Forever Charmed (The Halloween LaVeau Series, Book 1) Page 5

  Annabelle shook her head. “People can be so nasty,” she said with disgust in her voice. “You should insist Liam give you a straight answer. It’s like my mother always says, nagging works. If you nag him long enough maybe he’ll cough up the details.”

  Annabelle’s adoptive mother was over-the-top pushy.

  “I can’t nag my guests. That’s a quick way to get a bad review. Do you have any idea how hard it is to recover from a bad review?”

  Pluto had appeared next to me, the sight strangely comforting. I hadn’t seen him in a couple of days. The cat looped through my legs, then rubbed his face against my pants. Apparently he hadn’t heard about my cooking and wanted to be fed.

  She nodded. “I guess you have a point.”

  “And if Nicolas Marcos is gone for good, there’s no point in wasting our energy worrying about him, right?”

  Chapter Eight

  “I have to get to work,” I said as I put the last of the dishes in the washer. “I never thought about leaving strangers alone in the house. It’s creepy.”

  “Well, that’s the only thing creepy about this whole situation, right?” Annabelle said sarcastically.

  I’d always thought I was a good judge of character. I was a little bummed over the way Nicolas had left without saying goodbye.

  “You should call the police and report Nicolas for not paying,” Annabelle added as she grabbed her purse.

  “No, I think I’ll just chalk it up as a lesson learned. I’ll always remember to collect the money first, or at the very least, get a deposit.”

  After saying goodbye to Annabelle, I rushed toward Bewitching Bath and Potions. The historic section of town housed all the specialty shops and boutiques. The main road ran along the river, twisting and turning through Enchantment Pointe. A stone wall surrounded the outer edge of town with cobblestone sidewalks and wrought-iron accents sprinkled around.

  I knew my mother would be waiting and I wasn’t looking forward to telling her about the catastrophe I’d experienced with my first two guests. I’d leave out the parts about the spell and the burnt pancake—and the fact that one of them had skipped out on the bill. No need to give her any more reasons to be disappointed in her one and only daughter.

  I pulled up in front of the shop and turned off the ignition. The events of the morning were just now fully sinking in, not to mention that I was starting to feel faint from lack of sleep. Pulling my purse up over my shoulder, I trudged toward the entrance. The bell chimed on the door when I entered. No one was in sight, no customers and no mother.

  Annette LaVeau made all the items right there in her shop. Her merchandise included soaps, lotions, scrubs, and bath salts. She had a special knack for mixing scents—magical oils were her specialty. She was a workaholic when it came to her business: sections of the store were specifically designated for specific items, and you’d better not get them out of place either. Fragrances, oils, powders and herbs on the right. Soaps, shower gels, lotions, shampoos and conditioners on the left.

  “Mom, are you here?” I walked further into the shop.

  She popped up from behind the register where she’d been arranging items under the counter. People could tell immediately that we were mother and daughter. We were the same small size—five-foot-one—but we packed a powerful punch. My mother had recently cut her hair in a fashionable bob with the occasional gray hair showing up in the otherwise dark strands. She wore the store’s signature polka-dotted apron over her black T-shirt and black and white Capri pants.

  She sighed as soon as she saw me. Must she do that every time I walked into a room?

  “Hello, dear.” A small swirl of smoke circled behind her.

  “Working on another spell?” I asked as I joined her behind the counter.

  She held up a light blue bottle. “I’m making a facial lotion for Mrs. Combs.” She stirred the pot a few more times, then dipped the bottle into the concoction. “This should help her with the warts.”

  “I have noticed she’s sprouted quite a few more lately.” I draped the Bewitching Bath and Potions apron around my neck.

  My mother wiped her brow and let out a deep breath. “Whew. I’ve been swamped all morning. I’m glad you finally decided to show up.”

  I stared at my mother’s forehead.

  “What?” She scowled. The color drained from her face. “Not again,” she said.

  I thought by now she’d be an expert at penciling on those eyebrows and keeping them in place. One brow was still perfectly drawn on, but the other had been smeared all the way across her forehead. To her credit, she’d stopped reminding me of the way I’d destroyed her face. She just let out breathy sighs instead.

  She shook her head. “Well, I don’t have time to put it back on right now. It’ll have to wait a minute. I need to finish these orders for the customers.”

  “Would you like for me to fix it?” I asked, transfixed by the sight. It was like a car accident; I couldn’t look away.

  “You don’t know how to add the arch that I’ve perfected over the years.” She didn’t glance up from her bottles.

  Ouch. That hurt.

  “Why were you so late anyway?” she asked.

  “I was working around the manor.” I moved a couple bottles across the counter out of her way.

  She snorted, but didn’t ask for more of an explanation.

  “Can you label those soaps and place them on the shelf?” She pointed.

  “Sure.” I let out a deep breath, picked up the soap and wrapped it in the paper.

  Without warning, that strange vibe took over again. I had to steady myself with a hand on the counter. Was I coming down with something? Why had I been feeling so strangely? If I didn’t know better, I’d swear it had something to do with Nicolas Marcos. I hadn’t felt this way until he’d shown up. But he was gone now, so shouldn’t I be feeling better?

  The bell over the door chimed and I looked up. My heart rate increased when I saw who was walking my way.

  “Oh my,” my mother said.

  This was not going to end well. I felt it.

  “Hello, Mr. Marcos,” I said without looking at my mother.

  I knew her mouth must have dropped open. The wheels were turning wildly in her head.

  “Nice to see you, Hallie. This is a lovely shop.” He looked around the room.

  “Thank you,” I said.

  “I need to talk to you.” He leaned in close over the counter.

  “How did you find me? And by the way, you left without paying.” I frowned. “You owe me for the night.”

  My mother let out a little gasp, but I refused to look in her direction.

  “I asked around town and was told how to find you.”

  Great. All of Enchantment Pointe would be flapping their gums about me. I could only imagine how those conversations had gone.

  My mother was pretending not to listen, but if she leaned in any closer she’d fall right on her face.

  “What is it, Mr. Marcos?” I placed my arms across my chest.

  He glanced over at my mother again, maybe looking at her one eyebrow.

  “Is there some place private where we can talk?”

  After the way he’d acted around Liam this morning, I wasn’t sure I felt safe being alone with this man.

  “We can talk here.”

  My mother would question me relentlessly after he left anyway. Might as well save myself the time and talk out in the open right in front of her.

  He stepped to the side and motioned for me to join him.

  I looked him up and down, then slowly moved over to his side. Damn him. He still looked gorgeous and smelled just as enticing.

  “Now are you going to tell me what’s so important?”

  If he dared to complain about my breakfast I’d tell him off right there in front of my mother.

  “You need to get rid of Mr. Rankin. Your life is in danger if you don’t.”

  The words had barely left Nicolas’ lips when Liam burst throug
h the door. The bell over the door jingled so hard I thought it would fall off.

  “Don’t listen to a word he says!” Liam pointed at Nicolas with venom in his eyes.

  I’d gotten myself into a real pickle this time. My mother wasn’t going to let this one go for months.

  Chapter Nine

  “Whatever he says, don’t believe a word of it.” Nicolas pointed at Liam.

  The men stared at each other in a showdown.

  I stepped between them. “Nicolas hasn’t told me anything yet. But I think it’s about time someone tells me what’s going on around here.”

  Nicolas folded his arms in front of his chest and flashed a smug smile at Liam. If he thought I was only talking to Liam, he was dead wrong.

  The men continued to stare at each other, neither one budging on giving me an answer. I glanced over at my mother. She looked quite awkward with her mouth gaping open and one eyebrow.

  Who was I supposed to believe since both men were warning me about the other? If Nicolas wouldn’t tell me why he felt this way, and Liam’s lips were sealed too, then what was I supposed to do?

  “I won’t ask Liam to leave.” I glared at Nicolas. “If you can’t tell me why he is so dangerous, then I can’t ask him to leave.”

  “You told her I was dangerous?” A look of utter disbelief covered Liam’s face.

  “For two men who don’t know each other, you seem to have quite a few warnings. Let me guess, you have a gut instinct about each other, right?” I asked, exasperated.

  This seemed too dangerous. I should have asked both of them to leave, but something made me ignore my logical warning… it was that same strange pull that I couldn’t shake. They remained tight-lipped.

  I looked at Nicolas. “I’m supposed to take your word for it that Liam is dangerous?”

  Who did Nicolas think he was anyway? He showed up in the middle of the night looking like some kind of movie vampire and was now giving me orders? That took a lot of nerve. But was it a legitimate warning? How would I know?

  “This guy doesn’t know me. He’s just spreading rumors. I don’t know what his beef is with me.” Nicolas gave Liam a brutal, unrelenting glare.

  Should I mention that I’d overheard their conversation? What was the woman’s name that Nicolas had mentioned? Oh yes, Mara. Who was Mara? And what was the Underworld? Were they involved in something illegal? I decided to see how this scene played out before I mentioned what I’d overheard.

  “If anyone shouldn’t be trusted, it’s him.” Liam pointed at Nicolas.

  “Is everything all right?” my mother asked. “Do you know these men, Halloween?”

  I hesitated, but knew I’d have to tell her the truth. “They are both bed-and-breakfast guests.”

  Her expression said it all. “Oh, was the breakfast bad?” she asked the men.

  I hardly thought they were fighting because of my burnt pancakes. They were bad, but not that bad.

  “The breakfast was good,” Nicolas offered with a smile.

  Apparently, my mother wasn’t immune to his good looks because she smiled in return.

  Liam, not to be outdone, said, “The food was delicious, ma’am.”

  My mother blushed and widened her grin. She was enjoying the attention.

  “This is my mother, Annette.” I gestured toward my mother. She’d stopped blushing, but interest in the men hadn’t waned.

  “If both of you aren’t happy with each other, I can change your rooms so that you’re farther apart. Other than that, there’s nothing else I can do.” I tried to disguise my annoyance.

  Nicolas remained quiet. I supposed he wasn’t going to give me a straight answer, just vague hints about how he didn’t trust the guy.

  The same went for Liam. All he could offer was a lame excuse that he thought Nicolas was talking badly about him when he supposedly didn’t even know him. I had to get to the bottom of this. There had to be a way to find out who these men were and why they’d popped into my life.

  Without saying another word, Liam stormed out of the store. Would he leave LaVeau Manor after this heated exchange? That would probably be for the best, even if I needed the cash. The men had issues that I didn’t want to deal with.

  I looked at Nicolas. “Maybe it’s better if you leave. I can speak with you later. I need to help my mother now.”

  Nicolas reached out and touched my hand. I sucked in a quick breath. My body tingled, although I tried to will away the feeling. Why did the simple touch of his hand against mine feel so intimate? Why did his spicy scent send shivers across my body? He smelled of rich woods and sweet musk. Years of working at my mother’s shop had fine-tuned my sense of smell. Every time Nicolas looked at me it was as if he couldn’t take his gaze off me… and as much as I tried to deny it, the feeling was mutual. But maybe I was just imagining things. After all, I hadn’t slept much. And that weird sensation from the book was playing tricks on my mind.

  “Please be careful,” Nicolas said.

  “I’m always careful,” I said.

  “When will you return to the manor?” he asked.

  I looked at my mother.

  “I’ll need your help all morning,” she said.

  It was completely up to her and how much help she needed today. It was like I was sixteen again and asking my mother if I could date boys all over again. Except this was definitely not romantic. It was strictly business.

  I looked at my watch. “I’ll be here until at least after lunchtime.”

  “I’ll see you then.” He paused and smiled, then walked out the door.

  “Well, what was that all about? I’ve never felt that much tension in the air. There was some kind of magic going on.” My mother waved her hands through the air as if trying to shoo the magic away.

  “How can you tell?” I asked.

  “Didn’t you feel it?” she asked with a tint of anxiety in her voice.

  “I may have felt something.”

  She let out a heavy sigh, not hiding her disappointment.

  I didn’t want to tell her that I’d felt a lot of heaviness since I’d discovered that book. It was almost like I’d unleashed something when I’d opened its cover. Had something happened with the spell last night, bringing these men to LaVeau Manor?

  “Where did these men come from?” She stirred her latest concoction.

  There was no way I was going to tell her they had just shown up. I’d tell her that they’d booked the nights well in advance.

  “They had reservations. I believe they have business in the area.” I moved items around, pretending to be busy.

  She raised a suspicious eyebrow. “I worry about you. Maybe having a bed-and-breakfast isn’t such a good idea.”

  “I’ll be fine,” I said as placed the soaps in their designated spots on the shelf. “It’s just part of the business.”

  She should know running your own business wasn’t easy. You had to deal with a lot of things that you wouldn’t normally want to handle. This just happened to be one of them.

  “I don’t think they’ll stay long,” I offered, trying to make her feel better.

  It was a lose-lose situation though. My comment showed her that she wouldn’t have to worry about the guests for long, but also that I wouldn’t have income coming from the bed-and-breakfast for long either.

  I found it difficult to concentrate for the rest of the morning. My thoughts were consumed by the men and what was happening at LaVeau Manor. Would Annabelle want to stay over until they left? Who was I kidding? She could barely set foot in the place, much less spend the night. I didn’t want to push her. She was doing well to put her phobia aside and come into the place.

  Finally the clock hit twelve and I grabbed my purse. “I have a ton of work at the manor. I’d better go.” It wasn’t a lie. I did have a ton of work. I had to find out what my guests were up to.

  “Just be careful,” she said as her one painted-on eyebrow slanted into a frown.

  “You know I will.” I waved
cheerfully as I walked out the door. There was no need to let on to my apprehension.

  I climbed in my car and headed straight for the manor. My mind was filled with trepidation. Part of me was afraid of what might be going on, but another part of me felt exhilarated and excited.

  Pebbles crunched under the weight of my tires as I pulled down the driveway. Every time I saw the manor I felt small and insignificant under its shadow. Liam’s car wasn’t parked in front and neither was Nicolas’. Was Nicolas really having his car repaired? Maybe that had all been a lie? Maybe they’d both checked out. That would be for the best if they did. I didn’t like drama in my life. I had enough to worry about with my substandard witchcraft.