Love Potion Commotion!

by Danielle Williams

  Dating goes the dogs!

  Soon-to-be college student Alanna Lu Feng helps her great-aunt and -uncle with their doggy fashion design business, shooting photos of their French bulldog mascots. It’s good money and fun work‌—‌but why can’t Alanna Lu get lucky in love?

  Vivian and Frank Feng adore their great-niece, but they’re hiding a secret from her: Vivian is a witch! Sick of listening to her great-niece’s dating woes, Vivian concocts a plan to get her great-niece into the arms of a special someone. But can magic solve the problems of love?

  A lighthearted fantasy rom-com the whole family can enjoy.

  Novella, 27,000 words

  Love Potion Commotion!

  Magic Fashion Frenchies #1

  by Danielle Williams

  Published 2017

  © Copyright 2017 Danielle Williams

  All rights reserved.

  Published by Pixelvania Publishing.

  This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Dedicated to Lynn and her husband Jim; as well as their dogs Lucky Buck, the late Mighty Mouse, and all the fosters they’ve hosted.

  Chapter 1

  Alanna Lu Feng pulled up in the driveway and shut her Yaris off. She piled the fabric samples in her arms and shuffled up to her great-aunt’s front door.

  Ding dong!

  She waited. When no one came, she squished the cloth closer to her, digging in her coat pocket for her key.

  She let herself in. She thought she could hear her great-uncle’s snoring from the other side of the house, so instead of calling out, she carefully picked her way down the basement stairs to the sewing dungeon.

  Alanna Lu bustled into the brightly lit studio, arms piled high with rolls of fabric. She wound her way around the work tables.

  “Whoops! ‘Scuze me, Leggo!” she said after accidentally toeing one of the resident French bulldogs. The brindle and white dog continued slobbering on his bone as though nothing had happened.

  She bumped open the basement door with her hip and entered.

  BARK! BARK!

  An old woman wearing cat’s-eye glasses with laser-red frames sat at a work table, making adjustments to a hoodie on a canine-shaped dress form with gnarled but swift hands. Her half-dozen acrylic bangles clattered as she measured out cloth. Marty, the other Frenchie, sat on his chair next to the woman, supervising as usual. The barker was a new foster dog, a brown and white Welsh Springer Spaniel.

  “Freckles, hush,” said the old woman. The spaniel stopped at once, looking at her. Alanna Lu marveled; her great-aunt had a way with dogs.

  “Got the samples for you, Auntie,” she said. “Where do you want them?”

  “By the computer, dear. Frank will want to put them into inventory.”

  “Okay.” The girl set them down, then collapsed onto the stool across from Marty. The foster dog trotted over to her and put a tentative paw on her leg, but the girl didn’t move.

  Her great-aunt looked over her glasses. “Something wrong, honey? I’ve never seen you immune to a puppy’s charms before.”

  “Sorry,” the girl said, bending down to offer her fist to the foster. Freckles sniffed it, then glanced over her shoulder at the table. The Frenchie smiled, tongue lolling, and the foster dog turned back.

  “Things must have been so much easier when you and Uncle Frank were dating!”

  “What do you mean?”

  “All the guys I date are just…‌so…‌you know…‌”

  “Articulate?”

  “Auntie!”

  “What happened this time?”

  “Ugh…‌We were at one of those restaurants that has sports playing on TV? And he watched some football game going on behind me the entire date! He even started yelling at the screen while I was in the middle of saying something!”

  “Not very considerate. Where did you find him?”

  “AsianMatch.com.”

  “Dot commm?”

  The Frenchie on the stool turned to his mistress.

  “More girls than ever are finding dates online. There’s nothing wrong with it!”

  “Morally, no, sure, I agree. But is it effective?” The woman shrugged, making her hoop earrings click. “You tell me. Frank and I met at work. I was dropping off some dry cleaning for my boss, and Frank was there working that day. He lost the first ticket I gave him so I’d have to come back. Old dog. I told him next time if he wanted to see me, he’d better call, and I wrote my number on the receipt.”

  “And your boss didn’t reimburse.”

  “Whose story is this, anyway?”

  “You know it’s one of my favorites!”

  “I know you do. That’s why I keep telling it. And I’ll keeping telling you, the secret to finding love is to be happy with who you are and what you’re doing. Do that, talk to people, and things’ll take care of themselves. Get your mind off it.”

  “How can that be? You don’t‌—‌ignore your business and expect it to grow!”

  “I can’t ignore it. I enjoy it too much. A watched pot never boils, my dear. Besides, is fretting for hours over a dating profile enjoyable to you?”

  Alanna Lu sighed. She pulled out her phone and began scrolling. A few clicks and she held the screen out for her great-aunt.

  “What do you think of this guy? Says‌—‌”

  The old woman held up her hands. “No, no, no! Put that thing down and go get us lunch.”

  “Where?”

  “I don’t care. Just make sure to smile if the cashier’s cute.”

  “Auntie!”

  “Do you want my magic love juju or not?”

  Smiling, the girl shook her head. “Okay, Auntie. I will.”

  “Promise?”

  “Promise.”

  The girl left, shutting the door behind her. A few seconds later, her car engine started, then faded.

  The white Frenchie on the stool looked up at the witch. “You gonna cook her up a love potion, or what?” he asked.

  Chapter 2

  “Absolutely not,” said Vivian Feng.

  Marty tilted his head. “Why not? You cook one up every year. Just give her some.”

  “That’s for the zoo pandas. And believe me, they need all the help they can get.”

  Marty snorted.

  “And I administer it to both pandas. To give one human a love potion and let them loose in the world means they suffer unrequited love, which is the worst kind of heartbreak I can think of. I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy, let alone my own great-niece!”

  “Okay, okay!”

  “Besides”‌—‌she bent back over the form‌—‌ “what I cook up isn’t love.”

  “It ain’t?”

  “No. The potion induces a feeling, and love isn’t a feeling.”

  “It ain’t?” Marty frowned. “If love ain’t a feeling, then what is it?”

  She put her hands down on the table and looked at him.

  “Remember that year Leggo ate that entire Christmas ham and got sick, and Dr. Pam said all we could do was wait it out with him, and we stayed up all night while he tossed his cookies every five minutes? And we cleaned up his mess over and over and pestered him to drink water so he wouldn’t get any sicker?”

  Marty furrowed his brow. “Yeah.”

  “That, my dear pup, is love.”

  “Oh.”r />
  He was quiet a few moments. “I thought that was patience.”

  “It’s that, too,” said the woman. “Now I need you to model this for me.”

  “Aww!” He wrinkled his nose at the hot pink peplum. “But that’s for girl dogs!”

  “Which is why I’m not having Alanna Lu photograph you in it. Come on, just to check the fasteners.”

  “Fiiine.”

  Marty let her lift him off his stool and onto the table. She removed the hoodie from the form and wrapped it on him. She clicked the jacket shut just in time for Leggo to waddle in. Seeing Marty, the other Frenchie dropped his bone and laughed, panting so hard that he wheezed.

  Marty sniffed. “You’re just jealous ‘cuz I get more ‘likes’ than you.”

  “What’s a ‘like’?” Freckles asked, putting his paws on the side of the table for a better look.

  “Human stuff,” said Leggo. “Not real.”

  “Real enough to buy your dumb chew bones!”

  “In part,” said the witch. “When humans see Marty wearing the clothes, a lot of them go to our shop online and buy them. That, along with Frank’s pension, makes us enough money to buy food with. It’s advertising.”

  “Yeah,” said Marty. “Advertising!”

  Freckles’ eyes bulged. “You mean‌—‌BARK!‌—‌if Marty doesn’t wear the clothes‌—‌BARK!‌—‌we go‌—‌BARK BARK!!‌—‌hungry?!”

  The witch left Marty on the table and knelt by Freckles. She began stroking his back. “No, honey. Everybody under my roof gets fed. And when you’re adopted out, your forever family will feed you, too!”

  “But‌—‌BARK!‌—‌what if‌—‌BARK!‌—‌what if they don’t?”

  “They will, because I won’t let you go unless they promise. And the shelter people will vet them.”

  “Like, make them get a shot?”

  Marty chuckled. “No,” he said, nails clicking as he came over to the edge of the table. “She means the shelter humans will give your new fam a real good sniff over. They’ll make sure they’re dog people.”

  “That sounds…‌but I won’t be able to talk then! Are you sure they’ll feed me if I can’t talk? How will I tell them I’m hungry? How will they know not to forget?”

  “Freckles, honey, most dogs don’t talk to their owners. They can’t.”

  “But I can now because I’m eating the special treats you make for Marty and Leggo to eat, right, Missus Feng?”

  “Yes, Freckles.”

  “But the dogs who don’t talk, how do their families know to feed their dogs?”

  “‘Cuz most families aren’t jerks like the human you came from,” said Leggo.

  “Leggo!” said Vivian.

  Marty barked. “Heeey! No badmouthin’ the fosters’ old families. That’s pack rules.”

  Leggo hung his head. “Sorry.”

  “Don’t ‘sorry’ me! Tell it to Freckles. It’s his dad you just dissed.”

  “Sorry, Freckles. Do you want my bone?” The brindle and white Frenchie backed up from his chew toy.

  “Well…‌if it’s okay with you.”

  “It is,” said Marty.

  Freckles, watching Leggo, slowly took the toy in his mouth.

  “Anyway,” said Marty, “the family we came from, they were really great, never missed a meal. Wasn’t their fault everybody lost their jobs, and the house‌—‌and even if it was their fault, I’d forgive ’em. Families go through tough times sometimes, right, Mom?”

  “They certainly do. And, by the way, forgiving others is another way to show love, Marty.”

  “Oh, is it? Huh!”

  The witch turned to the foster dog. “Freckles, once you’re done here, we’ll find you a forever home that will take good care of you. You only have to follow your three rules. Do you remember what they are?”

  Freckles dropped the bone. “Yes, Missus Feng. Never bite my family or their friends. Don’t growl at other people or dogs if they’re around my food; it’s not necessary. If I’m in the house alone and scared, don’t scream or try to dig through the door. Instead, use my chew toys to relax.”

  “Very good. And we’ll make sure your new family leaves out good toys for you to keep your mind off things. You’re a good dog, Freckles.” She scratched the foster dog’s brown ears.

  Freckles wagged his tail. “Thanks, Missus Feng!”

  “Would you like to go to the dog park later?” she asked.

  “YEEEEAH!” said Marty.

  Leggo barked and began bouncing around the room.

  “Okay,” said Freckles. His tail slowed. “But you’ll be there, right, Missus Feng?”

  “Yes, Freckles.”

  “And you’ll stay by me the whole time?”

  “I sure will!”

  Freckles’ tail thumped against the floor. “Then I’m in!”

  “Good. It’s settled. After Alanna Lu brings me and Frank lunch, we’ll feed you boys and go to the park.”

  “DOG PARK, DOG PARK!” chanted the Frenchies.

  Chapter 3

  The boughs of oak trees hung over the chain-link fence of the dog park, shedding leaves inside. The leaves crackled and jumped into the air as the various dogs chased each other through them. After seeing her aunt and the three dogs inside, Alanna Lu closed the gate behind them.

  “Are you going to do up some more photograms of the boys?” Vivian asked as she changed Marty out of his shirtsleeve outfit and into a red puffer jacket.

  “Sure, if you want. I could even do some of Freckles, for his shelter profile.”

  “Oh, would you? He has such a sweet face, you know.”

  “I know, Auntie,” said Alanna Lu, smiling down at Freckles, peeking out at the dog park from behind Vivian’s legs.

  Freckles whined, stuck his head through Vivian’s legs again.

  “He can’t decide whether he wants to stay or go, can he?” said Alanna Lu.

  “I get the feeling this is his first time at a dog park. But the boys’ll introduce him around, won’t you?” she said as Leggo plodded to Freckles’ side.

  Marty leapt in front of Freckles and play bowed. When Freckles stepped forward, Marty bounded away, and soon all three dogs were off tearing through the leaves.

  The witch turned to her great-niece. “Did you do what I asked?”

  “Um…‌You mean queueing those Valentine pics of Marty and Leggo?”

  “No! Did you flirt with the takeout boy?”

  Alanna Lu’s smile looked almost like a cringe. “Auntie! He wasn’t my type!”

  “Was he cute?”

  “I can’t say. ‌—‌Maybe to some girls!”

  “Was he over fifty?”

  “Auntie!”

  “Was he?”

  “No!”

  “Then how do you know he wasn’t your type?”

  “I can just tell, that’s all!”

  “Did you talk to him?”

  “I gave him our order.”

  “That’s it?” The witch shook her head. “We’ve got to work on your chitchat skills, sweetheart! Your generation does too much time on those machines.”

  “Those machines let you work out of your home, Auntie.”

  “Well, that’s true. It’s good for business. But not so good for love. If the only way you find out about people is by spying on their Facebooks, then you’re never going to meet anybody.”

  “Auntie, lots of people meet each other online.”

  “Good for them. But you’re smart and cute and something special, Lucky Lu. You’re a wizard on those machines and Frank and I couldn’t do what we do without those talents of yours, sweetheart. But imagine if you could…‌take your machine magic and pair it with a ‘Hey, how’re you doing?’ Show a little more interest in people.”

  “I do, Auntie!”

  The witch waved her arms. The bangles clacked. “Your generation’s just scared, that’s all.”

  Alanna Lu stopped adjusting the phone’s camera settings. “What do you mean,
scared?”

  “It takes nothing to look up someone’s profile‌—‌no investment. If you don’t like it, no match, no one knows.

  “But talking, that puts you out there. And putting yourself out there in person is scarier still. You don’t think I was scared, handing over Frank my number?”

  “No!”

  “We’ll, you’re right. Because I’d done it before, and I kept doing it, even when the fella didn’t call back or when the dates were duds. ‘Go out with a creep and look over the crop!’ That’s the key!”

  Alanna Lu shook her head. “It was a different world back then, Aunt Vivvy.”

  Auntie’s lips puckered like she had licked one of Frank’s sour straw candies. “Ooh!”

  Alanna Lu turned and took a picture of some random dogs to hide her grin.

  “Hmph,” said the witch. She looked over the dog park, until she found her boys. Marty looked to be introducing Freckles to one of his dog friends.

  “Wait here,” she said. “I need to check the closure on Marty’s puffer.”

  “OK.”

  She followed the fence around to the dogs; at her age, getting knocked down by the hyper animals in the middle would not end well. When she got to their vicinity, she whistled and all three dogs gathered around.

  Checking to make sure Alanna Lu wasn’t looking, the witch knelt on one knee and pretended to adjust Marty’s jacket.

  “Mom, Toby’s back again! Did you know he went to Europe on vacation? That’s so far away!”

  The witch looked up at the Rottweiler, sitting a polite distance away, and lifted her chin. “Welcome back, Toby.”

  The rottie’s tongue lolled.

  “Marty, I need you to do something for me.”

  “Sure thing, Mom. What’s up?”

  “Find a way to bring a cute guy over to Alanna Lu. I want to try something.”

  The Frenchie wrinkled his nose. “Cute? You, uh, sure that’s a judgment call you want me makin’?”

  The witch hesitated. “Well‌—‌”

  “What about Rhoda’s dad?” said Leggo.

  Marty snorted. “You just said that ‘cuz you gotta mooshy love-crush on her.”

  “No! Listen‌—‌” Leggo shouldered Marty out of the way. “He’s an intern. Rhoda works with him, she’s an office dog. They come here on breaks!”