Gold(38)

“For the wedding or for it to be over?” she asked.

“Either,” he said.

“Eh,” she said. “I’m excited to get back to work. And I’ve decided I’m going to do better at coming back to visit my family.” She gave him a shy look. “Maybe you could come with me.”

“Oh, so you’re willing to keep me around after we’re done working together,” he said.

She flushed, looking embarrassed. It was hard to see with her tan skin, but he could still tell. “I guess so. I mean, I like to think we’ve become friends.”

“Maybe a little more,” he said, winking as he put another piece of potato in his mouth.

“Maybe a little more,” she admitted with a grin. They enjoyed the quiet spring air for a little while, and then she looked up at him. “I’m realizing I know nothing about you. I guess if we are going to end up getting involved, or whatever, I should know at least a little.”

“All right,” he said reluctantly. “What do you want to know?”

She thought for a second. “I guess we could start with where you grew up. Siblings. Family. Stuff like that.”

“My family is all dead,” he said. “They died a long time ago.” That much was true. He’d been thinking of how to answer specific questions she might ask. Hopefully she wouldn’t stray outside of that.

He looked up to see her staring at him sadly, one hand messing with the curls that were in a loose ponytail over her shoulder.

“I’m sorry to hear that,” she said. “We don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to.”

He shrugged. “It’s fine. I mean. It was a long time ago. It almost feels like another life.”

“What was that life like?” she asked. Then she fidgeted as if she weren’t sure that was an appropriate question to ask. “I’m sorry. Look, I’m not used to getting to know people. Like this. Men.” She flushed again, and he grinned. “But I just… You answer what you want to. I really want to know everything I can.”

No, you don’t, he thought wryly.

“Not much to say. I grew up rich. I didn’t have many problems. I had everything I could want, with only a few responsibilities, which didn’t tax me overly.”

“What did your parents do?”

He blinked. “Wealth management.” Right, that was a good synonym for hoarding treasure. Same thing. “They travelled a lot.” To trade their gold for other treasure. “I was alone a lot. No siblings.”

“So you’re working here now. What happened to your family business?”

He shrugged. “Didn’t have access to it after… the incident.”

“What incident?”

“I was gone, and they… disappeared. We weren’t that close, so I wasn’t that upset by it. I barely knew them, and they had nannies raise me. I’m closer to my friends. But when I came back, I had to start over. A whole different world.”

“Wow,” she said. “And your friends helped you?”

He nodded. “They were all lost in their own ways. So yes, we made the club together.”

“What about that Citrine guy? He works there, but doesn’t?”

“He doesn’t want to,” Dante said. “And what he says goes.”

“He seems like such a mild-mannered person, though,” she said thoughtfully, resting her cheek on her hand and chewing on a fry.

“He can be,” Dante said. But Citrine hadn’t sounded mild-mannered when he’d talked to them on the phone. He’d sounded frazzled and frustrated and in over his head.

Perhaps it would be good that he and Ella would be going back soon. He could help Citrine find the others mates while still wooing Ella at a nice, easy pace.

That sounded great.

“Thanks for telling me more about you,” she said, putting a hand over his. “That all sounds really hard.” When she realized what she’d done, she hesitated, but he gripped her hand in his, rubbing the top of it softly as she lightly shivered.

“It was, but I’m here,” he said, looking into her beautiful brown eyes. “So I’m okay.” For the first time since he’d awakened, he could say that and mean it.

She was looking embarrassed again but pleased. “Eat your burger,” she said. “We still have to go help set up for the rehearsal dinner and then go home and get ready. Lots to do.”

He nodded.

As long as Cliff stayed out of his way and he and Ella had another great day together, he was sure everything would be fine.





Twelve





Ella stared at the mirror, barely recognizing herself. Her mom had helped her pick out a dress while shopping the other day, insisting Dante would love it, but Ella didn’t know if she had the guts to go down there looking like this.