“You never know when it will help you,” Luna pointed out and I had to agree that she was right on that point.
“You’d think I’m already more well-stocked than the normal person,” I said. Which was true, after all.
“You are. But it seems that in a crisis you have a tendency to forget to actuallyusethe gifts the goddess has bestowed upon you.”
Hmpf.
“What are you trying to say?” I said, placing my hands on my hips and wondering whether I’d be able to get out of the magick ceremony tonight if I picked a fight with her.
“I’m saying that you are a stunningly beautiful woman whose own brilliance exceeds her sometimes,” Luna said smoothly.
I squinted my eyes at her. Had I just been insulted?
“Flattery will get you everywhere,” I finally said, accepting that I couldn’t argue my way out of tonight’s magick lesson.
And, let’s be honest here: Me in crisis mode is akin to a fish being tossed out of the water onto the dock, flapping around desperately to try and figure out a way to save itself. It probably wouldn’t hurt for me to have a few more tricks up my sleeve.
I sniffed again. Maybe there was something to this magick thing after all.
Chapter Three
“What doyoumean I can’t have a cocktail?” My voice rose as I eyed Luna across the living room of my house.
“You can’t do magick when you’ve had alcohol. Something will go wrong,” Luna said, giving me herI’m seriouslook.
“Whatever,Mom,” I mumbled as I walked to the back verandah to throw the ball for the one constant man in my life, Hank, my Boston terrier. I smiled as I stepped out onto my covered porch, where huge palm-frond fans stirred the humid air, making it slightly less oppressive, and low-slung couches clustered around a few tables. Hank raced up from my slip of a beach, shaking the water from his coat and spitting out a stick at my feet.
“Take a dip, did you?” I asked, leaning down and tugging the stick from his mouth. Yes, he’d just dropped it at my feet, but as soon as I’d shown an interest in picking the stick up, Hank had grabbed it back, forcing me into a game of tug.
We’re still working on “drop it,” okay?
Finally winning the stick from him, I launched it into my yard and smiled as he raced after it, his sturdy little body wiggling in joy, his snorts of ecstasy echoing across the yard.
My house was the last in a row of houses in the old part of Tequila Key. The recently renamed Port Atticus was the new section of Tequila Key and boasted gated subdivisions and tiny spots of grass that were watered constantly. Pearls and golf shirts reigned there. I was much more comfortable with my side of Tequila Key, where the creatives and wanderers ended up, creating a mixed bag of cultures and skill sets.
My house was smushed up against a row of others; a semi-detached in realtor-speak. I’d lucked out – mine was the end house, nearest to the water. From the front, it just looked like a funky house, painted in bright colors with weathered plantation shutters framing the tall front windows. An outcropping of rocks and palm trees shielded the fact that my back yard – open to one side – had a tiny scrap of a beach that was all mine.
I’d put money down on the spot when I’d seen this house. One thing about the Keys is that if you can find beachfront property you can afford – buy it. It’s much better than being stuck on the channels and having to motor out to the blue water that everyone actually wants to be on.
The inside of my condo boasted my sense of style, which was something akin to flea market meets photographer’s studio. I’d renovated the house immediately uponbuying it, knocking out the walls that had made it a true row house and creating an open first floor. I’d painted the walls a soothing grey and promptly covered them with miles of my underwater photography, in both black-and-white and color, and shoved all sorts of couches and ottomans throughout the room. It was eclectic, welcoming, and just a bit crazy. Kind of like me.
Well, I’m not entirely sure about that welcoming bit.
“He’s having fun,” Luna said, coming to stand by me as we watched Hank zoom around the yard in a fit of the crazies.
“He always has at least one case of the zoomies when I get home from work,” I agreed.
“What are you wearing tonight?” Luna asked, and I slid a glance towards her.
“Why? Am I going on a date?” I asked, wondering what my attire had to do with a magick ceremony.
“Well, I suggest a loose maxi dress. No underwear.”
Saywhat?
“Excuse me?” I asked, wondering just what I was getting myself into.
“Yes. This is real magick. We’re going skyclad.”
