For a moment Gabriel looked like he was going to object further in some fashion, but then he laughed and sank back into the seat, one arm flung over the back. “It was worth a try. Don’t worry, Azzy; hurling was one of my worst experiences as a human to date and I don’t feel like revisiting it.”

He wasn’t looking for anyone specifically—it was just that ‘off’ feeling that had been following him all week and the fact that they had been somewhat open in their walk down the road. May as well take a look and see if there was anyone who might be liable to spy—especially as they started to get drunk enough not to care about censoring themselves.

“I should start with a beer,” he said, and then glanced over and grinned just a bit wickedly, remembering his conversation with the bartender from the other night. “But I’ll probably go for something hard-and-fast later.”