically white. You dumped a ton of cream and sugar into it to mask the taste, didn’t you?”
I frowned, shielding the top of the teacup with my palms. “I… I did not!”
“Then let me taste it.”
I had no choice but to relent, and as soon as my teacup reached Rowena’s lips, she coughed and made a face, like someone who just sucked on a lemon.
“That is ridiculously sweet,” she chided, setting the teacup down on the end table with disdain.
“I like it.”
“Don’t tell me that’s how you make your coffee.”
“Maybe you’ll have to try it sometime and find out.”
Rowena rolled her eyes, offering me a playful grin as she stood up and gathered both of our teacups.
“I can make some coffee right now,” I continued to tease as she rinsed our teacups in the sink. “I can even do a light roast so it’s not so bitter.”
“Are you going to dump a bunch of sugar and cream in it?” Rowena asked, a dark eyebrow arched.
“Of course. That’s how you drink coffee.”
Rowena let out a low scoff of disgust as she whirled around the counter, pressing a hand against the kitchen door. “You’re just solidifying my argument that tea is better. Anyway, I have some matters to attend to in the garden. Are you okay watching the shop for, say, ten minutes?”
I nodded, scrunching my nose up at Rowena. I knew her tomato plants had been having issues, but I also knew it was an easy cop-out for our little quarrel.
“Excellent.” Rowena tossed open the kitchen door. “Come fetch me if anyone orders tea.”
“What if they want coffee instead?”
Rowena didn’t even reply to that one. She simply rolled her eyes, shook her head, and disappeared through the kitchen door. Its soft slam woke Mavro, who had been asleep on top of the hot plate.
