Chapter 4
I’d picked a bad time to take a sip of coffee. I sputtered, sending the liquid right down the front of my cute little pink shirt. Cecelia had chosen it for me that morning, and it only occurred to me when I saw the brown splotches that she’d picked it because it was a romantic color.
“Brat,” I whispered to her under my breath. Something that was unmistakably a chuckle sounded in my ears. I needed to learn how Cecelia was making me hear things. Then the coffee stain disappeared. I wiped the rest off my neck with a napkin.
“We sell sex packages?” I cast the napkin aside, trying to look graceful despite my sputtering.
“Not sex exactly. But we do offer romance packages.” Lyra was still blushing, while Lydia made no effort to hide her mile-wide smirk.
What was going on behind the doors of the other divisions? A vision flashed through my mind of red velvet curtains and dimly lit rooms. Maybe there were supernatural chains or magic whips. Lydia would make a great dominatrix. I snort-laughed, which is a very becoming sound.
“What’s going on in that brain of yours?” Lydia lifted one eyebrow in suspicion.
“Oh, you know.” I tried to look innocent while sipping my coffee. “I have a vivid imagination. Tell me more about these romance packages.”
“They’re not what you’re thinking about.
” I couldn’t stop the blush spreading heat up my neck, and Lydia shook her head as if reading my mind.
“Couples massages, matching mani-pedis, or complementary cuts and styles. Yes, we add chocolates or champagne and make it an experience, but no one is having sex in our therapy rooms.”
For some reason, it was Lydia’s turn to blush. Well, that was interesting. Maybe someone was having sex in the salon. Or at least thinking about it. I lifted one corner of my mouth and waggled my eyebrows at her, very much enjoying her return scowl.
“It’s more than that,” she continued. “We’ve seen a steady decline in sales since you started treating him. Turns out if no one is going to see it, people are less interested in waxing their—”
“Okay, I get it. I understand the issue.” I flung my hands out to stop whatever euphemism Lydia was about to spew at us. Egads, this was becoming more serious by the minute. “It was on my list for us to discuss client confidentiality anyway. Brianne, can I have the floor?”
“Go ahead.” She waved her hand like an adorable little queen granting me a favor.
“First, let’s talk about client boundaries and protecting their privacy.”
“Boring,” Lauren replied in a singsong voice.
“But necessary.” I shot my tongue out in response to her teasing grin. “If this were only a counseling center, it would not be unusual for a group of therapists to discuss their individual patients’ needs and methods of treatment with one another.”
“But we aren’t a counseling center,” Brianne said, picking up where I left off.
“We’re not, and as much as I love you guys, even you”—I speared a glance at Lydia—“you aren’t qualified to help with mental health issues. Generally speaking, it’s not appropriate that I talk about their treatment plans with you. Or their issues.”
“I sense a but.” Lauren propped her elbows on the table and batted her eyes at me. She was unusually chipper today.
“But, some of my patients have supernatural factors that affect the Magnolia.” I barely suppressed my shudder.
There were still spiders living in my office walls from my client Gandy.
“And, sometimes, the world outside. I’m not so proud that I can’t admit I don’t always have the right expertise to handle them.
“You are my coven, and we should be sharing more than just business stuff. If a client is having a larger impact on our community, it’s only right that I share that information with you. We can solve problems together. Like this one. There has to be boundaries, though.”
“Like don’t blurt it out in the common space.” It was rare for Lydia to look contrite. I was a bit speechless. “Sorry about that.”
“Thanks. We’ve all gotten a bit lax with our lobby discussions.” My shoulders loosened a little when I saw their nods of agreement. Lydia had recognized, without me having to call her out, that she’d behaved inappropriately, and that mattered to me.
“How about this? If and when I have a patient whose need for treatment might overlap with or affect your divisions, I will let you guys know, so we can come up with a group solution. And if you sense something, or have concerns of your own, you can bring those to me as well.”
“More meetings?” Lydia whined like I’d asked her to clean her room before supper.
“Not a meeting. A casual gathering periodically. And it doesn’t have to be in here, so it won’t feel so formal.
I can create a private space for us at lunch to discuss.
” I paused to think about it. I needed to tell them we were fighting against the clock, but the boardroom didn’t feel like the right place to discuss it.
“Actually, let’s use the Reading Room. It’s perfect for more relaxed debriefs. ”
Lauren, who already seemed to be bursting at the seams, brightened at my mention of the Reading Room.
When Cecelia had rebuilt herself after the boobicane, she’d opened the loft space that previously only I’d been able to access.
All of the Magnolia Codex was available for the coven to read, and the space was so cozy we all tended to prop our feet up and enjoy it, even if we weren’t reading.
Lauren, most of all, was enjoying the surprising privacy an open space created.
As it turned out, only the coven could access it.
We’d oh-so-cleverly coined it the Reading Room, happy to have found a casual private area away from customers and prying ears when we needed it.
The more I thought about this idea, the more I liked it.
And from the looks on my coven’s faces, they liked it, too.
We’d all come to value communication since our Threadbinding ceremony.
Communication amongst us strengthened our little family.
And hell, if I couldn’t honestly communicate my issues with this group, when and where could I?
“As far as Cupid goes, he’s a prick with a prick problem.
” As soon as I said it, I regretted it. Pain in my ass or no, Cupid was a patient, and I shouldn’t be letting my coven laugh at him.
This was definitely testing the limits of my professionalism.
“And I’m very concerned about the impact this is having.
He and I decided just this morning to meet three times a week. ”
Brianne made a sound of sympathy, and I allowed myself a chuckle. “I’m considering more aggressive treatments. Hopefully, I can help him find a baseline before Valentine’s Day. Or, you know, a lot sooner.”
“What’s happening with Cupid?” Ethan asked. I chewed on my lip for a moment. I’d kind of forgotten he was in the room. “Wait, is this the actual Cupid? Like, the fat winged baby?”
“Definitely not a cherub,” I said. “But yes, the Cupid is my client. Needless to say, that’s privileged information.”
“Of course.” He waved his hand like that was obvious and turned his full body toward me. This was the most interested in me Ethan had been in months. “So what is his problem?”
“That, I definitely cannot discuss.” I scanned the room, looking for help, and found that everyone was suddenly eyes-deep in their quarterly reports. Traitors, the lot of them. “Let’s just say that the Roman god of desire’s powers are on the fritz. And it’s having … unintended consequences.”
“What kind of consequences?” Ugh. Ethan wasn’t going to allow us to brush past this.
“Well, um …” I stammered a bit, stalling for time while my cheeks grew so hot I thought I might catch fire.
This was about more than walking a line.
Explaining that Cupid’s romantic feelings affected the entire supernatural community meant telling him I knew I no longer whet his whistle.
Which meant admitting that I used to whet his whistle.
We’d danced around it, sure, but saying it outright, in a room full of my closest friends?
I’ll pass, thanks. The room was uncomfortably quiet. If a cricket dropped a pin right now we’d all cover our ears from the sudden sound. Gumbo’s gut stopped gurgling, as if acutely aware how loud it had been. That’s when Brianne proved she was the best of pearls.
“Nate hasn’t touched me in months.” Okay, so maybe I’d just thought the room was quiet before. Now? Even Cecelia was holding her breath. Not that she had any.
It could have been comical. The slow way Ethan’s head swiveled from me to Brianne, his mouth forming a small O, would have been funny. If poor Bri’s eyes weren’t brimming with tears and her voice wasn’t laced with hurt.
“It’s like we are roommates. And barely even that.” She shrugged her shoulders, like it didn’t matter, breaking my heart a little in the process. “We’ve lost all intimacy.”
“Wow, I … wow.” It was Ethan’s turn to find his report fascinating.
“We’re calling it the supernatural love lock, at least for now.” Lauren patted Ethan’s hand, which was twiddling the edges of his paper. We’d actually been calling it the supernatural sex wall, but Ethan didn’t need to know that. Besides, anything was better than saying Cupid had a limp shaft.
Lauren took a deep breath. It held the slightest bit of a shake, betraying the nerves she’d been hiding. She was going to change the subject, and I couldn’t have been happier about it.
“In other news, I’ve found a new manager.
” Bless Lauren. Really, just bless that woman.
She chattered on about who she’d hired, their qualifications, and how excited she was.
Ethan seemed to forget all about Cupid, and the tension in the air dissolved almost as quickly as it had appeared.
At least for the rest of them. This was a weight I was going to carry on my shoulders for a while.
But I was glad Lauren was, finally, moving forward.
Her work habits had been on my radar since the Threadbinding ceremony, when she’d admitted that her work-life balance scale had tipped too far in the wrong direction.
She longed to recapture her adventurous, roaming side.
The bitter taste of guilt still coated my tongue when I thought about it.
When Agatha had given up on my return, she’d put pressure on Lauren to take over the coven.
It was a position Lauren didn’t want, but she’d agreed to for the sake of the Magnolia.
From then on, she’d worked harder than she played and didn’t seem to know how to break the cycle.
For months, we’d encouraged her to cut back her hours so she could do more of what she loved.
But she’d shown very little sign of actually making the move.
She kept telling us she didn’t think the clinic would run without her.
Or she was waiting for a different season.
Or her toenails were too pink. Any excuse to avoid actually making a change. This was good news.
“She’s not what you’d expect,” she continued. “But I’m convinced she’s right for the job.”
“I’m sure we’ll love her.” More likely, though I wouldn’t tell her this unless I thought she needed to hear it, Lauren was afraid the place could, in fact, run without her.
For all of her steadiness, Lauren needed to feel relevant.
It was too bad she measured that usefulness in hours worked instead of quality.
I could relate to that. And had told her as much, time and again. She’d worked miracles on my broken leg, and since then had me in a routine that made me feel strong and, dare I say it, sexy. At least part of the time.
But Lauren hid her own insecurities behind a high ponytail and a bright smile. I wished I had a way to show her how wonderful she was. Moreover, I wished she could find it for herself. Maybe an adventure was what she needed to put her on that path.
“Her name is Nina, and she started today. I wanted to get her settled before everyone met her. But it would be great if you could all make yourselves available. Especially you, Simone.” When she smiled at me, her lips quivered. She really wanted this to work.
“I’ll introduce myself first thing in the morning.” I rounded the table and gave her a quick hug. “I’m so excited for you. When are you going on vacation?”
“Not for a while. I want to get her adjusted and trained first.” She squeezed me tight. When we let go, she ran a hand over her ponytail and turned to Brianne. “Now then, as far as how this affects the financials …”
Once she started talking about spreadsheet stuff, I returned to my seat to space out again.
She had Bri’s attention, and that was good enough for me.
But I didn’t miss that she was still only dipping her toe into the shallow end of the changing pool.
If a trip wasn’t planned, she could keep putting it off, making excuses for why she couldn’t do it until we were all old and gray.
She’d need a hard deadline, and I was gonna give her one if I had to. Ethan leaned toward me and lowered his voice. “She’ll never take a vacation unless you force her to.”
“I was just thinking the same thing.” This was one of my favorite things about Ethan. The way he understood the big picture. It was so easy for him to be supportive. He was a thinker and a planner. Steady as they came.
“We should plan it for her.” He shot me a wink, then jolted, as if surprised by his own actions. Wow. Was even winking at me giving him a weird feeling? Thanks for nothing, god of romance.
But the idea of pushing Lauren into something she wasn’t ready for didn’t sit right with me. And however well-intentioned Ethan was, I didn’t like the idea of us controlling someone else’s future.
“Let’s discuss it next week,” I said. “We’ll know more once we’ve met whatever pretty young blonde Lauren is putting in charge while she’s away.”