Chapter 25
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
The brass bell above the door jingles as Asher pushes into Biscuits and Banter. After an afternoon of catching up and spilling all my deepest secrets to my bestie, Asher has convinced me I’m still me and whatever comes, we’ll fix it.
Now, with my heart healed and my tears dried, I’m ready for some of Tanner’s pulled pork and a massive slice of coconut cream pie.
“The food was good at Arcana, but nothing like—”
“SURPRISE!”
I jolt backward, colliding with Asher’s chest as what feels like half of Emberwood explodes out from behind tables and booths. Balloons bob against the ceiling. A hand-painted banner stretches across the back wall:
WELCOME HOME, POPPY!
My hands fly to my mouth.
Tanner emerges from behind the counter, grinning ear to ear. “Technically, you’ve been back a few weeks, but we heard from a little birdie that you’ve got your memories back and are ready for a proper welcome.”
I rush forward and hug him. “After all the family meals we had here, and all the times I sat in a back booth eating pie doing my homework in high school, I can’t believe I didn’t remember you.”
He gives me a tight squeeze. “It’s so good to have you whole and home, sweetie.”
When I ease back, Mayor Declan is next in line. “It’s good to have you back, Firefly.”
I cling to him, the soft warmth of his flannel shirt a constant comfort as a kid. “It’s incredible to be back.”
Eliza stands beside him, smirking. “We missed you, trouble. Welcome home.”
The kickass alpha of the New England shifters. How could I have forgotten how much I looked up to her as a kid? “Thank you.”
Asher hands me a napkin, and I wipe my tears. When I take in all the familiar faces in the crowd, something inside me shifts and finally locks into place.
I am Poppy Hallowind-Forrester and, like all the Hallowinds before me, I’m an Emberwood witch.
This is my place, and these are my people.
The outpouring of love and support is overwhelming, but in the best possible way. I glance over my shoulder to find Asher standing behind me. “You did this.”
He winks, looking ridiculously pleased with himself. “You’re a rock star, Pops. You needed to be reminded of who you are and deserved a pick-me-up. After all you’ve been put through, it’s past time this town celebrated you.”
“I love you, Asher Hendrix.”
He leans forward and kisses my forehead. “Right back at you, girlfriend.”
I take a deep breath, and though I’m not totally comfortable being the center of all this positive attention, I accept it with gratitude and move through the diner to acknowledge everyone’s support.
Pete salutes me with his coffee mug. “Damn good to have you back, kid. Really, truly back.”
“Thank you, Mr. Dalton.”
He chuckles. “Pete is just fine, honey. You’re all grown up now.”
I am. It’s crazy to me that all these people are etched in my past and mean so much to me. I’m still that sixteen-year-old girl who belonged to a secret society within a magical world, but I’m also more than that.
I survived five years digging down deep with nothing going for me but determination, the grit to take everything the world threw at me, and the love of a best friend.
Asher was right. I needed to be reminded of who I am.
Orion is smiling at me, a Cheshire grin on his beautiful face. He’s leaning against the jukebox, the honed muscles of his crossed arms bulging, his silver-blue cat eyes glinting out from behind black eyeliner. “Welcome home, Popstar.”
I hug him, beyond relieved to have him back. If life has a balance, the Goddess Mother gave me the two best besties ever, to compensate for what I needed to endure.
Mom always taught us that things happen for a reason and that the Goddess Mother will balance the scales. I understand that more than ever before. It may suck, but I am where I am, standing as who I am, because this needed to happen for the balance of things moving forward.
And that means that somehow, my demon-marked bloodline and blood-bound contract will balance out in the end. To have faith in the Goddess Mother means I have faith She has a plan.
I step back from hugging Orion and arch a brow. “I can see you and Asher are already conspiring against me. This has got your sticky fingerprints all over it.”
Orion shrugs, all faux innocence. “I mean, technically I may have helped with the invites. What could I do, your boy begged me to use my connections.”
Asher chuckles. “I didn’t beg. If and when I beg, you’ll know it.”
The look that passes between them is way too intimate for mixed company. Yay me. Matchmaker of the century.
Rowan comes over, twirling a streamer around her finger. “This diner is a trip.”
“Right?” I laugh, turning to study the place. These people—my people—showed up for me. After everything that’s happened, after the chaos and the fear and the demon marks, they’re here.
Tanner claps his hands together. “All right, everyone, let’s get this party started! The food is ready, Marty is mixing cocktails, and Asher and Orion have come up with a couple of party games which sound fun, if not a little inappropriate.”
“What’s a party without a little inappropriate behavior?” Asher asks.
Yeah, that’s my bestie.
Marty waves from behind the counter, a ridiculous grin splitting his bearded face.
He’s wearing a t-shirt that stretches across his burly chest that says, I’M BACK, BITCHES in bold letters.
“We’ve got beer, wine, rum, scotch, and some kind of vodka/strawberry/lemonade fizz abomination that I’m assured will make Poppy smile. ”
“Because it’s fabulous,” I assure him.
The jukebox kicks on, and the opening notes of Good as Hell by Lizzo pump through the diner. I laugh because, yeah, this is at the top of my playlist.
Asher nudges me forward. “Go. Eat. Celebrate. You deserve this.”
I float through the next hour on a cloud of pulled pork, laughter, and terrible dance moves. Rowan challenges me to a duel of who can lip-sync Truth Hurts better, and we both end up doubled over laughing when Marty joins in from behind the counter.
Pete regales us with a story about the time he caught one of my high school friends stealing a bag of rice from the Mercantile. “I told him, ‘Son, if you’re that desperate, just ask. But you’re gonna pay me back by stacking shelves for a week.’ Kid did it, too. Now he works for me part-time.”
Declan shakes his head. “You’re a softy, Pete.”
“Kindness keeps this town running,” Pete shoots back, raising his drink.
Eliza catches my eye from across the room and lifts her glass in a silent toast. I return it, warmth spreading through my chest.
Orion and Asher drift closer to where I’m sitting, and I watch them interact with barely concealed delight. Asher’s animated, his hands gesturing wildly as he tells some story about the dogs, and Orion’s watching him with this small, genuine smile that makes my heart squeeze.
“They are so hot together,” Rowan murmurs beside me.
“Right?” I whisper back. “Asher deserves someone incredible.”
“Orion too. I’ve never seen him smile like that before.”
I grin into my strawberry fizz.
The jukebox cycles through Levitating and Shut Up and Dance, and somehow I end up in the middle of the diner doing the worst rendition of the Cha-Cha Slide known to mankind. Tanner’s laughing so hard he has to lean against the counter, and Marty’s filming the whole thing on his phone.
“This is going on the community board!” Marty crows.
“You wouldn’t dare!”
“Oh, I absolutely would.”
Later, when the music softens and people start filtering out, I find myself at a booth with Asher, Orion, and Rowan. My cheeks hurt from smiling, and my stomach’s full of good food and better company.
Asher nudges my shoulder. “We’ve got a late arrival.”
My gaze shifts to the door, where Wylder is standing with his hands shoved deep into the pockets of his jeans, the sleeves of his shirt rolled up to show muscular forearms.
Damn, when did that happen? When did I start looking at him and seeing more than a miserable pain in my ass?
Maybe knowing his pain and remembering his mom has softened me up. Maybe I’m grateful for all the help he’s given me over the past two weeks. Or maybe it’s the magic of downing four strawberry vodka fizzes, but seeing him here, at my welcome home party, means a lot.
I take a sip of my fizzy sweetness and close the distance. “Hey, I didn’t expect to see you here. Thanks for coming.”
Wylder’s smile is stiff and feels a little rusty, but so genuine it makes my heart hurt for him. While I had Asher to get me through the past five years, he had Laurel.
There’s no comparison.
“Yeah, Orion sent me an invite.” His smile falters, and he drops his gaze to stare into his drink. “Hope you don’t mind.”
“Of course not. I meant what I said back at my house. I’m sorry for acting like I’m the only one who was devastated by what happened. I wasn’t myself and felt so lost I couldn’t see beyond the pain.”
He dips his chin. “Same.”
For a long moment, we stay like that, the noise of the party surrounding us: the music playing, the overlapping voices, the rise and fall of laughter.
I take another sip of my drink and then hold out my hand. “Hey, I’m Poppy. I’m new in town and looking forward to happier days.”
Wylder takes my hand and squeezes. “It’s good to finally meet you, Poppy. Welcome home.”
Tanner raises his glass from across the diner. “To Poppy’s homecoming.”
Everyone raises their glass, and for the first time in five years, all is right in my personal world. Not perfect by a long shot, but right.
The next afternoon, I wipe the sweat from my brow and lean against one of the old oak trees in the backyard. My lungs are burning, and my skin is tingling with remnant magic.
Wylder doesn’t take it easy during training, not even when I’ve spent the last two hours working through elemental shields and offensive spell variations.
“You’re doing well, Pops.” Orion crosses his arms as he watches me catch my breath. “Last week you would’ve been face-down in the grass by now.”