Grey Mountain Pack Series: The Prophesied Luna

Dinner and a Kiss

Savannah could not make herself go back outside to see if Tyler was still talking to his sister. She had not heard her leave though and surely Tyler would have brought the chair back inside if she had left. Just as the thought formed in her mind the back door opened and in came Margaret and Tyler. He had the chair in tow and set it down at the table from where he had plucked it up nearly an hour ago. Savannah tried to hide the fact her hands were still shaking but Margaret noticed before she had much of a chance. "Is everything alright Savannah? You are shaking like a leaf in high winds." It was then that Tyler noticed she looked as if she had seen a ghost right there in his kitchen. Savannah almost broke down when Margaret strode across the room and took her hands in hers. That is when they both knew something was terribly wrong with Savannah. Maggie helped her to the living room and sat beside her on the sofa, Tyler began building a fire to warm up the room. Tears were falling down her cheeks by the time the fire began to roar in the fireplace.

Savannah began to tell them what she had just been told and what she did not want to happen. She told them that she did not want that side of her family to find her. She told them that she did not want to burden them with her problems. "Savannah, when I rescued you, I told you I was going to help you. Even if that means dealing with your family," Tyler interjected. She did lose it then the tears flowed freely, and she could not stop them. Maggie wrapped her tightly in her arms and just let her cry. "Ty, I think we should involve Sheriff Coley. He may be able to help her; and if he knows she isn't missing then he can intercept the family before they get to her." Tyler shook his head in agreement and headed to the kitchen to call his old high school buddy who was now the sheriff of Polson.

Thirty minutes later the sheriff pulled up into the yard and the introductions were made. Greg Coley was about five-foot nine with blond hair, kind gray eyes that seemed to be as sympathetic to her situation as Maggie and Tyler were. The next hour was spent retelling her story and filing a report with the sheriff and a Temporary Protective Order. Sheriff Coley said that was her best bet to keep them away from her; and that they would be served the papers by Oconee County Sheriff’s Office as soon as he could get it over to them. Savannah felt as if a weight had been lifted off her shoulders by the time the sheriff left.

Tyler waved after the vehicle as Greg was pulling away and then turned to go back inside to see how Savannah was doing. When he re-entered the living room, he saw Maggie and Savannah talking and laughing on the couch. He could only guess what his sister was telling her about him. Knowing his sister, it would be something embarrassing about his childhood or something they both had gotten into. Truth be known, a lot of what happened when they were kids was mostly her fault. She always talked him into doing one thing or the other which always led to them in front of their mother getting told what for. Not to mention the secrets he kept for her when they were teenagers, boy did they have a lot of dirt on one another.

He strolled into the room nonchalantly and sat down in his grandfather’s old recliner near the fireplace. The two women barely noticed that he had come back in; they just kept on talking. It was then that he heard his sister telling Savannah about her wedding night and how Tyler had gotten so drunk that he had fallen into the pond in their parents backyard. He had come out of the water spitting, sputtering, and cursing like the devil himself. That was, at least, until their mother gave him the glare, they had all come to know the glare as a sign of pure trouble. As soon as he saw that glare he immediately quieted down and went inside to dry off. The whole wedding party had busted out laughing when he sulked past with his head hung low. He walked as if he were nine years old again and had just gotten his bottom spanked for going swimming without permission. He knew that story would haunt him for as long as he was alive and probably long after he was gone.

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That evening after Maggie had left, they finished the deer and sent the meat to the processor and the head to the taxidermist. They were just sitting in the kitchen looking at takeout menus trying to decide what they wanted for dinner, when Savannah asked about a specific menu. It was worn and faded; the name was almost unreadable. Tyler knew which one she was talking about as soon as she tried to say the name of the restaurant. Giovanni’s had been his favorite place to eat since he was a boy, and it was one of the few original restaurants left in town and it was the oldest.

Tyler told her all about the food they had there and how he loved their spaghetti and meatballs with garlic rolls. She watched his eyes light up as he told her of all the wonderful food this place had to offer and then she surprised him. "Why don't we just go there and eat tonight? It sounds amazing and you have managed to make my mouth water with anticipation of what they serve. Plus, it sounds like the atmosphere is very homely and I would like to see it." He could not help but smile like a proud parent when she suggested they eat there. He jumped into action putting on his coat and running out to start the truck to get it warmed up before she could get out there. She locked the door handle and shut the door smiling as she did so. She could tell that she had just made him incredibly happy and that for some reason made her happy. Almost like she was meant to make him happy.

When they arrived at Giovanni’s they noticed that the place was almost completely packed. They were seated at the last remaining table near the entrance. No one had wanted that table because of the cold air that came in when the doors were opened but they did not mind. No one would be coming in for a while anyway since all they had to do was look in the windows and see that there were no more tables. The waitress came by to take their drink orders but stopped short when she noticed Tyler. She had not seen him in here with a woman in three years or so. To her astonishment he asked for their wine list even though he knew every wine they offered.

After she brought the wine list Tyler handed it to Savannah and told her to pick whichever she wanted. After studying the wine list a few moments Savannah settled on Chardonnay, which is a rich robust white wine. Tyler ordered the whole bottle to go with their dinner of Giovanni’s famous spaghetti and meatballs and a side order of garlic rolls. It was not long after they had placed their order that the waitress came back with the bottle of wine and two wine glasses. She set down the first glass and began to pour some wine into the other. Within a few minutes they had their dinner. "Oh my this is a lot of food," exclaimed Savannah when her plate had been set in front of her. The spaghetti was piled high and there were at least seven golf ball sized meatballs on her plate. There was no way she could eat all this; she would have to take most of it home to eat tomorrow. The basket that held the garlic rolls was filled to the top and they were precariously stacked looking as if they would fall over at any moment. Savannah could see that Tyler did not waste any time in digging into his mountainous plate of food.

She could not help but laugh as she watched him try not to slurp his noodles. There was so much sauce that you almost needed a bib to keep it from getting on your clothes. Tyler stopped in mid bite to ask her why she had not started to eat just yet. Savannah smiled and told him that she was enjoying watching him with his childlike enthusiasm that he had while he was eating. She had not seen that from anyone in a long time. He couldn't help but blush at her observation and then said, "Well I told you I love this place. It is my favorite place to eat other than when my mom cooks; then I prefer to eat what she has made."

With that said he resumed eating his dinner stopping only to take a swallow of wine every now and then. Savannah decided that she should eat too and tried her absolute best not to make a huge mess. Her first bite tasted like pure heaven; she had never tasted anything so delicious in her lifetime. Savannah could not help but let out a moan of pure enjoyment. Tyler looked up from his plate and smiled at her with sauce dripping down his chin. Not really thinking what she was doing she reached over with her napkin and wiped his chin clean. As she was moving to sit back down Tyler caught her hand and pulled her around to him and planted a kiss right on her lips; stunning her so much she dropped the napkin.

He had not meant to kiss her in the restaurant with all those people watching; it just kind of happened. Maybe he ought to apologize to her, maybe he should just pay the bill and take them back to the cabin. He could not explain it; the need to kiss her where everyone could see she was his overwhelmed him. Like it was the only thing that mattered to him at that moment. While he was kissing her all he could think about was how her lips felt perfect against his. He had wanted to just pull her into his arms and hold her close. Without warning she pulled away and asked the waitress for their check. He could see how flushed her cheeks were but what he could not tell was if it was from his kissing her or her embarrassment of everyone watching.