Page 34 of A Dash of Wolf

Her grandmother gasped. “That’s not true.”

“Isn’t it?”

The silence that followed told Adeline everything she needed to know. She stood, her chair scraping against the hardwood floor. Her hands were trembling, and she pressed them flat against the table to steady herself. “I’m not my mother. As much as I love and miss her, I’m not her. I’m not going to marry someone just because you approve of his bloodline. I’m not going to stop protesting just because it embarrasses you. And I’m not going to stop seeing Mason Wolfe just because he doesn’t fit your idea of what a Beaumont husband should be.”

Grandmother Lavinia looked up at her. For the first time in Adeline’s life, the older woman didn’t have a response ready. She just sat there, hands folded, eyes unreadable. Adeline thought she saw a tremor in her grandmother’s chin, like she was trying not to cry...and that made her heart hurt. She didn’t want to hurt her grandmother, but Grandmother Lavinia needed to know she wasn’t going to let her control her life anymore.

“Let’s go, Princess Muffin Top,” Adeline said. “I need to get in some baking before the bakery opens tomorrow.”

Princess Muffin Top jumped down from her chair, but she didn’t follow Adeline immediately. Instead, she stopped next to Grandmother Lavinia and looked up at her. “For the record, Adeline Beaumont is the best thing your family has produced in a very long time. You might want to start treating her like it.”

Then the Maine Coon turned and padded after Adeline. And this time, Adeline let the tears fall. Leave it to her cat to have the best parting words.

Gerald appeared in the foyer with the door already open. He gave Adeline a small, barely perceptible nod as she passed. She thought she saw something in his eyes...sympathy, maybe?

She climbed into the Beetle Bus, jammed the key into the ignition, and pulled out of the circular drive without looking back. Princess Muffin Top sat in the passenger seat and said nothing for the entire drive. It wasn’t until they turned onto Tide Street that Adeline realized she was still crying.

She wiped her eyes with the back of her hand and pulled up in front of the bakery. Her home. Her real home. The place she most felt like herself.

“You okay?” Princess Muffin Top finally asked.

“I will be.” Adeline turned off the engine and sat there. “I just need to bake. It always makes me feel better.”

She unlocked the bakery, turned on the lights, and tied on her apron. She didn’t turn on music. She didn’t check her phone. She simply pulled out ingredients and started working. The kitchen magic would come or it wouldn’t. Right now, she just needed her hands in dough and the oven warming and the comforting smell of sugar filling the room.

Princess Muffin Top jumped up onto the counter and watched her in silence. Adeline tried not to focus on what that meant. Her cat was like Grandmother Lavinia...always ready to say something. But even Princess Muffin Top left her to her grief and let her bake.

14

“Well, I think I’ve baked enough to fill the display case for three days.” Adeline untied the apron from around her waist and hung it on the hook. “I’m hungry.”

“I could eat as well,” Princess Muffin Top said from the counter where she’d been watching Adeline bake for the last few hours.

Adeline glanced at the clock on the wall. “Wow, it’s almost five. I had no idea I’d been baking for that long.”

Princess Muffin Top sighed dramatically. “You just didn’t know I could be silent that long. Admit it.”

Adeline laughed. “I didn’t say that!” She sobered and reached over to scratch behind the cat’s ears. “But thank you for having my back today. You’re the best.”

Princess Muffin Top sat up straighter, her eyes gleaming. “I cannot wait to tell Emory tomorrow that you have finally admitted I am the best friend you’ve ever had.”

“Stop it! You know you’re both my best friends.”

“There can be only one. And I am it.”

Adeline shook her head and walked over to the display case. She pulled out a Bad-Day Brownie and took a huge bite. The chocolate was rich and dark, and the magic hit her almost immediately...a warm, gentle wave that loosened the knot in her chest and shoulders and reminded her that bad days didn’t last forever. Her kitchen witch magic had taken. Sometimes when she was too emotional, it made her magic unstable. The brownies wouldn’t lift spirits, the scones wouldn’t soothe, the cinnamon rolls wouldn’t trigger memories. But her latest batch of brownies were working.

“So what can I get you to eat?” Adeline asked.

“A can of that cheap tuna you keep on hand is fine,” Princess Muffin Top said, examining her front paw with exaggerated indifference.

Adeline laughed. “That is the most expensive tuna you can buy on the market!”

“Is it? I hadn’t noticed.”

Adeline set her brownie down, got out the tuna, and dumped it into a porcelain bowl before setting it on the counter. “You know, I’ve been thinking.”

“About what happened today?”