"No. No, it didn't." She left before he could say anything else.
She retreated to the rocking chair by the fire, collecting her thoughts. The embers still held a hint of orange, encouraging her to add another log. The rough feel of the wood helped settle her thoughts, anchor her in this new reality.
Alec settled on the couch, watching her.
"Now what? You swim away tomorrow?" she asked.
He rolled his shoulders back, the black fabric tight against his toned muscles. "I can leave right now." Alec eyed her. "Do you want me to go?"
The breath caught in her throat as she shook her head. "I'm not sure what I want right now. This is a bit... different for me." Cass gingerly touched the raised knot on her head. "Aside from the fact that I'm still wondering if this is all a hallucination and I'm still lying either on the riverbank or my bathroom floor."
A knock came at the front door.
Chapter Three
Alec rose from the couch—Cassie jumped out of the chair as if it were on fire.
"Stay. There." She put her hand up as she walked to the door.
Cass glanced out through a side window, instantly recognizing the man standing there.
She opened the door with a smile. "Danny."
Her business partner stood on the front step, bundled in a thick parka. The older man was nearly bald, a few white wisps of hair pulled across his pate in an attempt to make more of less.
"Cassie. Can I come in?" He gestured past her. "Damned cold out here."
She looked out. "Where's your car?"
"At the bar." He frowned. "Is there a problem?"
"No, no." She stepped back into the warm air. "Come on in, out of the cold."
There was no way around it—any other response would be even more suspicious.
"Thanks." Danny let out a sigh as he yanked the zipper down on his coat. "I swear, I don't know how you manage that walk every night in this weather. Maybe I'm just old, but I swear—my nose hairs were freezing off."
He stopped abruptly on seeing Alec standing by the sofa. The shapeshifter tucked his hands into his pockets, smiling.
"Oh…" Danny glanced at Cassie. "I'm so sorry. I didn't know you had company."
He rolled his shoulders back, the senior standing tall. "My apologies. Danny Yablonski."
Alec stepped forward, offering his hand. "Alec Riverstorm. Friend of the family." He turned on the charm with a warm smile. "I was overseas when I heard about Nick's passing. Just got on the shore recently and came to offer my condolences and see if Cassie needed anything."
"Ah." Danny nodded.
I could see the invisible wheels turning inside my old friend's mind. Strange man in my house, Christmas Day—the gossip train was loading up and getting ready to leave.
"He came in this morning. I picked him up at the airport." My mind scrambled to make excuses for the lack of another car in the driveway. "Flew in from the coast."
"Really." Danny smiled. "Quite the traveler." He locked eyes with Alec as they shook hands, the silent challenge accepted.
After the better part of a minute, Danny released his hand and nodded. "Nick had a lot of good friends, but I don't remember a Riverstorm among them."
"Through my mother's side," Alec said, without a trace of hesitation. "Her brother was a steelworker, up the river at Brownsville."
The flash of recognition in Danny's eyes soothed over Cassie's fear. "You know, I think I remember something about a guy up there with the last name of Storm…"
"Danny, what's wrong?" Cass interrupted. "Your car…"
"Oh, yeah." He jabbed a thumb over his shoulder. "I was over at the Bentleys, dropping off a Christmas present, and car got a flat. Managed to pull into the bar's parking lot to get off the road, but don't have a spare. And you were within walking distance, so…" He chuckled. "Would have called AAA, but on a holiday like today, it'd take hours for them to show up—and they'd charge me something crazy for a spare tire. Figured I'd borrow yours to get home, then bring it back when I swapped it out."
"No problem." Alec nodded. "Let's go." He looked over at Cass. "If you don't mind—I'll get the spare out of your car, and we'll walk on down."
"Sure." Her head was spinning, and not in a good, fun way.
Danny paused. "Don't you have a coat?" He frowned, looking at Alec. "Damned cold out there."
"Here." Cassie moved to the side, grabbing at the long leather trench coat that had been her father's. "Alec's coat got dirty—I put it in the wash as soon as he arrived, earlier today. It's not even in the dryer yet, I forgot about it." She turned and handed it to Alec. "This'll do."
A wave of nausea jabbed at her stomach, threatening to return the toast and coffee. If Danny suspected anything…
"Right then. Let's go." The senior shook his head. "Sorry to barge in on you like this, Cass."
"Hey, I'm glad you were okay—always annoying when a tire goes flat." She reached for her own coat, hanging on another hook. "Let's get you fixed up."
***
The cold air helped Cass's nerves as they walked back to the bar, right by the spot on the riverbank where she'd found Alec. The two men chatted along the way, Alec weaving a tale of working the fishing boats off the Atlantic coast.
Alec explained his limp away with a wild tale about being cut by some wayward cable, his hands waving in the air as he described how it whipped across the deck and sliced right through his jeans. Danny was buying it, based on his cheerful responses.
It didn't take long to change the tire, Alec providing the muscle to jack the car up and help wrestle the lug nuts free. He acted like he'd always worked on the land, joking with Danny as they drove back to the house.
"Well, then." Danny threw the engine into Park and eyed them. "Sorry for intruding on you during Christmas."
"No problem. I'm glad we were here to help," Cassie said.
Danny shook Alec's hand again. "How long you planning to stay around?"
"A few days, a week. Maybe two." He tapped his knee. "Give this a chance to heal up—I've got no place to be, not right away."
"Hmm." The older man rubbed his chin. "I'm opening the bar tomorrow; Cassie has the evening shift, from six until we close. Why don't you come on in and keep her company?"
Cassie frowned. "Danny?"
He shifted in his seat. "We've got a television, one of those wide-screen jobbies—and the Steelers are going to be playing. Might as well come watch it at the bar." He eyed Cass. "Be impolite to leave him at home. Your father wouldn't do that."
Alec nodded. "I'm good with that. Cassie?"
She couldn't help feeling like the target of some cosmic joke. "That's good. Great."
It wasn't long before they were back in her house, Danny driving away.
Alec hung the trench coat back up on the hook. "Sounds like Danny's trying to either set you up or is worried about you handling the bar solo."