2. Rook

Chapter two

Rook

There's no such thing as a love potion because there's no enchantment more powerful than love. Unless, of course, you're fortunate to find love with your fated mate.

-On Love Potions and Romance. (Dating the Modern Witch)

M y face breaks out into a grin, and a little zap of excitement rushes through me. It's almost noon. Cass should be starting his shift soon.

When the tiny demon discovered I had hired Blaze yesterday, both Zero and I had to stop the excited little thing from running out of the shop to go after him. Blaze has no idea he has a mate, according to Cass. Since Cass wanted to make a good impression, I'm pretty sure chasing after the witch like a demon possessed wouldn't be the best impression, though. Zero agreed.

Cass confessed that they'd met before and things didn't end well. In fact, it ended with Cass not being able to find his mate for six months. Any supernatural being capable of sensing the fated mate's pull, would find a six months separation unbearable.

Soon after giving us the details, Cass quickly left the shop to search for his mate. He needed to know if the Blaze I hired was the same man he met all those months ago.

"So," Blaze says. "You mentioned another co-worker?"

I nod, pretending to arrange the flowers in front of me. "There are two, actually. My sister, Lyla, who's out of town at the moment, and Castiel."

"Castiel," he repeats, awe evident in his voice.

I bite back a smile. Wow! They really must be mates if Blaze is impressed with just his first name.

"Well, he goes by Cass," I explain. "He's a sweet demon with a hyper yet happy personality. Never met another demon so jovial. He might look as angelic and innocent as anything, but Cass is stronger than most of the paranormal beings here in Heart's Hollow."

There's nothing wrong with me bragging about my friend, right? If anything, it will hopefully give Cass some extra brownie points. If anyone deserves to be with their mate, it's Cass. Gods, I love playing matchmaker.

"A demon. Huh." Blaze rearranges one of the spellbooks on the shelf, clearly lost in thought. "And what does Cass look like?"

I cock a brow and grin. "He'll be here any moment. I asked him to clock in late today. I didn't want you two getting…distracted."

"Distracted?"

"Nothing." I wave his concern away and laugh. "You'll see." Trust me, it will be worth the wait. Gods, how wonderful would it be to find my fated?

"Okay, because that isn't ominous," he grumbles.

I pick up the last of the glass potion bottles and place them on the shelf in the front window display. Movement catches my eye and I peek over my shoulder at Blaze. "Oh, speak of the devil."

The bell chimes as Cass nervously walks through the front door. His blond hair is parted to the side, and his blue shirt clings to his slim, toned frame. Looks like someone dressed up for his mate, and he's so pretty, swishing tail and all. If Blaze doesn't trip all over himself at the sight of Cass, then he's a fool.

The demon is so tiny compared to Blaze, but despite that, I know Cass could easily take Blaze down.

So many emotions flicker across both of their faces. Awe. Confusion. Curiosity. Happiness. Lust.

Jealousy zings through me, and I know I'm intruding on a private moment, but I need to make sure that both Cass and Blaze will be okay. I already care for my friend, of course, but I've felt a strange bout of protectiveness when it comes to my new employee. It could be the fact that we've spent hours opening up to each other, or maybe it's because he has such a strong resemblance to the witch I have a crush on.

I'm not really sure. Either way, I want this reunion to go really well.

"Hi," Cass says, biting his lip. It's not something he does often. Cass is usually all happy sunshine and smiles.

"This is Cass," I announce, feeling out of place, just standing there and staring.

They both blink, looking adorably awkward and nervous.

"Hi," Blaze finally replies. "Are you the person I met at the park yesterday?"

Cass nods. I wander to the back of my shop to give them privacy.

A moment later, Cass calls out. "We'll be right back, Rook."

Peeking into the hallway, I chuckle silently as Cass reaches for Blaze and they hurry out the front door; the bell chiming as they leave. Cass lives upstairs in the apartment I rent out above the shop. I just hope that whatever they do up there, I can't hear it.

"So, that's the fated mate, huh?" Zero, my best friend, materializes mysteriously from the shadows. Alright, he doesn't really materialize. That's more of a Cass, demon ability thing because he can actually manipulate his shadows and appear out of thin air.

Zero, on the other hand, is a dragon shifter. While his training with the Elite Guard makes him deadly, he actually lacks the ability to materialize.

"Yeah. What are the odds of the demon reconnecting with his fated in my store?"

I study my best friend and notice the bags under his dark violet eyes. Zero collapses his tall frame onto the plush reading chair in the corner of my shop. He rearranges himself so his powerful thighs are draped on the arm of the chair.

I make my way over to the small countertop that acts as a coffee, tea, and potion bar. Pulling out the ingredients I need, I pour them into a large mug and turn on my electric kettle. "How was your last mission with the Elite Guard?"

Zero growls, balling up his fists and pressing them into his eyes. "Killed one vamp. He was a nasty fucker. Turned a group of college women who were out celebrating their exam results. They were just celebrating their schoolwork, for fuck's sake." He shakes his head and glances up at me, anger swirling in his eyes. His amethyst scales ripple across his arms. "I just wish all vampires were wiped from this realm."

"You know," I say slowly. "A vampire moved here to Heart's Hollow recently. They aren't all evil. He walked through the protection wards without an issue."

I might as well rip off the band-aid and tell Zero now because I really don't need my dragon friend attacking some innocent creature when he moves to town.

Zero waves my words away. I understand my best friend's anger toward the vamps. Wolves and vampires don't usually get along, but vampires and dragons are sworn enemies. To add salt to the wound, when Zero was a teen, his childhood friend was kidnapped by a nest of rogue vampires. Calix was taken right in front of him. To this day, Zero searches for the vampire who stole his friend. Over the years, he's honed his skill and is now considered the Elite Guard's most dangerous rogue vampire hunter.

When the tea is done brewing, I add a little honey and hand the big mug to Zero.

He hums in appreciation before taking a tentative sip. "Gods, this is good. It always settles my nerves. Thanks."

Zero places the mug on the end table next to him. He pulls a folded piece of paper out of his pocket and waves it back and forth. "By the way, that douche, Meyer Cunningham, taped this flyer to your door."

My eyes widen. A growl rumbles from my throat before I can stop it. Snatching the piece of paper from his grasp, I peer down and read it.

Tired of overpaying for simple ingredients?

Overcharged for basic spells?

Head over to Witchful Thinking, where everything is affordable, and provided by a real witch.

"What the hell is this Meyer guy's deal?" I growl, crumbling up the paper. "Gods, I wish I was half dragon just so I can spit fire at this thing." I toss the balled-up flyer into the trash bin behind the front counter.

"You're a threat to his magic shop," he replies with a shrug. "He's a typical sleaze, trying to undermine your business before you can do the same to his."

"But I'm not trying to undermine him, or whatever. Plus, I was here first and I'm not complaining. Why can't we both have our business here?"

Zero purses his lips, amused.

"I just don't get it. We only overlap with a few ingredients and potions. The rest of our inventory is so different."

"I only met him once, but he's a classic scam artist. If the two of you happen to become peaceful, just be careful not to actually recommend people to his shop. I'm pretty sure the guy is hiding something."

I chuckle. "Did you already start investigating the guy?"

Zero rolls his amethyst-colored eyes. "Of course. You're my best friend. I gotta scope out the competition."

"Maybe I'll go introduce myself tomorrow and make sure he understands there's enough room in Heart's Hollow for both our shops."

He barks out a laugh. "Yeah. Good luck with that."

The next morning, I go about my usual routine; shift, run, shower. It feels like a perfectly normal start to my day until my shower head breaks and ends up spraying water all over the place. Somehow, I spent even more time than I expected soaking up the mess. So, by the time I got to the shop, Cass and Lyla were already there.

Walking over to the front window, I casually look toward the park. Disappointment fills me. The gazebo is empty.

"He isn't there, big guy." Lyla pats me on the shoulder before walking into the back room.

Of course, I missed my pretty witch. ‘My witch.' I scoff internally. Gods, I'm losing it.

"Hey, boss. Can I take another one of these flowers? My mate seems to really like them." Cass's tail caresses one of the white ranunculus with the red-and-pink tipped petals. The demon has a sweet, far-off look on his face and my heart melts.

"Of course," I smile over at my friend. "You look really happy, Cass."

"I am. Blaze is sleeping upstairs. I told him he could sleep in until he needs to get up for work. He starts his shift in about an hour. Gods, I miss him already."

I chuckle.

"Damn. You just saw him," Lyla says as she brings in a box of candles. "Talk about whipped."

Cass giggles, whipping his tail so it makes a snapping noise. " So whipped."

Lyla laughs. "I can't wait to meet him."

I point at the huge grin on my sister's face. "You look happy, too. I'm assuming things went really well with Ruby?"

Somehow Lyla's smile grows even brighter, and her brown eyes sparkle. "We have a date on Friday. We're going to dinner and the movies."

"Good for you."

Cass appears by my side. "You know what this means? It's your turn next."

I grin, shaking my head. "No. I'm good."

"Umm, nuh-uh. We aren't taking a no from you."

"That's right. Lyla and I have decided to be the good meddling friends we are and give you a push."

Cass nods happily. "The bestest meddling friends anyone can ask for."

I bark out a laugh. I can't help it. Sometimes they are absolutely ridiculous. I point at Lyla. "But she's my sister."

She waves my words away. "Okay then, meddling sister. And you know how well I have that down pat."

"We have a challenge for you," Cass continues, as if they have every word choreographed. "Do you accept our challenge?"

My eyes bounce between the two of them. This is a game that the three of us play from time to time. Kind of like a game of dares. Only, we have to accept the challenge, not knowing what it is, and we follow it up with a compulsion potion before the challenge is said out loud. It's been a while since I've taken any, and I know Lyla and Cass won't let me off the hook this time. "Fine," I say, as Cass begins to jump up and down. "But," I hold up a hand. "I have some rules beforehand."

"Aw, boo." Cass's tail whips back and forth. "How the hell is it a challenge if you go in with a bunch of rules—"

Lyla hip bumps Cass, which causes him to shut up. "That's okay, Cass. Let Rook issue out his rules."

I don't like the way her eyes sparkle with mischief. It's times like this that I wonder how in the hellhounds we are related. "Alright," I say carefully, holding up my hand to start ticking off my rules.

Cass rolls his eyes and takes a seat in the plush reading chair.

"One." I hold up my index finger. "I will not be hooking up with some random stranger. You know I don't do one-night stands. Not my jam. Two, I'm not going to ask Daniel out." Daniel is the gorgeous Black man who owns my favorite bookstore in Heart's Hollow. "Everyone knows he has a crush on Jenny, who owns Coffee's Brew down the street."

I hold up a third finger. "Three, I will not go to the bar and flirt with someone. Four—"

"Oh, for shit's sake, is this a damn rule book?" Cass whines.

Lyla walks over to the chair Cass is sitting in and leans against the armrest. "No, no. It's fine. Please continue, Rook. Four?"

I swallow hard. "What the hell are you up to, Lyla? I don't like that calculating look."

"Four?" she repeats.

Cass narrows his eyes.

I sigh. "Four, I will not be joining some dating app or speed dating thing."

She smiles, blinking innocently. "Anything else, dear brother mine?"

Thinking back over my words, I repeat the rules I came up with. There aren't that many ways to meet people here in Heart's Hollow. Yet, by the evil smirk she's giving me, I can already tell somehow my sister has won.

"Five…" I hesitate. Fuck. What else can I say? Then, the idea slams into me. "I will not be going out on any blind dates or any type of setup."

"That's fine," Lyla replies, glancing down at Cass and winking. "Do you accept our challenge?"

Wracking my brain even more, I can't think of anything else to add. "Fine. I accept your challenge."

Lyla stands, sashays to the back room, and returns with a swirling purple potion in hand. "Drink up, Rooky Pooh."

I pop the cap off the bottle and down the cool liquid in one go. It's sweet and tastes like apples. The potion is a simple one. A kids parlor trick that usually wears off in twenty-four to forty-eight hours. It only compels a person to follow up on a task or challenge. The person who takes it isn't forced to do anything, especially if it's dangerous. It just encourages the person to follow through with their promise or makes them feel itchy until the task is either completed or the spell wears off.

The frustrated, scrunched-up face Cass was making falls away. In its place is a wide smile. He giggles. "Damn, Lyla, you're good."

My eyes widen. "You two played me, didn't you?"

Lyla ignores my words. "We challenge you to have a five-minute conversation with the auburn-haired witch the next time you see him."

The magic of the compulsion spell twines around me, swirling around in my stomach before wrapping invisible tendrils around my heart, sealing the deal.

My eyes pop wide. "Fuck," I say out loud. My sister really is good.

When Lyla issued the challenge of talking to my witch, I assumed that would be the end of it. I'd have a little less than a day to think of the perfect thing to say in the morning when I finally walk up to him and say hi. But I didn't prepare for all three of my employees to be this excited for me to talk to my crush.

Blaze, Cass, and Lyla look up at me and start giggling. It's been hours since I accepted the damn challenge and they can't stop glancing over at me and smirking. Especially once they filled Blaze in on what was happening.

"Ugh. Is this the way my life is going to be from now on?"

Blaze chuckles. "What do you mean?"

"Now that the three of you are all happy, the shop will be filled with conspiratory giggles until I'm mated… or dead?"

Cass laughs. "I think you need to get out of here, boss man."

"Who knows, maybe you'll run into a certain witch?" Lyla singsongs.

I'm going to kill them all. Soon enough, I'll be the only employee in this damn apothecary. Checking my watch, I notice it's noon. Only four more hours until the shop closes. There are only a few customers in the shop. Would it hurt to go home early?

The more I think about it, the nicer it sounds. I could swing by Bountiful Books, pick up my latest order, get a coffee, and maybe some lunch before spending the day buried in an uber-spicy story. That sounded like a lot of fun, actually.

"Okay. Yeah, if you guys are okay with it, I think I might head home early. Haven't done that—"

"Like ever. Haven't done it ever," Lyla says.

Blaze and Cass chuckle.

"Alright, alright, troublemakers. I'm outta here. Don't destroy the place while I'm gone."

I gather my things and trudge out of the shop. It's a little gloomy outside, with light grey clouds covering the sun. The air is crisp and refreshing, with that earthy smell of approaching rain. Out of habit, I glance across the street at the gazebo. Laughing and chattering happily, a family of five gathers under the white wooden roof.

Was my witch aware of the joy he brought to the park by nurturing those lovely flowers and vines that now adorn it? The orange and yellow leaves that have fallen around the gazebo create a striking contrast to the vibrant purple wisteria.

My creative mind whirls and my fingers itch for a paintbrush. I'd love to paint a portrait of my witch surrounded by all those stunning colors.

As soon as I walk through the front door of Bountiful Books, Daniel glances up and greets me. "Rook, how are you?"

Daniel is standing behind the checkout counter, clicking around on his laptop. He smiles as he taps a few keys and peers at the screen. "Looks like your book is here. Want me to go run to the back and grab it?"

"Yes, please." I nod eagerly. "I need to find out what happens when Urbano enters the City of the Lost." Yup. It has nothing to do with how excited I am to see how Urbano will react when he walks in on his long-lost love, naked in the river. It's just a happy coincidence that this book was rated five out of five chili peppers.

Daniel gives me a knowing smile, his warm chocolate eyes sparkling. "Just give me a minute. I'll go look for it."

"Sure thing," I say, making my way to the romance section. "I'll just be browsing around." Turning the corner, I smack straight into someone, my big frame causing them to stumble to the ground. "Oh gods, I'm so sorry, I—"

All the air is sucked from my lungs.

I shut my mouth abruptly when I see who is splayed out in front of me. Large green eyes blink up at me innocently. Oh gods. I just bumped into the gorgeous man I have a crush on, and he's even more beautiful up close.

Don't drool. Don't you dare fucking drool. I plead to all the gods, praying my werewolf instincts don't emerge now.

Eyes wide, I help the auburn-haired witch to his feet. Without thinking—yes, I'm in full-on panic mode—I run my clawed hands all over his lean body, blue jeans, and emerald green peacoat, trying to help him get all the debris off his clothes.

When a breathless gasp leaves his plush lips, I yelp. What have I just done? Stupid . Stupid . Stupid . Did I just feel him up? How is this my life right now? Without another word, I bolt around the corner and duck behind a bookshelf, hoping he doesn't go looking for me.

And just as quickly as everything started, that itchy sensation to complete my challenge takes hold. Oh gods, the potion. I need to have a conversation with my crush, whether or not I'm ready to.

Fuck.

Why did I just run away from him like a crazy person?