Except I don’t feel like being social right now.
Rather than assess why my feelings were conflicted, I wandered inside the diner and took a seat at the counter. The woman behind the counter smelled like wheat, sucking me right back into the fields on Beaufort Ranch. She wasn’t familiar to me. But then again, this wasn’t my usual time frame for diner food.
With my most impressive smile, I ordered a stack of pancakes, a huge side of sausage, and their largest cup of coffee. She didn’t seem fazed by my order—or the scars decorating my face and arms. But what she did find interest in was the scores of tattoos swirling over my forearms. Three abstractly drawn wolves darted up my left arm and reappeared on my right in the opposite direction.
Her flirtatious grin awakened her tired features but didn’t reduce the bags under her eyes. “Nice ink.”
“Got it around the corner.” My hand flew to my peck without thinking. “Got plenty done over there.”
She hummed while jotting down the rest of my order. “There’s a pie on the specials tonight. Want a slice?”
“Sure.”
She winked. “You look like you could use it.”
Were my scars that obvious?
I peered in the mirror behind the counter where baked goods sat on display. No, they weren’t obvious. I just looked as tired as anyone wandering into this place at this hour of the night. Rugged scars lined my left cheekbone, highlighting the fact that my left eye was clouded a bluish-white. My right eye burned as red as a blood moon.
I blinked and looked away.
The door jingled behind me, bringing with it the scent of cotton candy and brown sugar. While any creature’s aroma was easy for me to pick up on, this one made my heart skip a beat. It reminded me of sneaking into the carnival with my wolf sister— a recollection from ages ago that didn’t feel real anymore.
The phantom taste of sweet, soft flakes of spun candy danced on my tongue. The scent of elephant ears wafted into my nostrils as I turned around, practically hearing the delighted cheers from the rides that were impressed in my mind. Multicolored lights sparkled around the figure of the wolf who walked into the diner, carrying with her the bubbliness that anyone might find while entering a wonderland of mystery and excitement.
It felt real, yet it didn’t. And why would any of it feel real? Nothing struck me the same way it had in those days.
Until this scent.
Until thiswoman.
A rosy pink hue kissed her pale peach skin, positivity circling the air around her. It seemed as if every exhalation pumped joy into her surrounding environment. Long blonde hair fell to her curvy hips and hazel-yellow eyes glittered as she approached the counter. She wore a black tank top and blue jeans, a simple outfit. Civilian, even.
Had she noticed me? Or was she just dropping in like me for a late-night snack?
My hunger suddenly doubled.
But it wasn’t for pancakes anymore.
“Hi, Cecil,” she said to the woman behind the counter. Both women warmed with recognition. “How’s the pie tonight?”
“Extra sweet. Devon went a little heavy with the sugar, but…” Cecil leaned forward to continue in a conspiratorial whisper, “I think it’s perfect. Want a slice?”
The bubbly woman nodded. “With cheddar cheese on top, please.”
I snorted, drawing the attention of both women. With their eyes fixed on me like spotlights, I felt like a soldier who had stepped out of line. Cecil brightened with anticipation as the other woman appeared lost for a second. The pupils of her eyes blew out, almost swallowing that dazzling hazel-yellow field.
Reality settled back into her vision as she whispered, “Hi.”
“Hi,” I said. I nodded to the seat next to me. “Take a load off.”
“Thanks.”
She set a bag on the counter that flopped open, sketchbooks spilling toward my side of the counter. The rose of her cheeks blossomed to a strawberry red that made me chortle. Yellow fields, indeed.
“Here,” I offered while scooping up some of the books. “I’m sure you don’t want to lose those.”
“Heavens,no,” the woman replied. “They’re awful. I can’t imagine who would want to see them. The stuff of nightmares, I tell you.”