Chapter 19
CHAPTER NINETEEN
It’s not that I attract chaos; it’s that chaos sends me handwritten invitations.
The kettle whistled, and I removed it from the stove and filled my cup, letting the peppermint tea steep.
I rolled my stiff shoulders and neck. The damn cat had stamina and was on a mission to ensure every inch of my body smelled like him.
Hudson’s breath tickled my ear as his hands shaped my waist from behind.
“Sore?” he murmured, skimming his mouth over my shoulder.
“Don’t flatter yourself, Principal.”
He chuckled, not calling me out on my clear bullshit. “What are your plans today?”
“I need to follow up with Marcia on her frog issue and check with Maggie about supplies and bookings. Robert left a message to call him back, and I want to check the effects of Donn removing some power from Eloise.”
“That’s a lot. What can I do?”
I dunked the tea bag and then removed it before turning to face him with the mug in my hands. “Nothing.”
He sighed. “You have to start leaning on me, Cora. We’re a partnership, and that means letting me in.”
“Fine. Talk to the aunts about my memory issue. I want to know how easy it will be to lift that wall and the possible side effects.”
Hudson froze. “Do you think that’s wise?”
“I just want to know what I’m getting myself into. I can’t save the world while being cut off from a part of myself. I’m no longer fighting the physical effects, so now I have more headspace for the psychological.”
“Okay.”
“You can also speak to the sheriff.”
“Consider it done.”
I actually needed a little privacy for where I was going. “Great. Let’s divide and conquer.”
“Go team,” he mumbled, looking at my lips. “What reward do I get for completing my tasks, boss?”
“You’ll find out tonight.”
His lips curled. “Sounds promising. But before I lose you to the defender of the free world, we have something important to tackle.”
I raised a brow. “Like what?”
His hand tangled in mine, and he dropped his gaze to my feet. “Sneakers are probably best.”
“So long as we aren’t running.” I ached everywhere.
“No, Cora. We’re dancing.”
Ugh. Save me.
“Two, three, four,” Rebecca counted with a steady clap to emphasize the beat.
My feet tangled with Hudson’s. Again. Harry shook his head as he demonstrated a perfect dance with a ghost of a woman. “Like this, Miss Roberts.”
“Easy for you to say. It’s literally impossible for you to trip over each other.”
“Stop making excuses and pay attention,” Rebecca snapped.
“This is ridiculous. I just want my cookies.”
“You keep trying to lead,” Hudson pointed out with a gentle squeeze of my hand. “Let me do the work. You just relax.”
My lips twitched. “I’m having déjà vu.” Heat flared in his gaze. Ah-ha. “You want to ditch this ridiculousness for a replay?”
“Not a chance,” Rebecca said.
“This is a lost cause,” Sebastian muttered.
“Agreed. We can forgo the first dance,” I decided. “I can carry on my day and munch on the cookies you’re holding hostage.” I sent a glare toward Dave and Maggie sitting by the window.
Rebecca frowned at me in horror. “No, we just need you to stop trying to dominate.”
I released Hudson’s hand and stepped away. “I can do basic but unscripted dancing. This is too stuffy. The problem isn’t in the steps; it’s in the planning.”
“We could try a different song?” Maggie suggested.
Dave snorted. “It’s not the music that’s the issue. It’s the dancer.”
“Enough from the peanut gallery.” Dave grinned and tossed a mini cookie in his mouth. I pointed at him. “Don’t you dare eat my cookies.”
Was it really a crime if you killed someone munching on your treats? I thought not. The wards clanged, warning of an approaching visitor. Elemental... I took another step away from the synchronized farce. “Duty calls,” I muttered as a knock sounded at the door.
“This isn’t over,” Rebecca declared.
“I’ll call the sheriff,” Hudson said.
I snatched a cookie before throwing open the door. Oh goodie, one of my to-dos had walked herself up to my house. “Marcia, good timing. I was about to send him back to you.”
She strode past me and scanned the room with a frown. “A little privacy?”
I swept my hand toward the stairs, and we piled into my office. Bella was curled up on my desk, her gaze lasered on Pete. How did the damned cat get in here? I was sure I’d shut the door.
“Is that safe?” Marcia wondered, pointing at Bella.
I slid into my chair. “Depends on what mood she’s in.”
Marcia sat across from me and dug in her bag, pulling out a piece of folded parchment. “Are those the truths?” I checked. “The spell to ward off backlash is complete, so we are good to go. In a few short minutes, you’ll have your love back, and you can discuss your issues like normal couples.”
Indigo snorted. “With snark, memory spells, and naked shenanigans under the full moon.”
“Shut it.”
Marcia glanced at Pete. “I’ve been thinking.”
Oh no.
“If we leave him, then he’ll have no choice but to stay with me.”
“You can’t be serious.”
Her hand tightened around the parchment. “It’s the only way to keep him forever.”
Ugh. I was being tested today. “Marcia, I’m about to give you some hard truths, so listen up.”
She twisted her lips and stayed silent. I took that as permission to continue.
I pointed at the frog. “This here is a result of your trying to keep hold of a man who isn’t worthy of your love or attention.
If he strays, it’s not on you, it’s on him.
You are a capable, smart, beautiful woman, and he is a fucking idiot if he can’t see that.
I don’t mean that relationships aren’t hard, or that there aren’t daily bumps in the road, but you ride them out together.
If he is not your person, the one who would catch you when you fall or raise you up, then he is not your ‘one.’ Turn him back and turn him loose.
Make room in your heart for the right person. ”
She dragged her teeth over her bottom lip before pushing the parchment into my hand like it was a live grenade. I unfolded it, read the three truths, and raised a brow. Well, those were certainly different, and it might answer why she was so nervous.
“I could include a gag spell on these?” I offered.
Marcia’s shoulders relaxed. “Thank you.”
I plucked the prepared ingredients from my drawer that had been waiting for her return.
“I’ll need you to recite these at the appropriate time,” I told her.
She grimaced. “Fine.”
I had questions. So many questions. None of which I wanted answers to.
I rose from my chair and circled my desk, rolling my sleeves up as I called on my element. The air cooled, the moisture thickening like I’d dragged the Mississippi indoors by the scruff.
Marcia sat still. Bella sat even stiller, watching with murderous curiosity.
“Okay, Pete,” I announced. “Time to unfrog you. Try to resist the urge to lick your own eyeball mid-transformation.”
Marcia whimpered.
I lifted the parchment, let the water ripple through the runes, and began.
“By truth confessed and idiot’s plight,
Undo the frog, restore him right.
Three truths bled and bound to me,
Break the curse and set him free.
Let shape return, let voice be clear,
But all he knows stays locked from ear.
What Pete has learned, what Pete has seen,
Clamp shut his tongue, keep secrets clean.
If he should speak or try to write,
Let croaks and coughs derail the bite.
By water’s will and Roberts’ might,
Reversal done. Now hold on tight.”
Magic surged around us. Papers fluttered. Marcia gasped. Pete blinked, and for a horrible second, he inflated like a balloon.
“Please don’t explode,” Marcia whispered.
Yes, don’t. That would be messy.
“Recite them now,” I instructed.
Marcia swallowed. Hurry up, woman, we’ve already agreed that exploding amphibians is not our goal.
“Marcia talks to houseplants like they’re sassy coworkers and tells them office gossip.”
I gave her the thumbs-up to keep her going. Honestly, it wasn’t the worst thing. At least plants couldn’t break your confidence.
She took a breath. “Marcia has a recurring dream where she’s married to a sentient baguette, and she wakes up jealous if Pete eats bread the next day.”
Understandable, given I had only minutes ago considered murdering Dave over mini cookies. Now I was hungry. I wondered if we had baguettes and if I could get Hudson to make me an awesome sandwich.
“Marcia orgasms the hardest when Pete hums the “Jaws” theme under his breath.”
To each their own.
Pete popped back into human form in a shower of mist and bad decisions, landing naked on my office rug.
“Dear lord,” I muttered, grabbing a blanket and tossing it at him. “Cover the frog bits, Pete. We just cleaned the carpet.”
Pete wrapped the blanket around himself, gave himself a shake, and glanced at Marcia, his eyes lighting up with recognition.
“Oh thank God,” she breathed.
Which one?
He opened his mouth. “Mar—” Croak. Pete’s hand flew to his throat. He tried again. “I just want to say—” Croak.
I smothered a grin behind my hand. The gag clause was working beautifully.
Pete frowned, tried speaking again, and this time, produced a cough, a hiccup, and a noise like a dying accordion.
Marcia leaned forward to look at him closer. “Is he broken?”
“You wrote three very sensitive truths,” I explained. “Blood-sealed. Powerful stuff.” I fluttered the parchment. “This spell restores your boyfriend but prevents him from repeating any of the content.”
Pete glared at me. “That’s unethical. Marcia—” Croak.
I crouched in front of him. “Look, Pete. You’re back. You’re fine. You can speak normally about anything else, just avoid her secrets.”
Croak.
I rolled my eyes and stood, backing away from Pete. “He’s not the smartest, Marcia. I believe an upgrade is in order, anyway.”
He winced, clutching his throat.
Marcia tilted her head. “I think you might be right.”
Pete reached for her, muttering incoherently, but nothing personal, nothing forbidden, nothing humiliating escaped his lips. Just sweet, earnest, magical gibberish.
Cora Roberts—head of woman power and independence. It had a nice ring to it.
Marcia launched herself at Pete, hugging him so tightly his blanket slipped. I sighed. It was good while it lasted—all thirty seconds of it.
Bella hissed in agreement.
Another day, another spell, another naked man on my rug.
Now to find a man with a baguette.