The whole joint struck me as the kind of place where people lived who wanted to control their interaction with others. Being the Winter Princess, I understood that.
My parents might live in a place like this. Or my aunt and uncle. If any of them ever moved out of the North Pole, which they wouldn’t. It wasn’t their style aesthetically, but the overall feeling of being protected from the world outside was something that would appeal.
So why did Imari live here? And how much did a massage therapist make in this town? I doubted I’d get the answers to those questions as the doors opened onto a large foyer, also dark wood and brushed chrome, but the wood floor was covered with an expensive-looking Oriental rug, and the walls and reception table held some modern art. There were three doors marked with sleek numbers and letters.
Cooper knocked on the middle one. 2B.
Or not to be, my mind immediately filled in.
Imari opened the door almost immediately.
I nearly sucked in a breath, but years of court training helped me maintain my composure. I’d seen beautiful women before. But Imari was almost unreal. Big almond eyes, lots of dark wavy hair, full lips, and even in a pair of harem-style lounge pants and a T-shirt, she looked classy.
Next to her, in my shorts and tank top, it was hard not to feel like a big old clump of yellow snow. Even Cooper’s light was a little diminished by her.
She smiled at Cooper. “Hello there.”
“Hi, Imari. Thanks for letting us come over so late.”
She shrugged and glanced at me before answering. “You said it was an emergency. Come on in, and I’ll see if I can help.”
“Great, thanks. This is Jayne, by the way.”
“Hi.” I stuck my hand out. “Nice to meet you. Really appreciate any help you can give.”
She shook my hand, her touch light, her skin incredibly soft. “Happy to do it.”
She ushered us in, and we walked into one of the prettiest apartments I’d ever seen. The walls were painted a deep raspberry, the upholstery was navy and everything else—the rugs, the pillows, the tapestries on the walls—were patterned in every color imaginable. Touches of gold were everywhere. I felt as though I’d stepped into a sultan’s lair.
“Your home is so pretty.” Made me realize I still had a lot of work to do on my own.
“Thank you. Would you like some tea?”
“No, I’m good, thank you.”
Cooper shook his head. “None for me either. We don’t want to take up too much of your time.”
She gestured toward the couch. “Please sit.” She settled on a large ottoman and crossed her legs under her in a yoga pose. “Tell me what I can help you with.”
I explained what happened, then took the box out of the shopping bag and handed it to her. “What do you think? Could that have had a genie in it?”
She studied the box briefly, turning it over in her hands. Then she set the lid aside, lifted the box to her face and inhaled. At last, she handed it back to me. “This box never held a genie, but it definitely held something magical.”
“Magical how?”
“I’m not sure, but…” She looked at Cooper, then back at me, her brow furrowing. “Whatever was in that box was very powerful.” She bit her lip. “And you let it out.”
I’d never heard the obvious stated quite so ominously. I glanced at the box. “I did let it out, inadvertently. So what do I do about it? Is this going to be a problem?”
Imari frowned. “It’s not a problem exactly, but because you released whatever this magic was, you will have to be the one to put it back in that box.”
Fantastic. “Technically, it was my cat who let it out.”
“Doesn’t matter.” She shook her head. “You bought the box. That makes you the owner. The lid was opened while in your possession. There are no technicalities when it comes to this kind of magic.”
“This kind?” I needed to know more. A lot more. “Do you have any idea what was in there? Some kind of spell or something maybe? My cat said he could talk because I’d wished for it. And I’m starting to think I had another wish granted. One about not running out of Dr Pepper. Every time I take one out of the fridge, the six-pack is always full.” I tapped my chin. “You know, I could live with that one not being revoked.”
“It’s jinn-related, whatever it is. Especially if you’ve had wishes granted.” Her gaze narrowed. “If you’ve truly had two wishes granted, then you should have one more left. You must be very careful what you say from here on out.”
“I will be.”
Cooper elbowed me. “Good luck with that, Jay.”
I glared at him before speaking to Imari again. “How would it normally work if someone had a jinn of some kind they wanted wishes from? I mean, I had wishes granted that I wasn’t really making. What if someone was trying to purposefully have wishes granted?”
She tipped her head. “If someone was trying to have wishes granted, they would know what they were dealing with. Typically, they’d start off by addressing the creature to command its attention. Something like, ‘My wishes are…’ Otherwise, as in your case, the creature will try to escape as soon as possible.”
“Which is exactly what it did. But how is it not a genie but jinn-related? I don’t get that part.”
“Genies are a kind of jinn, but not all jinn are genies. The jinn family includes creatures like pixies, sprites, ghouls. And genies, of course.” Imari smiled. “Does that help?”
“Yes, thank you. So I let a creature out of the box. Interesting. I hadn’t really thought of it that way. Say, of all the creatures that are jinn, which ones are small enough to fit in that box?”
Imari laughed softly. “All of them.”
I looked at her, skeptical. “Even you?”
“Even me.”
How about that. Clearly I had a lot to learn about jinn. “Is there any more help you can give me?”
She thought for a moment. “If you could learn the creature’s name, you could exert a certain amount of control over it. Hold its attention, get it to listen to you for more than wishes, that sort of thing. But getting its name will be extremely difficult. You’d have to ask it, and without knowing where it is…” She lifted her hands. “Like I said, impossible.”
I thought for a moment. “I have one wish left. Can’t I use that to get the creature’s name?”
“No, that’s the one wish it will never grant.”
“But you’re a genie, right? Can you grant me a wish that I can use to get this magic back in the box? Or find out its name?”
A dark cloud seemed to cover her face. “No. I…no longer do that.” She shifted, putting her feet on the floor. “I’m sorry I can’t help you, but I suggest you talk to some of the other more knowledgeable supernaturals in town. Magic like this can’t be up to any good.”
Clearly, my request for a wish hadn’t gone over well. Wasn’t like I’d meant to upset her. And I still didn’t feel like she’d told me everything she knew. “What makes you say that? You’re a kind of jinn. You don’t seem like you’re up to anything nefarious.”
Her brows lifted. “What I am and what this creature is are very different. I’ve never dabbled in this kind of magic, but you must trust me on this. I can tell by the scent it’s left behind that there is a darkness in it.”
“You can smell darkness? How is that possible?”
“It’s like telling the difference between fresh milk and milk about to go off. It’s not bad yet, but given enough time, it will be. This creature is very much like that. Make sense?”
“Yes.” And more reason than ever for me to see Francine. I stuffed the box and lid back in the shopping bag. “Thank you for the information. Do you think this creature is what caused all the other weird stuff that happened today?”
She frowned. “What other stuff?”
Cooper filled her in about the woman who’d turned blue and the strange calls the fire department had had.
She nodded. “Yes, I defin
itely do. And while these things might seem harmless, my guess is, until this magic is contained again, these pranks will grow increasingly more bothersome. And possibly dangerous. That’s what I meant about the darkness in it. It’s almost like an anger.” She got up and glanced toward the door. “That’s really all I know.”
Cooper touched my shoulder and stood. “Thanks for your help, Imari. We’ll see ourselves to the door.”
I rose, and he put his hand on my lower back, hustling me straight out and into the elevator, which came pretty quickly. Like it had been summoned. Or maybe it had never left. As soon as the doors closed, he sighed. “I told you not to say anything about wishes.”
I turned to him. “It’s part of the story, Coop.” I shifted the shopping bag to my other hand. “I didn’t know it was going to upset her. I just thought you didn’t want me asking her because it’s like meeting a doctor and asking them straight away what that weird pain in your leg is.”
He shook his head. “No, Imari’s sensitive about the whole wish thing, which I get is strange for a genie, but it’s not a subject she likes to talk about. I don’t know why. Like I said, she doesn’t elaborate.”
“You should have told me that. I wouldn’t have said anything.” I thought for a moment. “Is that why you guys broke up? Did you ask her for a wish?”
“No. We broke up because…other reasons.”
The elevator opened. We walked through the foyer and out to the parking lot. The doorman was signing in a pizza delivery guy but gave us a wave as we went by.
“What other reasons?” I asked as Cooper opened my door to let me into the truck.
He stood there for a moment, sandwiched between me and the door, looking like he was trying to swallow something unpleasant. I could feel the heat radiating off him. Whatever was on his mind was causing him some real emotion.
I shrugged. “If you don’t want to tell me—”
“She wasn’t you.”
My jaw fell open.
He raked a hand through his hair as he looked away for a moment. “It was right after I moved here. I got a little homesick. A little nostalgic. And she was the closest thing to you I could find in this town.”
I stared up through my lashes at him, tipping my head down. “In what way is she close to me?”
He leaned his forearm on the cab and met my gaze. “She’s beautiful and charming and classy.”
All things that seemed completely alien to any description of me right now. In fact, it was like comparing a scoop of vanilla ice cream to a banana split. “Coop, that’s sweet, but she’s so beyond me that—”
His mouth covered mine in a kiss that was heat and need and yearning. It sent a shiver through me, the cold plunge of feeling like a warning response to his unexpected action. When he pulled away a few seconds later, there were ice crystals on the inside of the windshield.
He sighed and I could see his breath.
I swallowed. Part of my reaction to him was surprise.
And part of it wasn’t.
The muscle in his jaw twitched. “Time to take you home.”
He shut the door before I could say anything, so I waited until he came around to his side and climbed in. “Coop—”
“You don’t need to explain, Jay. I’ve known you long enough to know that when you freeze up like that, you’re unhappy. I shouldn’t have kissed you just then. I get it. My bad. Let’s move on.”
I put my hand on his arm for a second. He was burning up, which meant there was a lot going on inside him right now, just like I’m sure my touch felt ice cold. “Coop, listen to me. I was a little freaked out by what you said. I mean, comparing me to Imari when she’s so clearly on another level? How was I supposed to react? And then you kissed me when I didn’t expect you to. It was just a response to the moment, not an indicator of my feelings for you. Which I do not want to discuss, other than to say I like you and I’m glad we’re friends again and the kissing is not awful.”
He stared at the ceiling of the truck and pursed his mouth. “Just what every guy wants to hear. The kissing isn’t awful. At least that’s not as bad as ‘You’re such a nice guy’ or ‘It’s not you, it’s me,’ because everyone knows it is you.” He looked at me, his blue eyes as stormy as I’d ever seen them. “And for the record, you are not vanilla. I know Imari’s beautiful, but so are you. And you’re every bit as classy and amazing as she is. Plus, you’re freaking royalty. Give yourself some credit, Jay.”
I raised my brows and stared at him. I appreciated his kind words, but he was being driven by emotion right now. Summer elves were prone to that, being so hot-blooded and all. “Are you done?”
He stared right back, peering into me in a way that made me a little squirmy. “I don’t know. Am I?”
Are we? That’s what he’d meant. “No.”
He held my gaze a moment longer. “Okay.”
He started the truck and pulled out of the parking lot. We rode in silence until we turned onto Main Street, which was when he spoke again. “Sorry about all that back at the Excelsior. Imari dredged some stuff up in me. But that’s out of my system now.”
“Don’t ever apologize for being real about what you’re feeling.” His genuineness had always been part of his charm. “That’s one of the things I’ve always loved about you. Still do. There’s no guessing where you stand with Cooper Sullivan.”
His mouth bent in a little half smile. “I am who I am.” He parked in front of the warehouse door and turned to me. “Anything else I can do to help with this box thing?”
I thought a moment. “Let me know if you hear or see any more weird happenings?”
“Will do. I’ll get your door.” He hopped out and came around to open it for me.
It was sweet and old-fashioned and utterly Cooper. I grabbed my bag and got out, then leaned up and kissed his cheek. “See you soon.”
“You know it. Thanks for dinner.”
“You’re welcome. Night.” I headed for the door.
“Night,” he called back.
I unlocked the warehouse door, then looked at him right before I went inside. He was leaning on his truck, arms crossed, watching me and smiling this little smile like a kid who’d just gotten away with eating dessert first. His position made the muscles in his shoulders, biceps and forearms pop. The man was very, very pretty.
My insides did a little flippy, fluttery thing. Stupid insides.
I shook my head and went in, smiling anyway because I couldn’t help it. Cooper was cocky and sensitive, and that uncommon mix got to me every time. I wanted him around. In my life. As a friend. Or whatever we were that also involved kissing but no firm commitment.
I rode up the elevator and walked to my door. Across the way, I could just make out Juniper’s TV playing, and from Buttercup’s apartment came the soft thump of an explosion—the soundtrack of one of her video games.
Happiness bubbled up in me, the result of my interesting evening with Coop, my new life here in Nocturne Falls and the friendships I’d made. Just knowing Juniper and Buttercup were across the hall from me was comforting. Sure, I missed my family, but I was making a new one. I pushed the door open and went inside.
And of course, there was Spider. He was curled up on the couch, a tight little ball of black fur with his tail draped over his nose. I went and sat beside him, bending down to kiss his head. “Mama’s home, Spidercat.”
He yawned and stretched, then curled back up and blinked at me, his green-gold eyes filled with sleepiness. One paw came up to touch my cheek. “Mama,” he said. “Spider loves Mama.”
Then he tightened into a knot and drifted back to sleep.
I sniffed at the sweetness of his words. “Mama loves you, too, baby.”
Maybe having a cat that could talk wasn’t so bad after all. I yawned and my bed beckoned, so I gave him another kiss on the head then got to my feet. I left the bag with the box and lid in it on the coffee table. I’d figure out what to do with that in the morning.
I
flipped on the bathroom light and went to work scrubbing my face and teeth. Cleaned up and ready for bed, I changed into the new shorty pajamas I’d bought at a boutique in town. They were perfect for the summer heat, cute and made me feel pretty, so I was willing to overlook how much they’d cost. Also, I liked to think I was helping to support the local economy.
I climbed into bed, grabbed my tablet and pulled up the book I was reading. I was a few pages in when Spider hopped up to join me. Of course, he had to sit on my stomach.
I put my tablet down. “Can I help you?”
“Vampire.”
I sat up, causing Spider to tumble off. “Greyson?” But what other vampire would it be? “Where?”
Spider walked around me to settle on the pillow my head had just vacated. “Window.”
I pointed at him. “Is Greyson really at the window, or did you just do that to get my pillow?”
Spider didn’t answer, but the soft rapping on the window in the living room told me all I needed to know.
These cute pajamas were turning out to be an even better investment than I’d imagined. I padded out to the living room.
Yep, Greyson was out there. I raised the window. “You could have called.”
He gave my outfit a once-over and smiled. “And miss seeing you in your smalls? I think not.” He squinted at the fabric. “Is that…candy?”
I crossed my arms. “Yes, gumdrops and lollipops. What’s up?”
“You’re not inviting me in?”
“I was in bed.”
A dark gleam shone in his eyes. “If you’d rather talk there—”
“You’re very cute, but I have an early day tomorrow, and I’m not much closer to figuring out what I let out of that box, so while I’d love to stand here and chat as my AC disappears out the window, maybe you could just kiss me good night and we can talk in the morning.”
“I was under the impression you could provide your own magical AC.”
Miss Frost Ices The Imp: A Nocturne Falls Mystery (Jayne Frost Book 2) Page 6
