A Touch of Fever (Arcane Hearts Book 1) by Nazri Noor

Author:Nazri Noor [Noor, Nazri]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2021-09-09T16:00:00+00:00

16

I sliced into my steak like a man possessed, moping, watching the juices flow out from the medium-rare slab of meat. Cooked to perfection, though that wasn’t the main thing on my mind. Were you supposed to cut along the grain or against it? Hardly mattered. I just wanted to cut.

“Would you please slow down, Jackson?” Beatrice Rex said. She tipped a flute of something that looked sweet and fruity past her heart-shaped lips. A mimosa, probably. “You’re making the entire table shake.”

“He’s just rattled from his run-in with SEER,” Preston said, like that was supposed to explain everything. He tore off another hunk of that artisanal bread that he liked, popping it into his mouth while gracefully avoiding getting any crumbs in his beard. It was ciabatta, with sun-dried tomatoes and streaks of mozzarella baked in. Something like that. “He’s a little frazzled. Isn’t that right, Jack?”

I shoved a forkful of steak into my mouth, just so I could avoid the responsibility of giving a straight answer. I poked at some fried egg and shoved that in for good measure, too. The steak was absolutely delicious, seared just right on the outside, all buttery and warm and juicy. Salt and pepper simplicity, done right. My encounter with Reza had left a bad taste in my mouth, but you could always count on O’Hannigan’s for a nice, thorough palate cleanser, the kind of comfort food that was so good it scrubbed right through your very soul.

Xander didn’t want to have breakfast with me, so that was another piece to add to the precarious house of cards that was my ego. Reza was the first. I couldn’t help thinking that the two of them were probably jabbering on the phone, or worse, sitting in some coffee shop discussing the Fever case. I bit another piece of steak off my fork, chewing sulkily, almost smiling from the delectable mouthful of steak and eggs I’d made for myself. I sighed. Good old O’Hannigan’s.

It was the one place that Beatrice, Preston, and I could agree on when it came to food, probably because O’Hannigan’s had a bit of an identity crisis. They weren’t just an Irish pub, but a full service restaurant, too, and they did a little bit of everything. Brunch, mainly. I needed moral support, and some good food, so I called the corners and summoned my friends so we could drown our sorrows in steak and watered-down drinks.

“Um, Jackson?” Beatrice said, snapping her fingers, trying to get my attention. “What’s up with you today?” She drained her mimosa, then waved for a waiter, pointing at the empty flute. “Another one, please,” she said, smiling sweetly.

I swallowed, finally prepared to unload on my two best friends. “Preston’s mostly right. I’ve managed to avoid interacting with SEER in any way all this time. I’m not sure I trust them.”

Beatrice went smoothly from beaming at her waiter as he topped up her mimosa to regarding me coolly over the rim of her glasses. “Not

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