Lucy felt Zeb's hand in the middle of her back as he guided her from the car and into the restaurant. He had filled her in on what was going on in the car. The woman he was attempting to make a deal with was pretending to be unsure of herself, but she knew exactly what she wanted. Zeb was waiting for her to tell him what it was. However, in the mean time he was dealing with a lot of feminine power plays.

The reason he had asked Lucy to accompany him to dinner was to try to make the meeting less about business and more social, he admitted that it was a power play on his part, one he wasn't sure would work.

Lucy looked around the restaurant, listening to the jazz trio as she did. It was housed in an old warehouse that had been completely gutted and rehabbed. The rough brick and stained concrete floor were muted by candle light, plush seating, and crisp white table cloths.

There was a healthy mix of couples and business parties scattered around the restaurant all talking in muted tones. She couldn't help but note the flurry of activity as Zeb entered the restaurant. The hostess glided up to him and whispered something in his ear before he nodded to the maître d' who led them to a table by one of the oversize windows in the back. 

"Marissa," he greeted, holding out his hand.

A very short and round woman rose from the table they were led to and took his hand. Her hair was a wild wavy mass that had a multitude of highlights in it. She wore a stylish pair of glasses and her outfit was well tailored.

"Zebadiah, I was wondering if I had made a mistake about the date," she said in an overly sweet voice that immediately rubbed Lucy the wrong way.

Zeb gave a charming smile, but Lucy could see the hand by his side clenching and unclenching as he kept careful control of himself over the passive aggressive comment.

"Zebadiah is too much of a gentleman to pass on the blame, but it is completely my fault," Lucy said just as sweetly as Marissa had as Zeb held out her chair. Lucy could play passive aggressive and insincere sweetness just as well as the next person. She was born in the south after all.

"Marissa Langford, please meet Lucy Monroe. I hope you don't mind my bringing her this evening, but I don't get to see enough of her, and I wanted to have this evening be less about business and more about enjoying good food with friends," Zeb smiled as a waiter appeared by his shoulder.

Lucy watched as he said something softly to him and he disappeared.

"I was excited when you mentioned this restaurant for dinner. I've been hearing wonderful things about their chef for months, but it's almost impossible to get a reservation." Marissa looked around her, noting a few of New Orleans's well-known citizens.

"I was lucky," he said, not really answering the questions as some menus were delivered along with glasses of water, and a few minutes later a bottle of wine.

They took their time looking over the menu and savoring the delicious wine before placing their orders. Lucy was sure that it didn't matter what she chose because everything would be delicious, delicious and expensive.

Marissa turned her attention on to Lucy, looking at her over her glass of wine. "What do you do my dear?" she asked.

Lucy heard the witches voice from the Wizard of Oz in her voice, saying 'I'll get you my pretty...'. It was ironic since she was the one that was supposed to be the witch.

"I restore furniture," Lucy responded, keeping it simple because she really didn't want the woman to know anything about her.

Zeb must have picked up on her unease because he directed the conversation away from her and back towards more mundane things such as current city events and people that they both knew.

Lucy felt a hum of energy and it was so strong that she looked up and into and man's eyes who was waiting alone at a table. He looked nervous and he gave her an anxious smile. Something caught his attention by the door and Lucy watched as a grin split his face.

Images flashed before her eyes and she zoned out of the conversation at their table for a moment as she saw moments of his life flash before her, it was going to be a happy one.

"Are you alright?" Zeb asked, leaning over and whispering into her ear. His warm breath on her neck gave her goosebumps.

"Yes." She nodded as she looked up at him with a happy smile.

There was some fleeting emotion that crossed his face that Lucy didn't recognize as he looked down at her, but he quickly masked it as he turned his attention back towards Marissa.

On her other side Lucy heard a guest apologizing to the waiter and asking him if there was anything that he could do, the more she listened the more she realized that she didn't want to hear. The poor man's credit cards had been declined, he had no cash to pay, and he was with his wife who couldn't help.

The hostess appeared by Zeb's side as if by magic, blocking the scene at the next table from Lucy. What Zeb whispered to the woman was a mystery, but she nodded and disappeared just as quickly as she had appeared.

As dinner was served Marissa gave up on trying to keep it social and they launched into the business deal. Most of it went over Lucy's head, but she got that it was a real estate deal and that Marissa was lying about the viability of it. Nothing as vulgar as numbers were being mentioned, but Lucy had the distinct impression that they both knew what price range the other was aiming for.

Lucy had just set her fork down and was picking up her wine, her eyes meeting Marissa's, and she couldn't miss the look of satisfaction that flickered there, but what she saw next made her drop her wine, spilling it on the table.

She closed her eyes against her third vision of the evening, she couldn't do it anymore, she need a dark and quiet room. She saw a courtroom, newspaper headlines, and reporters everywhere. They were all surrounding Zeb, and this woman was the reason why.

Some of the wine must have landed on Marissa because she jumped out of her seat quickly brushing at her skirt.

"I'm sorry, how clumsy of me," Lucy said weakly.

Marissa muttered something under her breath and then excused herself.

"Let's dance while they clean our table," Zeb suggested taking her hand and pulling her gently from her chair and onto the dance floor.

He moved her around the floor in time with the slow music and Lucy felt herself relaxing and growing tired. She felt safe, and wanted to stay in his arms forever.

"How did you get us reservations?" Lucy asked looking around the room one more time, careful to avoid the people in it.

"I own it," he said as he spun her around.

Lucy gave an unladylike like snort. "Figures."

"You don't seem impressed," he teased.

"You also took care of the couple with the declined credit cards meal, didn't you?" She knew the answer before she even asked the question. He had done it so quietly that no one had noticed, and she doubted that the couple he had helped even knew what had happened.

He shrugged. "Why did you smile earlier?" he asked, changing the suject.

"The man was going to propose to his girl and they were going to be happy," Lucy said with a smile, resting her head against Zeb's shoulder.

"Does that happen often, seeing people's futures?"

This time Lucy shrugged. "I do my best not to look at people. It's only when I look at them or touch them that it happens."

"You looked right at Marissa before you dropped your wine," he noted as he stopped dancing and looked down at her.

"Yes," she agreed, lifting her head off his shoulder to look up at him.

"What did you see?"

"Reporters, courtrooms, bad press and you in the middle of it all." She stepped away from him as a horrible thought crossed her mind. Could he possibly be using her? He had readily believed in her gift which was a new experience for her, but had he brought her here this evening to determine if he should make the deal or not?

His eyes narrowed as he noted her withdrawal. "Are you alright?'

"No, I'm tired and have a headache, can we leave soon?"

Zeb looked over at their table where Marissa now sat, waiting for them.

"Sure, give me a few more minutes and I'll get you out of here," he assured her.

"Will you take me home?" she asked, knowing that wasn't what they had agreed to, they were supposed to stay in the city for the night and go home in the morning.

She watched as Zeb's face lost all expression and his hand dropped to his side. "Sure, if that's what you want," he agreed.

Lucy nodded, it wasn't what she wanted, but it was what she needed. She needed to be away from him to think about everything that had happened.