Lauren (Keegan's Chronicles Spin Off) (9 page)

Too bad she hadn’t thought to bring her school books. Lauren set the magazine back on the table and got to her feet. She walked around for a while, just taking in people as they were coming and going. Lauren had always thought it would be fun to work in an airport. She liked to watch travelers, a mass of people from every walk of life in one place. She smiled at a frustrated mother who was pushing a stroller and carrying a toddler, and she watched couples say goodbye, some laughing and some crying. Business men and women rushed by in their pressed suits with their regulation carry-on suitcases, not paying attention to anyone.

A whiff of coffee caught her attention. Lauren looked around and saw the familiar symbol of her favorite coffee shop. She turned and moved in the direction of caffeine, relieved to have something else to pass the time.

The line was long, but she had plenty of time, so she took up her post at the end. When she made it to the front of the line, she smiled at the frazzled woman behind the counter. “Carmel mocha.”

“Anything else?” The woman’s question was shrill, as if her nerves were on edge.

Okay, so maybe working in an airport might not be that fun after all.

“Umm, sure. I’ll have a piece of carrot cake.” Lauren figured it wouldn’t be enough to ruin her appetite for dinner with the girls.

The woman told her the total, and Lauren paid with a twenty. She peeled a five from her change and tossed it into the tip jar.

The woman met her eyes over the register and said gratefully, “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” Lauren nodded and made her way to the end of the counter to wait for her order.

As she watched the second barista—a tall, cute guy with a baby face—she noticed an old woman sitting nearby at a corner table. The lines on her face gave away her age, but her eyes were still young and alert. The petite lady wore a navy blue polka dotted dress that looked like it came from the fifties. She seemed to be watching Lauren.

Lauren gave her a slight smile and looked away, studying the display case of sweets. A moment later, her eyes darted back to the woman; she was still staring.

“Lauren!” the barista called as he shoved a cup and a bag over the counter.

Lauren turned to get her drink and cake. As she walked away from the bar, she couldn’t help glancing over again. The woman inclined her head towards the chair across from her, a short white braid sliding across her shoulder with the movement.

It wasn’t as if the old lady looked dangerous or anything. Lauren shrugged and crossed over to the table, standing awkwardly in front of the woman.

The woman smiled sweetly. Her blue eyes danced as she intoned, “Have a seat, child.”

“Umm, okay.” Lauren pulled out the chair and lowered herself into it as she placed her coffee and cake on the table.

“You remind me of my granddaughter.” The woman’s voice was soft and crackly. “What’s your name, dear?”

Lauren was relieved to find out that it was simply a coincidental resemblance that had driven the woman to stare, and not that the woman was a nut job. “Lauren, and yours?” Lauren blew on her mug before she took a sip.

“Rose.” She took a sip from a steaming mug in front of her, her dark eyes studying Lauren. “I don’t see many of our kind anymore.”

Our kind?
Rose was a fairy? Well, that was pretty damn cool. “You’re a—?” Lauren raised an eyebrow.

Rose chuckled and toasted Lauren with her mug. “Yes, dear. We both have wings.”

Lauren almost choked on her coffee. She looked around to see if anyone had heard, but the place was too crowded and noisy.

The old woman smiled sadly. “My granddaughter’s name was Sarah.”

“Was?” Lauren couldn’t help but ask.

“She died when she was about your age.”

“What happened to her, if you don’t mind me asking?”

Rose’s thin lips pursed, and then she let out a breath. “She fell in love with the wrong man.”

Lauren stared down into her coffee, afraid to look up. Even though Rose was talking about her granddaughter, Lauren got the feeling she meant Tristen. She was probably just being paranoid.

Slowly, Lauren lifted her head and whispered, “I’m sorry for your loss.”

“Just be careful.” The woman patted her lips with a napkin and dropped it on the table. Then she was gone.

What in the hell?
Lauren glanced around the small coffee shop, trying to see where the old woman had gone.

She had vanished into thin air.

Had Lauren made the whole thing up? She reached across the table and grabbed the napkin Rose had used. There was a smear of pale pink lipstick across it.

Lauren sat back in her chair and fought the urge to scream. Why did it seem like everyone was warning her against Tristen?

Keegan’s auburn curls bounced with each step as she and Anna made their way down the long corridor. Lauren wanted to run and throw her arms around her friends, but, because of stupid airport regulations, she had to wait for them to clear security.

Anna noticed her first and nudged Keegan. They both waved frantically as huge grins spread across their faces, and they picked up the pace.

Lauren hadn’t felt this excited in a long time. She felt so grateful that they had decided to visit her. She needed this. Hopefully being around them would make her feel like her old self again. She had the week off from school, so she would be under considerably less stress.

A fleeting thought of Rose drifted into her mind, but she pushed the strange meeting away. She just wanted to catch up with her friends.

Keegan almost plowed Lauren over as she threw her arms around her. Lauren laughed and hugged her back, then took a step back to look over her two best friends. It didn’t seem like they had change too much. Keegan looked as cute as ever in an off-white, knee-length dress and a forest green cardigan. She looked like the elf that she was, even with her pointed ears hidden behind her curls.

Anna’s style had toned down some since high school. Her hair was actually one shade, and it was a natural color for once—mahogany. Her pixie cut had grown out a bit, and she wore black skinny jeans with an off-the-shoulder fuchsia top. Lauren smiled when she noticed Anna had on her worn-out Converse sneakers. Some things never changed.

“You look…” Keegan paused and gave Lauren a once-over. “…tired.”

Lauren laughed. “Gee, thanks. I was just going to say you look amazing, but, instead, I’ll say you look short.”

Keegan made a face.

“Let’s go grab our bags and get out of here,” Anna cut in as she put an arm around Lauren’s shoulders, and they headed down the escalator to wait for their bags.

As they stood beside the unmoving carousel, Keegan groaned. “I’m starving.”

“Big surprise there.” Lauren rolled her eyes and Anna grinned.

“Thanks for having us.” Anna butted her hip against Lauren’s. “I really didn’t want to come, but Keegan convinced me a change of scenery would be good for me. She’s probably right.”

“I’m so glad you guys are here,” Lauren responded happily. She frowned sympathetically. “Keegan told me that your boyfriend is overseas. That must really suck.”

“You have no idea. All I can say is thank the goddess for the internet.”

“Technology does make life easier,” Lauren replied thoughtfully.

A loud honking noise and a flashing red light above the carousel indicated that the baggage was about to come out.

Of course, the first hundred bags weren’t theirs. Then Anna’s purple luggage came through and, soon after, Keegan reached down and grabbed her red plaid bag. They had learned long ago to avoid black luggage or it would take forever to find.

Keegan pulled out the handle on her rolling bag, dragging it behind her as they headed for the elevator to the parking garage. “What about you—how’s your love life? Still with that hunky dark fairy?” Keegan lowered her voice.

“Of course. I can’t wait for you guys to meet him. I just know you’ll love him.” At least, she hoped they would. She thought of Calvron’s harsh opinion of Tristen, and then Donald…. If Keegan and Anna didn’t like Tristen, Lauren felt like she would cry.

“I don’t have much to eat at my house,” Lauren went on. “Want to stop and grab something on the way home?”

“In-N-Out Burgers!” Keegan chirped.

Anna laughed. “I’m so glad you’re not a vegetarian anymore.”

“It feels just like old times.” Lauren smiled, feeling content for the first time in a while. “As if we have never been apart.”

Keegan pinched her on the arm. “We’ll be best friends when we have grey hair and are reading cat mystery books. We’re stuck together forever.”

“You are
so
crazy,” Anna said, clucking. “Who reads cat mystery books? I could see if you said knitting or scrapbooking, but cat mysteries?”

“Haven’t you ever noticed in bookstores the old people are always near the cat mystery series?” Keegan gave an impish grin that lit up her face.

Lauren nodded in agreement. “She’s telling the truth. I’ve seen some of the books at my grandmother’s house.”

“Do the cats actually solve the mysteries or are they the suspects?” Anna wondered aloud.

Keegan shrugged. “
I’m
not going to be weird and read them until I’m old and gray. Then I’ll let you know.”

With the airport parking garage packed from to rim to rim, it took almost twenty minutes just to find the car and get out. But it was a warm, sunshiny day outside—perfect weather for her friends to visit.

“I’m going to pass out from starvation,” Keegan moaned from the backseat as they sat in the line to pay the parking attendant.

“You are not,” Lauren responded, exchanging an amused glance with Anna.

It was
just
like old times.

“So when do we get to meet your man?” Anna asked as she dunked her french fry into ranch dressing.

“Probably tomorrow, or maybe tonight. He’s looking forward to meeting you guys.” Lauren really didn’t want to talk about Tristen. Not yet, not so soon after that weird run-in with the old woman at the coffee shop. “Tell me about Tommy. I can’t believe you have a boyfriend. No offense.” She smiled sheepishly. Anna never had a boyfriend high school, which made no sense, because she was gorgeous.

Anna laughed. “None taken. I guess I was just waiting for the right guy. He’s perfect. Well, that’s not true. He’s not
perfect
, no one is perfect, but he makes me happy. It just sucks that we’re
just
getting to know each other, and he had to leave.”

“Welcome to my world.” Keegan sighed. Every time she and Rourk got together, something pulled them apart. “I guess at least absence makes the heart grow fonder or something like that.”

Anna grunted and shook her head, then took a bite of her burger.

Lauren looked back and forth between her two friends, and her heart swelled. They were so lucky to have each other.

“Donald’s friend Audrey is tutoring me,” Lauren said casually. She wasn’t very good with subtle segues. She munched on a fry, watching Keegan’s face for her reaction.

“Who’s Audrey?” Anna asked.

“The tiger that was at Keegan’s wedding.”

“Really?” Keegan’s eyes widened, then she broke into a radiant smile. “What’s she like?”

“She’s great. I think you’ll really like her. She and Donald are just friends, but she wants it to be more.”

Keegan took a sip of her iced tea. “Give them time. My brother said they would be together, and you know he’s never wrong.”

Keegan’s brother, Thaddeus, was a seer. He was only thirteen—or maybe he was fourteen, but he was very powerful.

A goofy smile danced across Anna’s face as she stared fondly at the wall. “He was right about Tommy.”

“She’s always like this about him,” Keegan whispered loudly to Lauren. “It’s obnoxious.”

“You’re obnoxious.” Anna flicked a small crispy fry across the table at her.

Lauren chuckled, her spirits rising because of their banter. She took a drink before saying, “It must be weird to know the future.”

“If by weird you mean ‘extremely awesome’ then I agree,” Anna said wistfully. It was funny how everyone longed for something they couldn’t have. Lauren did the same thing with her lame power.

“I don’t know. I don’t think it would be that great. Thaddeus doesn’t even like to be around people because of his gift. Can you imagine how solitary life would be?” Keegan picked at the bun on her burger. “You guys are making me homesick. I haven’t seen my brothers or parents in months.”

“We should all go back to Tennessee together. That would be fun,” Anna spoke up. She drank the rest of her cup and shook it. “Anyone need a refill?”

“Yeah, maybe this summer,” Lauren said absently, handing her own cup across the table.

Truth was, she really did need to take Tristen to meet her family, but she was worried about their reaction.

He was a dark fairy after all.

Chapter 11

L
auren pulled the car into her usual spot and cut the engine. “We’re here.”

Anna peered out the window, the sun illuminating her pretty face. “I forgot how awesome your place was.”

“It’s pretty nice,” Lauren admitted. “I got lucky.