Page 32 of Violet Moon (Pitch Mountain Pack #1)

twenty-three

Sera stood in front of her mirror in the outfit Billie and Harry had helped her pick out. They tried to make something date-worthy from her “sea of brown.” There was color in the pattern on her trousers. Parisa would like that.

“You can do this,” she said to the mirror, flashing two thumbs up. It didn’t help. Her palms were sweaty and her voice cracked when she spoke. It was a shame her wolf couldn’t go instead, but the wolf probably wasn’t a great dinner companion.

Gathering her courage, she stepped out of her room and rushed towards the front door, ignoring the knowing glances and grins she received on the way. Parisa was already there, waiting patiently in a long-sleeved navy dress with crisp white and gold details on the pockets and collar.

“Hi,” Sera said in a tiny voice, taking her in. Not a single hair was out of place. Parisa was perfect most days, but now she was well beyond that in a realm that only consisted of Parisa and people like her — no, no one else was like her.

She whipped her head around at the sound of shuffling behind her. Out of the corner of her eye she saw faces disappear around a corner.

“Hi,” Parisa echoed, pulling Sera’s attention back to her. “I’m ready if you are.” If she was nervous like Sera, she was hiding it well.

Sera felt eyes staring at her back. She nodded, heading for the front door. “Let’s get out of here.”

Once the door shut behind them, Sera took choppy steps down the path that led from the house to the bakery and the busy street it was on. Silence with Parisa had never been anything but comfortable, but now it was stifling.

Parisa’s earlier confidence had vanished, as well. She wrung her hands together and kept glancing in Sera’s direction.

“I thought we’d try somewhere new,” Sera said, once they reached the sidewalk in front of the bakery.

She weaved past a tourist couple that weren’t paying attention to where they were going.

“I may have asked every single one of our packmates for places to go tonight. I got too many different opinions, often conflicting, and ended up more confused than when I started, but I did find one place I wanted to try. Up for a drink to start the evening?”

“A drink first? Feels naughty, like having dessert before dinner.” Parisa bumped their shoulders together. “I like it.”

Sera’s shoulders relaxed. Parisa stopped wringing her hands. They fell by her side, gently swinging where they poked out of her warm coat.

“Harry and Billie helped me get dressed today.”

“I think they did well.”

“I didn’t give them much to work with, but I did make sure to include color. Have you spotted it yet? There’s orange and red”.

“That orange is definitely brown, but I happily accept your offering of red.”

“It’s orange and you know it.”

“Sera, I have excellent werewolf abilities, but even I can’t see colors that don’t exist.”

“Where’s the line between a warm light brown and orange anyway? It’s orange.”

“You look good in all your neutrals. I wouldn't worry so much.”

Staring at her shoes, Sera mumbled, “You look nice, too.”

Parisa’s hand wriggled against hers before their fingers slotted together. Sera inhaled with surprise and the light touch made her skin tingle.

“So, tell me, what’d I miss at the bakery today?” Parisa asked.

Sera took a moment to find her voice, but with each word, she settled into something more comfortable with Parisa.

Swinging their hands at their sides, she told Parisa about her day, about their favorite regulars at Violet Moon, and complained about some of the less than wonderful moments.

Parisa chimed in as she did, adding a quick burst of laughter or her own thoughts, and it felt a lot like every night that’d come before in front of the fireplace, but so much better.

Sera led them to the bottom floor of one of the more expensive, trendier hotels in the city. She peered inside and got a sinking feeling she was underdressed.

“Carina recommended this one,” she said as she opened the tall glass door.

She bumbled her way through their reservation with the sharply dressed man out front and they were shown to a linen draped table towards the center of the creamy white room with chandeliers dotting the ceiling.

With every step, Sera felt her unease creeping back in. She tensed and curled into herself.

Even after trying to settle in, it didn’t get better. She stumbled her way through ordering and failed to find ways to make conversation. She wished they were back out on the sidewalk, talking and holding hands.

When their drinks came, she stared at the small sphere filled with smoke floating on top of her drink. It looked interesting, but her first sip was awkward because her nose kept pushing into the sugar sphere and smoky bubbles kept bursting up from the bottom.

Parisa laughed and Sera jolted upright.

“So help me, I didn’t think the simple act of drinking a beverage required so much work.” Parisa held up two pipettes of liquid that had been served on a plate along with her cocktail. “It’s interesting. New.”

Sera searched for positive words, but found none. “I keep wondering what Jamie would make for me tonight.”

“I often wish to be somewhere with taxidermied animals staring at me. There’s a distinct lack of dead, empty eyes looking at me right now and I miss it.

” Parisa grinned. “I was going to suggest we eat here, too, but I saw the portions floating around and they’re not nearly enough for two hungry wolves. ”

Sera sat up straighter, a hopeful smile on her lips. “I think this warrants a visit to our favorite place.”

“I was just about to suggest the same thing. Quick, swallow your sphere and let’s get out of here.”

Back out on the street, giggles claimed them both as a sense of relief washed over Sera.

“I adore Carina, but that might be the last time I take one of her suggestions,” Sera said.

“It wasn’t that bad,” Parisa consoled.

“Please, it was ridiculous. And now I’m starving.” Sera took a deep breath to steady herself and then wound her fingers through Parisa’s. “I wanted our first night out to feel new and special, but —”

Parisa squeezed her hand and ran her thumb along Sera’s skin. “It is special, though. We can go to all our favorite places.”

Sera smiled as she tugged her coat tighter around herself. Maybe this is what ‘before but better’ could look like. Maybe not everything had to change to be special. Everything they already had was special enough. It was what got them here and Sera wanted to celebrate that.

The restaurant was busy when they got there, but the staff recognized them and managed to find a spot for them near the back.

Parisa sat with a contented sigh. “This feels better.”

Sera took the seat opposite her. “Now it’s a date,” she said. She gazed at Parisa across the table in the flickering candlelight. “I can look at you properly now, and you’re as gorgeous as ever.” She felt heat in her cheeks as she said it, but she maintained eye contact, not shying away.

“You couldn’t see me properly before?”

“I was a ball of nerves before and you’re really hard to look at when I’m nervous.”

“And why’s that?” Parisa asked, a teasing lilt in her voice.

Sera gave her a look. “You know why.”

“No, please. Enlighten me.”

“It’s the same reason you kept wringing your hands together on the walk over.”

“You noticed that? Fine. I also find it hard to look right at you when my heart is doing somersaults in my chest, but you’re particularly dapper this evening.”

“‘Dapper,’ huh?” Sera smirked.

“Yes.” Parisa grinned. “But it’s not the clothes that make you exceptional this evening.”

The noise of a busy restaurant surrounded them, but all Sera could see was Parisa, all she could hear was Parisa’s soft breaths, all she could smell was the inviting scent of her Alpha.

It was hard to concentrate on eating, but somehow she managed, and by the time they were back out on the sidewalk, Sera was full and content, if a bit chilly with the autumn wind whipping past them.

Without needing to discuss it, they headed in the direction of their favorite bar and ordered the same things they always did when they got there.

Parisa had her Old Fashioned and Sera let Jaime make whatever she was feeling that night, which ended up being a bourbon-based drink with herbal and cherry notes.

With beverages in hand, they looked for a spot away from the crowd at the edges of the room.

Finding nothing downstairs, they climbed the creaky steps up to the rooftop and settled in to a loveseat near a heater.

They’d sat together like this hundreds of times before, many times at this same bar, but with everything feeling so new, Sera felt her body grow warm at every point where they touched.

Her hand itched to reach out towards Parisa, but she stopped herself, looking around the rooftop at the other faces around them.

“Do you think —” Sera started, unsure of how to finish. She thought of Jaime downstairs. “Do you think someone looking at us now, someone who knows who we are, would notice anything had changed?”

Parisa followed her gaze around the rooftop. “I don’t believe so. We’ve always been close.”

“But do you want them to notice something different?”

Parisa leaned in towards her, their eyes meeting. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, should we be —” But the rest of her words died on her tongue as Parisa leaned in towards her.

Sera no longer cared that people could see them.

She leaned in the rest of the way and slipped her fingers into Parisa’s hair.

Parisa’s lips were soft and warm against her own, and she tasted like her Old Fashioned, smoky and little sweet, with a hint of the bitters settling on her tongue as she slid it across her Alpha’s lips.