by Amy Boyles
“I think your sense of time is off.”
I scoffed. “My sense of time isn’t off.”
“If you remember, I had to walk around back. When I got there, I didn’t see Knight. He must’ve already been inside. I was worried about you and didn’t want you to be hurt, so I moved very slowly and quietly. Turned out, Knight saw me as soon as I entered and attacked. That’s when the mimic spell fell out of my pack and broke, circling him.”
I patted his shoulder and couldn’t help but notice how solid it was. Very solid. Quite solid. I almost squeezed it but stopped myself.
After all, I have some manners.
He smiled at me coyly. “It didn’t matter to me who you hit with the spear.”
“As opposed to Knight, who didn’t want to be hurt at all.”
Rufus’s smile vanished as a dark cloud covered his face. “If I was going to be hurt by anyone, I’d rather it be you than someone else.”
His words stole my breath. I opened my mouth to say something but couldn’t find the words. He seemed to sense this and took my hand.
He stared up at the night sky, his jaw flexing. “There are things I want, but I worry about them. I don’t know if anyone is waiting for me, wishing that I would return to my old life. It stops me from doing things that I want to do, here. In particular”—his gaze snapped to mine—“it’s stopping me from moving forward with you.”
He would have been hurt for me. He didn’t care. He would have sacrificed himself in order for me to know the truth. Then, right there and then, I knew who he was in his heart. I knew that Rufus was changed. That he was a good man.
I needed to tell him that I had the memory spell. It was time for him to know who he really was.
“Listen, there’s something—”
“Clementine, what’s going on here?” Malene crossed the street wearing her bathrobe, a grim look on her face.
I couldn’t tell him now, not with Malene here.
I tore away from him and glanced at her. “Well, Malene, it’s a long story.”
She took one look at me, Rufus and Lady and said, “Y’all come over and have some hot cocoa. Tell me all about it.”
Without even waiting for me to reply, Malene had us both by the arm and was dragging us across the street and destroying my plan to tell Rufus the truth.
Chapter 26
So no, I didn’t get to tell Rufus the truth about who he was or give him the memory spell that night.
In fact, I called him the next day, wanting to make a time to meet, but he was going out of town, looking for new spots to search. Apparently the wizard mafia was keeping him busy.
Since this wasn’t the sort of information that I could tell Rufus over the phone, I asked him to call me when he returned to town.
Oh, how my heart ached. It ached that he was leaving. It ached that I ached for him. Y’all, this was not the sort of thing that I expected to happen. I did not expect to fall for Rufus and want to tell him how I felt. But how could I not fall for him, seeing all the good that he was doing in my life?
After I spoke to him, I packed up Lady and headed over to Harlow’s ex-house. There, I found Martha and Lynn waiting for me. Lynn held Gina, Harlow’s dog.
“Hey, y’all,” I said. “How’re you doing?”
“Well,” Martha said proudly, “I was just about to ask Lynn what she thought of her new house.”
Lynn’s eyes widened. “My new house?”
Martha cackled. “Yep. That’s right. I thought it would be a good fit for you. What do you think?”
Her mouth dropped. “It’s so nice.”
“Better than what you’ve got now,” her mother said.
“But you don’t have to do this for me,” Lynn said.
And suddenly I saw that Lynn wasn’t just jealous of Knight for no reason. She was angry that he’d squandered the gift his mother had given him.
“I know that I didn’t give you any money,” Martha said. “For that, I’m sorry. Let me make it up to you. Let me help you.”
Martha opened her arms. Lynn hesitated before letting her mother enfold her. “I’m sorry that I’ve been mean.”
Martha sniffled. “I’m sorry that I didn’t help you sooner.”
My heart cracked a bit, and I softened to both women. They were damaged, hardened by circumstance, but in the end, they’d come together. It was a pleasure to see.
After they finished making up, I rubbed my hands together. “Girl, come with me,” I said to Lynn. “I’ve got a whole bunch of plans for this house, and I want you to see them.”
After spending two hours with Lynn, I realized she was actually pretty nice and had felt like her mother loved Knight more than her, which was why she’d given him such a hard time when I first met her.
I was riding this high, this wave of happiness when I drove Lady home.
I had the windows cranked all the way down and Lady had her face out the window, her tongue lolling to one side, barking at every dog we passed.
“You’ve got a dog’s life,” I said.
She dropped her paws from the window and snuggled up next to me. “And you’ve got a human’s life.”
I laughed. “I sure do.”
When we reached the house, Malene was standing outside. She called out to us.
“I’ve got sandwiches and Mississippi Mud Pie for dessert. Y’all come on over!”
She didn’t have to ask me twice. I hoisted Lady under my arm and headed over.
The house was cool inside, and I pulled my hair up, letting the artificial air sweep over the back of my neck. Lady plopped down on the floor, stretching out across the cool floorboards.
“Y’all make yourselves at home.”
I had never spent much time inspecting Malene’s decorations, so I moved to her built-in bookshelves and studied her framed pictures.
I saw one of a young man with dark hair. Must have been her son, the one that went missing. Pity rumbled in the back of my throat.
The sound of clanking kitchen utensils came from the kitchen. “Do you like mayonnaise?” Malene called.
“I’m from the South. What do you think?”
“Just making sure.”
I ran my fingers over her pictures—several of Malene when she was younger. Boy, she had been a knockout with thick curls, big cheeks and a bow-tie mouth. A smile flitted on my lips as I kept looking until I came to another picture.
I stopped, my breath catching in the back of my throat.
Humming, Malene entered the room and settled a tray down on the coffee table with a clatter.
“Clem, I’m so glad all that business with the Owens is over. Now you can get back to real life.”
I turned toward her, holding a picture frame.
Malene’s mouth dipped into a frown. “Oh, I see.”
I showed her the picture. “Why do you have a photo of my mother and father here?”
Malene cleared her throat. “Clem, there’s something I need to tell you.”
I tried not to be angry, to feel frustrated and betrayed. Malene was about to tell me something that I could only guess at.
“Yes? What is it?” I asked.
She lowered her glasses and rested them on the table. Then she pulled off the bun on top of her head, revealing that it had been a wig and that her real hair was short, coiffed into a wave, gray and fabulous.
“Finally, I can get out of these clothes.” She yanked off her housecoat. Beneath it she wore a red shirt and black capris.
“What have you done to Malene, and please don’t tell me that you’re going to remove your face.”
“No, darling,” she purred. “But I had to make myself look a little different, so that you wouldn’t know who I was.”
My voice trembled. “Who are you?”
“Clem, I’m your grandmother. It’s about time you found out.”
The picture slipped from my hand and fell to the rug.
“Now,” she said. “Would you like to have some lunch?”
Oh wow. My life had just gotten a lot more complicated.
Thank y’all for reading RENOVATION SPELL. Clem’s adventures continue in Demolition Premonition. I’ll have the preorder up soon. Until then, be sure to sign up for my newsletter so that you never miss a release. Click HERE to sign up!
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And…if you want to know more about Rufus, you can read about him in my Sweet Tea Witch Mysteries Series. The first book is SOUTHERN MAGIC and you can buy it HERE.
Plus, join my private Facebook group, the Bless Your Witch Club. There you will receive sneak peaks at books, be the first to receive special giveaway offers and watch as I interview other authors that you love. But it’s only available in the club, so join HERE.
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And…I love to hear from you! Please feel free to drop me a line anytime. You can email me [email protected].
Also by Amy Boyles
SERIES READING ORDER
* * *
A MAGICAL RENOVATION MYSERY
WITCHER UPPER
RENOVATION SPELL
DEMOLITION PREMONITION
* * *
LOST SOUTHERN MAGIC
(Sweet Tea Witches, Southern Belles and Spells, Southern Ghost Wrangles and Bless Your Witch Crossover)
THE GOLD TOUCH THAT WENT CATTYWAMPUS
THE YELLOW-BELLIED SCAREDY CAT
A MESS OF SIRENS
KNEE-HIGH TO A THIEF
* * *
BELLES AND SPELLS MATCHMAKER MYSTERY
DEADLY SPELLS AND A SOUTHERN BELLE
CURSED BRIDES AND ALIBIS
MAGICAL DAMES AND DATING GAMES
SOME PIG AND A MUMMY DIG
* * *
SWEET TEA WITCH MYSTERIES
SOUTHERN MAGIC
SOUTHERN SPELLS
SOUTHERN MYTHS
SOUTHERN SORCERY
SOUTHERN CURSES
SOUTHERN KARMA
SOUTHERN MAGIC THANKSGIVING
SOUTHERN MAGIC CHRISTMAS
SOUTHERN POTIONS
SOUTHERN FORTUNES
SOUTHERN HAUNTINGS
SOUTHERN WANDS
SOUTHERN CONJURING
SOUTHERN WISHES
SOUTHERN DREAMS
SOUTHERN MAGIC WEDDING
SOUTHERN OMENS
* * *
SOUTHERN GHOST WRANGLER MYSTERIES
SOUL FOOD SPIRITS
HONEYSUCKLE HAUNTING
THE GHOST WHO ATE GRITS (Crossover with Pepper and Axel from Sweet Tea Witches)
BACKWOODS BANSHEE
* * *
BLESS YOUR WITCH SERIES
SCARED WITCHLESS
KISS MY WITCH
QUEEN WITCH
QUIT YOUR WITCHIN'
FOR WITCH'S SAKE
DON'T GIVE A WITCH
WITCH MY GRITS
FRIED GREEN WITCH
SOUTHERN WITCHING
Y’ALL WITCHES
HOLD YOUR WITCHES
* * *
SOUTHERN SINGLE MOM PARANORMAL MYSTERIES
The Witch’s Handbook to Hunting Vampires
The Witch’s Handbook to Catching Werewolves
The Witch’s Handbook to Trapping Demons
About the Author
Hey, I’m Amy,
I write books for folks who crave laugh-out-loud paranormal mysteries. I help bring humor into readers’ lives. I’ve got a Pharm D in pharmacy, a BA in Creative Writing and a Masters in Life.
And when I’m not writing or chasing around two small children (one of which is four going on thirteen), I can be found antique shopping for a great deal, getting my roots touched up (because that’s an every four week job) and figuring out when I can get back to Disney World.
If you’re dying to know more about my wacky life, here are three things you don’t know about me.
—In college I spent a semester at Marvel Comics working in the X-Men office.
—I worked at Carnegie Hall.
—I grew up in a barbecue restaurant—literally. My parents owned one.
If you want to reach out to me—and I love to hear from readers—you can email me at [email protected].
Happy reading!
