“Okay, I might have been having a moment,” I said. “But a lot’s riding on this event, and I’m not as prepared as I should be.”
She cast her gaze over Elwood’s kitchen. My ingredients were all lined up at one end of the counter, and my tools were on the other. The oven was already pre-heating. The oven mitts were sitting out, so I could grab them when I needed them. The mixer was set up on the table. The whole arrangement was tight, but workable.
“Yeah, yeah,” I muttered. “I look prepared, but I’m really not.”
I’d decided to bake everything here rather than in The Den, mostly because I didn’t want to rush to get it all done before the bar opened. But that also meant keeping to a strict schedule was imperative because there was only one small oven. I glanced at the clock. I’d been spiraling longer than I’d realized. If I didn’t get my ass in gear, I’d be behind in no time.
Maybe that’s why Licorice showed up. Just having her interrupt my thoughts had done a little reset on my emotions. Besides, the time to panic was over. It was time to work.
I rushed to scrub my hands.
“Thanks. You being here is helping,” I murmured to her over my shoulder.
Thankfully, even though I left the window open, Licorice stayed on the windowsill. She was close enough to keep me company, but not close enough to get anything dirty. As a familiar, I’m sure she was a clean bird, but she was still a bird.
As soon as I was creaming the butter and sugar together for the first recipe, my thoughts calmed even more. My body slippedinto the familiar rhythm of baking. And as I let the process flow, my thoughts drifted away from all the things I’d been panicking over.
When the first batch of cupcakes was in the oven, and just as I was getting ready to make some muffins, quick light steps on the stairs made me look up. After a sharp rap on the door, it swung open. Sandy poked his head inside.
“Hey, Declan.” He grinned, but I didn’t miss how he sniffed appreciatively at the air. “How are you?”
I glanced around at my organized chaos. “Um… okay? Did you need something?”
Please don’t need anything.
He stepped inside the room—today he wore a fuchsia t-shirt that saidI’m always hoptimisticin a retro-style font and psychedelic colors—and made his way to an empty seat in the corner. “Nope. Just thought you might like some company.”
I narrowed my eyes at him. “You smelled the baking, didn’t you?”
His eyes sparkled, but he didn’t look embarrassed at being called out. “Magic is escaping through the open window.” He licked his lips. “That combined with the smell of sugar… Ihadto stop.”
I waved at the mess. “Everything I’m making is for the poker tournament tonight. So, I won’t have anything to give you.” Unless I made a mistake. I really hoped I didn’t make a mistake.
“That’s okay,” Sandy said, and he almost looked like he meant it. “I can still hang out with you, if you want the company.”
I nodded. “Okay. But I have to get back to work.”
“I don’t want to distract you,” he said, swinging his feet back and forth as he watched me pull out the ingredients for the cheesy muffin recipe. He was quiet as I stirred the flour, baking powder, salt, and some herbs together, and then he said,“So now that Beckett’s been cleared, the rumor going around Whispering Pines is that he might get more good news this week, too. Katie, one of the room service attendants, was delivering breakfast to the Kettlebrook rep and overheard her talking about approaching him about an offer of some kind…” He paused for a long moment, then he said, “So it’s good Beckett has an alibi, hey?”
“Yeah. I heard all about how Josh was Beckett’s alibi yesterday.” I ground my teeth together as I grated the cheese. The little bubbles I’d come to recognize as being connected to my magic fizzed through my blood. I didn’t usually feel them so vividly when I wasn’t intentionally trying to use my magic, but maybe the more accustomed I became to it, the more I’d recognize it.
“Does it bother you? He’s your ex, right?” Sandy’s face squished up like he feared what I might say. He was loyal to Gideon, so I suspected he was questioning my commitment to my sexy wolf shifter if Josh’s behavior was bothering me.
“I don’t want Josh back.” Best get that out of the way first.
Sandy’s posture relaxed.
“And even if I wasn’t with Gideon, who I care for a million times more than I ever cared for Josh,” I continued, “I wouldn’t be tempted to go back to him. But it still pisses me off that he lied to me…continuesto lie to me.” The little bubbles churned through me as I set aside the cheese. “I just don’t get why he does it. All the lies are…” I paused, searching for the right word. “Triggering.”
“Yeah. I can see that,” Sandy said. His messy turquoise hair shifted around his head as he nodded.
“And his aren’t the only lies,” I said as I whisked the eggs, milk, and oil in a separate bowl. “Like, why is everyone lying this week? Roy took credit for Beckett’s recipe. Roy hexed everyone, and that feels like a lie, too, because he didn’t win fairly.”
Sandy made a sympathetic noise.
“I really wished the hex-making supplies had been found, just so we’d have at least one lie exposed,” I continued. “And then Roy even lied to Nadia about having a business partner. Even Janis… how she treated Kim feels like a lie, too, because she hadn’t told Kim about selling her place right out from under her. I’d thought things would be different here in Ravenstone, but obviously not. Josh was a lying liar who lied, and the people here are just as bad. It’s all just lies, lies, and more stupid lies.”
I dumped the wet ingredients into the bowl with the flour mixture. The empty bowl hit the table with a thump. I hadn’t meant to set it down so hard, but my emotions were running strong. I scooped up the full bowl and stirred everything together, careful not to overmix it. I sniffed the mixture. It needed a little something more.
