Page 78 of Reluctant Rogue

Grinning wickedly, Katerina slid off her chair. “I get to tell Jacinth. Liam, did you get pictures?”

“Of course!”

“Great, send them to me, will you? I’m going to grab my Chosen, and drag him off to lunch before anything else happens.”

With that she was out of the room. Liam chuckled, nuzzling Naomi. “I second that. What shall it be? Burgers? Tacos? Healthy shit?”

“Healthy shit?” She snorted in derision, but leaned into his embrace, smiling up at him. “I want comfort food. Burgers. Big and greasy, with lots of fries.”

“You got it, babe.”

“Wait!” She suddenly remembered why she was there at the clinic. “What about the realtor we were going to meet?”

“Oh, right. She called just before you arrived, something came up and she can’t make it until five. Which,” he mused, “is probably a good idea, all things considered. I’m not sure I’m up to concentrating on the mundane right now. I mean… a jackalope! Man, oh, man. I couldn’t believe it my own eyes.”

“You and me both,” she assured him. “Yes, I’m laughing at poor Nathan’s introduction to our world, but I’m actually still kind of reeling.”

“Shock,” he said sagely, wrapping his arm around her waist. “Let’s go get some food in us.”

Chapter23

Halfway through lunch,Naomi set down her cheeseburger, sighing as her conscience prodded her. “I feel guilty about poor Nathan,” she confessed. “I mean… he gets all that dumped on him, and then we sent him home with a…” she cast a cautious glance around the restaurant, lowering her voice. “With a magical animal. He’s got to be freaking out.”

Liam chuckled. “Already got it covered. I’ve been in touch with Maroulla and she’s sent us some more info on jackalopes. I texted Nathan to let him know we’re dropping by his place after we leave here. I’ve already let Troy know I’m taking off the rest of the day to give Nathan any help he needs. Douglas will be in the clinic after lunch, and he’ll cover for me.”

“Oh!” Naomi breathed out a sigh of relief, picking up her burger. “Okay, I feel better now. Are you going to tell me what Maroulla said?”

“Nah, let’s wait til we get to Nathan’s, and we’ll go over it all, the three of us together.” He nodded to the table beside theirs, where a family of four was being seated. “In private.”

“Oh, right.”

She hurried through the rest of her lunch, much to Liam’s apparent amusement. “Naomi, they’re not going anywhere.”

“I know, but I want to see her again, and I want to hear all about them.”

He laughed, polishing off his own burger and fries and standing up, keys in hand. “All right, all right.”

Nathan lived in a lovely, older neighborhood with large yards, low ivy-covered stone walls, and lots of close-growing trees providing dappled shade. Naomi sat forward in her seat, scanning the houses as they turned onto Nathan’s street.

“This is a nice area, and look, those woods come right up to the back of the houses on the left side of the street.”

Liam checked his GPS. “That’s the side Nathan lives on. The jackalope must have come out of those woods into his yard.”

She snickered. “Jillalope.”

“Right.” He flicked the turn signal. “This is his house.”

Naomi peered through the windshield at the pretty single-story brick home with ivy winding up the sides, and dark green shutters. “This is really nice. I guess I expected something smaller, seeing as he’s single.” She paused. “Forest green shutters, too.”

Liam looked blank. “Huh?”

She giggled. “Never mind. It’s a thing, in Hello, Dolly!”

“Uh, the musical?”

“Mmhmm.”

He glanced at her sideways, as if doubting her sanity. “If you say so.”