Page 24 of Fae Divided
Both Ferwyn were dressed in the standard garb of the Guard: black t-shirts, moss-colored cargo pants, and thick leather boots. Three plates stacked high with chicken and waffles were on the wooden tabletop, one for each male and the last awaiting her arrival.
Sarah straightened her shoulders, fiddling with her blouse and making sure the phone remained hidden.
“Sarah!” Joan Long, also known as Johnnie, sprang from her seat near the door, wrapping her in a tight hug. The shifter ended the embrace but then captured Sarah’s hands. “How are you? Any news from James? Oh geez Louise, that was a stupid question. Do you want to sit with us? Jacob,” she called to Clan Walker’s beta, who never seemed far away from the bubbly female. “Can you get Sarah something to eat? They make great high-calorie smoothies here. I’m not saying you look skinny. You’re as gorgeous as ever. What flavor would you like? The peach and mango combo is awesome, although the strawberry banana ones are my favorite. I’ll have Jacob get them to add extra whipped cream and some protein powder. Or how about the—”
“Jo,” Jacob Tucker’s deep voice interrupted, the handsome shifter rising to join them. He tugged gently on her long, auburn braid, assuring her attention. “Noah’s here.”
“Oh.” Johnnie gulped in a much-needed breath while her gaze flitted around the café, searching for Noah.
“You good?” the beta asked Sarah, his hand still holding Johnnie’s hair.
“I’m fine, Tucker.” Only the young she-wolf ever called him Jacob, and only he called her Jo.
He nodded, but his brow remained pinched with concern.
“I know,” Johnnie said brightly, a smile lighting her expressive face. Her hazel eyes twinkled as she caught Noah’s notice across the room and waved enthusiastically. “Maybe we could join y’all?”
Her son returned the pretty shifter’s friendly gesture, and the astringent scent of balsam mingling with annoyance tickled Sarah’s nose.
“We’re leaving,” Tucker said abruptly, his southern accent thickening.
“We are?”
The big beta growled. “Break’s over.”
“Already?” Johnnie asked with a startled squeak as Tucker grabbed her hand and pulled. She twisted and managed a hasty, “Bye, Sarah,” before exiting the café.
Sarah covered her mouth, hiding a grin while watching the beta drag the clueless she-wolf behind him. Johnnie’s happy chatter resumed and then quickly faded as Sarah walked deeper into the restaurant and approached Noah’s table.
“Did you hear about the male who was offered a job at a mattress store?” Noah asked, pouring an obscene amount of syrup over his food. “He asked if he could sleep on it.”
Hop Blackwater glared at her son, fisting his fork hard enough to bend.
“Was playing on your iPhone making you sleepy?” Noah didn’t look up from his meal, cutting a huge chunk of waffle and then crispy chicken, swirling them together in a puddle of sticky maple. “There’s a nap for that.”
“I wasn’t sleeping,” Hop said through teeth clenched tight enough to crack. “The dart—”
“Was filled with an unidentified drug.” Noah popped the large bite into his mouth, chewed, and swallowed.
“But—”
“Did you know Chuck Norris sleeps with—”
“Enough.” Hop half-stood, brandishing his fork like a weapon.
“Planning on stabbing him with that thing?” Sarah asked, taking a seat in the empty plastic chair.
“Hey, Mom.”
“Why are you tormenting Hop with your terrible puns?”
“I wasn’t—”
“You were. Now, explain why.”
“Can’t.” He scrubbed at his clean-shaven chin. “And they weren’tthatbad.”
“Hop?” she asked as the shifter slowly sat.
