Six Times a Charm

by Deanna Chase

  Maybe I spoke too soon, because at that moment, Lily appeared with a crowbar she had hoisted from the trunk of her car. Why the police hadn’t been called yet, I didn’t know. I couldn’t pry my gaze away from the scene long enough to call, and I guess no one else could, either. All I needed was popcorn and soda. The show had started, I could kick back and watch. As she turned toward him, her eyes seemingly on fire, Martin twisted the ignition on his car. With a huge screech, he peeled away from the curb, leaving Lily in his dust.

  As she made a swing for his passing car and missed, I dashed back behind the door so she wouldn’t see me. She’d be after me with that metal weapon if she spotted me witnessing her hissy fit. I couldn’t fight a weapon. The approaching full moon made everyone rowdy. Me, Lily, Martin—all supernaturals. After Martin screeched off, smoke coming from the wheels, Lily pivoted on her heel and calmly marched back to her car as if nothing had even happened. She placed the tool back and slammed the trunk shut, dusting her hands off on her jeans. She glared at the few people on the street who watched her. It surprised me she didn’t bite their heads off.

  I’d give her credit for one thing—she’d gotten rid of Martin for me. Now I wouldn’t have to go for a drink.

  As I watched from the little crack in the doorjamb, creepy neighbor, Phil, approached Lily. The guy had no idea what he was getting himself into by coming within an arm’s length of her. No doubt she would let him have it—better him than me. An intense conversation ensued, as if he’d asked her a question. She responded, odd thing about it, without her customary venom. Shocking. I’d kind of wished she had let him have it. If anyone deserved a tongue-lashing, that guy did. They stood for a while chatting. After a couple of minutes, Lily handed him a piece of paper, jumped in her car and drove off. She never even looked my way, which was odd, to say the least. Color me grateful, but surprised.

  Phil puffed out his chest more than usual as he strutted back to his cave, er, house. Did he even have a job? It seemed as if he was always home, and as far as I could tell, he wasn’t running a business out of the place, either. He wore a ratty wife-beater and dirty jeans. To say he was in need of a bath would have been a complete understatement. Possibly he needed a flea dip too. As I spied on him, he pulled out his pocketknife and walked away. Apparently the show was over, so I turned to head back to my office. With the action over, I definitely didn’t want to watch him pick his teeth with his trusty knife. So uncouth.

  My afternoon passed quickly, a few clients filled my schedule. Where were all my customers? No Lily, no werewolves, no men breaking up my office, no feds. John popped in to repair my shades, and gush about Anna. He said they were all set for date night—dinner and a movie. At least one happy couple, I hoped. I prayed John liked beer with lime already added, or whatever might be the equivalent pet peeve for Anna. I looked forward to a night of relaxing, kicking back and staying home. A glass of wine, good food and not another steamy dream of Jack. I couldn’t handle another one.

  Jennifer was in the kitchen when I walked in the apartment. I sniffed, inhaling the savory scent as it lingered in the air. Do I smell steak?

  “What’s this all about? You never make dinner. Unless of course you count Lean Cuisine.”

  “I thought I’d try my hand at cooking. Maybe then Todd will pop the question. The other day he mentioned that I never cook, so maybe he thinks I’ll be a bad wife. They say the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach.”

  I snorted. “Don’t you think that’s a little old-fashioned?”

  She shrugged her shoulders and grabbed a potholder. “Not really.”

  “A man would be the last reason I’d learn to cook.” There was more to her newfound culinary effort than what she claimed, and I had a feeling I’d find out the reason soon enough.

  “What are you cooking? It smells delish.” I moved in closer and hovered over the stove, flaring my nostrils to catch a good whiff.

  “What else would I make for my bestest friend but your favorite: steak with olive-oregano relish.”

  “Technically, all steak was my favorite. But, oh, that sauce.” My mouth watered.

  She was up to something. Why else would she take the time to make my favorite food? This behavior was so unlike her. I would bet my last stash of beef jerky whatever her reason couldn’t be good.

  “What are you up to? I know you want something. What have you done? Go on, ’fess up. Did you repaint my bedroom again?”

  “What do you mean? Can’t I make my best friend dinner? Do I have to have an ulterior motive?” She continued stirring the sauce, never glancing my way.

  “I’d say yes, you have to want something. It’s no problem to make me dinner to be nice, if that’s what it really is.”

  She flashed me an innocent stare. “I just thought we could talk, that’s all. I want to help you make things work with Jack. He’s too good to let slip away, at least without trying. If you date him and don’t like him, that’s one thing…but to never get that far is a sin.”

  “And there we have it. So I need help now?” I clucked my tongue.

  “Maybe a little. Everyone needs help at some point in their lives.” She waved the plate topped with savory steak under my nose.

  My juices flowed. The only reason I listened to anything she had to say was because of the food. I couldn’t resist the lure, and she knew it.

  “All right, Miss Helper, so help me. Tell me what to do.” I grabbed the plates and set them on the table, then retrieved forks and knives from the drawer.

  She didn’t say a word as she brought our drinks over and plopped one down in front of me. I pulled out the chair and sat down. Grabbing my fork, I immediately dug right in. If she wasn’t going to talk, that was her problem. As for me, I needed food in my belly, now.

  “Wow, you really must have been hungry.” She gaped at me stuffing my mouth.

  “Yeah, I am. I had a long day. This is delicious, by the way.” I pointed to my plate.

  “Do you need a drop cloth or something? Perhaps a bib?” She pulled out her chair and sat next to me. She leaned away from me as if I would pounce if she said the wrong thing. I had no idea why she was acting so skittish.

  “So now you’re a comedian. Funny.” I shoved another forkful in my mouth. “Hey, don’t let Todd tell you that you can’t cook,” I mumbled with a full mouth.

  “I won’t,” she said, still in awe of my eating capabilities.

  “You should be cooking this stuff for him and not me.”

  “I’ll cook for him later. Besides I thought you said that’s old-fashioned.”

  I chewed instead of answering. Jennifer opened her mouth again as if she to say something else, but then shut it just as fast without uttering a phrase.

  “Spit it out. Get it over with. What is it you wanna say?” I devoured more of the food while waiting for an answer.

  She took in a deep breath, let it out and then said, “I talked to your mother and she said she didn’t know anything about a curse. She acted as if she’d never heard tell of this so-called curse.” The words rushed out.

  I hadn’t seen that one coming.

  Chapter 16

  How to Date a Werewolf Rule # 16:

  Order your date the biggest steak on the menu.

  I laughed. I couldn’t help myself. “You’re a real hoot. What a jokester.” I slapped the side of my leg. I knew what was going on—Jennifer always had liked to kid around. “Seriously, did my mom call here or something? What crazy thing is she talking about now? She should have known to call me at work.”

  “Rylie, I’m serious. Listen to me.” She set her fork down and stared me right in the eyes. The sides of her mouth fell as a concerned look spread across her face.

  “What do you mean? Are you serious? You actually called my mother and asked about the curse? Without telling me first? Without even asking if it was all right with me?” My posture stiffened. She couldn’t have twisted the metaphorical knife in my back any harder if she’d tried. I wa
s in disbelief.

  “I knew you might be mad at me, and if I’d asked you might tell me to mind my own business.” She seemed to have a hard time getting the words out, as if they were stuck in her throat. “I’m really sorry. I didn’t have a choice.”

  She cast a hard stare my way. I met her gaze. My temper flared. I went from calm to ticked in a nanosecond.

  “You didn’t have a choice? You always have a choice, Jennifer. Everyone has a choice. And honestly, what’s the big deal about my dating life, anyway? I’m kind of sick of talking about it, as a matter-of-fact.”

  Never had I been so harsh with her, but she’d crossed the line with me this time. I wasn’t sure which bothered me more: the fact Jennifer didn’t believe me or the fact my mother told her there was no curse.

  “Please don’t be angry with me. I don’t like when you get mad.” She shook her head.

  She didn’t like when I got mad? How did she think I felt about being angry? I just hoped I didn’t grow hair, jump up on the table and howl like a wild beast right in front of her. I stared at Jennifer, my dear best friend. Even though she was meddlesome and downright nosy at times, she was right. I couldn’t stay mad at her for long. I wasn’t going to let her in on that, though. I would make her suffer for a while. Sweat it out. She should believe me as far as I was concerned.

  “Can you explain to me exactly what my mother said?” I inquired calmly.

  “Well…let me think…I asked her about the curse, and she said she’d never heard of it. After I explained everything you’d told me in the past, she still didn’t understand. Your mother didn’t know what you were talking about. She said you must have been playing a joke on me. Are you playing a joke on me? Because if you are, then you really had me going for a long time.”

  “What? I can’t believe my own mother would say such a thing. It doesn’t make any sense. Of course I haven’t been playing a joke on you. I mean, really, for that long? Why would I do something like that? I don’t understand why after all these years you’re suddenly so concerned with the curse. Why not question it when I first told you? Or the year after that? Or five years after? But now?”

  “Please, Rylie—”

  “Wait a minute. I know why all of a sudden you’re questioning the curse. It has to do with Jack, doesn’t it? None of this talk started until he came into the picture. I think you should just forget about him. That, or date him yourself.” I pushed the plate away and wiped the corners of my mouth.

  “I can’t believe you just said that,” she huffed and tossed her fork down.

  “Believe it, because I said it,” I snapped. All right, I sounded like a snot, but at that moment I didn’t care. She seemed too concerned about what was going on with Jack. I had only known him for a few days. Repeatedly I told her the curse was real. She should believe me.

  “I’m not interested in Jack for myself,” Jennifer cried with a squeal in her voice.

  No comment.

  She picked up her fork again and idly pushed her food around on the plate with it, avoiding my gaze. I moved from the table into the living room and plopped down on the sofa, folding my arms in front of my chest. It took a lot for me to move away from steak, but this was enough to force me to leave without eating every bite. There was no denying, I felt particularly rowdy and couldn’t fight it. Tomorrow night the full moon would edge into view, and I’d spend my time trying not to howl directly at it. Jennifer’s meddling didn’t help matters.

  “You know what,” I pointed at her, “I’ll call my mother right now and ask her. She’ll set this whole mess straight.” I grabbed the phone and punched in the numbers.

  Jennifer stared at me, then shrugged. Apparently she had no comment. The phone rang on the other end, and I waited for my mother to pick up the line as I tapped my fingernails on the table positioned next to me. My anxiety increased just thinking about why my mother would do such a thing. She was flaky, but this was ridiculous. One way or another, I intended to get to the bottom of the situation.

  “It’s ringing,” I said as if Jennifer had asked.

  She nodded, unenthusiastically. I’d show her. My mother would answer and then tell Jennifer what was really going on. It was all just a misunderstanding and would be settled in a matter of minutes. The phone continued to ring, and Jennifer arched her brow while continuing to stare at me. I shot her a sharp look. She still didn’t say a word, although by the look on her face I knew she wanted to.

  “No answer. She must not be home. I’ll call her later. I’m sure it’s a misinterpretation and she’ll straighten out the mix-up as soon as we talk to her.” I pushed the button and set the phone down.

  Jennifer moved across the floor and sat in the chair across from me. She remained tightlipped. Minutes passed without conversation. Jennifer examined her nails while I counted the fringe tangling from the sofa pillow. The silence was palpable, hanging in the air like thick fog hovering over a lake. The tension was ridiculous, so I made the first move to ease things between us.

  “So you want to help me with the voodoo junk while we wait to call her back?”

  Jennifer shrugged. “I guess.” With her legs draped over the side of the overstuffed chair, she didn’t look at me, but continued to study her manicure.

  I stood from my spot on the sofa. “I’ll get the stuff. I’ll be right back.”

  Again, no response.

  After a few seconds, I returned with the little black pouch, the instructions and the oils and powder that came with it. Jennifer had moved to the window. She stared down at the street below for a couple of seconds lost in thought, I suppose. She didn’t acknowledge my presence. Moving over to the sofa, I found my comfy spot again. Surely she’d stop ignoring me soon. Stubborn ass. She could be difficult sometimes, to say the least. I unfolded the single piece of paper and examined it.

  “The instructions say not to perform spells when in a highly emotional state. That’s practically all the time for me…so I guess now is as good a time as ever.”

  “I guess.” Jennifer seemed about as excited as if her dog had just died.

  “You know, Jennifer, I just want some semblance of a normal dating life. I don’t want this curse. I didn’t ask for it. I don’t want it and I’m willing to give this voodoo stuff a try, for Pete’s sake.” I let out a sigh. “Maybe I need to return to the priestess. I don’t want to mess this up.”

  Jennifer remained silent. If I was going to get the silent treatment I might as well do the hocus-pocus stuff alone.

  “Hmm…it says I need to bathe and do a cleansing before I perform the spell.”

  Jennifer didn’t waste any time before responding. “Why don’t you do that and I’ll finish my dinner. I need to run some errands after I eat, anyway.”

  It was apparent she didn’t want to help, so I didn’t argue the fact with her. She wasn’t making my life any easier. I had never kept secrets about the supernatural from her. Jennifer had accepted the things I told her as the truth, or so I thought. Lately her attitude had changed, ever since she’d talked with Jack.

  “Yeah, sure. I’ll see you when you get back,” I said.

  After a moment’s pause, she wandered back to the table. I gathered my voodoo paraphernalia and stood. I’d flee to the sanctity of my bathroom. A bath would be good for me, anyway. Things would be better later. After Jennifer had time to realize how much of a jackass she was being.

  A loud rap sounded at the door, stopping me in my tracks. I glanced over at Jennifer. “Are you expecting someone?”

  It was hard to believe, but a simple knock at the door made me jumpy. Things hadn’t always been that way. My crazy life was different now, though. Crazier. I had to constantly look over my shoulder.

  She shook her head and let me know she wasn’t expecting anyone.

  “Could it be Todd?” I asked.

  She shook her head again. “I don’t think so. He’s with his mother. They’re having a mother-son getaway.”

  If not Todd, then who coul
d it be? I set the voodoo material down. Apprehension took over, but I made my way to the door, anyway. I never knew what might jump at me when I opened it—more tomfoolery from Lily? Or the other strange beasts that had been following me around the city? Jennifer didn’t offer to get the door. She was probably afraid of what might be on the other side too. I can’t say I blamed her. I was more than a little afraid of what I might find too. With my wolfish instincts turned on high, I forced myself to be brave. After all, I was a werewolf. I could kick some butt if need be. Any number of paranormal creatures could be there. They’d never bothered me in the past, but would they start now?

  I opened the door.

  “Hello, ma’am.”

  Damn. The police. He didn’t wear a uniform, but he had law enforcement written all over him. I sensed it. There was an air about him that gave it away. The man flashed his shiny badge in front of my eyes. The movement was so fast I barely made out what it was. No doubt this had something to do with Jack. Since I hadn’t heard from the police yet, I thought maybe he’d dropped it and would just let it go. No such luck.

  “Hello.” At least this time it was a hunk of a man instead of the less-than-in-shape specimens from before. Jennifer peeked around the door to see who the owner of the baritone voice was. Her eyes bugged out when she caught a glimpse of him. She really needed to tame those hormones of hers. Maybe I needed to secretly give Todd a call and ask what was up with their love life. I bet Jennifer wouldn’t like it one bit, and it would serve her right for calling my mother. Payback’s a bitch.

  Jennifer stretched her arm up and leaned against the door, propping her hand on the wood in what she obviously thought a seductive pose. She had that giddy look on her face again. Since when had she become so man-hungry? The six-foot full of gorgeous had his eyes on Jennifer too. Apparently the feeling was mutual. I felt like an intruder. As he smiled and continued to eye her, he directed his question at me. He stood rigid and straight, but his gaze never left Jennifer.