by Bella Falls
Lee shrugged. “I don't know. A handful? I wanted to make sure it worked.” He shot a sideways glance at Alison Kate.
Nana poured more sludge into his cup as well. Lee dutifully took a long sip and screwed up his face. “You could have at least made it taste like sweet tea.”
“Then how would you learn your lesson?” She tousled his hair despite her annoyance.
I filed away my friend’s question to ask my grandmother later. If there were a way to make the evil brew taste better, then I had been royally screwed growing up.
Dash cleared his throat. “So he added moonshine to the lemonade. That doesn't sound so bad, and maybe we should have been a little drunk. Not off our rockers.”
“Like I said, one added potion shouldn't have harmed everyone. But we’re not talking one.” Taking a chance and hoping to shorten the night, I asked the big question. “Raise your hand if you added something to the lemonade tonight.”
More than half of those in the circle raised a sheepish hand. They listed off what they had added when I pointed at them.
“A special brew of chamomile tea.”
“A dash of rosewater.”
“Ground dry lavender.”
The list grew longer of ingredients and potions known to be used in different love spells.
“We learned the dangers of love potions long ago, Will and I,” said Horatio, his eloquent turn of phrase back. “It did not turn out well for the fairy queen, Titania. But mortals will be fools.”
“What in tarnation were you all thinking?” asked Nana. “I thought you learned better at school than to mess with love potions. They are extraordinary things and easy to get wrong. Or if they mixed with the wrong ingredients—”
“—they can create a disaster?” I finished. “I think they know that, Nana.”
Flustered, my grandmother refilled everyone's cup again. The more they drank down, the more they recovered.
“I have a confession.” Alison Kate stood up, large tears slipping down her face. “I added a love spell to my cake pops.”
“I know, Ali Kat.” I wanted to hug my fragile friend, but I couldn't show favoritism in the position I stood in. I'd shower her with hugs and kisses afterward. “I found the recipe card on the floor in the kitchen. Actually, it's because of that recipe that I put the pieces together. That we had multiple spells miscast and misfiring. So in a way, you helped.”
“But that doesn't let you off the hook, young lady,” warned my Nana.
I rolled my eyes at my grandmother’s impatience. “But there's one more ingredient to this mess. The most important, very potent ingredient. Skeeter, get your behind on out here, or I will hex your hiney seven ways to Sunday.”
The cupid’s unruly head of hair appeared above the countertop. Moving with slow deliberation, Skeeter wavered in the air until he bobbed in front of Nana and me.
“Now you tell them what you did,” I insisted.
“I gave them all a chance to find a companion,” he sulked.
“What else?” I pushed.
He looked down at the ground. “Encouraged them to let their inhibitions and fears go so that they would find more confidence to approach each other.”
“Frosted fairy wings, Skeeter, tell them why the lemonade turned pink,” I ordered.
The cupid’s wings flapped hard to keep him in the air. Unable to look me in the eyes, he muttered the answer. “I stirred the lemonade with one of my arrows.”
Nana gasped. “The tip of a cupid's arrow touched the drink? You might as well have lit a cask of gunpowder in the place, you crazy cupid.”
“So exactly how am I supposed to handle this?” asked my brother. “As a warden, there are a lot of guilty members in this room. That's gonna make for a lot of work down at the station.”
Mason got up from his chair, taking his place by Matt’s side. “Seems to me this one time we should break the rules.”
My jaw dropped. “Really?”
The recovering detective shrugged. “Almost everyone in here is guilty, but of what? They wanted to find someone and to stop being lonely. I don't think that's a crime.”
“Yeah, but they all did something that when added together created trouble,” I countered, not thinking. I cringed when I caught my friends staring at me in disbelief and wondering whose side I was on. “But I guess you're in charge.”
Mason shook his head. “Not in this situation. But perhaps, the council member who sits in the high seat can make a declaration that would absolve everyone this one time.”
Nana tapped her lip with her fingertip. “I don't think absolution without some form of punishment would work. I need everyone here to remember not to mettle with magic.”
“What are you thinking?” asked my brother. He and I both recognized our grandmother’s look, having been on the receiving end of it many times.
“I’m thinking that with Honeysuckle Hollow opening itself up to more of the magical community, we're going to need volunteers to help with things like the new weekend farmers’ market. Or cleaning up the park when it's needed. Or patrolling our borders. Lots of volunteering opportunities, and as far as I'm concerned, they can volunteer in pairs if they want.”
A murmur of satisfaction rose amongst the group, but Skeeter raised his hand. “That works for everybody else. But what about me?”
“You can do community service as well,” Nana said.
“But that won't stop the story from getting out.” He eyed Linsey. “One word of this gets around, and I'm finished.”
My stomach dropped. Skeeter had a valid point. Linsey's pen wielded as a sword had impaled me in the past. She could skewer Skeeter with a report on the event.
Lily's younger sister sighed. “I suppose I could not write up anything about tonight other than that it was a great opportunity to meet new people.” She watched my grandmother carefully. “And, maybe, that could earn me a few hours less of community service?”
“How about we consider that payback for the trouble you have caused me and mine.” Nana glanced at me, and I nodded in agreement.
“But I'm still a failure.” Skeeter’s wings drooped with his expression.
“No, you're not.” Alison Kate summoned up her courage and spoke up. “Because of tonight, I now know exactly who I want to be with.”
“And I'm not letting her go.” Lee took Alison Kate's hand in his.
Ben and Lily also clasped hands. My heart soared, thankful that the night’s mismatches hadn't destroyed what I had most wanted.
“Anyone else in here thinks they might have made a connection?” I asked.
A few other hands were raised. Linsey poked a finger in the air. “I don't think I made a love connection,” she said, “but I may have made a new friend.” She smiled shyly at the troll.
Horatio patted her knee. “My dear, ‘I would not wish any companion in the world but you.’” He bowed his head.
I patted Skeeter’s arm. “Then tonight is not a complete disaster. You may not want to put it on your resume or mention it when you reapply for a new cupid’s position. But you shouldn't get so discouraged.”
“And for sweet tea's sake, watch how you use your arrow next time,” Nana warned.
We did our best to salvage what we could in the bakery. Some of tonight's victims would start their community service by helping Sprinkle and Twinkle recover. No doubt our small town would rally to help clean up a beloved business.
Mason stopped me outside the bakery. “I want to apologize for my behavior. If I said or did anything to offend you, I am truly sorry.”
I touched his arm. “There's nothing to be sorry for.” Maybe a little white lie was okay.
I hoped the effects of tonight had altered his memory. Then, maybe, we didn't have to talk about things that would make us uncomfortable around each other. At least, maybe, we could pretend nothing happened. For now. “I’ll see you around, Detective Clairmont.
He nodded at me, and I regretted his pained look. Hopefully, in the li
ght of day, things would heal and we could get back to normal.
Matt offered to take me home and Nana offered my old room at her place. But I wanted my own bed, in my own house, with my own peace.
“Beau will go with me.” I looked around for my vampire roommate.
He stood on the sidewalk of Main Street, chatting up the twins. He received a peck on each of his cheeks, and his fangs protruded from his grin. With a wave goodbye, he joined me.
I threw an arm around his caped shoulders. “You're a hero tonight, Beauregard.”
“No kidding. And it's got me not one, but two, dates. Flossy and Mossy were mighty impressed with my efforts.”
“Without you, we might have been lost.” I shuddered to think what might have happened had I actually drunk any of the lemonade.
He leaned against me. “Does this mean you're not kicking me out?”
“No way. You've just tacked on a few more months to your year lease.” I bumped him with my hip.
He frowned. “We don't have a formal agreement.”
“I was kidding.”
“Oh. I knew that,” Beau covered. “Does this mean I can have Flossy and Mossy over to the house?”
The thought of those three canoodling in my bigger than humble abode sent shivers down my spine. “I think, maybe, you should test out their compatibility with you elsewhere first. Then we'll discuss anything else in the future.”
“Tonight didn't turn out so bad after all.” Beau whistled into the night air, and I lost myself in his merry tune and the rustle of Spanish moss in the trees.
A shadowed figure stepped out of the woods on the side of the road, startling us. “I’m sorry I brought the moonshine to Lee. Maybe it's time we shut the still down.”
Once my heart recovered from Dash’s sudden appearance, I breathed again. “I don't know about that. You guys do supply some good stuff. But maybe stop sneaking it around in flasks.”
Beau did his best to give Dash and me space to talk and poofed into a bat, flying into the night.
“So how did you like venturing out of your house and being social?” I joked, unable to come up with anything clever to say.
“It didn't turn out so great,” he said, moonlight beaming on his wry smile.
“Do you regret coming?”
He grunted. “I regret bringing Lee the moonshine.”
“Is that all you regret?” Hope, dread, and confusion swirled inside me.
“Pretty much. You have a good night, Charli.” He flashed me a toothy grin and disappeared into the night.
A bat winged its way over my head, and I waited for my roommate to reappear. No doubt the nosy vamp had listened in.
Beau chuckled. “I have to say, for someone who wasn't participating, I think you had a lot of success with tonight's event. But it may take a while before you see the results. And then we'll see which ingredients make the best recipe.”
“Did you drink some of the lemonade? What are you talking about?” I hooked my arm around my roommate’s.
He escorted me forward. “If you're not ready to see it, then time will have to be the great revealer. So I guess we’re tied. I've got two dates, and it looks like you have two contenders.”
I had no idea what to call Mason or Dash, or whether or not I wanted either one. Or both. Beau was right. I wasn't ready.
“No matter what happens, you can bet on two things. I won't be making or drinking any lemonade anytime soon.” I held up two fingers. “And I'd rather eat tons of unicorn manure than mess with a love potion. Too much trouble.”
“And you have no desire to deal with any trouble, right?” I didn’t appreciate Beau’s sarcastic tone.
“Right.”
“You know, that’s exactly what your Uncle Tipper used to say, too. Just before everything went tits up, usually.”
“Oh, shut your fanged mouth.” My uncle’s old house, now my house, came into view. “Let’s get home.”
Life in Honeysuckle Hollow might never be perfectly peaceful. And it might be a bit too flavored with trouble, spelled with a capital T. Still, nothing could go so wrong that a piece of Nana’s chess pie and a few gallons of sweet tea couldn’t cure.
At least for now.
Dear Reader -
Thanks so much for reading Lemonade & Love Potions. If you enjoyed the book (as much as I did writing it), I hope you’ll consider leaving a review!
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NEWSLETTER & FREE PREQUEL - to gain exclusive access to the prequel Chess Pie & Choices, CLICK HERE!
Southern Charms Cozy Mystery Series
Magic & Mystery are only part of the Southern Charms of Honeysuckle Hollow…
Suggested reading order:
Chess Pie & Choices: A Southern Charms Cozy Prequel
(Available exclusively to Newsletter Subscribers)
Charli Goodwin is engaged to Tucker Hawthorne, the admired "prince" of Honeysuckle Hollow. Underneath the perfect surface of their union boils an ocean of doubt. If he's such a catch, then why does she feel like she's on the hook?
When Charli's magical talents are put to the test to find something valuable to Tucker's family, she's set on a path that will test her love and show her where her true happy ever after may be.
Moonshine & Magic: A Southern Charms Cozy Mystery Book 1
Charli Goodwin doesn’t expect her homecoming to go without a hitch—after all, she skipped town, leaving her fiancé and family without a clue as to where she was going or why. Now that she’s ready to return home, she plans to lay low and sip some of her Nana’s sweet tea while the town gossips come out to play.
Unfortunately, on her first night back, Charli discovers the body of her crazy great uncle (hey, everyone has one). She suddenly finds herself at the center of a mystery that threatens the very foundations of Honeysuckle Hollow and the safety of every paranormal citizen in it—starting with Charlie herself.
With the clock ticking, will Charli’s special magical talents be enough to save not only the town but her own life?
Lemonade & Love Potions (in the anthology Hexes & Ohs)
Charli Goodwin can’t help herself when it comes to helping out her friends, especially a failed cupid trying to earn his way back into the matchmaking ranks. A singles mingle in her small Southern town should be the perfect event, but trouble with a capital T shows up when someone attempts to boost the odds of love in their favor.
Sweet honeysuckle iced tea, it’s gonna take more than lemonade and a little magic to help Charli find out what’s wrong, solve the mystery, and save Honeysuckle Hollow from disaster again.
Fried Chicken & Fangs: A Southern Charms Cozy Mystery Book 2
An upcoming election shakes up Honeysuckle. When an outspoken resident who opposes the changes to the magical small Southern town turns up dead, it’s up to Charli Goodwin and her special talents to get on the case…except her valuable magic doesn’t seem to be working.
What starts as a simple search uncovers a darker layer of manipulation and sabotage. Will Charli be able to figure out who is pulling the strings before the foundations of the town are destroyed?
Sweet Tea & Spells: A Southern Charms Cozy Mystery Book 3
A prank war has erupted in Honeysuckle, and spells are flying everywhere. All’s fair in spells and sport, but when one goes terribly wrong and someone ends up dead, it’s up to Charli Goodwin to figure out who’s to blame.
At the same time, she’s also on a mission to learn more about her past and do her best to harness her growing magical powers. Will Charli be able to pull herself together in time to stop things before more lives are at stake in the magical small Southern town?
Barbecue & Brooms: A Southern Charms Cozy Mystery Book 4
With Charleston's council poised to take over Honeysuckle Hollow, the town and all of its people must band together to prove they don’t need to be absorbed into the
big city magical district. What better way to show off the small supernatural Southern town than to host a barbecue contest and some classic broom racing?
To keep their town safe, it's imperative that nothing go wrong. But when one of Honeysuckle’s most important residents is attacked, leaving him on the brink of death, it’s up to Charli Goodwin to convince the two men pursuing her to work together to catch the culprit and save a life.
Who’s fanning the flames and turning up the heat? Will the love triangle prove too hot and spicy or will Charli, Mason, and Dash be able to put aside personal feelings to capture the villain before the town and its people get charred?
About the Author
Bella Falls grew up on the magic of sweet tea, barbecue, and hot and humid Southern days. She met her husband at college over an argument of how to properly pronounce the word pecan (for the record, it should be pea-cawn, and they taste amazing in a pie). Although she’s had the privilege of living all over the States and the world, her heart still beats to the rhythm of the cicadas on a hot summer’s evening.
Now, she’s taken her love of the South and woven it into a world where magic and mystery aren’t the only Charms.
bellafallsbooks.com
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