For the moment you've all been waiting for…DUN DUN DUUUNNNNNNNN!

Chapter 7

His lips were gentle and warm, a bit different from the rest of him. There was almost a spark in the kiss. I wanted so badly to press harder, and melt into it, but I remembered that I barely knew him.

I pulled away from him, his face mimicking my shock and embarrassment. My eyes widened as I looked up at him.

"I'm so sorry." I whispered, and before he could say anything, I ran for my life to the ladies' bathroom.

I started to pace around the bathroom, trying to tell myself it was a dream, or I had too many drinks. But I couldn't get the kiss out of my head. My lips were still tingling, and I couldn't stop thinking about him.

Trisha ran into the bathroom. "Maria?"

I turned abruptly to her. "Are you ok?" She asked.

I stared at her. "I don't know. I feel really weird. I can't stop thinking about him. Or the kiss."

She broke out in a grin. "I think you like him." She teased.

"Maybe." I muttered. "But I'm not sure I can face him now. I feel so stupid."

"You gotta at least try. C'mon, he feels pretty bad, too."

"He does?"

"Yeah." She said. "He had a guilty look on his face when he came back."

I sighed. I wasn't normally this nervous, but I think I blew it with Larten. Oh, well."Alright."

She smiled and left the bathroom. I followed. I spotted the table. Vancha and Larten were talking, but when we came out, Larten stopped and looked at us, and gave me a sheepish smile. I sat down next to him.

"Maria, believe me when I say –"He began.

I leaned in to him and kissed him, this time on purpose. His surprise and embarrassment melted away as he kissed back.

Vancha wolf whistled and Trisha groaned and covered her eyes. We immediately pulled away, but were still smiling. I think we had made up.

After the last of the dancers, the DJ got back on the microphone. "And the winning team is…Team Red!" He said. Larten and I stood up, grinning even more, as we made our way to the stage to get the money. Our food was free, and I paid for Vancha's and Trisha's. After we had finished it, we were tired and decided to call it a night.

The walk home was chilly, but nice. We had a quiet walk. Soon we came to the fork in the road, where Trisha, Vancha, and Larten would go left, and I would go right.

"Thanks for the meal." Vancha said.

"I want that dress back tomorrow." Trisha said. I laughed and rolled my eyes. She and Vancha went left.

Larten gave me a worried glance, like he saw something that made him uneasy. "Be careful." He whispered. "The night is beautiful, but dangerous." He sounded very mysterious. He definitely knew something.

"I will be." I smiled, and turned to leave.

Larten's POV

When we hit the road in which we were to separate, I saw two men watching us. I did not know if they were stalking us, so I warned Maria to be careful anyway. As she was walking away, I saw the two men start to follow her. I followed them. After exchanging a few suspicious words, she started to run. I jumped up onto the rooftops, hoping they had not caught up to her yet. Hoping I was not too late.

Maria's POV

I followed down the street and took a few shortcuts. I felt like someone was watching me. Suddenly, two figures came up in front of me. Just a couple of guys. One was bald, with quite a few tattoos. The other was blond, and neither looked friendly.

"Well, hello pretty lady." The bald said. I kept walking.

"Don't be rude." He said. "Come here, and say hi."

"Hi." I growled, still walking past them. They started following.

"What are you doing out in the night?" The blond asked.

"Meeting up with my husband." I lied. He cut in front of me, looking at my fingers.

"Well, if you're married, where's your ring?" He asked. I stopped.

"I…I had lost it, when it fell down the…sink." But I knew he had figured out the lie. Taking off my shoes, I threw them at him and ran for my life down the alleyway. He and the bald recovered and followed me.

I ran as fast as I could go, trying not to look back, but I could hear their footsteps as they were catching up to me. I looked back to see how close they were, when suddenly, I ran into someone. I almost screamed, expecting it to be a third offender, or maybe even Glalda. But as I looked, I breathed a sigh of relief.

"Stay close to me." Larten whispered just as the two men caught up. He wrapped an arm around my waist. "What took you so long, dear?" He said, winking at me. And I realized he had heard my lie and was playing along with it.

"Sorry honey, I got lost." I said, pecking him on the cheek. The bald seemed to deflate.

"This is your husband?" The bald one asked in astonishment.

"Yes it is. Thank you for taking me to him, but right now we gotta go." I said. The bald turned away in disappointment, but the blond wasn't buying it. He was smarter than I thought.

"C'mon Duke, let's go." Said the bald as he turned away.

"I'll catch up in a bit." Said the blond named Duke. He stepped a little closer.

"I don't know what kind of game you and your boyfriend are playing, but I'm not buying it. I don't like it when people try lying to me, ok? So I'm gonna take the girl, 'cause I don't think you can stop me, can you?" He said, flexing his muscles. I knew that Larten was thin and tall, but he was well built. It could go either way.

"I would not insult me if I were you." Larten growled menacingly.

"Why not?"Asked Duke. He grabbed my arm and pulled me by him, making me yelp.

"Because of this…" Suddenly, Larten literally disappeared, and reappeared behind Duke. He grabbed his wrist and twisted it, to the point where I could hear the bone snap from pressure. Duke cried out in surprise and pain. Then Larten took him by the front of his shirt and slammed him into the wall.

"Now you listen, and listen well." Larten snarled at him. "You do not lay a finger on her, ever! If I find out you have hurt her in any way, you and your friend are going to be in worse of a Hell than you could possibly imagine. You will be begging for death when I finish with you. Do you understand?"

"Sir, yes sir!" Duke shrieked in terror. Larten smiled maliciously.

"Good. Now go." He said, and flung him into some trash cans like he was flicking a bug. Duke scrambled out of the heap and made a run for it. I stared in utter amazement.

Larten kneeled down and looked me over. "Are you alright? Did they hurt you?" He asked. When I didn't answer, he looked up at me. "Maria?"

"That was…awesome!" I said excitedly. "Oh my god, how did you do that? You literally vanished and then showed up behind! Are you some kind of magician or something?"

He laughed. "Something like that. But for now, New York is dangerous at night. Perhaps I could walk you home?"

I smiled and entwined my hand into his. "I'd like that."

Hope you guys enjoyed that! Another chappy will be on his way!