“With your ‘prospective boyfriend’?” Teddy says it with annoying little air quotes.
“Yes.”
Did Teddy just wince? It was so fleeting I can’t be certain. He doesn’t say anything else, and we get to work taking the measurements. Then he shows me how to strip the wallpaper, which I hadn’t been doing correctly. It goes much faster once I score the paper first, then soak it with the glue remover, and then scrape it off. It’s still tedious, but it’s no longer impossible.
Around noon, Teddy straightens from hand-scrubbing the floor. I have to admit, the portion he’s cleaned does look remarkably better. “I’m going to run out and pick up some lunch. What would you like?”
“You don’t need to get me anything,” I say with a sniff, even though I’m half starved.
“Actually, I do. Your stomach’s been growling for the past thirty minutes.” When Teddy smiles, the corners of his eyes crinkle ever so slightly.
“Well, I certainly wouldn’t want my growly stomach to interfere with your concentration, so I suppose a turkey sandwich wouldn’t go amiss. And some iced tea. And maybe some apple chips.” I pause and retrieve my purse. “Here, I can contribute.”
“I’ve got this.”
A short while later I hear the purr of his car engine as he returns, pulling into the driveway. I open the rear door, surprised to see Teddy lugging a blanket along with a bag of food and a cardboard tray with two iced teas.
“What’s all this?” I ask, helping him spread out the blanket.
“Indoor picnic.” He waits until we’re both seated on the blanket and then hands over my drink, sandwich, and apple chips.
“Ooh, you went to Vlad’s Victuals.”
“It seemed safer than going to your parents’ café. I don’t think your mom likes me very much,” says Teddy. “She scowled at me the whole time she was here.”
“She probably can’t figure out why Auntie Dragonfly left you ten percent of this bakeshop.” I unwrap my turkey and Havarti on rye. “And frankly neither can I.”
“I didn’t twist Miss Dragonfly’s arm or anything, if that’s what you’re wondering.” Teddy takes a bite of his roast beef sandwich, chews carefully, and swallows. “Shetold me her plans after her attorney visited for the last time, which was about three months ago.”
“Were you surprised?”
“Shocked… and incredibly grateful. But I refused at first, explaining to Miss Dragonfly that you and your family would resent me. But she said her mind was made up, and what was done was done.”
“Did she tell you why she made you partial owner of my bakery?”
“Our bakery,” replies Teddy with a twinkle in his eye.
“As ninety-percent owner, I think I can safely call it mine,” I huff.
“Fair enough. You’re the baker, after all.” Teddy glances down at the blanket for so long that I’m not sure he’s going to answer my question. When he looks at me, his blue eyes have a sheen that makes them even bluer, if that’s possible.
“Miss Dragonfly wanted to give me a fresh start in a new supernatural village, a place where she knew the local pack was well run, and where I’d have a fighting chance at making friends… or at least, not making enemies.” He gives me a sheepish grin. “She also felt you needed someone with a good head on their shoulders to help you with the business; your auntie said you were an ‘impetuous faerie’—her words, not mine.”
Shaking my head, I snort. “She knew me better than I realized.” Then I think about what else Teddy said, about the need to start over, find a pack, and make friends. He shared a lot in very few words. “Why do you need to start over in Riddle Hill? Don’t you have any family?”
Teddy’s shoulders slump. “My parents split uprecently; my dad took a new job on the west coast, my mom is sweet but unreliable, and my sister is busy with her own family.” Teddy shrugs. “My dad was an only child, and my mom’s extended family lives in Scotland. So… I do kind of need to figure things out for myself.”
I think about my mom and dad, Cassia, Jake, Granny Catbeam, and all my unalive ancestors hanging on the walls of my parents’ café. “My cup is overflowing with relatives; too bad we can’t trade.”
“You don’t really mean that.”
“My grandmother clipped my wings today, and my mother did nothing to stop her. What do you think?”
“I think you know, deep down, they love you.”
I shrug. “I’d still trade places with you.”
“Actually Sophie, I don’t think you would,” says Teddy so softly I have to lean closer to hear him.
