Chapter 6
The Little Tea Pixie
Check in hand, I knock on the closed bakery door. It’s a little after two, just after they close for the day.
Ryder opens the door a few minutes later, wearing a half apron over his fitted jeans. He’s rolled the sleeves of an olive-green, button-up shirt to his elbows. With his spring eyes, light brown hair, and mischievous smile, he’s very handsome.
I smirk to myself, picturing all the human women haunting the bakery just for a chance to talk to him.
The wood elf leans against the doorframe instead of letting me in. “If you keep smiling at me like that, I’m going to have to steal you from Rowan.”
“Speaking of Rowan, he’s watching the shop by himself, so I can’t stay long.”
“Leaving me for him already? Tell me his secrets so I may win your heart.”
“You want secrets?” I say, tempted to vent.
“I always want secrets, Tinker Bell.” He grins.
“Let me see if I can guess. The love triangle you formed with Ash and Rowan is actually a square, and you’ve come to tell me I’ve won the battle of heart geometry?
If you want to run away together, that’s fine, but can you test my pastries for me first? ”
“What? No.” I shake my head. “Rowan told me he likes me, but he thinks I’m being influenced by the bond, so he doesn’t want to touch me, fearing I’ll wake up from the love potion that is our fused magic and—I don’t know—loathe him or something.
But we keep touching each other because the bond is relentless, and have you seen Keira? ”
I inhale sharply because that was a lot, and I’m out of breath.
Ryder chuckles. Pushing away from the doorframe, he leads me into the bakery. It smells like chocolate-covered heaven, but my stomach is in such a jumble, I’m not sure I’m hungry. “So, you’re not in love with me?”
“Seriously,” I say, feeling forlorn. “Have you seen her?”
“I have,” he says carefully. “I take it you have, too.”
“She came to the tea shop yesterday, talked to Rowan for about thirty minutes upstairs, and then left.”
“Sit,” he commands, pointing to a table near the kitchen entrance.
I do as I’m told, feeling bereft.
Ryder disappears into the back, but he comes out a minute later carrying two large plates with four different pastries.
He sets them in the middle of the table and takes the chair opposite me.
“I’m working on a cherry-chocolate dessert for our July special.
” He points to each pastry in turn. “Cherry chocolate mousse cake, cherry chocolate cheesecake brownie, cherry pie with chocolate crumb crust and dark chocolate drizzle, and cherry chocolate cannoli.”
“You made all these?”
“I did.”
“How are you so fit?” I look up at him. “And single?”
“That’s a sad tale. You see, I fell in love with my best friend’s girl, and I’m destined to live a life of unrequited love.” To really sell it, he gives me a cocky wink.
Not believing him for a second, I roll my eyes and take the fork, deciding that, yes, I will fill this anxious pit in my stomach with cherries, chocolate, and copious quantities of sugar, thank you very much. “You want me to try them all and pick my favorite?”
“Correct.” He sits back, crossing his arms, a studious frown on his face. “Go ahead.”
I try the cherry pie first and then close my eyes. “This one. Definitely this one.”
“You have to taste the others before you decide,” he laughs.
I try a bite of the cannoli next. “Oh, stars, Ryder, this is good, too. Maybe this one. It’s fussy and fun.”
Amused, he nods toward the remaining two desserts. “Keep going.”
I try the mousse cake and then the brownie. “Definitely one of those.”
“Which one?”
“Both?”
“You have successfully picked everything.” He pulls the plates away. “You’re not helpful at all. Go away.”
“Give those back!”
Laughing, he returns the plates. “At least narrow it down to two.”
I try each one again, lingering. “They’re too good. You’re a great baker, Ryder.”
He acknowledges the praise with the flick of his wrist.
“The mousse cake,” I finally say.
The elf makes a note on his phone. “Meg agreed. Mom voted for the brownie—”
“Is that like an inside joke?”
“—and Dad liked the cannoli.”
“Have you asked anyone else?”
“Nope, just my favorite people.” He grins at me.
“You’re so full of it.”
“For what it’s worth, I like you better than Keira. She wasn’t good for Rowan.”
“Anna said the same thing.” I worry my bottom lip between my teeth. “But Keira is…”
“Gorgeous?” he raises his eyebrows. “Poised? Successful?”
I swallow. “Yeah.”
“She’s also impatient, pushy, and selfish.”
“I don’t feel like I measure up. Like, literally, she’s probably six inches taller than me.”
“You are adorable—the kind of girl a man wants to cuddle up to and protect.”
“You make me sound like a purse dog.”
He chuckles, picking up the spare fork from a plate and twirling it between his fingers.
“Believe me, you are just as appealing as Keira, but in your own way. More even, because you’re pretty inside, too.
If Rowan is keeping you at arm’s length, it’s because he’s scared.
Too often, people who are supposed to love him don’t.
Give him some time. He’ll feel better if he can figure out how to break the bond. ”
“You don’t think Keira loved him?”
“I don’t. Though we can’t necessarily fault her for that. I’m not sure the woman has a heart.”
One thing is obvious: Ryder isn’t going to side with Rowan’s ex. I take another bite of the pie and chew slowly, brooding over our strange situation.
The elf digs into a corner of the mousse cake. Closing his eyes as he eats the bite, he smiles, apparently pleased with the chocolate-covered fruits of his labor. “This is good. I impress even myself sometimes.”
I laugh, standing. “Don’t forget to give Arista my check, okay?”
“Will do.”
I’m almost to the door when the elf calls, “Hey, Kit.”
I turn back. “What?”
“I’ve seen Rowan with Keira, and I’ve seen him with you, and you don’t have to worry. He will choose you every day, all day. No doubt in my mind.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah.” He smirks. “That’s why it’s going to really break his heart when you run away with me.”
Grinning, I shake my head and head out the door. “Goodbye, Ryder.”
I’m almost back to the tea shop when my phone rings. I don’t recognize the number, but it’s a local area code, so I hit the green button. “Hello?”
“Hey, Kit, this is Russell—”
Gasping, I scramble to end the call and then stare at my phone in horror.
What do I do?
I glance to my left, realizing I’m in front of Town Hall. Not taking time to overthink my decision, I climb the steps.
There are several flyers on the announcement board. One advertises the ice cream social next weekend. Another lists all the Fourth of July activities the town has scheduled for the holiday.
I half expect the doors to be locked since it’s Saturday, but they’re open, so someone must be working.
Bailey sits at the reception desk when I walk in, looking mildly frazzled. But the pretty young winter pixie always looks frazzled—probably because she works with Ash.
“Hi, Kit.” She looks up from a large stack of papers she’s attempting to get through. “What can I do for you?”
I don’t know her well yet, though she’s visited the tea shop a few times. She’s in her early twenties, and her coloring is soft—soft brown hair, soft blue eyes, and soft ivory skin.
She has pretty freckles over the bridge of her nose and cheeks, and she wears reading glasses, though they appear to be shoved into her hair more often than not—just like they are now.
The winter pixie is reserved, bordering on timid, but who wouldn’t be with her magic? If I accidentally experienced people’s memories with them, I’d need to keep an appropriate distance, too.
“I need to talk to Ash,” I say. “I don’t suppose he’s working today?”
“He’s in his office.” She gestures toward the doorway behind her that opens to a hall. “Go on back.”
“Which one is it?”
“Second door on the left.”
After thanking her, I head down the hall. A brass plaque hangs on the door with Ash’s name and title on it.
I can just make out his muffled voice on the other side of the door, and I almost lose my nerve. But the call spooked me, so I dare a quiet knock.
If he doesn’t hear it, fine. I can come back later if need be.
But seconds later, the door opens. Ash presses a hand to one of his earbuds like it’s about to fall out, scowling at his phone screen.
“I need it by Wednesday at the latest,” he says to his caller, surprised when he looks up and finds me.
He ushers me inside. “I hope this delay isn’t a preview of things to come.
We fully expect the team that wins the bid to adhere to their proposed schedule.
If they cannot, we will be forced to remove them from the project, which will be time-consuming and costly for everyone involved. ”
I don’t know who he’s talking to, but I’m glad I’m not on the other side of it. Though technically, he’s used that same tone on me. Several times.
When he ends the call, the handsome councilman sits in his chair, removes his earbuds, and crosses his hands on his desk, giving me his full attention.
“This is an unexpected surprise.” He nods at the chairs across from him, inviting me to take a seat. “Are you here on business? Or pleasure?”
His mouth quirks with a smug smirk, reminding me why I was so taken with him when I first moved here. You know, before I realized he’s kind of a jerk.
“Russell just called me,” I admit, feeling a little sick—like maybe I did something to prompt a call from the criminal mage.
Ash’s attractive cockiness is swiftly replaced with a professional scowl. “When?”
“Just now. I didn’t recognize the number, but it was local, so I answered it.”
He pulls out a pad of yellow legal paper and a pen. “What did he say to you?”
“Nothing. I barely let him get out his name before I hung up on him.”
“I was hoping he’d move on.” Ash sets aside the pen and rises. “We can’t ignore it any longer. Let’s go see Emerson.”