Free Black Magic Shadows by Gayla Drummond Page A

held it out to me, my face warm, and turned while he shook out the coat. "Really? One arm at a time?"
    "Yeah, and it helps if the arm’s not the one with the hand holding something at the end."
    Slipping my empty hand into a sleeve, I had to laugh. "Sorry. I'm nervous. That's stupid, isn't it?"
    "No." He waited while I switched my purse to my other hand. "I'm a little nervous too."
    "But we shouldn't be." I found the other sleeve, and he let go once the coat was settled. Turning around, I asked, "Should we?"
    "Probably not, but," Logan smiled, lifting his hands and spreading them. "This is our First Official Date."
    "Right, but we've slept together." I felt like disappearing as the words left my mouth. "I mean, well, yeah, we did sleep together. There was cuddling. It's dumb to be nervous after that."
    He chuckled. "Tell that to the butterflies in my stomach."
    "At least I'm not the only one who has them." I hoped I didn't end up saying any more stupid things. Anxiety had a way of running my mouth without checking with my brain first.
    "Shall we?" Logan cocked his arm for me to take hold.
    I smiled. "Let's."
    Some women didn't like men doing things like opening doors for them, but I didn't have a problem with him walking me around, and opening the passenger door. I liked it when men behaved like gentlemen, and did those little things. Logan even bent and tucked my coat inside the car before shutting the door.
    Once behind the steering wheel, he glanced at me. "I forgot to tell you that you look great."
    "I won't hold it against you." But I was pleased he'd noticed I'd gone to more effort than usual with my hair and makeup. "You look great too."
    "What, this old thing?" He plucked at the front of his teal shirt. "Had it for ages, but thanks."
    "Isn't that supposed to be my line?"
    "You missed your cue." Logan started the engine. "I hope you're hungry."
    I hoped my idiotic nervousness didn't result in me throwing up whatever we had for dinner. "Starving. Where are we going?"
    "It's a surprise." He was backing out at a curve, to turn the car around.
    He was wearing black jeans and the long-sleeved teal button-up. Nice, but not super fancy. I had on black palazzo pants and a burgundy, trapeze-cut, nearly sheer top over a black cami. And, of course, the Tear Petra had given me, tucked inside my top, and my faux tiger coat. "Am I overdressed?"
    "You look great."
    I laughed. "That wasn't my question."
    "You're not overdressed," he said, finishing his three-point turn. "How was work today?"
    "Frustrating." I filled him in on our lack of tangible progress, and by the time I'd finished yapping, we were pulling into the parking lot of Le Rêve Sauvage. "Ooh. You're spoiling me."
    "You enjoyed that lunch so much, I thought this was a good dinner choice."
    "You thought right." My nervousness had disappeared during the drive.

    T he restaurant was decorated in an Art Deco style, all black and white with glints of silver, and had a quiet, relaxing atmosphere. The maître d' seated us at a small, round table for two to one side of the dining area. We ordered Suprême de Faisan Sauce Savagnin et Morilles after discussing the pros and cons of just about every offering on the menu. Logan deferred to me on the wine, and I chose a Pinot Noir.
    Once the wine was poured, I couldn't pick a conversation topic. Work was out, having already talked about it. And who wants to spend their date talking about work constantly anyway? "How's everyone settling in?"
    "The euphoria would probably knock you out. We haven't had a single complaint yet, about anything." Logan's smile was brighter than the flame of the candle in the center of our table. "I think this is the first time since the clan was formed that everyone is happy."
    "That's fantastic. You did a great job." I knew he'd had to work with elves to plan the pocket realm, and had seen the results on Solstice Night for myself. "Exactly how much room is in there?"
    "I don't know, because pocket realms are