“Just recently. Over the winter break.”
“And that’s why you’re pounding cookies into oblivion? Was the kiss that bad?”
I laughed again. “The kiss was thatgood.”
“Ahh. So, I take it you two aren’t dating, or else my dough might be less beat up.”
“He’s concerned about those scary parents you mentioned. He feels like he needs to protect me from them.”
“Umm, has he even met you? No one scares off my Briar Rose.”
“That’s what I’ve been saying!” The relief at discussing this important piece of my life with my aunt was so great that the words poured out of me. “His parents are… powerful people in his community. They’re part of a board that oversees Evergreen Academy. Callan thinks they might try to dictate my future, so he’s keeping me at arm’s length.”
Aunt Vera’s smooth forehead wrinkled a little. “Dictate your future? What is that supposed to mean?”
I measured my words carefully, determining what I could safely tell her without breaking my agreement with Professor East. Though if my aunt was a magical botanist, that rule about not telling her might not apply. “Evergreen Academy has a field studies program. Historically, these were assigned by the school. This year, though, the Board of Regents took over the assignments.”
“Why does that make you a target specifically?”
I chewed my lower lip, unable to tell her that representatives from each of the affinity groups were trying to court me as the only known living botanist with all the affinity powers. Was that still true if my aunt’s powers had been activated? Could she have all the affinity powers too? “They think I could be… useful in certain fields.”
My aunt Vera was quiet, digesting the revelations. This was possibly more than I had ever told her about Evergreen Academy, and for a moment, I wondered if I had gone too far.
Finally, she said, “Well, trust your instincts. Is there anything I can do to help?”
I considered her words. That would have been an easynoonly a day ago, but since she was exhibiting a floral affinity, maybe things were different.
“Not at the moment,” I said. “Except for tasting this recipe before me. I’m not sold on camellia-flavored cookies.”
Aunt Vera tossed her long, dark ponytail over her shoulder and laughed. “Back to the brunette heartthrob. If he’s the one responsible for the look I’ve been seeing on your face for months, I hope you two will be able to find balance with boundaries with his parents. Because if I had found a guy that made me glow like that when I was your age”—she flipped a dish rag across her shoulder—“let’s just say I would have had to kiss fewer frogs before finding Bryce.”
Chapter Eight
When I left Vera’s Café, I found a tree that still held a few leaves in the winter. I complimented it to dispel some of its leaves and activate the leaf messaging magic then prepped a brief note for Callan.
We need to talk. Tree house in 30?
I sent the message then hurried to my car and raced—just a hair or two over the speed limit—to Evergreen Academy. The winter leaves were like smears of brown, gray, and dark-green paint on a canvas as I navigated through the forest road.
When I got to the tree house, Callan was already there. He must have noticed the shellshocked look on my face, because he rose and stepped forward. “What’s wrong?”
A touch of the anxiety and confusion I was feeling dissipated at his proximity. “My aunt’s a magical botanist,” I said, barely believing the words as I spoke them.
“Well, we knew it probably came from your mom’s side of the family,” Callan said, pulling back and assessing my face for what he was missing.
“Yes, but what I mean is her powers are active. I tested it with some flowers, and they were drawn to her like bees at a picnic.”
Callan’s eyes widened, his chestnut-brown eyebrows rising just a smidge. “Are you sure?”
I nodded. “Something’s been off about her, but there was no denying the flower test.”
Callan crossed his arms. “Do you know when this started? She’s never shown signs before?”
“According to her, she started taking more notice of flowers after the wedding.”
“The wedding?” A muscle in his neck flexed. “You think Alex had something to do with this?” Callan had reached that conclusion more quickly than I had.
“I don’t see how, but it can’t be a coincidence. That was the only time those two have ever been near each other.”
