Chapter 4: The Invitation
808 Words
The rest of the afternoon slipped by in a blur.
Chloe barely remembered the drive back to Harbor Café.
She kept replaying the brief conversation in her head.
“You work too much.”
Who says that to someone they’ve met twice?
And why had it sounded less like criticism and more like… concern?
“Chloe!”
She looked up.
Her manager was standing near the register, arms folded.
“I’ve called your name three times.”
“Oh. Sorry.”
“Are you feeling okay?”
“Yeah. Just tired.”
“Take your fifteen.”
She didn’t argue.
Outside, the Florida sun was beginning to sink, painting the sky in shades of orange and pink. Chloe sat on the curb with an iced coffee, letting the warm breeze brush her face.
Her phone buzzed.
Maya: Movie night tomorrow. No excuses.
Chloe smiled and typed back.
Chloe: Only if you’re buying popcorn.
Maya: Deal.
A horn sounded from across the street.
She looked up.
A sleek black SUV rolled slowly past the café.
For a split second, she thought she saw Liam in the back seat.
Then the tinted window slid up, and the vehicle disappeared into traffic.
“You’re imagining things,” she muttered to herself.
⸻
That evening, Chloe unlocked the door to her apartment and immediately smelled garlic and onions.
Emma was in the kitchen, dancing terribly while stirring a pot of pasta.
“Welcome home!” Emma sang.
“I didn’t know burning dinner counted as cooking.”
Emma gasped dramatically.
“Excuse me. This is gourmet.”
“It smells edible.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment.”
They laughed.
It felt good.
Normal.
After dinner, Chloe changed into an oversized T-shirt and curled up on the couch with a book.
She had only read two pages when her phone buzzed again.
This time, it was an unknown number.
She frowned before answering.
“Hello?”
“Chloe?”
The voice was calm.
Deep.
Instantly familiar.
“Liam?”
“You remembered.”
She sat up straighter.
“How did you get my number?”
A brief pause.
“From the catering order.”
She blinked.
“That’s… a little creepy.”
“I know.”
There was no defensiveness in his voice.
“If it makes you uncomfortable, I’ll delete it after this call.”
His honesty caught her off guard.
“So… why are you calling?”
“I wanted to apologize.”
“For what?”
“I left in a hurry today.”
“Oh.”
“I wasn’t trying to be rude.”
“You don’t owe me an explanation.”
“Maybe not.”
Another pause settled between them.
Not awkward.
Just… quiet.
Finally, Liam spoke again.
“Would you have dinner with me?”
Chloe nearly dropped her phone.
“Dinner?”
“Yes.”
She laughed softly.
“Are you asking me on a date?”
“I suppose I am.”
She bit her lower lip.
“You barely know me.”
“I’d like to change that.”
For reasons, she couldn’t explain it, her heart began beating a little faster.
Before she could answer—
A loud crash echoed from outside the apartment building.
Emma jumped from the kitchen.
“What was that?”
Chloe walked to the window.
Several neighbors had gathered in the parking lot.
A motorcycle lay on its side.
Its rider was already climbing to his feet.
Nothing serious.
She let out a breath and returned to the call.
“Liam?”
Silence.
The line had gone dead.
She frowned and tried calling back.
No answer.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
Nothing.
She set her phone on the coffee table.
“Guess he changed his mind.”
⸻
Several miles away, deep within a dense stretch of forest hidden beyond the edge of the city, Liam lowered his phone.
His expression had hardened.
“You shouldn’t have contacted her.”
The voice came from the shadows.
A man stepped into the moonlight.
Tall.
Blond.
The same man Chloe had seen outside the café days earlier.
Aiden.
“I asked her to dinner,” Liam replied evenly.
“And that’s exactly the problem.”
Liam folded his arms.
“She’s human.”
“I know.”
“The closer she gets to you…”
Aiden’s jaw tightened.
“…the closer she gets to our world.”
For a long moment, neither man spoke.
Then a low, chilling howl echoed through the forest.
It wasn’t nearby.
But it was close enough to make both men turn toward the darkness.
Aiden’s expression changed instantly.
“That’s not one of ours.”
Liam’s eyes narrowed.
“No.”
Another howl split the night.
This one was closer.
Much closer.
Someone—or something—had crossed into Black Fang territory.
- Writer
