“Hey, Rayne,” Julie called happily as she pulled Alice into a hug.
“Grab me a couple of logs, would you?” Horatio said to me, pointing toward the firewood piled neatly nearby.
Grabbing the wood, I wondered for the five-hundredth time what, exactly, Horatio would think if I started to…or even wanted to…date Viola. Before Julie moved to Chancellor, Horatio and I used to hit local scene in search of fun. But that’s all it had been. Fun. Viola, well, that was something different. Would he understand? While I’d always found Viola beautiful, and the flirty conversation was always amusing, I wanted something more. My feelings for Viola had become more serious. I hoped that with Julie in the picture, maybe Horatio would be cool about me breaking “bro code.” But first I needed to worry about Alice. As long as Viola brought Luc tonight, things would start moving in the right direction. Perhaps destiny would just take its course. And if not, I had my wand hidden inside my pocket.
I handed the wood to Horatio while I eyed over the selection that Julie, whose baking skills only slightly surpassed her cooking skills, had set out. Plates of marinating portabella mushrooms and veggie shishkabobs waited.
“Looks amazing, Julie,” I told her, letting my nose sniff out just what Julie had used to marinate the food. Julie’s skills in the kitchen were a product of her own talent, of course, but it didn’t hurt that she was a gifted kitchen witch. It wasn’t like she announced it to the world, but Julie had joined Chancellor’s coven of good witches shortly after moving here. According to the elders, witches had lived in Chancellor since the town’s beginning. I could see them, and they were always quick to notice my sparkle, but I was pretty sure they didn’t know what I was. I wanted to keep it like that. After all, I wasn’t the only sparkly “other” in Chancellor. You didn’t have to talk to Kate, the owner of the little boutique called The Glass Mermaid, for more than a few minutes without noticing that she was…different. Her voice was more melodious and soothing than the average person, her shimmer beyond compare. I long suspected she might be better-suited to a life under the waves than above them, but I never shared my thoughts with anyone. What did it matter to me, a faerie, if a mermaid also walked among the humans in Chancellor?
“Man, no steaks? Burgers?” Alice said as she handed me a beer.
“Of course. They are inside in the fridge,” Julie said coming up behind us as she looked over the fire. “How long, my dear?” she asked Horatio.
“Just a few more minutes,” he replied, pausing to kiss her on the forehead.
“Give me a hand?” Julie asked Alice.
“Sure. You make a dessert? I’m still eating through my misery.”
“Of course! Old recipe. Mrs. Row gave it to me. Strawberries, cream cheese, and pretzels,” Julie was saying as they walked inside.
“Sounds weird,” Alice commented.
I chuckled. I’d bet money it was wyrd for sure.
I watched Horatio as his eyes followed Julie inside.
“A man in love,” I told him, lifting my bottle. “To love.”
Horatio lifted his drink. “To love,” he said, tapping his bottle against mine.
“How go the plans for the ball?” I asked. Horatio, who had recently extricated himself from his father’s business, was working with the arts council on planning the upcoming Cherry Blossom Ball.
“Well, I need this beer, that’s for sure. But it’s coming together. Man…I need to tell you something. I have something special planned for the ball…for Julie,” he said, casting a nervous glance behind him.
“Do tell.”
“I’m going to ask her…I’m going to ask her to marry me.”
A weird feeling swept across my stomach, a strange mixture of excited happiness and jealously. My reaction startled me.
“Congrats, man,” I said, patting him on the back. I took a sip of the beer, clearing my throat which had suddenly gone dry. “Tell Viola yet?”
Horatio shook his head. “She’s been busy with school and is just distracted. I think she’s getting ready to cut ties with the company. She’s all over the place.”
“Regardless, brother, you better tell her or she’ll be furious at you.”
“Will do. Still need to break it to my dad. That should be fun. Ah, speaking of Viola,” Horatio said then, nodding over my shoulder.
I turned to see Viola and Luc crossing the parking lot toward us. God, she looked beautiful. The sunset shimmered on her hair, making it glimmer with glints of blue and gold. She laughed politely as Luc spoke to her. Once more, my stomach twisted.
“Well, that’s interesting. I thought he was supposed to be some old scientist guy. He knows that’s my sister, I hope,” Horatio said then waved to the pair.
Viola smiled at me.
I waved to Luc. “Welcome! Beer or wine?”
“Let’s have a beer,” Luc replied.
“Luc, this is my brother, Horatio,” Viola introduced as I headed over to the cooler.
“Horatio…I’ve not heard this name before. Is it common?” Luc asked.
Horatio laughed good-naturedly. It wasn’t the first time someone questioned him about his name. “No. Viola and I…our mother was very into the theater. She named us for characters in Shakespeare plays. Horatio was a character in Hamlet. Mom picked the name because the Horatio in the play was an honest man and a good friend. His honesty kept him out of trouble.”
“And Viola?” Luc asked.
“From Twelfth Night. She wins the love of a duke.”
Luc laughed. “Those are in short supply these days.”
“Who. Is. That?” Alice asked as she sidled up beside me, her eyes fixed on Luc.
At that same moment, one of my honey bees whisked by, a buzzing whisper refocusing me on the real reason why I was there. I wasn’t there for Viola or Horatio…I was there for Alice. And right now, I needed to pay attention.
“Let me introduce you,” I said with a grin, taking the massive bowl of some delicious-looking fruit salad from her hands and handing her two bottles of beer which she took absently from me.
“Dammit. I’m a mess,” Alice whispered. “Why didn’t you tell me a hot guy was going to be here? I look like crap.”
I scanned her quickly. She was dressed casual, jeans and a T-shirt with the deli logo on it, her hair pulled back in a ponytail. She looked perfectly fine, natural in her beauty, but she was also right. I should have warned her. I was terrible at this. And there was no way I could just whip out my wand and bibbidi-bobbidi-boo her into a sparkling blue gown. If there was a prize for worst fairy godfather on the planet, I was definitely going to win.
“Luc,” I called, directing Alice toward him. “Let me introduce you to our friend. This is Alice.”
“Enchanté,” he said, smiling at her.
I couldn’t help but see him scan her face, his eyes assessing. And after a moment, I saw the slight lift at the corners of his mouth. Clearly, despite her casual attire, he liked what he saw. And, I was pleased to see, it was just her face he’d scanned…nothing below the chin. Now, that was a gentleman.
Alice giggled. Like, full-on giggled, which made Viola raise an eyebrow at her.
“Beer?” she said, handing him the bottle.
Oh good lord. I cast a desperate glance at Viola. My eyes screaming help.
Viola nodded.
“Alice is a business owner,” Viola told Luc. “She owns a little deli downtown.”