Chapter 7 Emerik
SEVEN
EMERIK
“He already had six meet-cutes?” Drake gushes, delighted.
I’m not quite as delighted. “Yep, at least in the ten minutes it took us to get coffee…but I don’t know. They were all completely different—a lawyer, an actor, a sporty fellow, and more. They were each super sexy in their own way, but I can’t believe they’re all perfect romantic matches for him.”
When I left him with the massive bodybuilder, Alexander was rolling with the punches, but I’m worried. It seems good and fun now, but I want to have options in case it gets out of hand. It’s time to brainstorm with the experts.
“We didn’t tether it to any intention about the outcome,” Hazel says, identifying the problem immediately. “We should have thought of that. It’s giving him the meet-cute without any attention to the rest of the romance. It’s acting like a glorified dating app.”
I say, “Maybe I’m overthinking this. The guys he’s getting, at least the ones I saw, looked rather relationship-worthy. Gorgeous, in fact.”
“Looks aren’t everything,” Drake says.
“But it doesn’t hurt,” I say.
Hazel asks, “Have you had any more visions?”
I’m embarrassed about this, but I don’t dare hide it from my coven. We’ve built our relationship on trust, and I’m not about to change that.
“Two more. Both when we touched.”
“And…?”
“They’re escalating. We were still on the beach, and he kissed me in the third one. And I felt it.”
“A lucid vision?” Hazel says in wonder. “This bears some thought.”
“Why aren’t the meet-cutes working on you?” Drake asks, cutting directly to the main issue. “The Fates are gifting you with visions, so they seem to have some definite ideas about you and Alexander, but the potion is only pushing him towards other guys.”
“I don’t know, but that’s not what’s important now. I’m worried we might need an antidote. He was having fun with it this morning, but if it keeps up all day, it might be too much.”
By uncanny coincidence, my phone rings right then, and it’s Alexander.
“I’m worried,” he says frantically. “This is spinning out of control. The meet-cutes are turning into meet-uglies.”
“Slow down, take a breath,” I say, putting the call on speaker. “I’m here with my coven. Tell us what’s happening.”
“I had another dozen at the dog park. Max loved the attention, but I’m getting scared.
Some of the guys were sketchy, to say the least. I really have no interest in conspiracy theories or cults or alien abductions, and I swear one guy was a serial killer.
I think this is getting out of hand. Is there any way to stop it? ”
Hazel and Drake listen to the whole thing and, kudos to them, they don’t crack even one joke.
“A counter-spell?” Hazel suggests.
“That might cause even more problems,” Drake says.
“Like what?” Alexander says, even more frantic.
Drake explains, “The two spells might try to battle it out, meet-cute versus life-of-solitude, with you as the prize.”
“You’re right,” Hazel continues. “It would be hard to balance. We need an antidote, something to neutralize the potion. We can probably…”
As they devolve into brainstorming, I pick up the phone and take Alexander off speaker, asking, “Are you far from your place? Why don’t you hole up there, and we’ll work on an antidote. I’ll meet you there as soon as we have something.”
“Thanks. I’ll text my address now.”
When he rings off, I ask, “Options?”
Drake suggests, “A sleeping draught? Enough to knock him out until tomorrow?”
I’m not so sure about this. “That might be good, but maybe not. He’d lose all control of the situation.”
Hazel, always one for bold action, suggests, “I have a nuclear option: knock out his sense of romance entirely. That might fix it.”
This sounds terrible to me, even for a day, but I keep all options on the table and ask, “Can we do that temporarily?”
She’s not optimistic. “Off the top of my head, I don’t know, but it would certainly be tricky.”
“There’s always true love’s kiss,” Drake suggests. “It’s the definition of storybook romance, so the potion might respond to it.”
“Is he going to find his true love in a day?” Hazel asks, looking skeptical. “Without a love potion?”
“I don’t see why not,” he says. “Love at first sight is a thing, after all. Instalove. All that.”
They both give me pointed looks at this suggestion, and Hazel says what we’re all thinking. “You know, one of us is having romantic visions about the problem at hand…”
I say, exasperated, “Yes, I’ll keep it in mind, but I don’t think Alexander and I are quite in love yet. I barely know the man.”
That being said, I’d be more than happy to try it and see what happens.