“The second I walked into his office with the page I’d printed out from the horse auction site, he started laughing and telling me I was wasting my breath. He not-so-politely explained that if I ever thought about using my powers on him again, he’d ground me one month for every word that left my mouth and that I should know my gifts wouldn’t work on blood relations.” She shifted as the uncomfortable memory played out in her head. “Life was bad enough. I didn’t want to be grounded too. I never tried it again.”
He shook his head, then straightened. “Enough of this talk. It doesn’t make you happy.”
“No, it doesn’t, but we still need to come up with a plan for Vegas.”
“When we arrive and he sees I am there to fight, he should give you the coin.”
“And if he doesn’t? Which he won’t.”
“Then I will do the only thing that will make sense to a man like your father.” Van’s big fist closed around his steak knife. “I will use force.”
Beating up the man who controlled the supernatural side of Vegas wasn’t ideal. Van understood that. But from everything Monalisa had told him, it seemed like the only way for her to get the coin she needed.
Van was done fighting anyway. The League could fine him or sanction him or ban him, and none of that would matter, because he was done. He’d have to be, because laying hands on Padraig Devlin would destroy Van’s reputation and ensure he’d never fight for the League again.
They ate the rest of their meal without another word of the plan or her father. He took that to mean that while she might not like it, she understood they had very few other options.
After dinner, they walked to Main Street, neither of them ready for the night to end. Most of the snow had been cleared from the streets and sidewalks, and despite the cold weather, there were a lot of people out walking and window-shopping.
She linked her arm through his, and they strolled in a comfortable silence, enjoying the evening. Perhaps because they both knew it could be their last. He would buy them next-day tickets to Vegas when they got home, and once they got to Nevada, he would go into full fight-prep mode.
And she would have to confront her father.
So tonight was about forgetting all of that for at least another hour or two. He wished it could be different, but there was no avoiding what lay ahead of them.
Her arm tightened around his. “Do you smell that?”
He inhaled. “Chocolate.”
She grinned. “Yes. Where is that coming from?”
“I am not sure, but I have an idea.” He tapped the side of his nose. “Let’s follow it and see.”
The scent led them to Delaney’s Delectables. He’d heard a lot about the shop from Pandora, especially since Delaney had made the cake for the housewarming party and everyone in town knew Delaney Ellingham. But he’d yet to step foot inside. Dragons weren’t much on sweets.
Based on Monalisa’s reaction as they walked inside, Will-o’-the-Wisps clearly felt differently about sugar. She closed her eyes and inhaled, the most rapturous look coming over her face. “Am I dead? Because it smells like I’m in heaven.”
“Welcome to Delaney’s Delectables.” A woman behind the counter smiled at them. “Let me know if I can help you.”
Monalisa grinned at Van. “This is another great place to use my father’s credit card. What do you want?”
He smiled back. “I do not like sweet things so much. But maybe a coffee.”
“Coffee?” She looked aghast. “All this deliciousness and you just want coffee?” She slanted her eyes at him. “You don’t like sugar at all?”
He glanced past her at the glass display cases. The things inside were beautiful, little works of decadent art. But none of it appealed to him. Until he spotted a small Lucite tray on one of the top shelves. He brought his gaze up to the woman behind the counter and pointed at the tray. “What are those?”
She glanced down at the tray. “Those are new. They’re millionaire truffles.”
“Why are they called that?” Monalisa asked.
“Because they’re enrobed in single-bean organic Ecuadorian dark chocolate. The inside is a whipped ganache cream flavored with Dom Perignon rosé champagne, and they’re hand-decorated with twenty-four-carat gold leaf.”
Monalisa’s brows went up. “Fancy. Are they a million dollars apiece too?”
The woman laughed. “Not quite. But they are fifty-five dollars a pound.”
“How many in a pound?” Van had to know, because they were starting to sound good. At least, the gold leaf part was.
“About six,” the woman answered.
Monalisa whipped out her father’s credit card. “I’ll take the whole tray. And a coffee.” She winked at Van. “To start with.”
Monalisa knew her father would question her need to spend four hundred and twenty-three dollars at a place called Delaney’s Delectables, but she didn’t care. She planned on ignoring him. And eating as much of the evidence as possible before they were face-to-face again.
The Ryde driver pulled away as they walked up the steps to Van’s house. He shifted the shopping bag from Delaney’s to his other hand so he could get the house key out.
“You want me to hold that?”
“I have it.” But he gave the bag a sideways look. “That is a lot of chocolate.”
“You’d better help me eat some of it.”