Witchy Sour (The Magic & Mixology Mystery Series Book 2) (12 page)

“Sort of plans?”

“I’m meeting with someone later.”

“Is it a date?”

“No.” I answered quickly, but Ranger X’s suspicious gaze had me doubting that he believed me. “It’s not a date. I just have to return something. Maybe a different night?”

“Of course.” He cleared his throat. “Well, I think that’s everything, then.”

I debated telling him about Liam. Explaining that I was returning his money, end of story. I turned around, finding X watching me as I rested a hand on the doorknob, and began to explain. He beat me to it.

“I shouldn’t have pried into your business,” he said, the words soft. “I hope you’ll understand that I was just finishing up here for the day, and I was going to grab a bite to eat at Sea Salt.” He shrugged. “I like your company is all. I wasn’t trying to dredge up old...things.”

There had never really been a “thing” between us. Attraction, sure. In spades, even. But that was the end of it. He could never get married or start a family, and I was not only the Mixologist, but a brand new witch. I had enough to focus on without worrying about men and dating and all of the other things people did for fun.

“It’s fine,” I said. “You didn’t dredge anything up. There’s hardly anything to dredge up.”

My light laugh sounded a bit hollow even to my own ears, and Ranger X only cracked a sad sort of half smile. “I suppose.”

A long beat passed, the tension thick enough to eat with a spoon.

“Have a nice evening,” X said, reaching out and resting a hand on my shoulder. He gave it a reassuring squeeze. “We’ll find your spellbook, okay? And Gus will be fine.”

I met his gaze, those dark eyes of his lacking the spark I’d gotten so used to seeing. It’d been replaced by a gritty determination. An expression that told me he wouldn’t stop until he’d solved every piece of this puzzle. “I have one more question.”

His eyebrows shot up as if he’d forgotten we were still talking. Withdrawing his hand from my shoulder, he crossed his arms. “What’s up?”

“Talk to me about Zin. What are her chances?”

“For?”

“I heard about the trials. Both you and I know that she wants to become a Ranger more than anything. What are her chances?”

“I can’t possibly say.”

“What do you mean?” I blinked. “You’re the leader. The top dog. The head honcho. Surely you have a say?”

“We have regulations in place that prevent favoritism.”

“Can’t you still tell me her chances?”

“Honestly? They’re not good.” Ranger X shot me an apologetic gaze. “You asked for honesty, and I gave it to you. Rangers are usually not women because some of the tasks are physically too difficult. There are biological differences between us. This is not a judgment on either side, it is merely a fact.”

He continued, watching my reaction. “Lily, you have to understand that if I have two people equal in all things—intelligence, professionalism, and every other mental front—then I will take into account how fast the person can run. How much weight they can lift. How quickly they can make the decision to save a life or end one.”

As he paused, my breath came in short bursts. The intensity with which he spoke rubbed off on me. For a moment, I forgot it was Zin who wanted the position, not me. “And you’ll pick the person who can run faster any day,” I said. “I’ve heard this argument before. If you’re trapped in a burning building, you want to make sure the person on the outside can save you.”

X shook his head. “No.”

“No?”

“No, I don’t think about myself in that way.” He stepped closer to me, his spicy, winterfresh breath tickling my neck as he brushed a stray piece of hair off my collar bone. “I think about you.”

My breath hitched, the patch of skin burning where he’d touched me, tendrils of heat radiating to all limbs of my body.

“When I decide to make someone a Ranger, I do it because I trust them with the lives of those most precious to me.” The weight of his words fell heavy in the room. “I would never accept a Ranger into the program who I couldn’t trust one hundred percent to save you, should you need saving.”

I licked my dry lips, my gaze falling to the floor. “But—”

“No. That is final, and it is my absolute decision that can never be changed,” Ranger X said sternly. Then he pulled me closer to him, his hands circling my lower back. He pressed a light kiss to the top of my head. “You can never change my belief on that.”

I rested my head on his chest. “But it’ll break Zin’s spirit if she can’t get in.”

“I didn’t say it’s impossible, I just said that I choose the best person for the job.” Ranger X stroked my hair. Somehow all of the awkwardness had faded between us, and everything felt natural again. As I leaned into his chest, his breath tickled my skin and his hands soothed my worries away. “My advice to Zin is simple. Be the best.”

“Easier said than done.”

“Yes, of course,” he said. “I never said it would be easy.”

“How can I help her train?”

X gave a half sort of smile. “Convince her to listen to your grandmother.”

I pointed to myself. “My grandmother? Hettie? The Hettie who was just hiding in the trophy room?”

“The one and only.”

I gave him a skeptical look. “You’re pulling my leg.”

“I’m dead serious.” Ranger X let out a low laugh. “In fact, I’m more scared of her than anyone else on this island.”

Chapter 10

“What are you guys doing for dinner tonight?” I asked. After waving goodbye to blue-eyed Elle, Poppy led me, Zin, and Hettie out of the building. “Anyone want to grab a bite to eat? I’m never off work at this time. The only date I’ve had in the last few weeks is Gus, and he’s not particularly chatty.”

“We’re your second choice?” Hettie turned to me. “I’m not being your sloppy seconds. You should choose your family over Gus.”

“It’s a work date! I was kidding. Usually we just eat dinner as I read and memorize more herbs.”

Hettie wrinkled her nose. “You need to get out more, child. Else you’ll never find a man.”

“Good thing I’m not looking for one,” I grumbled. “What about you two? Any plans?”

Zin wrinkled her nose. “My mom is running some committee or another tonight, so I have to watch the rascals.”

“I would normally love to go,” Poppy said. “But my mom’s on a date with your mentor, and she asked me to feed her guinea pig.”

“Her guinea pig is fat enough,” Zin said. “His name is Chunk for crying out loud.”

“You’re just mad because you transformed into a hamster last week and I made you race Chunk,” Poppy said. “And you lost.”

“He had like, three pounds on me!” Zin crossed her arms, her eyes blazing. “You know I can’t help my size.”

Poppy winked at me. “I know, and I can’t help teasing you about it.”

“I’m going home,” Zin said. “I have to feed the twins dinner.”

Hettie followed her with a brief wave. “I’d love to go, but I can’t either. VanderVamp Rules is on the projector tonight. Can’t miss my show.”

I raised my eyebrows at Poppy. “What do you say to a quick bite?”

“I’m really sorry, but my mom will kill me if I don’t feed Chunk,” Poppy said. “You can come with me if you want, though.”

“You hate that guinea pig.”

Poppy blushed. “Yeah, but you know Mimsey. She loves that thing.”

“You’re lying.”

“Fine!” Poppy threw her hands up in the air. “I worked a double shift. I helped out Mimsey and Trinket at the supply store this morning, and then went straight to fill in for another six hours at Ranger HQ. I kind of want to watch VanderVamp Rules with Hettie and have her cook me some pasta. I’m tired, that’s all. My feet hurt, I’m all talked out, and Hettie makes me age ten years every time she sets foot in HQ. I have to watch her like a hawk and it’s exhausting.”

“That’s all you had to say,” I said with a grin. “Look, I get it. I have errands to run tonight anyway, so it’s probably best if I just get on with it. I was mostly procrastinating.”

“Are you sure? You can absolutely come by and hang tonight if you want. I’ll even share my bottle of wine. I just don’t want to put clothes on and head over to Sea Salt.”

“Really, don’t worry. I’ll see you later, okay? If I’m done in time, I’ll stop over on the way back.”

“Okay, great. Be safe! You don’t need anything, do you? What about your Hex on the Beach potion to keep the guys away?”

I dug into my pocket and pulled out a small vial of the potion, waggling it in front of Poppy’s face. “Got it. Plus, I have a good old tube of Pepper Spray around my keychain. Have a good night, Poppy.”

She pulled me in and kissed both cheeks European style. We parted ways, Poppy hurrying to catch up with Hettie while I strolled in the opposite direction. The coins jangled in my pocket as I set my sights on the path that would take me across town to the B&B where I’d hopefully find my target.

The Isle was relatively small. It was similar in size to that of a condensed city, not unlike the square space of downtown Minneapolis. It was entirely walkable, though a jaunt from one side to the other could take up to thirty minutes.

My feet carried me across a white sandy path in lazy twists. The path started at the beach in front of my bungalow, wound its way past the dock and the supply store, curled over the open ground, and finally across the Lower Bridge. A canal cut The Isle in two, leaving us with a West and an East side.

Hettie, Mimsey, Trinket, and their children—along with myself—were the only witches who dared inhabit the West side of The Isle. Most people chose to stay on the opposite side of the bridges for safety reasons. Hundreds of creatures lived in The Forest, and those creatures were much more likely to wander down to the bungalow than across the bridge and into the highly populated East side.

I crossed the Lower Bridge, since the Upper Bridge was reserved mostly for Rangers. The latter led deep into The Forest, and most of the islanders would suffer a ten-minute detour just to use the safer route.

Giant goldfish swam in the canal beneath the bridge, and I paused as one particularly orange fish swam circles around his silvery friend, their movements smooth as a dance. It was so mesmerizing I lost track of time standing there, until a crack startled me from my flip-flops.

The crack came from the bushes to my left, jolting me out of my trance. I pressed deeper into the East Isle territory, the air full of spells, protective hexes, and many other safety precautions.

The sizzle of magic surrounded the entrance from the West to the East side, but it didn’t do much to calm my nerves. With one last glance toward the bushes, I picked up my pace and didn’t slow down until I’d reached Main Street.

Main Street was a small section of the East side neighborhood. The narrow, cobblestone paved street wound its way between a few local shops and food stands. Decorative white lights dangled from the palm trees lining the sidewalks, and despite the late hour, many folks milled about the street. Families waltzed between the stores, some of the children carrying candies and balloons that roared and squeaked, just like the animals after which they’d been molded. The younger adults held lemonades or iced slushies in their hands, while the older witches and wizards carried much larger beverages in the vein of Pina Coladas and Strawberry Daiquiris.

My breathing eased, my chest finally loosening as I realized how uptight I’d been on the walk over. Between the men in cloaks, the theft of the spellbook, and my mentor’s odd behavior, strange things were happening, and it had me on edge.

Strolling down Main Street, however, allowed me to relax. Shop owners sold their wares and conversed with the townsfolk while parents whistled, chatted, and skipped through the streets with their kids. The sense of normalcy was refreshing.

By the time I reached the end of Main Street, I was smiling again. I’d returned the pepper spray to my keychain and the vial of defensive potion to my pocket. Turning off of the cobblestone road, I entered a smaller walkway—not much more than a garden path—that led to the sole B&B on The Isle. I followed the flat stones to the front steps of a quaint, cottage-like building.

I raised a hand and knocked on the front door. Yellow walls made for a bright, cutesy building with pink shutters and a sky-blue door. The theme was very Cozy Country Escape, despite the tropical setting.

The door opened a second later, though I couldn’t see who was behind it.

“Can I help you?” squeaked a voice somewhere around my knees. “I’m Midge, I run this place.”

“Oh, hello.” For a moment, I debated getting on my knees, or at least crouching down so that we could see eye to eye. As it was, she was staring at the scar just above my knee while I was looking down at the top of her head. “I’m here to visit a friend.”

“A friend, you say? I wasn’t told to expect any guests.” Midge turned around and bounced her petite frame over to the front desk. “What’s this friend’s name?”

Her gray hair was knotted in a bun on top of her head, and her face was wrinkled from years and years of living. But her wrinkles weren’t the tired, sun-worn battle scars of a hard life. No, her wrinkles were pleasant, as if they’d been formed from smiling instead of frowning, from looking at the world with kindness instead of judgment. I immediately liked her.

“His name is Liam,” I said, still standing in the doorway. “He said he was staying at the B&B, and I only know of one. I assume it’s here?”

“We’re the only B&B on The Isle.” Her face crinkled in an amused expression. “You’re new here, aren’t you?”

I nodded.

“Well, what are you doing standing over there? You look harmless, come on in.” Midge waved a hand for me to enter the room. I took a step forward as Midge took six steps upward and stood on a platform behind the desk. Now, we were eye to eye. “Liam, you say?”

I nodded again, sneaking a glance at the step stool she’d used. It looked like stacks of old, hardcover books in a language I didn’t recognize. “Liam, that’s right.”

“He’s here, but he didn’t say he was expecting company.”

“Well, he didn’t know I was planning to come,” I said. “But he did invite me to come by...sort of.”