Chapter 7
7
brAM
B ettina hands me my coffee with a smile. I mumble a thanks and head toward my office. I took the numbing potion last night that helps keep my curse somewhat tempered. Without it, my emotions easily spiral out of control. I hate how it makes me feel almost as much as my curse. The second the elixir passes my lips, it’s as if my body is coated with a cold numbness. Everything is duller. Colors are muted, my vision isn’t as sharp, and the world feels gray. At least I’m not strangling people and siphoning the magic out of witches, leaving them a husk of a person with my shadow magic. There’s a very real chance I could do that.
I used to take the drink once every few months. I got maybe a week where things felt decent, and the world wasn’t too muffled, just before the rage, the darkness of my curse, would start to take over. For those few days, I would feel normal. But the potion doesn’t last that long anymore. I should take it every other week at this point. I don’t know if my desire to chuck the elixir in the garbage is my curse at work, or if it’s because it makes me feel nothing at all. With my curse, it’s a different sort of numbness that occurs. It snuffs out everything good in me with only the dark parts left.
My phone buzzes in my pocket and I sigh when I see my father’s name flash on the screen. Normally, I don’t see him outside of coven events. Hearing from him two times in one week is enough to last me the next few years.
“Yes,” I answer, unable to work up enough effort for an actual greeting.
“Abraham. I’m calling to check on the progress of the party.”
No one calls me Abraham, except for my father. I swear he does it to be a dick.
“Considering you just told me about it yesterday, I’d say we’ve made a lot of progress so far.”
“You better be taking this seriously. The entire coven is watching. Your failure won’t just be on your shoulders, but will land on the door of all Blackthorns.”
“I trust since you’ve seen fit to assign me to oversee this extremely important event that you have faith I’ll be able to deliver. In fact, I better go. I should be planning now.” I hang up before my father can say anything else.
If possible, my mood has gotten worse.
Employees purposefully dart out of the way when they see me coming. Roman is waiting at the bottom of the stairs, a pained look on his face.
“I take it you took the elixir last night. How are you feeling?” He joins me as we walk up to our offices. I ignore his comment.
“Our dad just called to ensure I’m taking this party planning seriously.”
Roman gives me a confused look. “The council is really enthusiastic about this entire event.”
“At least someone is.”
“I’ll let you get to it. I believe your co-chair it’s already waiting for you.” Roman slaps me on the back and heads towards his office while I make my way toward mine.
The door is already open. When I walk inside, Ava is sitting on the couch typing away on a laptop.
“I didn’t realize you’d be here already. I would’ve come earlier if I had known.” The words sound cold and condescending.
Ava’s head snaps up, and she blinks at me in surprise. “No big deal. I was just making some notes. I hope you don’t mind. I spoke with your chef, and she came up with some ideas for food we could serve.”
Ava looks different today. She’s still wearing one of those oversized sweaters in a horrible muddy color, but instead of swimming in her pants, her jeans are fitted to her body. Paired with her winter boots, she looks sort of…cute. Like she just came inside from making a snowman and is ready to curl up with a hot chocolate and a good book. In fact, the vision of the two of us lounging in front of a fireplace while a snowstorm rages outside hits me full force.
“Are you okay?” Ava stares at me as I’ve grown horns. Her light brown hair is down today and tumbles over her shoulder. How have I never noticed that it looks like silk? I wonder how soft it would be to touch?
I blink as if that will clear my mind. Mother help me, was there something else in that elixir last night?
“I’m fine,” I snap, setting my coffee on my desk and shrugging out of my coat.
“Great.” Ava sets her laptop on the table in front of the couch, slaps her thighs, and stands up. She’s always wearing such baggy clothes that I don’t think I’ve ever seen this much of her body. Her jeans hug every curve.
I throw my coat over the back of my chair and loosen my tie. How hot is the fucking hotel today? Do we have the heat set to pits of hell?
A soft sound, similar to a meow, comes from the corner of the room.
“What was that?” I cock my head and stare at the other side of the room. There’s a large potted plant in the corner, next to two chairs.
“What was what?” Ava looks at me as if I’ve lost my mind.
“That sound.” I wander over to the plant and peer into the dirt.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Ava gives me a curious look. “I hope you’re hungry, because Caroline has been working on getting samples ready for us.”
Caroline is the resort's head chef. When did Ava have the time to set all this up?
“I have to admit I was not super psyched about planning this whole thing, but I’ve heard how good Caroline is. I can’t wait to taste her food. Plus, I’ve put some calls out to do some dessert tasting. So we have that to look forward to.”
“Are you planning a wedding or a coven event?”
Ava’s face falls, but then she rolls her shoulders back and narrows her eyes at me. “Listen, if I have to be forced into doing this, then I am going to kick ass and do an incredible job. If that means I get to eat some amazing food in the process, then you better believe I’m going to seize the opportunity. Besides, I’ll probably never get married. Let me just live vicariously through this process and try not to be such a dick all the time.” Ava huffs, giving me her back. She stomps out of the office without another word.
For some stupid reason, I jog after her like a little puppy dog.
“Why don’t you think you'll never get married?”
Ava is waving at one of the front desk clerks. The smile falls off her face the moment I ask my question.
“Is it just because you broke up with that guy not that long ago? There are more fish in the sea, Vandenberg.” I nod at one of the housekeeping staff as Ava stomps through the lobby.
“Can you stop talking before I lose my appetite? There’s a lot of food waiting to be shoved in my mouth and I want to be able to enjoy it.”
An image of me shoving something else in her mouth momentarily snatches my attention, and I trip over a rug. Ava side-eyes me with a raised brow, but I pretend nothing happened.
“You’re attractive enough. Why do you think you won’t get married?” I’m not sure what devil possesses me to say that, but it’s too late to take it back.
Ava spins on her heel to face me at the entrance to the kitchen. Her finger presses against my mouth and I freeze. A drop of warmth slides down my body, as if her finger was dipped in honey and touched my tongue. The muted colors caused by the numbing potion spark to life around us, the amber color of her eyes, the soft pink of her lips.
“Stop talking.” She snatches away her hand and takes a deep breath before pushing into the kitchen. I hear a muttered “attractive enough,” followed by a snort. My eyes track her hips as she moves through the doors. I really shouldn't be looking at her ass. The more steps she puts between us, the more the numbness creeps back in. That’s right. I’m hardly more than a shell of a man who’s either filled with rage or completely empty.
I follow Ava into the kitchen where incredible scents wash over me. Caroline is a world-renowned chef who’s been with the resort for five years. It took a lot of incentive to get her to come work for the resort, but she’s a witch. Ultimately, she wanted to be part of a town full of magic. I’m not sure she had any idea what kind of a shitshow Mystic Hollows would turn out to be, but we definitely lucked out getting her here.
The kitchen is still bustling with the morning rush. The restaurant is only open for dinner, but guests often get room service if they don’t avail themselves of the cafe for coffee and pastries for breakfast. Despite being a taskmaster in her kitchen, Caroline reluctantly lets people into her domain when necessary. She’s like an annoyed big sister who has to put up with pesky siblings. Except I’m her boss, so she’s literally paid to deal with me. Not that I interfere with things. She knows what she’s doing. I just pay her salary and enjoy her food.
“Finally. The food’s growing cold.” Caroline barks and I look at my watch. I’ve only been inside the hotel for twenty minutes, tops.
In her late forties, her blonde hair has started to turn gray, but it’s hard to tell because it’s so close to her original color. It’s cut in a short, no-nonsense way, but it’s always covered in a yellow bandana whenever she’s in the kitchen. Most of the time out of the kitchen as well.
“Apologies. We didn’t mean to keep you waiting,” I say.
“So sorry! You know how chatty this one gets. I couldn’t get him to shut up.” Ava jerks her thumb in my direction and Caroline winks at her. How has she already wrapped Caroline around her finger? “We’re so excited to taste your food.” As if planned, Ava’s stomach lets out a noisy growl.
Caroline tsks. “You poor thing. Let’s get you fed.”
Caroline grabs a platter with samples of at least ten different hors d'oeuvres. There are three of each. Caroline plucks one off the tray and holds it up. “This one is the most traditional, a gougères with smoked salmon, caviar, and prosciutto.” She pops it into her mouth. I guess the third one was for her. Ava and I take our samples. Ava takes a bite, but I shove the whole thing in my mouth.
Ava hums and then finishes off her pastry. She sucks on the tip of one finger and then another. Time slows as her tongue darts out and she licks the corner of her mouth.
“That was amazing, right?” Ava looks up at me with wide eyes and a soft smile. Her eyes sparkle and she looks so happy. It’s as if she’s lit up from within. Over a fucking bite of food.
“Why is it so hot in here?” I loosen my tie and remove my suit coat, tossing it on a stool.
“You’re in a kitchen, genius.” Caroline glares at me, her mouth curving up as her gaze drifts to Ava. “Try this one next. It’s my favorite. It’s a spicy lamb meatball with a savory herb dip.”
Ava excitedly picks up the meatball with a toothpick, dips it in the sauce and groans so loud when she takes a bite that it sidelines me. My entire body wakes up, the numbness of the potion wearing off and the brightness of the kitchen hitting me with full force.
She turns her honeyed gaze in my direction. Her eyes widen slightly before she coughs. What’s her problem? “Aren’t you going to try it?” she chokes out, and then clears her throat as she looks away.
Without thought, I grab the meatball and shove it in my mouth.
Caroline makes an unhappy sound. “Did you even chew it?”
“Yes. What else is there?”
Ava elbows my side, and once again, I’m adrift. What the fuck is happening? All I can do is stare down at this mousy woman. Except that’s not exactly right. With her hair down and the smile on her face, she’s radiant. Her laugh is loud but so contagious it makes me want to join in and I never feel like doing anything joyful.
Caroline slowly takes us through an entire tasting menu. With each bite of food Ava takes, I become more and more tense. She keeps making these noises. The sheer fucking enjoyment she gets out of eating food is insane. And she keeps licking things. Her fingers, her lips, a spoon. Fuck.
She eats some concoction on a small triangle of toast. I have no clue what it is because I’m not paying attention to Caroline. The moan that comes out of Ava shoots straight to my dick.
“Can you stop?”
Ava and Caroline both turn to look at me. Ava with surprise on her face, and Caroline with a sneer.
“Stop eating?” Ava sets down the rest of her toast. Caroline makes a snarling noise.
“Stop making that noise. That little sexual sound every time you eat something.”
Ava’s face turns beet red, and she wipes at her mouth. “I didn’t realize…”
“Nonsense.” Caroline shoots me a dirty look. “It’s the highest compliment. This one just doesn’t know how to enjoy anything.”
It’s on the tip of my tongue to argue with her, but she’s probably right. I need to get out of here before I sweep all the food off the table, throw Ava on top of it, and fucking taste her. I don’t even care who’s in the kitchen to watch.
“We’re done. Pick whatever you like. I have other things to do today.” Without a backward glance, I storm out of the kitchen and try to erase the sounds of Ava moaning from my memory.