Chapter 3
Hadley
The first thing you notice when you walk into my ice cream shop is the smell.
Warm cookie dough waffle cones.
Vanilla bean.
Hot fudge.
Fresh strawberries simmering down for syrup.
It’s sweet enough to make people smile before they even reach the counter, which was exactly my late Aunt Agatha’s philosophy.
Dessert should make people happy before they taste it.
I kept the name—Agatha’s Ice Cream—because around here people say it like it’s sacred.
But the rest? That’s where I’ve been putting my own spin on things.
All organic.
Non-GMO.
Local dairy and produce from farms right here or near Maverick Point.
The berries come from a little family farm ten miles out.
The honey comes from a beekeeper down the road.
Even the milk is from grass-fed cows who probably have better lives than I did the last couple of years living in New York.
I lean against the counter and check the churner spinning out my newest batch—Honey Lavender Sweet Cream—and grin.
The inspiration actually came from my hometown in Barvale.
There’s a little place there called Honey Sweet Creamery, owned by the sweetest Bear Shifter couple you could ever meet.
Those two run the shop together like a rom-com waiting to happen.
Locke and Nita Nanouk.
They’re basically local legends.
If I can make half the magic they do?
I’ll be happy.
And so far Maverick Point seems pretty happy too.
Which honestly surprises me.
Because if someone had told me six months ago I’d move to what’s essentially an almost all-Shifter town and reopen my aunt’s ice cream shop, I would have assumed I’d lost my mind.
But here I am.
A Black Bear Shifter from Barvale running a shop in Maverick Pride territory.
So far, everyone’s been incredibly welcoming.
Which is nice.
Because the last place I lived?
New York City.
Let’s just say the people there weren’t quite as sweet.
I grab a rag and wipe the counter while the memory creeps up, anyway.
Corporate marketing job.
Sixty-hour work weeks.
Takeout dinners eaten over spreadsheets.
And my ex-fiancé.
Judd the dud.
Ugh.
Just thinking about him makes my stomach twist.
Turns out the man I thought I was going to marry was actually cheating on me with his assistant. For months.
And when I found out?
He had the nerve to tell me I was too much for him.
Too nice.
Too big.
Too much like the quaint New Jersey Bear Shifter town we left behind.
And yet, even with all that too muchness—he also said I wasn’t ambitious enough.
Asshole.
My mom was devastated.
See I’m her last single daughter.
An embarrassment to the Smith family tree.
Mom liked Judd.
Told me I should forgive him.
That I should try to change for him.
And that I should just forget he’d been screwing his secretary for months.
Thanks, Mom. But no thanks.
So yeah, New York, Judd, and I all broke up at the same time.
And honestly?
Best decision I ever made.
This shop is exactly what I needed.
Simple.
Creative.
Mine.
Which means there is exactly zero room in my life right now for romance.
Men?
Hard pass.
I’m just finishing frosting a tray of waffle cone bowls when the bell above the door jingles.
“Welcome to Agatha’s—”
The words die in my throat.
Because the man walking in looks like Christmas and mischief had a baby.
He’s wearing a white wool coat.
Brilliant white—and it’s flawless.
Like nothing would dare spill on it ever.
I can’t wear white.
Heck, I can’t wear anything without a pattern on it to hide my boo-boos because I’m such a mess-especially when it comes to food or drink.
Accidents follow me around like so much bad luck.
But back to mystery man.
Even his shoes are white—and highly polished, too.
He has a beard and thick hair, both snowy white, and his blue eyes sparkle like he’s about to start a prank.
“Well, hello there, Liebling!” he says cheerfully.
I blink.
“Um, hi?”
He strolls up to the counter like he owns the place.
But he doesn’t.
And I know that because I actually do own the place.
“My name is Uncle Uzzi.”
“Okay.”
I have no idea what this guy wants or who he is, but there is something about him that is making my Bear twitchy.
“I think I am just what you need, Liebling!”
He winks and glitter—actual blue sparkles—twinkle in the air surrounding him.
“Wow. Well, that’s a very confident introduction.”
He laughs.
“But of course! You see, I am a magical matchmaking Witch.”
Who the what now?
“Sure. Of course you are.”
He leans on the counter and peers into the churner.
“Ohhh, honey lavender. Lovely choice.”
My bear chuffs, pleased at the compliment.
But my human mind, well she knows better than to fall for stuff and nonsense.
And since I have no idea what this guy wants, I narrow my gaze.
“You didn’t come here for ice cream, did you?”
“Nope, but I never turn it down, Darling,” he admits happily.
“I did come here, however, for another reason.”
“And that is?
“To change your present by showing you your future.”
And now I’m completely flummoxed.
He signs and pulls out his phone and spins it around.
On the screen, I see a few things. A heart with wings, pulsating with pink and blue sparkles. DATE TO MATE. The title is just scrawled across it in bold script.
I stare at the screen.
“A dating app?”
“A magical dating app.”
“Um, hard pass.”
“What is with the people in this town all of a sudden?’ he sighs, exasperated.
“So, ice cream?”
“Yes, please.”