by Rose Pressey
“You what? Come again?” He quirked a brow.
“I have special magic skills and the magic was on your food. You got someone else’s order and that’s why I rushed over and knocked the burger out of your hands.”
He frowned and his eyes widened. “Magic?” he asked.
I nodded.
“See, Rory, I told you she was nuts,” Kim said. “Come on, let’s get out of here before she goes completely insane.”
“I’m not insane and she was in on it, too.” I pointed at Kim. Okay, now I sounded like a tattling five-year-old.
“She’s crazy, don’t listen to her.” She tightened her lips, pressing them into a straight line.
“Why do you think we’re both here? She made me call you. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have shown up. She stole the book of magical spells from the café and my special spices, too. She wanted me to perform magic on you today in the food.”
Rory looked down, not meeting my gaze.
I continued; I couldn’t stop now. “She wanted her true love to want her forever. But what she fails to realize is that you’re not her true love. So even if you really loved her, the magic wouldn’t work because she doesn’t love you. She only thinks she loves you.”
“Would you listen to this rambling idiot? She’s completely delusional. All this nonsense about magical spell books and spices.” She grabbed Rory’s arm. “She tricked me into coming out here just like she tricked you. She said she had something she wanted to tell us. I had no idea it was this crazy talk.”
Rory broke free from Kim’s grip and gazed at me with a heartbroken look in his eyes. There was no way for me to know if what I’d done had been the right thing, and I was second-guessing my decision right now. But I’d told him and the world didn't end. Sure, he'd probably never speak to me again, but that was something I'd have to deal with.
Without saying a word, Rory turned and hurried to his truck. Kim took off after him, stumbling in the grass to keep up with his pace. I couldn’t let her leave without Tom showing up. Although as long as she left the book and spices, I’d be somewhat happy about that. If only I’d locked the book away, maybe none of this mess would have ever happened. But how was I supposed to know Kim would take it, it just looked like a weird old cookbook.
I spotted Kim’s car keys on the park bench and I grabbed them, shoving them in my pocket. Where the heck was Tom? Any other time he would have been here when I didn’t want him around. Rory climbed in his truck, the whole time Kim pleaded with him not to go. This was very awkward and embarrassing for all of us. And she called me the insane one. Hello, stalker. This looked like it would require a restraining order. She teetered between the clingy girlfriend and I-can’t-live-without-you girlfriend line.
Rory finally managed to get Kim away from his truck. He drove off without as much as a glance back. He didn’t look back at me and I didn’t blame him. What I’d told him didn’t make any sense. It hadn’t made sense to me at first either, and I couldn’t expect him to understand, but I at least wanted the opportunity to try to explain. I had a feeling I may never see him again. The knots in my stomach became even more tangled.
“You,” Kim yelled as she made a dash for me.
Uh-oh. The venom in her eyes caught me off guard. It was going to be an all out catfight. Too bad I hadn’t worn my hair in a ponytail; it would have been a much better style for being attacked. Kim looked like a hair puller. She was skinny, but she looked like the type who made regular visits to the gym. She was probably into yoga and would wrangle me into some kind of headlock. One thing she probably didn’t count on though: I was short, which meant less of me to grab. I could slither out of almost any hold like a greasy piglet.
“This is entirely your fault,” she screeched. “You messed up the magic on purpose.”
“Why should I do anything for you?” I asked. “I don’t owe you anything, I don’t even like you. You’ve done nothing but insult me and be rude to everyone you’ve come in contact with in this town. Everyone cringes when they see you coming.”
“They do not,” she huffed. “I’m going to rip your hair out.”
See, I knew she was a hair puller. She grabbed my arms and we both fell to the ground at the same time. I landed on my back and Kim was on top of me. She slapped me. I reached up and shoved her with both hands. She fell back and landed on the ground. I scrambled, trying to get to my feet. The sound of a car caught my attention, then I heard the sirens. Thank goodness. I was about to sucker punch this floozy.
A couple of police cars pulled up with lights flashing and sirens blaring. Two uniformed men climbed out and rushed toward us. As they approached, Tom’s car drove up behind the police cars. Kim glared at me as I struggled to release her grip from my hair. She didn’t let a little thing like law enforcement stop her.
“So you called the police? I should have known.” She tugged my hair harder.
“Yes, you should have known. I mean really, what did you think I would do?” I panted, struggling to catch my breath. “Let you get away with this?”
“I didn’t do anything to you, you stupid little bitch.”
I managed to roll her over so that I was now on top. “Whatever.”
“What seems to be the problem?” We remained on the ground, neither one wanting to let go first. “Can you both stand up, please?” I stumbled up, trying to keep my distance from Kim in case she started her antics again.
“She kidnapped me.” I pointed.
“I did no such thing. She’s crazy.” She smoothed her hair down.
“Ma’am, can you put your hands behind your back, please?”
“So you’re just going to believe her? Obviously, she could leave whenever she wanted, that’s not kidnapping. And she was attacking me.”
“That’s not what we saw when we pulled up. You were on top of her.”
“She stole belongings from my café and broke the window.”
“We have a witness who saw her do that, ma’am.”
“You do?” My eyes widened.
He nodded. “We’ll sort this all out at the police station, if you’ll come to make a statement?”
I nodded, still trying to catch my breath.
“You bitch. I can’t believe you’re doing this.” She jerked her arms, trying to free herself from the policeman’s grip.
Tom walked up as the police led Kim toward their vehicle.
“Whether you realize it or not, Kim, doing this is the best thing that could have happened to you.” He stood in front of me, his arms folded across his chest.
I scowled, still trying to catch my breath. “What? How is that possible?”
“I felt the spell weakening when I got here. She finally realized her true feelings and Rory left, so I think that shows his true feelings, too.”
“Will it matter? The café is already closed.”
“I’ll make some calls. But I think I can get the doors open again soon.” His mouth tilted up in a grin.
“So the spell will be reversed and I can keep the café?”
“Kim’s part of the spell is gone. So if you fix the other, then yes, you can keep Mystic Café open.”
I leapt forward and draped my arms around his neck. “I’m so excited.”
“Don’t be afraid to give me a thank you kiss,” he said, raising his lips into a sly grin.
I poked him in the ribs. “Stop it.”
“Where’s the book?” He looked around.
“It’s over by the picnic table and the spices are there, too.”
“I’ll get them.” Tom gestured for me to wait for him. I needed a moment to catch my breath anyway, so I didn’t argue.
I brushed off my clothes and smoothed down my frazzled hair. I hadn’t been in a fight since eighth grade when Monica Malone accused me of stealing her lip-gloss. She later found it at the bottom of her locker.
An officer approached while the other one talked to Kim. She’d been glaring at me from the back of the police car. “Are you all ri
ght, ma’am? Do you need medical assistance?”
“No, I’m fine. She doesn’t have a very strong arm.”
He smiled. “All right. Do you need a ride to the station?”
I pointed toward Tom. “No, I have one, thank you.”
Tom walked back with the book in hand. “You two were fighting? And I missed that? Damn.”
I scowled and smacked him on the shoulder.
“What? I’m just saying, it would have been nice to see two gorgeous women rolling around…oh, never mind.”
“Yeah, never mind.”
“Why don’t we get out of here?”
“Good idea.” I brushed grass from my hair. “Who saw Kim break the window?”
“Let’s just say I got a magical statement from Kiki Adams.”
“But I talked to her. She didn’t know anything.”
He shrugged. “She remembered somehow, what can I say?”
“That doesn’t seem fair.” I shook my head.
“She’s not lying. I just helped her remember the details, that’s all.” He winked and slipped his arm around my shoulders. “Come on, let’s get out of here.”
We hurried across the park toward Tom’s car. I wondered what Rory would think when he found out Kim was in jail. And that it was my fault. Would he be mad at me? Would he ever speak to me again? But after what I’d told him about the magic, it was the least of my worries.
“I’ve got the keys to her car. What should I do with them?” I asked.
“Hand them to me, I’ll take care of it.” He held out his hand.
“I’m almost afraid to let you take care of anything. I think you like to use the magic a little too much.” I smirked.
“Only when necessary.” He grinned.
I eyed him as he wiggled his fingers. “Okay, but make sure she gets them.”
“I will, don’t worry.”
Tom held the car door open for me and I placed the keys in his outstretched palm. “Thanks, doll.”
I climbed in Tom’s sleek black BMW. The inside still had the new smell, mixed with his masculine scent. The interior was clean just like the exterior. On the car’s console, he had a photo of people I assumed were his parents. They smiled for the camera, arms around one another.
As Tom came around to the driver’s seat, I checked my reflection in the side mirror. I cringed, wishing I hadn’t looked. My hair really needed to meet with a hairbrush. Pulling out of the parking lot, we took off toward the police station.
“Did you know that Kim knew about the mistake with the love spell?” I shifted in the leather seat.
Tom glanced over at me before looking back at the road. “No, what did she say?”
“She told me that she knew. She said she’d overheard me talking about it. I swear she must have bugged the café.”
“Was she mad about it?”
“No, she didn’t seem upset. I think she was coming back for Rory regardless of whether the spell had been cast or not.”
“So, what happened to Rory?” Tom asked.
I had a feeling Tom was thankful that Rory wasn’t there when he showed up.
“He left when I told him about the magic.” I buckled my seat belt. The new car smell hung in the air. Van Halen played on the radio.
“You told him?” He gripped the wheel, not taking his eyes off the road.
I nodded. “Yeah. It didn’t turn out well.”
“I’m sorry,” he said softly.
As we headed back toward town, I asked, “So you called the police? That’s it?”
He glanced over at me.
“I could have done that.”
“So why didn’t you?” He smirked.
“I assumed there was some kind of special magic police. Or magical court, if you will? I mean, what do you do with the magical crimes?” I asked.
“There aren’t a lot of magical crimes. There aren’t as many people with magical powers as you think.”
So I was one of the lucky few. Great.
Chapter Forty-Three
“We do a good job of keeping it under control. Of course, Kim will need to meet with the organization. She knows about magic now and we have to keep that under control.”
He steered around a curve.
“What do you mean ‘keep that under control’?”
“I mean we can’t allow her to tell everyone about the magic. Right now she’s probably telling the police all about your magical skills, which will probably get her a stay in the special cell away from everyone else. They’ll think she’s crazy.”
“Well...” I laughed. But my laugh was cut short as I realized Rory would think the same thing about me. “What’ll happen to Rory? Since I told him about the magic?”
“He’ll have to meet with the organization, too. But it’s up to you, really.”
Up to me? How had I become a mediator for the magic realm?
“Do you think he can handle knowing about it?” I asked.
“I think he can handle it, but I don’t think he’ll believe it until he sees proof positive.” Tom looked over at me.
“What?” I asked.
He raised a brow.
“You mean I need to do magic in front of him?” This wasn’t a task that was exactly easy to approach someone with. It was something that would possibly get me a visit on a sofa with a psychiatrist.
“It’s the only way he’ll believe you.”
“I doubt he’ll come anywhere near me now. I can’t force him to watch my little magic show.”
“You’d be surprised how well some people accept it.” His mouth may not have shown his smile, but his eyes did.
Why was he being so understanding of Rory now?
“I guess I’ll have to call him.” I took a deep breath, then blew it out slowly. “Why does this have to be so difficult?”
“Maybe you need to just pay him a visit?” He gave a knowing wink.
I nodded. “I guess you’re right. He might not answer my calls. It wouldn’t surprise me if he never talked to me again. If I see him in person, he’ll have to talk to me. So what happens with the café now?”
“Well, I don’t see any reason why I shouldn’t give you the keys back. Once you’ve completed the reversal spell on Rory, you can reopen for business.”
“Oh yeah, I forgot about the reversal part.” How could I have forgotten about that?
If that part of the spell was gone, then all the women in town would leave him alone. Well, not all the women, he was still a gorgeous man, at least most of the women would leave him alone now. But would I be one of them? Maybe I really was only attracted to him because of the magic.
“You know,” he said, “after you do the spell, I’ll be on my way. I’ll be out of your hair.”
A twinge pulled at my heart. “Where you headed next?”
“Wherever they send me. Who knows?” He shrugged. “Could be Boise, Idaho, could be New York City. I hope it’s somewhere with food as good as yours.”
My mouth released a grin.
“I’ll be honest with you. I don’t think I’ve ever had food as tasty as yours.”
I found myself staring as he moved his tongue across his bottom lip, then on to the top. Avoiding his gaze, I looked down.
“Oh, you’re just saying that. Stop it.” I blushed.
“No, I mean it. And the pies…I’m going to miss the pies.”
“You’ll stop back in from time to time?” I couldn’t believe I’d just asked him that.
“Sure, but make sure it’s not because I’ve been asked by the organization to come by.”
I chuckled. “I’ll try my best not to let any of the food get messed up anymore.”
“I knew you’d make it through this.” A twitch of his lips turned into a full-on smile.
“You did?” My mouth probably hung open. “Tom Owenton had confidence in me? I’m shocked.”
“You’re a smart woman, Elly. You’re also a little clumsy, but smart.” He flashed a wicked grin.
&n
bsp; “Thank you for the compliment, but I haven’t finished the spell yet.”
“It’s all just a formality at this point.”
“I could still mess it up, trust me.”
We pulled up in front of the police station and I wanted to keep driving. I wanted all of this craziness to be over. Confronting Kim was something I didn’t want to do. Her actions were self-centered, but I felt sorry for her, too. She had no idea what she really wanted, and I knew that feeling. I’d never known what I really wanted…until now. Moving away from Mystic Hollow had seemed like a glamorous thing, but now that I was back, I never wanted to leave.
“Shall we?” Tom gestured with a tilt of his head toward the building.
“If we must.” I swallowed the lump in my throat. “Do we have to?”
Tom nodded. “Yes, we do.”
We marched up the steps to the main entrance. Tom walked close beside me, as if he would reach out and grab me if I tried to make a run for it.
“She’s in the interview room,” Sheriff Jasper said when we entered the building. “Do you want to press charges?”
I stepped over to the room and looked through the window at Kim. She didn’t notice me as she wiped at her tearstained cheeks. Her frazzled hair swept back from her face gave her the appearance of a vulnerable child. I knew I couldn’t allow her to wear that orange jumpsuit. She’d done nothing more than the equivalent of a high school prank. Heck, she acted as if she were still in high school.
“No, I don’t want to press charges.”
“Are you sure?” Tom placed his hand on my arm.
I nodded.
“She wanted to talk with you, if that’s okay?” Sheriff Jasper asked.
I hesitated. “Okay, I’ll talk with her.”
I stepped over to the room and the sheriff opened the door. When Kim saw me, she sprang from her chair. “Oh, Elly, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to do any harm to you. I wouldn’t hurt a fly.”
“It’s all right. We’ll forget it, okay?” It had been a long day already and it had barely begun. I didn’t have the energy to argue anymore. “I’m not pressing charges, if that’s what you’re worried about.” What could I say, I was a softie.
