“Bagels,” Alice explained. Suddenly looking embarrassed, she added, “Oh, I do make croissant too. Bagels aren’t the only breakfast pastry in the world that’s good. I mean, they’re good but—”
“I love bagels,” Luc interrupted. “Don’t tell my countrymen, but I always grab one when I have a layover in New York. Is that correct, that they make the best bagels?”
Alice relaxed and sipped her beer. “It’s the way they are made. New York bagels are the most authentic. You have to boil them to get the right texture,” she started explaining just as Julie came out of the back of the shop carrying two large platters.
“Help?” Julie called.
I cast a glance at glance at Luc and Alice. To my surprise, Luc was listening to her with rapt attention.
“Coming,” Viola called, motioning for me to follow her. “Did you see that?” Viola whispered.
“See what?” I asked with a smirk.
“Oh my god, shut up. You saw it too. The little, I don’t know, moment.”
“I saw it,” Horatio said, coming up behind us.
“Rebounds can be good. He’s a nice guy. Very polite,” Viola said.
Horatio took one tray from Julie. When I reached out for the other, she handed it instead to Viola.
“Help me with something?” Julie said, motioning for me to come inside with her.
I nodded and followed her.
Julie’s bracelets jangled as she grabbed two glasses off a tray sitting on the counter inside. Julie’s little shop was at the front of the house. At the back was her small apartment. She handed the glasses to me. “New recipe. Super healthy. Thought you and Viola might like them,” she said with a smile.
I looked at the slender glasses, smelling rose petals, honey, mint…and something else. But more, I could see a certain glow around the drinks. Many of Julie’s dishes carried the hint of magic with them. And I knew for certain that this kitchen witch knew which way my heart leaned. I smiled at her then shook my head. “Not yet. All things have their season…but thank you.”
She sighed heavily. “Why don’t you just tell her?”
“Is it so obvious?”
“To me.”
“And what about Horatio?”
“Clueless.”
I chuckled. “I think, perhaps, there might be a better mark for these,” I said, casting a glance at the drinks. “And I could use some help.”
“Could you, Mr. Twinkly Eyes?”
I grinned at her but said nothing. While I knew Julie was a witch, she still didn’t know about me.
“Okay, okay. Don’t tell me,” she said with a smile. “Fine.”
“Later.”
“Later?”
“Much later.”
Julie laughed. “I’m going to hold you to it.”
“It’s a promise. But later. Jules, about Horatio, do you think he’d be okay with Viola and—”
“…and you? Not sure, but that is something I can help you with.”
“Thank you.”
“You so owe me.”
“I know.”
“Alice,” Julie called, hoisting the drinks in the direction of my girl and her new friend. “Try this? And Luc, right? I’m Julie,” she said, deftly taking the beers from their hands, replacing them with what I was very certain were love potions.
I sat down in one of lounge chairs and watched as Alice and Luc sipped their drinks and compared notes about cuisine.
Julie turned, winked at me, then headed over to the grill.
Viola sat down in the chaise beside me. She sighed heavily. “I should be studying. I’m going to fail my chemistry test tomorrow,” she said, clicking her bottle of beer against mine. “But right now, I don’t care.” She glanced at Alice and Luc then leaned in toward me. “Looks promising.”
So close to me, I could smell the sweet scent of vanilla perfuming her hair. I closed my eyes and inhaled in a subtle, not-too-stalkerish way. She smelled beautiful. I slid my hand down her arm, slipping my hand into hers. “Yes, it does,” I whispered.
Viola paused for a moment then turned and looked at me. Her eyes met mine then she searched my face, as if to determine if I was playing with her. When she realized my sincerity, she smiled softly. “Curiouser and curiouser,” she said.
“How so?”
“Your eyes aren’t twinkling now. Why not?”
“You’re the expert on chemistry. You tell me.” Cautiously, I lifted her hand and placed the softest kiss thereon.
Viola grinned. “Well, that escalated quickly,” she said, but I could see she was breathing hard, her humor masking her true feelings.
“Too quickly?”
She shook her head. “Not fast enough.”
“Well, we’ll have to remedy that then,” I said then gazed quickly at the others. Alice and Luc were fully engrossed with one another, Alice laughing at some joke he’d made. Working at the grill, Julie cast a glance over her shoulder. She winked at me then wrapped her arm around Horatio, ensuring his attention was fully on her.
When I looked back at Viola, I saw that she was looking at me. She also stole a quick glance toward her brother who wasn’t paying her any attention, then leaned toward me and set a soft kiss on my lips.
If I had real faerie wings, surely they would have melted off. Her lips were as warm and soft as I had imagined, and the light taste of beer mixed with a sweet, sugary taste flavored her kiss. I was overcome with her scent of vanilla as again I drank from those lips.
Finally.
Finally.
Viola.
A moment later, she pulled away and sighed heavily.
I breathed heavily and pulled her close to me, pressing my cheek against her head.
“Who is hungry?” Horatio called then moved to turn.
Like two guilty things, Viola and I pulled away from one another, quite nearly caught.
“What?” Horatio asked, clearly perplexed by the unusual expression on our faces.
“You aren’t cooking, are you?” Viola covered quickly.
“Wouldn’t dream of it.”
“Then sure,” she said, sticking out her tongue at him.
Viola lifted her beer bottle once more then leaned against me as I put my arm around her.
“Let’s do that again some time,” she said.
“Agreed.”
“Like, a lot.”
“Preferably,” I replied.
“Soon.”
“Soon,” I answered, feeling very certain my heart had just exploded with joy.
Chapter 10: Viola
Professor Wallace’s teaching assistant was more engrossed with texting than bothering to see if anyone was cheating. Some proctor she was. It only annoyed me because my phone had been buzzing for the last ten minutes, and I couldn’t check it in the middle of an exam. I was almost done, but still, what if it was Rayne?
Rayne.
Rayne had kissed me.
Well, no, that wasn’t exactly right. Rayne had kissed my hand. I had turned and full-on sucked his face off. But he had kissed me back. And more than that, I’d finally gotten a kind of admission out of him. From what I could tell, he wanted me just as much as I wanted him.
Focus, Viola.
Forcing myself to finish the last question, I quickly went back through and checked my work. It looked like all my answers were right, the test having been much easier than I’d expected.
Gathering my things, I left the test with the TA then headed out of the classroom.
I pulled out my phone. Luc’s presentation started in fifteen minutes. I could make it. As I rushed toward the auditorium, I scrolled through my messages: Judy from work, the restaurant, Horatio wanted me to call him ASAP, and Alice texting me furiously about Luc. Apparently he’d accepted an invitation to have dinner with Alice and her friends, Kate and Cooper. Something must have been in the air last night. Alice and Luc had hit it off and were still sitting in front of the fire chatting when I finally went home. Horatio assured me he’d see to it that Luc either got back to the B & B or had somewhere to sleep. I didn’t know where he’d ended up.