Fancy meeting you here. [Ryker]

" Right this way madame' " the host said as he walked Sanaa to the opening of the restaurant. Quietly, her heels clicked against marble as she made her way through the dinning area, she was on a mission to the bar.

'This place is stuffy...everyone in here looks boring. I don't know why we can't go to rapture, at least there is some excitement in that joint.' her wolf huffed unsatisfied with her surroundings. 'Not today, I could use some wine and soft music. You will get your excitement, soon enough.' she thought silencing the wolf inside.

Sanaa made her way past the people dinning, her lovely white dress reached mid thigh. Hugging her curves tightly the straps went up to a deep V in the front and a deeper V in the back. She had spent all weekend shopping for this dress and in the end her heels matched perfectly. Her long black locks fell in big spirals around her shoulders, they bounced lightly as she stepped.

Tracing her fingers along the smooth black paint on the piano she looked up to the gentlemen playing. He was old and offered her a big grin as he continued his solo. Such sweet sounds for her ears, Sanaa continued to the bar. She could feel the lingering eyes of single men. A soft smile graced her lips as she took a seat in the chair. Motioning to the bartender she waited for him to get closer before speaking, "I'll have a glass of your best wine." she said in a sweet tone.

Crossing her legs she turned from the bar to watch the Pianist. His focus on each note sent goosebumps up her skin or maybe it was the territory. Either way she was pleased with being here. Sanaa lifted her hazel eyes to catch the bartenders as he sat down her wine. "Thank you honey." she whispered as he walked away.

Lifting the glass she swirled it in her hands before sniffing it, it smelled yummy. Pausing she lifted the cup to her bold red lipstick covered lips. Opening them halfway she took a small sip. Oh yes, tonight was on her top five list of best nights. Wine, music and quiet? I don't need anything else. 'I hate this..' the wolf spoke. 'I wont take to long, I promise.' she thought to herself.

Oh, but it felt good to actually be civilized again.  Gone were the faded jeans with fraying seams and stains from yard work and cleaning.  Gone was the baggy, convenient t-shirt, sporting a couple tears from his flight through the woods and one or two spatters of blood down the sides.  Quite frankly, Ryker was not sure what the hotel staff had done with the clothes, as they had been gone when he got out of his wonderfully relaxing hot shower, and neither did he care.  If he never saw them again, drenched as they were in the scent of the Braveheart pack, it would be too soon.

By contrast, he now wore clothing much more suited to his personal tastes.  A pair of pressed black slacks over a pair of equally black converse sneakers (hey, they were comfortable and the nicer pairs were actually decently well-made and suitable for him) and topped by a close-fitting, black v-neck and charcoal gray blazer, carefully tailored to his body.  Finally, after about a month of being under cover, Ryker finally felt like himself again and, in order to celebrate the occasion, decided to take a night at the Griffen and enjoy a bit of good food.

The host greeted him politely, though quickly, and showed him to a small table for two, from which he whisked away the second place setting, since Ryker had asked for only one, with the assurance that his waiter would be right with him.  As Ryker sat, having glanced over the menu already, his nose began to explore the various scents that permeated the air of the restaurant.  It was difficult to pinpoint certain people or smells, due to the olfactory cacophony that harried his senses, but it was an exercise that Ryker rather enjoyed.  Not long into this private little game, Ryker felt the fine hairs on the back of his neck lift.  Dante gave a similar, though more animated reaction.  “There’s a shifter here,” Dante growled in Ryker’s head.  The Irishman nodded in agreement.  “And not from Eternal, either,” he concurred.

His black eyes flicked from face to face, trying to decide who it was.  There were a few potentials, but, using his nose, he ruled out most of those.  His contemplations were interrupted by the arrival of the promised waiter, a younger man wearing a tuxedo shirt and pants with a generic black vest.  After quickly ordering Coq au Vin and a glass of Champagne Mandois Premier Cru—he had promised to spoil himself just a little, after all—he returned to his scrutiny of the gathered diners.  There was a rather striking woman sitting at the bar, sipping on a glass of wine that kept catching his attention.  Could it be her?  The waiter brought his glass of Champaign and beat a hasty retreat.  Taking a sip, Ryker smiled slightly behind the glass.  If he were a betting man, he’d wager his entire dinner that she was the wereling that had so caught his attention.

Sanaa enjoyed her wine slowly, savoring one sip after another. Her tan cheeks flushed with color as the liquor warmed her already toasty body. Settling the glass down she lifted her finger to the bartender to order another, he nodded her way. Her finger twirled a big curl about as she sat there alone watching everyone else. Taking a moment to herself Sanna Leaned back in her chair. Closing her eyes for she listened to the music and took a big breath. It was so peaceful.

'Do you smell that?' Nyre said lifting her nose. Sanaa opened her hazel eyes and scanned the room. She looked quickly surveying the whole area, all the while her nose took in scents. One strong scent stood out and she paused, eyes lifting to catch his smile. 'A male..' she thought.

Realizing she was staring his way Sanaa smiled and nodded, just before the bartender came over and plopped down another glass of wine. Turning away she grabbed the glass and took another sip, Nyre her wolf wrestled to get free. 'Stay calm, hes just having dinner and he noticed me. I can tell he isn't from the same pack as I am. So I shall keep my distance...' she thought with a sigh.

Her glass came up to her red lips once more, this time she took a bigger drink. 'Hes eating alone? That is weird don't you think? From here he looks pretty dashing and he smells strong.' 'Not if you're alone in a pack or if you want some space. Easy there we just don't go rolling over for any male who looks our way.' She glanced back over to him, her hazel eyes watching him carefully out the corner of her eye.

Her eyes caught his gaze as he sipped his drink. He gave a small nod of his head in silent greeting. Could she be from the other pack that Noctavia had mentioned? Venantium, or something like that? If so, how long had she been there? Perhaps he could glean a little bit of information from her. Catching her eye once more, which was not particularly difficult, since she was covertly watching him, Ryker gestured invitingly to the seat across from him. If she declined his invitation, he would simply indicate to his waiter that he was moving to the bar. Either way, once the two were sitting near each other, Ryker offered a charming, slightly lop-sided grin.

“Good evenin’,” he greeted her, his Irish accent coloring his words. “It really is a shame to be eating alone, isn’t it? My name’s Ryker Dahling, Beta of Eternal Darkness. And you are?” As he spoke, he carefully studied her scent, learning what he could of her. She belonged to a pack, that was certain, but he had never smelled the pack before. Either there was another pack recently come to New York, or she was indeed a member of the fledgling Venantium. Either option was intriguing.

“It really is a shame to be eating alone, isn’t it? My name’s Ryker Dahling, Beta of Eternal Darkness. And you are?”

Sanaa held her breath for a moment as his scent grew stronger, it was almost overpowering as he spoke her way. Turning to face him her hazel eyes returned his gaze boldly, letting her eyes linger before looking away. 'Didn't I tell you he smelled strong? Hes a Beta of Eternal that is very interesting.' Nyree sniffed his scent more enjoying it. 'Be quiet for five minutes I need to think...I cant focus. she thought before turning to face him. Sliding from her stool she picked up her wine glass and casually stepped over to his table.

"Doctor Sanaa Luthern from Venantium, my pleasure Ryker." she said taking a seat across from him. Crossing her legs she lifted her wine glass up for a final drink that finished it off. Oh goody, of course she was out of wine now. Perfect timing. Linking her hands she placed them over her knee and looked his way. She wondered what he was thinking, ' I'm thinking hes good looking. Wouldn't you agree?' 'Spare me Nyre..this is serious we are face to face with a Beta from another pack. He could kill us.'  'In front of all these people? You're being paranoid, hes not that crazy.' 'We don't know that'

Placing a sweet smile on her lips she leaned back, "So tell me Ryker, What brings you to Griffen on such a lovely night?" she asked curiously. Sanaa could hear her heart beat as she lifted her hand to brush a few loose locks from her eyes. Soft chocolate skin glistened under the lighting as her eyes checked him out. Alright he wasn't bad looking and he accent was rather charming. Setting her wallet on the table she looked to wave down the waiter for another glass of wine.

The attending waiter, who seemed to have an impeccable sense of timing, returned to the table with Ryker’s dinner just as the woman demurely approached the table. Ryker noted that her glass was nearly empty and gave a small gesture with his own glass to the lady, a request to bring her another glass and at least a menu, should she wish it.

As drew near to the table, Ryker stood until she had seated herself, and then resumed his seat, still smiling. Doctor? Dante repeated. The shock in his mental voice almost had Ryker chuckling, but he managed to subdue that urge before it broke the surface. How interesting. “The pleasure is mine, Ms. Luthern,” he replied. Unless he badly missed his guess, which seldom happened, he imagined that there was a fairly interesting conversation going on inside her head. He made a mental note of that discussion that he wanted to have with Noctavia about techniques for that. Smell her. She’s at least interested, Dante commented. Ryker bit back his reply, as having his own mental conversation would be a good way to lose focus.

“I’ve just come for a bite to eat. It’s…been a while since I’ve had a chance to have a good meal at a restaurant, so I figured I’d take advantage of the opportunity. Although, I must admit, the evening has become more interesting than I’d anticipated.” The waiter placed a glass of wine, filled with her original choice, on the table in front of her, accompanied by a menu. “If you’re hungry, please feel free. My treat,” Ryker offered. Once she had placed, or refused to place, her order, Ryker leaned back in his chair slightly. “And what of yourself? What brings you away from your packlands tonight?”

Giving the waiter a smile she took the glass of wine and swirled it around in her a few times. Lifting it up to her nose she sniffed the wine and then took a small sip. 'Please tell me he slipped something in our drink.' 'Poison?' 'Love Potion #9'

Nyre's comment made Sanaa choke on her wine and she sat up giving her throat a clear. Patting her chest she smiled sheepishly at Ryker and then looked up at the waiter. "I'll have the chicken, I heard its exceptional here." she said handing her menu to him. Turning her attention back to Ryker she spoke, "Thank you for dinner, such a kind gesture for a stranger."

And what of yourself? What brings you away from your packlands tonight?

His comment made her look his way and her hazel gaze kept his, "I'm new and I figured dinner at this place would be nice. I don't know much of the area so I still do some exploring here and there." she responded in a soft tone. It might've been the wine or the music but Sanaa was starting to relax. Her body was tense from being on guard for so long. Her nose inhaled his scent again now that he was closer and it still was quite intoxicating. Taking a small breath she fiddled with her wine before glancing back at him, unsure what to say. How long had it been since she had dinner alone with a male? Eh, Ages. So she was a bit rusty. That didn't matter though she still looked ravishing.

'Ask him if he has a mate? I find that to be the ultimate ice breaker.' ' There are days I wish I could turn you off..' Sanaa pushed a few more locks of hair from her eyes before biting her lip. Deciding that small talk wasn't bad she asked another question. "Tell me Beta Ryker, what do you like to do around here?" she asked as a small smirk crawled onto her features.

Ryker grinned and indicated his own wine marinated chicken.  “It is quite good,” he agreed.  Are you ever going to tire of this? Dante asked, more amused than annoyed, to which Ryker simply smiled.  Both he and his other half knew the answer to that question.  He listened to her response, smiling encouragingly.  “Just mind that you’re aware of the borders.  Not all of my packmates are as polite as I and it wouldn’t do for you to get hurt or for you to hurt one of ours,” he added with a chuckle.  Who knew, perhaps this pleasant, polite doctor was really a psychotic killer in disguise.

He took a careful bite of his Coq au Vin, blinked at the saltiness, but decided it complimented the onions nicely and so did not return it to the waiter.  The question about what he liked doing caused him to pause for a moment.  “Well, I’m not really what you would call normal.  I own a…handful of businesses in Europe, so a good bit of my time is divided between that and duties to my pack.  When I do have a bit of free time, though, I try to get a bit of street racing in.  I know, not strictly legal, but with my reflexes, the chances of any innocent bystanders being hurt are significantly less than the chances that any pedestrian in this town takes.”  He gave a small shrug.  He knew that he was superior to mortals, Doctor Luthern knew that he was superior to mortals.  He didn’t view the acknowledgement of biological facts as bragging.  “And what occupies the doctor of the newly started pack when she is not busy with work?  I imagine that you do have quite a bit of work, at that, what with the influx of ex-Braveheart werelings, aye?”

“Just mind that you’re aware of the borders.  Not all of my packmates are as polite as I and it wouldn’t do for you to get hurt or for you to hurt one of ours,”

'Get hurt? Psh..he doesn't know us very well. Nyre retorted with a snort as she lifted her head to inspect Dante'. 'Maybe hes giving us a warning? Something to watch out for, don't let it bother you.''Too late for that.' Sanaa took a long sip of her wine and raised an eyebrow his way, "I am well aware of the boundaries, I've been in a pack once before." she said in an amused tone. Her hazel eyes flickered over playfully as she leaned in closer to Ryker.

Listening to his response Sanaa looked a bit surprised, a business man who enjoyed street racing. 'Sounds like fun, maybe he could take us for a ride. You need excitement.' Nyre snickered. 'I'm fun, I just play by the rules.' 'Look at you its time we break some rules and have some fun.' Taking another drink to separate her thoughts she nodded, "You seem like a very busy man. Street racing isn't safe I could tell you the statistics of death from it each year. But taking in our ability to react would make it a bit safer, I suppose. "

The waiter walked over not trying to interrupt the two as he set down her chicken. "Your dinner madame, enjoy." he said with a small bow and a big grin. Realizing he might've been standing there to long he quickly turned on his heel and disappeared.

"Thank you dear." she said placing her napkin in her lap. Lifting her fork and knife she cut off a small piece and took a bite. Yes even with the strong taste of wine in her mouth, it was delicious. Chewing her piece quietly she glanced over at Ryker, wondering if he had any motives. Then he proceeded on with his next question.

“And what occupies the doctor of the newly started pack when she is not busy with work?  I imagine that you do have quite a bit of work, at that, what with the influx of ex-Braveheart werelings, aye?”

There it was the question that made the hair raise on the back of her neck. Did she look like a fool? An informant? She was a pure blood not some timid mutt who would give out valuable info. 'But we don't know much about the Bravehearts only rumors. I don't know why you're so upset. 'I don't know maybe it was the way he asked.' 'Or you just realized he wanted information and here you are smiling and drinking.' 'Five minutes ago you were drooling and licking your lips like he was a milk bone...shut it.''That's not fair you know bones aren't my thing, but hot Beta men with accents? I like. Nyre retorted as she laughed loudly.

Sanaa took another bite of her chicken and finished it before speaking. "I can't say much only that my job keeps me busy. When I'm not doing medicine I am plant hunting. I prefer to use plants to help then pills, call me old fashion, I don't mind. Back in Africa we lived off the land she healed us when we needed it. My father's pack always held their Healers in high regard. " Pausing she took a sip of her wine to push down the lump in her throat. Speaking of her family always did that to her, even to this day she couldn't figure out why.

"Tell me Ryker, your accent? Where is it from?" she asked in a soft tone changing the subject. Taking a few more bites of her chicken Sanaa set her fork down and had a sip of wine. This night wasn't so bad after all, leaning back in her chair she crossed her legs once more. A soft flush of red passed through her tan cheeks, the wine was warming her up more.

Of course she would have taken that in the worst possible way. Ryker held his hands up a little, indicating he meant no harm. “I didn’t mean to imply that you wouldn’t know how they worked, merely that, since you are new to the area, you might not know exactly where they all lay, that’s all,” he explained. Rather prickly, isn’t she? Dante commented. The comment about racing not being safe made Ryker give a little chuckle. “Well, what good is a reward without at least a little bit of risk, aye?” Ryker was fully aware how that sounded, but it was the truth, in his opinion. He had, after all, purposely chosen a sport to get involved in that his superior strength and agility would give him as little of an edge as possible. In racing, it all came down to the skill of the driver, the car itself, and reflexes. Ryker only had a superhuman edge in one of those categories.

He nodded to the waiter when he came, signaling that he didn’t need anything else, then watched as the man lingered a fair bit longer than was strictly necessary. A small smile pulled at his lips. She was rather pretty, after all, especially for what a mortal would consider to be attractive. He had noticed them both receiving quite a few furtive glances from their dining neighbors. Once more, the glass tipped up to his lips as he smiled slightly. Let them watch, he decided. Dante was more of the opinion that the interlopers should be told off and warned, but Ryker recognized that unnecessary ire to be from his worn patience from their recent ordeal with the Bravehearts.

As soon as the words had left his mouth, he caught a shift in her scent and the way she held her weight and knew that she was on guard. He very nearly laughed aloud as he realized that she had mistaken his genuine, pointless curiosity for a probing question. Carefully schooling his face to polite attentiveness. He wondered just how long she had been a “healer.”

“I have read a number of papers praising the components of herbs and the like over more modern, manufactured pharmaceuticals. How much merit is there to that theory, in your opinion?” he asked. He resisted the urge to point out how amusing her reaction had been, though it was a point of interest to him that her father had been the Alpha. It followed, then, that both her parents had been in charge of the pack. So, here he was, an Irishman that owned the majority of the European economy, sharing dinner with an African princess. Oh the stories that could be written about that pairing.

The question about his accent caught him slightly off guard, but he just smiled. “Ireland,” he answered. “My family’s lived there for…eh, several of our generations. The rest of them are still there, my father, mother, sister and brother, and I don’t think any of them have any plans of leaving.” He chuckled quietly and idly traced the tip of his finger along the thin scar that crossed his left cheek and the bridge of his nose. No, chances of his siblings dropping in for a visit were basically null. The flush that rose in her dark cheeks was interesting, but only just. Though it was nice to see that she was relaxing slightly. Her guarded posture and scent had started to make Ryker wonder if he should be matching it, though he carefully did not.

“I didn’t mean to imply that you wouldn’t know how they worked, merely that, since you are new to the area, you might not know exactly where they all lay, that’s all,”

Sanaa raised an eyebrow and tilted her head his way, a small smile playing across her lips. She gave him a small nod understanding his comment. Her eyes flickered about the room counting the people and checking the exits. Call it a bad habit, but a girl had to know where she could make a disappearance if necessary. "I can see where you might get a rush from the risk and the reward might be sweeter after all that trouble." she stated hazel eyes flickering towards him. 'Were you flirting?' Nyre asked. 'Ehh..maybe a little.'

Ryker was definitely more mysterious then he let himself out to be and something about him made Sanaa stare. She took another sip of her wine and watched him scan the crowd, what was he doing? Taking this moment of silence Sanaa found herself looking him over, she had been sitting across from him for an hour and didn't even give him the proper once over. 'He smells good...I'm enjoying this.' Nyre giggled. 'Of course you would.' Sanaa thought.

“I have read a number of papers praising the components of herbs and the like over more modern, manufactured pharmaceuticals. How much merit is there to that theory, in your opinion?”

"I would rather stuff a plant into someone's mouth then make them eat a pill that will harm them twenty different ways. There are tons of herbs out there that fix what you need and they don't give you side effects. For us the healing time is less, so we heal up really well with a herb. Modern medicine has been bulked up so the government can get money from it, meanwhile they give these mortals pills. That will make them sicker with something new, its a disgusting cycle. So I stay clear of it and I wont prescribe anyone anything that isn't organic." Sanaa said with a huff. It was obvious that she loved her job, it was rewarding. Shifting in her seat she smiled at Ryker, his conversation was exceptional.

“My family’s lived there for…eh, several of our generations. The rest of them are still there, my father, mother, sister and brother, and I don’t think any of them have any plans of leaving.”

"I thought it was Irish, I just wanted to double check. I didn't want to insult your accent, it is nice." she said lifting her cup of wine for a sip. Leaning back in her chair she rested her hands on her thighs. Relaxing her body once more, her sweet scent of comfort filling the air. "Do you miss your home? Why did you leave?" she asked tilting her head his way.

"If it makes you feel better I'll go first, I'm the daughter of a pure blood line that originated in the heart of Africa. My family has fought for generations to expand their territory to be where they're today. Unfortunately I have three older brothers and they were looking to get the pack with age. Me on the other hand? I was to be married off, back then I had my love for healing. I wanted nothing else..I realize I might've been selfish. But my father couldn't understand that, so I left. That's my sob story of running away." she said with a shrug. It had been quite sometime since she spoke of them and her home. Was it the wine or the seemingly interested audience she had before her. Either or it felt good to let it out. 'Did you really tell him all that? Now he probably thinks your a crazy coward.' Nyre grumbled. Sanaa took a sip of wine to hush the rumbling, 'I am far from a coward..you know that.' she thought.

Ryker could not help but grin slightly.  Maybe it seemed more of a mortal interest, wanting to live their short lives on the edge of disaster, but Ryker had gotten exceedingly bored of his virtually interminable existence and found that racing provided a nice spice to it.  Besides, he had met more than one other wereling who enjoyed the thrill of racing.

Her little diatribe was interesting, if a little bit predictable.  He had heard the basic points before, but had never seen any proof of them.  But perhaps that was a conversation for another time, he decided, taking another small bite of his succulent chicken dinner.  “I’ve never really had much experience with medicines of either variety,” he admitted.  “My family apparently has a pretty strong immune system, so we rarely get sick.  Injuries were expected to heal on their own time, as well.  Although, I have suspected that my brother has used some herb or other to help some of his heal faster.”  He chuckled slightly.  “He never did care too much for Father’s more inane rules.”

He accepted the compliment of his accent with a dip of his head and a smile as he listened to the reasons that Sanaa gave as to why she left her family’s pack.  Her story didn’t sound too far out of the realm of the norm for pureblooded family’s.  “It must have been a difficult decision for you to leave all of that behind,” he said, sincerity coloring his voice.  However, now he was faced with a dilemma.  How much of his past did he want to reveal to his rather beautiful dinning partner?  Dante voted for fewer details, of course.  “My reasons for leaving were a little bit more, eh, ephemeral, I suppose you could say.  Through a series of incredibly unfortunate events, I became responsible for this girl, Arielle Hamilton.  We met in Paris, but she left and so I had to follow her here.  She’s…gone now, but I was already Eternal Darkness’s Beta, so simply going back to Ireland was out of the question.  I know own my family’s businesses, but manage to operate them from here.  A few members of my family were not very happy with that decision, though.  This,” he reached up and touched the scar across his cheek, “Was a parting gift from my elder sister the last time I was in the country.”  He chuckled quietly, remembering that little tiff that he had had with her.  Tactful, Dante commented.

"A good healer doesn't always use herbs though, my blood is pure and filled with goodness." Sanaa said tapping her wrist softly. Her hand lifted and brushed a few locks from her eyesight, "It took a lot of skill to learn blood donating, that is why I stress herbs. Good for your system and all. Rarely getting sick eh? Your father was a smart man, that means your blood is also good." Blood donating was an old practice her pack used when they would be fighting over territories. It was a miracle to watch and the first time Sanaa ever saw it done. It stuck in her mind forever.

Her tan finger traced the rim of her wine glass as Ryker spoke, her hazel gaze still lingering on him. "If we happen to run into each other again I could bring you a nice minty herb to help you heal. That is if you get into a fight, I have heard that Eternal likes to kill." she stated, uncrossing her legs to get comfortable.

"Herbs can be fun especially the ones that bring out our natural aphrodisiac..one taste of this flower and everything inside you is yearning. Orgasmic to say the least, well that's what I've been told." she whispered in a barely audible voice that wasn't ment for human ears. Lifting her cup she had a mischievous grin plastered across her delicate features and for once she looked like she was having fun. Her left hand rubbed her neck and traced down her body back to her lap.

"Leaving was hard, still the hardest thing I've ever done...Ah a female brought you here, it happens. Well at least you found your place in Eternal Darkness and still handle your family's businesses." she said in a sweet tone. Sanaa leaned forward on the table and looked at Ryker closely, "That is one helluva parting gift. So tell me Ryker if I want to go on a nice run, where would you take me?"

Ryker arched an eyebrow when the woman spoke of using her own blood as a medicine.  That was certainly an interesting method that he had not heard much about before.  The comment about his father was met with only a nod of his head.  The less said about that, the better, but he did have to admit that his father was a very intelligent man, despite how he might feel about the man.

Her comment about his pack caused him to cock his head slightly to the left, an amused grin spreading across his face.  “Nothing untoward, you understand, but we don’t hesitate when we need to,” he clarified.  Were there some situations that one could get away with not killing?  Of course.  But Ryker, and certainly Noctavia, was not in the habit of leaving enemies in a position to threaten him for long.

His eyebrow lifted slightly in surprise as this seemingly mild mannered woman began speaking about aphrodisiacs.  True, Ryker doubted that anyone that was not a wereling and not sitting within four feet of her would be able to hear it, but still.  “That’s what you’ve heard, is it?” he asked, his grin shifting to match her own.  He could think of one or two people who would probably chase this flower to the ends of the earth.  That thought brought a quiet chuckle.  As if they need help.

The way that she took his comment about following Arielle to the states was amusing, to say the least, but he didn’t make a point to correct her.  “You were close to your family, then?” he asked, taking one of the last bites of his meal and another small sip of his drink.  At her comment about his scar, Ryker smirked slightly.  “You should see the one I gave her.  As far as a run, that would depend on what sort of a run you’re looking for.  If it’s just a nice, flat out run, there’s an area known as Finaqua.  It’s an abandoned railroad system and makes for a nice romp.  If you’re interested in something a little more interesting, the Crimson Forest does a nice job.  There’s a fair bit of animal prey there and the trees can make for a nice challenge to run through.  If you’re not wanting to shift, there’s a pretty nice gym down the street,” he added impishly.  He kept careful tabs on her scent and how it shifted, using that in addition to her body language to interpret her reactions and emotions.  “Is there not space to run in your pack’s lands?  It gets a little tricky if we want to let ourselves go and get some real exercise, seein’ as how we live in the city proper.  Too many eyes everywhere.”

Sanaa sat back in her chair and shifted as they spoke a bit more. She noted his comment on killing and the flower. His smirk made her blush and pushed her hair from her shoulders taking a deep breath. 'Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think you blushed. Somewhere in your mind you're thinking about that accent. I can feel it.' Nyre teased, in truth she was enjoying the scent from Ryker and Dante. It made her all warm inside as she wrestled to be free from Sanaa. 'Have I told you how much I appreciate an accent.' she thought.

“You were close to your family, then?”

His words brought her back to the restaurant, looking his way she nodded. "I was...sometimes I can't believe they exiled me. It upsets me more to know my father sent my older brother after me, he chased after me for years. I was told by my mother on the phone once that I caused the war and exile of my brother. I guess I never went back because I couldn't face them.." she said rather bluntly. Hearing her own voice speak like that shocked her, maybe it was time she got out what she felt. Realizing that this wasn't a therapy session Sanaa looked to Ryker.

"Sibling rivalry am I right?" she said with a chuckle. Sanaa could feel Nyre growling to get out, she had promised her a run. Turning her hazel gaze to the clock on the wall she read the time, 11:30pm. It was almost midnight, looking back to Ryker she spoke. "Listen If you're up for it how about a run through the Crimson Forest? It's been awhile for me and I'd love to stretch my legs. Plus my pack does have beach to run but it isn't every day I get to have dinner with someone from another pack. So what do you say? A Run? Let's make this night interesting." Her hands fiddled with her spiral hair curls nervously, it was weird asking someone to run with her. But she wanted fresh air and the Crimson forest had a rather enchanting ring to it.

Ryker arched an eyebrow at her recount of her history.  An exile?  How very interesting, Dante commented.  “A war?” Ryker repeated.  “Was there a rival pack or was it a civil war?”  Internal strife was a very interesting topic for Ryker.  He found the political maneuverings behind them to be fascinating subjects of study.

Her guess of sibling rivalry drew a chuckle.  “Aye, ya might say that.  My sister thought it was terribly unfair that, even though I haven’t lived with the family for a few decades, I was given control of the family’s assets.  Her thinking has since been adjusted,” he added with a little grin.  He considered her offer carefully.  There was a possibility that he could get in some serious trouble for returning home smelling of the Venantium pack.  Noctavia had instructed him to keep his hands out of their business, after all.  Would she believe that it had been a purely chance encounter?  After a moment of careful consideration, of weighing the pros and cons, Ryker finally gave a small shrug.  “I suppose that a short run couldn’t hurt too badly,” he said.

Standing from the table and readjusting the lay of his tailored jacket, he dropped a couple bills on the table that he knew would be plenty to cover both of their meals.  “After you,” he said, sweeping his hand out in a grand gesture towards the door.