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“Have a good time!” Ethan added and winked at Grath.
Grath nodded and took Mattie by the hand to lead her into the hall.
As they went, she cast a last look back at her sister and brother-in-law. Something wasdefinitelyup, but could it be what she hoped it was?
Mattie was too afraid to even think about it—she did her best to put it out of her mind. But inside, she couldn’t help wondering…what if Grath reallydidpropose?
THIRTY-FOUR
GRATH
Remember the signal—remember the song,Grath told himself. He felt the lump in his pocket nervously—the small velvet box which held the diamond engagement ring.
Ethan had told him the leader of the band was a personal friend of his. He would ask him to play a song called, “Merry Christmas Darling,”and as soon as Grath heard the words, he had to bring Madeline up to the stage where he would get down on one knee and present her with the ring.
He only hopped she wouldn’t be too upset with him for going through with this elaborate charade. It was certainly going to make it harder for her to tell her parents they had “broken up” later on, but honestly, Grath didn’t see a way out of it at this point.
He wished fiercely that the engagement could be for real. If there was any female in the universe he wanted to bond with, it was Madeline. The small, curvy female was beautiful, kind, feisty, and fiercely intelligent—all the qualities he longed for in a mate. But he knew it could never be between them—he would never have a mate.
The hall at the back of the Civic Center had been transformed since the last time he had seen it. There were strings of white lights everywhere and Christmas decorations covered the walls. A large Christmas tree sat in one corner and the stage, where the judges had sat during the Bake-off, was now filled with musicians and instruments. They were playing what Grath supposed must be traditional Christmas music and the crowd was dancing enthusiastically.
He led Madeline out to the floor, keeping an arm protectively around her to keep her safe from the crush of bodies. Really, there were too many people here for his liking but everyone seemed to be having a good time and there was no ill-will in the room that he could sense.
He just hoped he would hear theMerry Christmas Darlingsong soon, so that he could get this fake proposal over with. Maybe he should tell Madeline though—he’d been worried earlier about her reaction, but it didn’t seem fair to spring this on her. He needed to prepare her before he led her up on the stage and got down on one knee.
I’ll tell her as soon as I get a chance,Grath promised himself.It’s not right to surprise her like this—she needs a warning of what’s coming.
THIRTY-FIVE
MATTIE
Jingle Bell Rockwas playing when they first stepped onto the dance floor and Mattie was amazed at how quickly Grath seemed to pick up dance moves from the people around them. He was incredibly graceful, for such a big man, though it occurred to her that she had never seen a clumsy Kindred. All the huge warriors seemed to have excellent natural athletic ability.
Or no—that wasn’t quite the right word, Mattie thought. Grath moved with an almost animal grace—he was more like a big cat, a lion or a tiger—than an athlete competing in a sport.
At any rate, soon he was spinning her around the dance floor, putting her effortlessly into the right place at the right time which made dancing with him sheer joy. Just like ice skating with him and baking with him had been a joy, she thought as he whirled her around the dance floor. She couldn’t remember ever having so much fun with a date before—being with Grath, now that he had let his guard down—just felt so natural, soright.
Jingle Bell Rockended and a slower song started. Grath glanced around and saw how other men were holding their dates, then swept her into his arms with one big hand at the small of her back.
“Madeline,” he murmured, leaning down to speak in her ear. “I need to tell you something.”
“You do?” Heart thumping, Mattie looked up at him uncertainly. “What?”
“It’s kind of serious,” Grath warned her. “And I’m not sure how you’re going to feel about it. It has to do with something you told me not to do, but I can’t help it—it seems like Ihaveto.”
Mattie’s heart pounded even harder.
“Whatever it is, you can tell me,” she assured him breathlessly. “I promise I won’t be upset.”
“You won’t?” A look of relief came over his face. “Thank all the Gods for that. Because in just a minute, I’m going to—”
But just at that moment, the band suddenly changed songs. It transitioned fromHave Yourself a Merry Little Christmasto something Mattie didn’t recognize at first. Then the lead singer, a girl she vaguely remembered from high school, began to croon,
“Merry Christmas, Darling…Happy New Year’s tooooo…”
As they heard the words, Grath’s grip on her tightened and his face went suddenly grim.
“Grath? What is it?” Mattie looked at him anxiously.
