The second woman stopped in front of him and leaned in and gave him a hug. “How are you little mama? Feeling okay?”
“I’ll let you know later. Have to keep breakfast down first.” She narrowed her eyes at Sky and then glanced at Damien with a raised brow. He shook his head at her.
Sky had no idea what that was about, but she was getting pissed standing there while he flirted with women in front of her.
The last woman chuckled, and Damien wrapped his free arm around her waist and lifted her up to his eye level. “Hello, short stack. Life treating you okay?”
She laughed and threw her head back. “If only a certain shifter would make a move, but I’ll enjoy myself in the meantime. You know?” Damien nodded and kissed her on the cheek then set her on her feet.
“I’ll see you ladies this weekend.” They all nodded or waved and wandered over to a car parked near Damien’s. She could feel their eyes on her though. She walked by Damien into the restaurant and to the first vacant booth. She glared at him as he came in and looked around the space.
Chapter Ten
“Glad you sat yourself. They aren’t big on showing you to a table. First come, first served, but they have the best food you’ve ever tasted.” Damien slid into the seat across from Sky and smothered a grin. “I’m sorry, I should have introduced you to the ladies outside. I did say I would take you to meet the locals, and I failed already.”
Sky glared at him but didn’t say anything. He hadn’t planned to make her jealous, but he realized pretty quickly his words could have been taken out of context. He had no desire to explain that though. He wanted to see what she would do.
“Damien, you’re a sight for these sore old eyes. And no need to introduce me to this young lady. It’s all over town.” Damien smiled at Lizzie, the waitress, but quickly turned his attention back to Sky. He was really curious to see her reaction.
“Well, Lizzie, this is Sky. I brought her here so she could meet some of the townspeople, explore the town, and go back to her boss and find me my mate.” Damien grinned when he saw Sky’s eyes tighten at the corners, she didn’t really like the idea, but she couldn’t deny what he said.
“Ms. Sky, that means you’re not really a reporter sent to write another story on our fair Damien then?”
Sky scoffed and rolled her eyes before finally turning to look at Lizzie. She gritted her teeth after a moment. “I’m not a reporter. I’ve read enough stories about your darling here. I’m here to find the truth and take it back to my boss. He gets a mate, and I get the hell out of this town.”
Lizzie leaned her hip against the table, right next to his arm and winked down at him. “You got something against handsome, dear? Because you won’t find a better specimen than my Damien.”
Damien choked back a laugh, as Sky narrowed her eyes at the woman. He turned his attention to Lizzie and took note of what Sky was seeing. She was around their age, but spoke like a seasoned old woman. She treated everyone as her kids, even those older than her. But she was really stunning, fire engine red hair, blue eyes, and even though she worked in a greasy diner, she was slim, almost too thin.
“No, but I have a particular dislike for players. A man who’s seen with a different woman every night, one who is said to have kids by several different women. Don’t even get me started on the other things he’s reported to have done to this town and the people.” Sky’s face was getting red, and he was worried for a minute. But once she stopped biting out her words, her complexion lost the redness.
Lizzie glanced at him and cocked an eyebrow. “Sky can believe whatever she wants. I’m just here to show her the town and our residents. If she changes her mind about me, good. If not… well, it wasn’t meant to be.”
Lizzie sighed and nodded, but Sky glared at him. He wasn’t sure which part of his statement she didn’t like, but he hoped it was the not meant to be part. She was his mate. Fuck, she was his mate. And for the first time in his life, he wanted a woman to stay and be his. But he couldn’t force her to change her mind. He wanted her to come to the conclusion on her own.
Lizzie stood, pulling her weight off the table, and with a brisk tone to her voice, she asked what they wanted to eat. Sky picked up the menu and scanned it. “Why don’t you give us a couple of minutes, Liz, unless you want me to order for us, Sky. I promise I won’t poison you, and you will like whatever you get.”
Sky dropped the menu on the table and leaned back, cocking an eyebrow at him. He could actually hear the challenge in her body language.
“Lizzie, two of my usuals, please.”
Lizzie winked at him and glanced at Sky and walked away.
“Another conquest, Mr. Grimes? It’s getting a bit old parading your women around. If you want me to go back to Gerri and tell her you’re a virile man who can please women, I’ll make sure that message gets passed on.”
Damien tried not to laugh when Sky rolled her eyes. He could see she was pissed, and his panther wasn’t sure whether they should be upset that she’s mad or happy that she was jealous. “Lizzie isn’t and never has been a conquest of mine. But if you want proof of how virile I am. That can be arranged anytime. Just say the word.”
Damien held onto his control with an iron fist. His panther really liked the idea of showing her how much of a man they could be. They were in agreement, they wanted to take her to bed and mark her as theirs.
Sky swung her gaze back to him and started to speak, but stopped and stared over his shoulder. He sighed and turned his body to face the Sheriff. “Hello, Patrick.”
Sheriff Patrick Demogue nodded at Sky and then frowned at Damien. “Hey, I need to talk to you if you have a minute. Something’s come up.” The Sheriff glanced at Sky, and Damien realized he didn’t want to talk in front of her.
“Sky, would you excuse me for a minute please.” Damien didn’t wait for her to reply, just scooted out of the booth and walked to the end of the counter farthest from where he left her.
Damien sat so he could see Sky. He was partly afraid she would just get up and leave him.
“Sorry to interrupt your breakfast, but we have a problem.” The Sheriff’s words drew Damien’s attention.
“What’s going on?”
“There’s been some strange sightings around town. Not people, other than your lady there, but signs the warehouses have been broken into. Strange cars were seen, but no reports of who was driving them. And I heard Ex-Mayor Jomen was seen in the surrounding area.” Sheriff Demogue ran his hand through his hair and glanced around. “Lizzie, could I get a coffee to go please?”
Lizzie nodded but didn’t come over to them. Damien appreciated her discretion.
“Nothing missing or damaged?”
“Not that my men have found. But you needed to know.”
“Thanks. I’ll make sure Eli is aware and security is stepped up. Do you want me to have my people watching the town too?” Damien hated offering, but this town had gone through enough. He wasn’t about to let anything happen to it again.
“Nah, you hired me to do a job, and I will do it. On that note, I’m off to see Mayor Heep. I’ll keep you posted.” The Sheriff glanced over his shoulder, and Damien knew what was coming next.