“Beautiful cat,” she said.
“She’s kind of our mascot,” I replied.
“Can you help me? I’d heard essential oils can help with attention span. The doctors told me my son might need prescription drug help, but I don’t want to do that. Do you have any ideas?”
I set Ash on the counter and reached for one of the bottles I’d mixed last night. “Lemon oil and cedarwood. The bright lemon scent holds his attention while the cedarwood has a calming effect.”
The woman turned to her son. “Come here a minute. Smell this.”
He wandered to his mother’s side and when she unstoppered the bottle, he took a whiff. He shrugged and walked away.
Odd. As if it had no effect on him whatsoever.
“It was worth a try.” She handed the bottle back to me, gave me a conciliatory smile, and walked out.
I was certain I’d blended the fragrance for her. Why hadn’t it worked?
“Can’t please everyone,” Cassandra said.
“I guess.” Except I didn’t mix the recipes to please people. I was the conduit for the magic.
I sold the rest of my special orders before noon, shrugging off my failed sale to the woman and her son.
It was my turn to buy lunch, so I took Cassandra’s order and headed to the sandwich shop. Before I could go inside, my cousin Jason called.
“Have you spoken to Jeannine lately?” he asked.
I sat on the sidewalk bench, preparing for an uncomfortable conversation. “As a matter of fact, I have. She stopped to see me over the weekend with her new boyfriend.”
“Then you’ve met him.”
“I have.”
“Brynn, we need to do an intervention. Now. Before things get too serious.”
I pursed my lips. “I think it’s too late for that. Besides, she deserves her chance at love, don’t you think?”
“I do think, but consider all the difficulties they’re going to run up against. Cultural differences. Societal prejudices.”
“Your mother,” I added.
“That goes without saying. If they get married and have kids, those kids will face struggles, too.”
“Jeannine is aware.”
He sighed. “You don’t think this is her way of lashing out at my mother, do you?”
“I do not. She cares about Travis.”
He was silent a moment. “If Sharon and I invite them to dinner, will you and Kyle come?”
I blew out a slow breath. “I’d be happy to come,” I said evenly.
He was silent another beat. “Uh, forgive me if I’m reading something into this that isn’t there, but did you intentionally leave Kyle out?”
The townspeople walked the sidewalks around me, many of them heading into the sandwich shop. I wasn’t going to announce my private life for everyone to hear. “Yes.”
“Care to elaborate?”
“Not at this time.”
“I thought the two of you were pretty solid.”
“Not anymore. Look, I’m picking up lunch for me and Cassandra. Can we talk about this another time?” I said.
“I still want to do dinner. I’ll set something up and let you know?”
“Sounds perfect.” I disconnected the call and walked into the sandwich shop to place my order.
“Hey, Brynn. I heard Kyle hurt himself,” one of the locals said. “Sorry to hear. Anything we can do?”
“Dislocated shoulder,” I replied. “He needs time to heal, but he should be as good as new in no time.”
Another local sidled next to me, someone I’d sold a special order to this morning. She lowered her voice. “You know that spice you sold me this morning? I went straight home and sprinkled it on a cookie. It didn’t work. Did I do something wrong?”
I turned to face her, concerned. Two special orders that had failed in one day? “How much did you use?”
“Enough to cover the cookie, like a dusting of sugar.”
“You might try a second cookie.”
She nodded, but didn’t look convinced.
“The stuff you gave me didn’t work, either,” another customer said. “Maybe you got a bad batch of whatever goes into it.”
“Maybe,” I said. “I can mix a new recipe tonight if you want to pick up another bottle tomorrow. Free of charge.”
The woman shrugged. “Not worth the effort. It was a long shot, anyway.”
Well, damn. When things went bad, they went all the way.
Chapter 16
After we’d closed the shop, I walked home, intent on remixing the special orders I’d sold today. I was jarred from thought when I passed the spot on the footpaths that led to Nora’s enchanted beech tree.
Ian.
I took my phone from my pocket to cancel my date, and then changed my mind. The call could wait until I got home.
Once inside, I let Ash out of her carrier, fed her, and headed for the workroom. None of the grimoires lay open on the work table. I stared at my phone once more.
Pratt was half an hour away.
Before I had a chance to think, I was in my car.
All the way there, I patted my steering wheel, questioning this new impulsivity I seemed to have acquired, and yet every cell of my being told me to go.
My skin prickled with anticipation, a sense of static electricity despite the summer humidity.
The magic will guide you.
I’d come to trust the magic ever since it had brought me to Nora, but something was off kilter with the recipes I’d mixed recently. Did the hiccup I was experiencing have something to do with Ian? Or the traveling spell? Was it a delayed response to the spell Jason’s ex-wife had tried to throw at me? No. She’d lost her magic when the spell reflected back to her, and thanks to my niece’s intervention, my talents had remained intact.
I arrived in Pratt and pulled into the parking lot of a convenience store, questioning my sanity. While it was a nice night for a drive, I was out of clues. The magic wasn’t working, and I had no idea which way to go. Time to go home.
I got out of the car and walked inside the store to buy a bottle of water. As I checked out, I asked the clerk if he knew Ian Oliveiro.
“Sure,” the
