Page 7 of Sorcery, Swords & Scones
“Not at all,” Sass insisted as Val tucked her knitting needles and yarn in the basket by the side of her chair.
“I think this was a good first lesson, but I really should get some sleep. I’m on duty tomorrow morning.”
Sass reluctantly stood and dropped her knot of yarn. She’d hoped that the pretense of a knitting lesson would make it easier to tell Val how she felt about her, and Sass was sure there had been a moment between them, but what if Val thought it was nothing but a lesson? What if the heat in Val’s gaze had only been the warmth of friendship?
“Thanks for taking the time to teach me,” Sass said, forcing herself to keep her smile neutral.
Val rested a hand on the dwarf’s shoulder and gave it a brief squeeze. “I’m always happy to bring another knitter into the fold.”
Well, that didn’t sound romantic.
Sass mustered a smile. “I don’t think we can call me a knitter yet.”
Val assessed the tangle of yarn in the basket. “Maybe not.” She winked at Sass. “That just means you need more lessons.”
Wait, did Val mean lessons orlessons? Sass had never considered herself thick, but she couldn’t for the life of her figure out if Val’s smiles were merely friendly or if they meant something more.
Val gave her quilted chest armor a tug and tossed her blonde waves off her shoulder. “Tomorrow? Same time, same place?”
Sass let relief wash over her that Val wanted to see more of her. That was a good sign, wasn’t it? “Aye. You can find me right here keeping the fire warm and the ale cold.”
As soon as the words had left her lips, she stifled a groan. Why had she said that? Of course, she’d be here. She was here every day. She lived here. Why did being around Val make her sound like a simpering idiot?
At least Val hadn’t seemed to notice. Or if she had, she didn’t look at Sass like the dwarf had sprouted a second head.
“See you tomorrow, then.”
Sass walked Val to the door and waved her off into the night. She lingered in the doorway for a moment, breathing in the cool night air and listening to the chirping of the insects and the gurgling of the nearby stream. Once Val had melted into the darkness, she stepped back inside the tavern and closed the heavy door behind her.
For a first date that wasn’t actually a date, that could have gone worse. Of course, she still wasn’t sure if Val liked her in the way she liked Val. Lira assured her that Val did, but how could Sass trust the same woman who had taken so long to realize that Korl was into her? The orc had literally built Lira a stove, and she still hadn’t been sure.
But what if Lira was right? It was easier to see things when they weren’t happening to you.
“Am I just as clueless as she was?” Sass whispered to herself. That wasn’t a pleasant thought since Sass prided herself on her well-honed dwarf instincts.
With a shake of her head, Sass turned and towed the errant benches and chairs back under the wooden tables, humming her favorite sea shanty to herself. When a flutter of movement in the corner caught her eye, she stiffened, her hands curling around the top of a chair. Her knuckles went white as a figure materialized from the shadows in the corner.
Sass held her breath as the dwarf pushed back his hood to reveal the bushy brows, hooked nose, and black pointed beard she knew so well.
“I’ve been looking for you for a long time, Sass.”
Five
“Thrain.”Sass exhaled the word on a sigh. “How did you find me?”
She’d been wrong about which dwarf had found her, and the relief that it was Thrain almost buckled her legs.
The dwarf took a few steps forward and threw one leg over a bench, sitting down and motioning for her to do the same. “Do you forget how well I know you?”
Sass uncoiled her hands from the top of the chair and pulled it out with a scrape. “I have forgotten nothing.”
Thrain stroked the point of his beard and let out a harrumph. “You want to rethink that last answer?”
Sass’s gut churned as she glanced over her shoulder toward the kitchen where Lira continued to clang the occasional pot. She didn’t worry that Thrain was a threat to her friend. It was more likely that his presence threatened everything she’d built.
When she turned back to the dwarf, she sat up straighter. “I’m not surprised they sent you to find me, but I am surprised you agreed to it. I thought you, of all dwarves, would understand.”
His eyes became slits that almost vanished beneath his shaggybrows. “Understand?” His voice cracked. “You let me think you were dead. Me! Your best friend since we were crawling.”
