Authors: Melissa Cutler
One More Taste (42 page)
“Glitter?” Skye hissed, because
Really?
The bourbon and hair, she could see, but glitter?
Oh, please.
With eyes closed, her mom waved the cross pendant on her necklace over the mug. “No questions.”
Skye darted a look at Annika, who only shrugged.
After another minute more of chanting, her mom's eyes flew open. “The rest of the ingredients, we need from the day spa.”
All right. That sounded totally legitâ
not
. Because what old world magic didn't require volumizing shampoos and nail polish?
Still, she and Annika followed her mom from the room like eager students. After stowing the housekeeping trolley in a housekeeping closet near the ice machine, they descended in the elevator to the ground level. They'd only taken a few steps into the lobby when they were stopped in their tracks by none other than Granny June, five foot nothing and sitting astride her hot pink riding scooter, dressed in an emerald jogging suit and with a lowball glass of liquor in her hand.
Skye's mom put her hand on her hip. “Aren't you up a little late for an old woman?” The teasing line was said with a heavy dose of affection borne from forty years of familiarity.
Granny June hoisted her drink, the ice clinking merrily. “I can sleep when I'm dead. What are you kids up to? Skye, shouldn't you be out with Pearl's son right now?”
“Vince Biaggi is a dud. No more dating advice from you,” Skye said with a wag of her finger.
Granny June replied, “But his Facebook picture is so handsome!”
“She's listening to me now, June. We're doing this my way, and I have just the spell to help her find the perfect man. All we need a few final ingredients and we're off to get those now.”
Granny June stood from her riding scooter with a spryness that belied her age and extricated a knobby wooden walking cane with a bejeweled handle from behind the scooter's seat. “I'm in. Let's go.”
What a motley crew they made, marching through the lobby, past wedding revelers and clusters of hotel guests, then down a flight of stairs to the basement level where the resort's day spa was located. Skye's mom waved her master key fob at the spa's main door, then led the way into the darkened spa, flipping on lights as she blazed a trail through the hair salon room and into the corridor of private massage rooms.
In the first massage room, her mom went straight for the row of aromatherapy vials on the counter. “A drop of lavender. Two drops of cedar. And, finally, the secret ingredient⦔ She hunched away from the group, but Skye swore she saw her spit into the mug.
Gross.
But Skye couldn't find it in her heart to mind. She was having a blast connecting with this side of her mom that seldom made its appearance anymore.
Then her mom was facing them again. “Skye, get a coin from your purse.”
Skye dug through her purse and found a quarter loose in the bottom of it. She held the coin out, but her mom shook her head. “Kiss it first.”
Her mom held out the mug. “Drop it in.”
Skye said a quick prayer as she released the quarter from her fingers.
Bring my true love to me.
“Hold the mug and tell the spell what you're looking for.”
Skye knew the answer without thinking. She cradled the mug in her hands and stared down at the brown, oily liquid. “A man with a kind heart and a career. And I'm not going to move away from my family in Dulcet, so he has to be local.”
“And Mexican,” her mom added in a sage voice.
Skye gave her a side-eye. It would be nice to meet a man who shared her culture, but that wasn't mandatory. “And Catholic.”
Now
that
was mandatory.
Granny June nudged her. “Think bigger. Sexier. You deserve it.”
She did. Funny how low Skye's expectations had sank over the years. “Someone handsome and daring, with dark, soulful eyes, and who makes my toes curl every time he kisses me. Someone who will be all the adventure and thrill I need for the rest of my life and who loves me more than anything else in the world.”
Granny June gave a sage nod. “That's more like it.”
Skye's mom smiled. “Good. That sounds like a man I'd want for you. Now find the coin. Don't dry it. Just stick it in your bra, left cup, as near to your heart as you can.”
Skye dipped her hands into the now-cooled liquid and did as she was told, though the coffee was sure to leave a permanent stain on her white lace bra. The wet coin was cold against her breast, but other than that, she felt nothing new. No magic zings ripple through her. No swirls of glittery magic surrounded her like Cinderella's fairy godmother had accomplished with her wand before the ball. Instead, she felt like the same old Skye.
“What's supposed to happen next?” Granny June said.
“We wait,” Skye's mom said. “Your perfect man will come. You'll see.”
Another silent moment passed, waiting ⦠waiting. And then the door knob turned. The door opened wide.
Skye and her mom whirled towards it, using their bodies to block the view of the spell ingredients scattered on the counter, while Annika pretended to fluff the donut-shaped pillow at the head of the massage table.
“We're with housekeeping!” Skye called with a manic tone. “Just finishing up.” The last word died on her tongue as she took in the interloper.
A tall, broad-shouldered man filled the doorway, all muscle and tawny skin and smoldering hotness.
“Oh! Didn't expect to see anyone. I, uh⦔ He scratched his head, tousling his inky-black hair in the most adorably sexy way. “I'm Enrique. I'm new at the resort and I have my first massage client scheduled for the morning, so I wanted to get set up.” His attention slid to Skye. There was no mistaking the heat in his eyes as his gaze swept over her. Then his lips curved into a hint of a lopsided smile, just enough to reveal a dimple on his right cheek. “I think I'm going to like this place.”
Skye's mom nudged her in the ribs with a whispered, “It's working.”
That was fast.
Like the addict she was, Skye's body lit up with the all-consuming thrum of adventure and dramaâher own personal call of the wild. Except this time, there wouldn't be any negative consequences or shame brought onto her and her family, no repentance needed. This thrill was mother-approved. Skye was going to find a sweet, sexy local man to settle down with and then she wouldn't ever be tempted again to run off in search of trouble. She'd have everything she needed right there in Dulcetâin her home and in her bed, forever.
She reached out her hand to Enrique, dizzy and breathless with the realization that tonight's little spell was the first step in making all her dreams come true.
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Coming soon â¦
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Don't miss the e-novella in the sizzling One and Only Texas series
IF SANTA WERE A COWBOY
Available in October 2016 from St. Martin's Press
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Also by
Melissa Cutler
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Praise for
Melissa Cutler
“A hilarious, sexy, and entertaining read filled with light-hearted banter and exuberant and distinctive characters. The passionate and heated chemistry between them will have readers instantly falling in love.”
âRT Book Reviews
(Top Pick, 4½ stars) on
One Hot Summer
“
Melissa Cutler
is a bright new voice in contemporary romance.”
â
New York Times
bestselling author Lori Wilde
“Sizzling.”
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Publishers Weekly
on
One Hot Summer
“A fun contemporary Western romance. Cutler brings Texas ambiance and color to this delightful and sexy tale.”
âBooklist
on
One Hot Summer
“A red hot romance with a sexy cowboy and a great story!”
âFresh Fiction
on
The Mistletoe Effect
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Melissa Cutler
has the best job in the world writing sexy contemporary romances and romantic suspense. She was struck at an early age by an unrelenting travel bug and is probably planning her next vacation as you read this. When she's not globetrotting, she's enjoying Southern California's flip-flop wearing weather and wrangling two rambunctious kids. You can sign up for email updates
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