Chapter 9
Jena swore, struggling to get the heavy, bagged robe through the dry cleaner’s door.
This day just kept getting frickin’ better and better, and she wasn’t running on enough sleep to deal with it.
She’d been up half the night with Aggie; her cough hadn’t improved, and the stubborn witch refused to see a doctor.
If it didn’t start clearing by tomorrow, Jena was hog-tying her and hauling her bony ass in.
She blew a hank of hair from her eyes and glared at Geri Diaz behind the counter.
Geri blinked back at her, perfectly content to watch her struggle.
“You got it?” Geri drawled, once the door thumped behind Jena and she was halfway across the tiled entryway. The middle-aged woman wasn’t actively anti-Jena, but she sure as hell had never lifted a finger to help her—or anyone else for that matter.
“Yeah, thanks,” Jena said dryly, plopping the awkward load across the counter.
Satin-lined, embroidered velvet was no joke.
“I need this cleaned, and I don’t know if you can do anything with this.
” She set her bagged-up cardigan on top of it.
Despite washing it twice at the laundromat this morning, it still reeked of lying asshole.
Geri untied the knot, then pulled back like a snake was inside. “Whoo! What did you do, walk in on them?”
“Something like that,” Jena gritted out.
Geri clucked her tongue and muttered something in Spanish. “Honestly, mating pheromones aren’t meant to come out. The stuff bonds into the fibers, though the scent will fade,” she raised a brow and glanced at Jena, “in a year or two.”
Damn it. “So, it’s ruined.”
“Not necessarily…” The laundress sucked her teeth. “What a shame. It’s hard to get this shade of sidhe-blue to take, especially with wool. Hang it up outside, and let it air out for a while, but I wouldn’t walk around with it on, unless you want some serious problems.”
“Got enough of those, thanks.” Jena frowned.
Geri snorted, retying the bag and setting it aside. “This another one of those robes?”
“Yeah.”
Geri pulled a pencil stub from behind her ear, wrote it up, and handed Jena a ticket stub. “Should be ready by next week.”
“Next week?” Crap, the order was supposed to go out by Friday.
“Next week.” Geri’s thin lips tightened. “Right now I’m slammed with everyone’s cross quarter day garb for the Samhain festival.”
“Cross quarter day garb?” Jena sighed as the woman’s brow knit. “I’ve never been. Aggie isn’t a fan.”
“Well, there’s a surprise.” Geri waved a hand at the racks behind her.
“All of that’s ceremonial robes, tuxes, and gowns that could put a quinceanera to shame.
About five or six years ago, they decided to make it a big to-do.
There’s a huge carnival down at the waterfront, town hall opens up, there’s a parade, and then huge party on the lawn.
Hopefully that tropical depression rolling in rolls out just as quick.
You have any idea what a pain grass stains on soggy silk tulle are to deal with? ”
“Nope.”
Geri shot her a look. “I’ll take wet velvet any day. That’s heavy as hell, but at least it doesn’t shred.”
“Then I guess next week it is,” Jena muttered, already dreading writing that email.
To say the man who’d bought the robe had been exacting was a serious understatement, but not having it cleaned wasn’t an option.
The must from Aggie’s ruined herbs had made its way into storage and everything was coated with the funk.
Jena grabbed the bag with her cardigan and waved goodbye to Geri.
It was time to meet Felix for coffee, which promised to be weird.
Jena headed down the sidewalk toward town hall, chewing her lip.
She’d expected him to be all fired up about his weekend exploits, but his texts this morning had been subdued.
Something was going on. If whoever he’d hooked up with had turned out to be an asshole, she’d kill them. Felix deserved to be happy.
And damn it, so did she.
Which begged the question, why was she still in town again? Aggie. She was here for—
Chase Montgomery.
Jena froze as she saw him leaving the municipal building, then ducked behind a tree. She closed her eyes, swearing at herself. There’s no way he hadn’t seen her. Christ, how old was she? Screw this. She stepped back onto the sidewalk—
And he walked past her without a word, clenching a document tube in one hand and tugging his stupid hat brim lower with the other.
Jena’s jaw dropped. Are you fucking kidding me? That sack of shit! She hadn’t actually wanted to talk to him, but how the hell could he walk right past her without even one goddamned—Her fingertips tingled, a hex begging—begging—to roll off her tongue.
That lying son of a bitch.
Tears stung her eyes, and she dashed them away. He didn’t fucking deserve them. She whipped her sweater into the first garbage can she passed, just wanting to be done with him and the rest of this shitty town—
“Oh, honey…what’s wrong?”
She looked up to see Felix hurrying over in a salmon blazer and navy slacks. His button-down shirt had hotdogs all over it. Jena barked out a half-sob, half-laugh, and he put his arm around her.
“That sounds like you need a caramel latte with an extra shot and a double bacon, egg, and cheese with tomato and avocado on a croissant—stat.”
Jena nodded. Yup. Time to eat her feelings.
She wasn’t going to argue, even if it was proving her stupid ex right.
Felix handed her a magenta pocket square with an embroidered fish on it—because of course he did—and let her sniffle in silence all the way to Cups.
He got her settled at a corner table inside and put their order in.
“You want to talk about it?” he asked when he got back to the table with their drinks. She shook her head, and he quirked a brow. “Jena—”
“What? There is no it.” And it was true, damn it. Chase was officially dead to her. She forced a smile. “I want to hear about your weekend.”
“Don’t be so sure about that,” he said, glancing at Kelsey Montgomery coming over with their order.
Eastside—not west. She still looked the same, a smattering of freckles over her pug nose, braids the shade of cherry-cola, and overalls.
Maybe she’d gotten a little heavier, but Christ, this town had to be in some weird time warp.
Jena crossed her fingers that whatever wayback machine they had would do its magic on her so she could fit back into her favorite pair of jeans.
“Hey, Felix. Jena.” She nodded at him as she set the tray between them and smiled at Jena. “I’m glad to see you back in town.”
Well, that was one person. Jena forced a smile in return.
Kelsey was flighty, but okay. They’d been study partners for a while, and her and the rest of the Eastside Montgomerys had always been cordial.
Probably because they were wired to like anything the Westside Montgomerys hated.
That wasn’t to say Kelsey’s pack had stuck up for Jena when she was being hazed, but that had something to do with were politics.
Jena hadn’t taken it personally. It was just one more of the fucked up things about this town everyone treated as normal.
“Thanks. I wish I could say it was good to be here.”
Kelsey laughed, glancing around the café.
“Don’t I know that feeling. Give it time.
It was weird when I started working in town, too.
I mean, it’s still weird, but things will settle down, and you’re always welcome on the other side of the tracks.
In fact, we’d love it if you came to this Saturday’s pig roast. It’s a Samhain tradition.
Super low key and informal. My mom always sets out a spread so the pack can nosh away their hangovers. ”
“Thanks…I’ll think about it,” Jena said, surprised at the offer.
“You too, Felix. It’ll be fun.” Kelsey smiled at them again and went back to the kitchen.
Jena watched her go. “Well, that was unexpected.”
Felix shrugged. “Things have changed since you’ve been gone.
The Eastside pack isn’t as reclusive as it used to be.
They found some kind of mineral deposit in their territory, and they’re not Havers’s red-headed stepchildren anymore.
” He tugged one of his flaming curls and grinned.
“I’m pretty sure they could give the Westside a run for their money if they wanted to. ”
“Huh.” Jena bit into her sandwich, and it was pure bliss. “God, this is good.”
“I’m glad, but at risk of ruining your appetite, we need to talk.” He glanced around the café then drew a glyph on the tabletop.
Jena cocked a brow at the cone of silence he’d invoked. “Was the sex that outrageous?”
“Yes, but that’s not what I want to talk to you about,” he said, dead serious. “You need to know that this Chambers-Montgomery wedding is a total lie.”
Jena started choking. “What?” she asked when she could breathe again.
“Look, I’m not clear on all the details, but Chase’s father is forcing him into it, and while I was at the compound, I overheard Crystal and Malcom fighting. Your name came up.”
“My name?” Jena squeaked.
Felix nodded, stirring granola into his yogurt. “Apparently your scent was all over Chase’s cabin, and Crystal lost her shit.”
“Oh, for the love of—you’re right, this is ruining my appetite.
” Jena tossed her sandwich down. “He brought me home after I sprained my ankle, and you deserted me. There’s nothing between the two of us, and there’s not going to be.
He’s as much of a lying asshole now as he was in high school, and I don’t want a damned thing to do with him. ”
Felix cocked a brow, deadpan, sucking yogurt off his spoon, and she squirmed.
“Okay. Let’s go with that for now,” he said. “Unfortunately, I don’t think Malcom is on board, and I very clearly heard him say he’d ‘take care of it,’ and by ‘it,’ I’m almost positive he meant you.”
Jena felt the blood leave her face. “He threatened me?”