Immediately chagrined, I squeezed her hands.
“I’m sorry. I feel like a klutzy witch who shouldn’t really use her powers.”
“It’s exactly why you should use your powers. The more you use them, the more you control them. It’s like when you first learned to drive and you kept hitting the accelerator or the brake too hard. In time, you ease up on the pedals as it becomes natural. The same goes for magick. Now, let’s run this through a few times until you can gently move objects without them becoming a deadly missile.”
“You’re right. I’m sorry. If I’m going to learn this, I should do it responsibly.”
“That’s my girl. You can be impulsive, but you’re not stupid. Let’s do it again.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Enough with the ma’am stuff. You’re older than me.”
“Only by three months.”
“It still counts.”
“Does not.”
“Althea! Focus.”
“Fine.”
Chapter Twelve
“I only knocked the vase off the desk once,” I protested, slurping the delicious dredges of my dark & stormy. I’d switched from my usual mojito tonight, as I was feeling kind of dark and stormy after the day I’d had.
“I liked that vase,” Luna grumbled, sipping her glass of white wine.
“I’ll fix it. Even better, I’ll get you a new one.”
“I already fixed it, Althea. It’s fine.”
“I think I did pretty good though,” I said, signaling to Beau that I would take one more drink. We were comfortably ensconced at our spots at Lucky’s Tiki Bar, waiting for the happy hour rush to die down so we could talk to Beau about the gala this weekend.
As promised, Luna had taken me to a high-end boutique the next town over, after our magickal class where someone, not naming names, had managed to break a vase. The boutique, catering to those who often found themselves off on yacht charters for the weekend, had exactly what we needed for a gala. Well, what I needed. Luna already had several gala-worthy dresses. Apparently, according to everyone who had an opinion this week, I did not.
“The rose gold looks killer on you,” Luna said, patting my arm.
“Are you sure? It’s a much softer color than I’d usually wear.”
“Promise. It’s a knockout.”
“It’s somewhat daring, no?”
“Do you know how hot it’s going to be? If there are no island breezes, you’ll be grateful for that open back,” Luna promised.
Luna had breezed right into the boutique, scanned her way down one rack, plucked out a dress, and ushered me into a fitting room before I could even get through the basic small-town-required small talk with the petite salesgirl. I’d eyed the dress dubiously on the hanger, but knowing Luna was pacing outside, I’d pulled it over my head. Rose gold shimmer fabric that flowed softly over my curves, hugging me in the right places but leaving space and movement in others. It made me feel a little bit like a Grecian goddess, though I would never admit that to anyone. Instead, I’d griped about not being able to wear a bra in the dress – but had purchased it anyway.
“What open back?” Beau pushed a copper mug at me across the bar, his careful eye having caught that my drink was empty.
“I picked a gala dress for Althea. Rose gold. Shimmer. Deep V-neck. Open back. She looks like a depraved angel.”
“Oh, perfect. I can’t wait to see it.” Beau studied me, tilting his head. “But…”
“What?”
“We’re going to get rid of the blue streaks, yes?”
“Yes, fine, I already made an appointment.”
“What color are you going?”
“I was thinking red,” I mumbled into my glass, not wanting Rosita to overhear that I was taking her advice.
“Hmm, red with rose gold. Maybe you could do rose gold highlights instead? Like a light pink?” Beau asked.
“Would something that light look weird against her dark curls?” Luna asked, leaning back. They both studied me like I was a science experiment.
“Nope, it’ll look good.”
“I agree. Tell Janice rose gold. She’ll know which one.” Luna had forced me to go to her fancy salon, insisting that if I was going to keep dying my hair weird colors, I should at least do it the right way, so my hair didn’t fall out.
“Fine, fine, fine. Enough about me. I have a dress; I’ll do my hair. Luna can do my makeup, it’s fine.”
“Shoes?” Beau asked, and Luna slapped her hand to her forehead.
“How did I forget shoes?”
“I have shoes,” I insisted.
They both ignored me.
“Sparkle or nude?” Luna asked.
“How shimmery is the dress?”
“Like, not sequins. More satiny-shimmery,” Luna explained.
“Sequins. Strappy. Not high heels, she’ll fall over.”
“Wedges. Got it. I know just the pair. I’m in Miami tomorrow so I’ll grab them.”
“Wait, why are you in Miami tomorrow?”
“I’m going up with Mathias for one of the benefits we do at Children’s Hospital.”
Luna had taken to going with her boyfriend to the children’s hospital, where she worked what subtle magick she could to aid the children in their healing. It took a lot out of her, but I’d never seen her happier. Using her gift for good seemed to light her from within – which was why her products sold so well. They were made not only with magick, but love.
“Fine, I’ll take the shoes. Nothing too strappy. I’m clumsy enough without adding any extra impediments to my mobility.”
“Oh, we’re well aware,” Beau promised me, flitting off when someone signaled to him from across the bar.
“Why am I friends with you again?” I called.
“For the free drinks and fashion tips.”
“Oh, right,” I said, and Luna laughed.
“What’s the Flamingo King like?”
“Loud, abrasive – but nice. I think he likes flaunting his money. He’s overly cheerful, but essentially harmless. Kind of like a big dopey puppy dog.”
“Interesting. And the son?”
“A charmer. Quieter, watches everything, much more tense. Seemed way more upset about the stolen flamingo than Daddy did. Maybe because he oversees the finances.”
“You think he’s the brains of the business?”
“Likely, though the King didn’t get where he is by being stupid. But I think he largely enjoys the profits of the company while Randall runs it.”
“Duly noted. Are we keeping an eye on them?”
“I mean… I wouldn’t have thought too much about it. But your news from this morning changed things,” I admitted, sipping my rum and mulling it over. “The Flamingo King himself may just be putting on the loud showy act to distract from other dealings.”
“Like ‘look over here at my ridiculousness so you don’t pay too much attention to what I’m doing behind the scenes’?”
“Precisely.”
“And Miss Elva has the hots for him?”
“She giggled.”
Luna choked on her sip of wine and I smacked her gently on the back.
“She… what?”
“She giggled at the Flamingo King. More than once. I… I don’t even know what to make of it.”
“Miss Elva is not the giggling type.”
“That she is not.”
“Oh. Well then. We have some investigating to do. I want Miss Elva to be happy, but not with a shady man who’s involved in some dirty business. If she’s giggling and not acting herself, perhaps she’d be blind to reading anything on his energy.”
“So we go investigate.”
“That we do.”
“I saw Cash.”
“Another detail you left out.” Luna could give a strong side-eye when she felt like it.
“Excuse me?” Beau leaned in, and I sighed.
“Do you have ears like a cat?”
“It’s my job to he
ar things in this bar.”
“You were there. You knew Cash was in the restaurant.”
“Yes, I know that. I’m just trying to figure out why you didn’t tell Luna.”
“It slipped my mind. We’ve had a busy day.”
Correction: They both had strong side-eye game.
“It would be nice if my best friend kept me updated on her life,” Luna sniffed, and sipped her wine.
“Ugh. Fine. I saw Cash. He looked amazing, as usual. He told me I looked lovely, I choked on my dessert, he pounded me on the back, and then left me in a puddle of humiliation. Is there anything else you need to know?”
“Yes. Is Trace coming to the Bahamas?” Beau asked, wiping the bar in front of us.
“No, he’s on a three-week dive trip with a bunch of beautiful grad students.”
More side-eye from Luna on this one.
“What? The man has to work.”
“No comment,” Luna said.
“I hear my name.” Beau disappeared to other side of the bar.
“Again, why am I friends with you two?”
“Because you love us and we love you.” Luna squeezed my arm gently and I let out the breath I’d been holding tightly in my chest.
“I do love you both. Goddess help me.”
Chapter Thirteen
“I thought he said this was a private plane,” I said, standing on the tarmac of the tiny Key West airport. We’d driven down earlier that day, the four of us in Beau’s Jeep, and now we stood in the hot sun, staring at the little eight-seater plane. Where was the red carpet? The champagne? The flight attendants who already knew your name?
“Death trap,” Rafe decided.
I whirled on him. “You shut your mouth, Rafe. Just because you’re pissy about Miss Elva going to meet a man doesn’t mean you have to be a jerk to the rest of us.”
“Ohhhh, is someone scared of flying?” Rafe laughed, and I realized my error in letting him see me sweat.
“I’m not afraid of flying,” I said, hoisting my tote bag further up on my shoulder as we walked toward the plane. “I just feel like the Flamingo King may have misrepresented the whole ‘private plane’ thing.”
“Ladies – and gentleman.” A man, tanned and gorgeous, greeted us by the plane, his smile growing wider as he scanned Beau. “Mr. Lovington sends his apologies. It appears there was a miscommunication and his plane was taken to pick up Ziggy Marley from Miami.”
“Uh-huh,” I grumbled. I hated name-droppers. But secretly, I was excited. I loved reggae music – and if Bob Marley’s son was going to be at this party? Well, it was going to be a damn fine party.
“Well, I sho can understand that. Nobody wants to leave the music at home. That was nice of him to still send us this little plane,” Miss Elva said, taking the captain’s hand as he swept her considerable girth through the small door of the plane. I’d be lying if I said we didn’t all hold our breath a little to see if she squeezed through the door.
“It’s a short flight and I promise to get you there safely.” The captain poked his head back out the door and held out a hand to Luna.
“That’s very nice of you, Captain…” Beau trailed off and smiled up at him.
“Captain Woodley.”
“Lovely to meet you,” I said, and allowed him to help me up the stairs next. I knew Beau would want to spend a little time flirting with the handsome captain.
Ducking my head, as I couldn’t quite stand up straight in the plane, I took a seat in a row by myself and immediately buckled up, looking around for emergency exits and realizing there was really just the door we’d come through. I’d never flown on a plane this small before, and I suspected I wasn’t going to like it.
Here’s the thing – I don’t hate flying so much as I don’t like not being in control. When I’m driving a car, if I screw up, that’s on me. But when I’m in a plane, I just kind of have to throw my hands up and ask the goddess to protect us. Growing up, I’d traveled all over the world with my mother’s job. She was one of the most famous psychics to the stars, and when they called, she went – for a handsome price, that is. Much of the time, my father and I would go along, neither of my parents having many qualms about pulling me from school, as my dad was a music professor. What I missed in class, he made up for in lessons on the road, and I lived a very fruitful and colorful childhood. Famous people no longer excited me; I’d seen one too many of them in tears at my mother’s table, deeply saddened and lonely. Fame had a habit of doing that to people. It made it hard to trust people, and finding love was even trickier. Fame wasn’t something I ever sought out, which was why finding myself in the tabloids in the previous months had really bothered me.
Miss Elva, on the other hand? She was built for fame, I thought, as I watched her chatter with Rafe, not the least concerned that the pilot kept glancing at her talking into the air. She never seemed to mind if she was alone for long stretches of time or surrounded by people. She was an island herself, and I imagined she would handle fame quite well – especially when her new fashion line exploded. Which it would, of that I was certain.
“I like him,” Beau breathed as he wedged himself into the tiny seat across the tiny aisle from me. Buckling in, he flashed a grin at the captain, who was checking on all his gadgets and doodads in the cockpit.
“I think he likes you too.”
“He said he’s on island this weekend, I think at the disposal of the Flamingo King.” Beau hummed a little, crossing legs clad in faded salmon-pink shorts with tiny palm trees embroidered on them.
“Even better.”
“I gave him my number, so we’ll see if we can grab a drink later. I guess tonight is kind of like a BBQ or something at a local bar.”
“Sounds much more my speed than a gala,” I said, wiggling to try and stretch my legs a bit. “Where are we staying again?”
“I called David.” Miss Elva turned around and smiled at me. Today she was decked out in a silk caftan covered in a peacock feather design, complete with a green turban with orange crystals embedded in it. “He has us at the house. Apparently, it used to be an old hotel, or like a holiday village. There’s the big main house and then a bunch of villas along the water. He put us in our own villa on the estate, so we can join the party easily without having to take a taxi from downtown.”
“Old –” I began.
“That’s kind of him,” Luna said, cutting off my comment.
“Yes, Althea. That’s very nice of him. I’m sure the villa will be lovely.”
“The place is really nice. You’ll have a great stay.” Captain Woodley turned and flashed his white smile at us. “Did he say which villa you’d be in?”
“Yes, Villa Tequila, because we’re from Tequila Key. Isn’t that cute?” Miss Elva cooed, and Captain Woodley’s grin widened.
“Good to know. That’s a great villa.”
“Are all the villas named like that?”
“I think so. He’s changed them in the past based on themes. He has a tendency to overhaul the design of stuff when he gets in a mood. This year it’s all liquor-themed villas.”
“See? That sounds fun. I like him,” Miss Elva decided.
“He must like you too. Villa Tequila is the only one with its own infinity pool looking out over the ocean.”
“Is that so? Sounds divine,” Beau said.
“Oh, it is,” Captain Woodley said, and they both smiled.
I looked between the two. Seriously, what was going on with this weekend? Everyone was lovestruck but Luna and me.
“Where’s Mathias? On call this weekend?”
“Yes. He needs more notice to get coverage for something like this.” Luna shrugged, having adjusted to life as the girlfriend of a doctor.
“That’s too bad, I like hanging out with him,” I said. I genuinely did. Mathias was one of those rare souls who had a heart of absolute gold and a biting wit that kept me laughing for hours. I don’t know that I could have picked a better man for Luna had I tried.
“The pilot likes men,” Rosita whispered in my ear, and I jumped.
“Rosita! Stop sneaking up on me.”
“I’ve been here the whole time! How is it sneaking?”
“It just is. You’re basically sitting on my shoulder,” I grumbled. “It’s weird and unnatural.”
“So is –”
“I swear, if you say two men being together is weird and unnatural I’ll get Luna to ban you back to the other side of the veil,” I hissed at her in a low whisper.
“What? No, I was going to say that color on you. I like two men together. I think everyone should love who they want to. Too many people have died for no reason, when love, in any form, is the most natural thing in the world.”
“…Oh.” I kept forgetting how progressive Rosita was from her years of running her brothel. “What’s wrong with this color?” I wore a rust brown dress with light blue stitching at the neckline.
“It makes you look pale. The hair is good. The dress, not so much.” Rosita shrugged as if to say there was only so much she could do.
“The hair is good.” Luna turned around and looked at my new rose-gold highlights.
“Yes, we were right.” Beau perked up from where he’d been typing furiously on his phone. I saw the pilot pick up his phone and grin, and I raised an eyebrow at Beau.
“What? I want to have fun this weekend too.”
“Can you not distract the man before he’s going to launch us into the air, please?”
“See? I told you Althea was scared of flying,” Rafe laughed.
“I’m not!”
“The only thing scarier than flying is that dress you have on,” Rafe said. Everyone turned to look at me, except Beau who couldn’t hear the ghosts, and was smiling at his phone anyway.
“I honestly don’t know what the deal is with the fashion critics this week.” I threw up my hands. “Fine. Miss Elva, you can dress me from now on.”
“Child, it’s about damn time.”
Chapter Fourteen
A Sixer of Tequila Page 6
