Page 109 of Hexed & Hazy

And it’s clear that I’m still not over those old insecurities, even though I want desperately to be.

“Are you talking about Seth?” someone asks, soft and timid.

I turn to face the intruder, my eyes narrowing in on… Farrah Poole. One of Seth’s friends and co-workers, and a friend of our family as well, I suppose. She works for Aspen, and she and Laurel have been spending more time together with the Starbrook coven.

Still, I don’t know if I can trust this witch.

“That’s none of your business,” I say curtly.

Laurel covers her mouth, and though I can’t hear it, I have a feeling she’s hiding a laugh.

Farrah’s face flushes. It’s hard to say if it’s from the drinks she’s consumed—I lost count—or me embarrassing her. That’s fine. She embarrassed me first. Aspen may be mad at me for being so blunt, but I’ll deal with that when it comes.

“I’m so sorry,” Farrah blurts. “It’s just—I understand. He totally broke my heart, too.” When I think she’s done, she mutters, “And I don’t even think he realizes it.”

As quickly as I turn away from Farrah, writing her off, she gains my attention again. My head snaps in her direction, and my heart races as if it means to take off and leave me behind.

Her name wasn’t on the list. Decidedly not. I have every name on that list memorized, and…

Farrah is a witch.

A love witch. Aspen’s protégé. Aspen, who made it clear she isn’t against love hexes.

“What… what do you mean?” I ask. “When was this?”

She lets out a long breath, the tendrils of brown hair around her face blowing about. “Months and months ago, don’t worry. I don’t think there was any overlap.”

“I’m not worried about that.”

Seth is a lot of things, but he’s not a liar or a cheater. He wouldn’t have gone behind my back.

Laurel leans in closer, her eyes swimming with curiosity. “He broke your heart, did he? Why didn’t I hear about that?”

“It’s kind of hard to talk about, I guess.” Farrah lifts a shoulder. “I’m still getting over it, honestly. So… I understand. He’s so cool and handsome, and I can’t believe he ever… well, I guess he didn’t. Didn’t like me, I mean.”

Laurel and I exchange a look.

Perhaps she’s who we’ve been looking for all along.

“Farrah…” I sway slowly, pushing my mostly empty glass away. “How much do you know about hexes?”

Chapter 37

Seth

The first—hopefully annual—Frost and Fern festival.

Donnie came up with the name, but I helped with the idea: a market to showcase some of his winter goods and let everyone see how great a community garden can be. The town square is kept warm by floating balls of magic, but it’s pitch black, as it usually is this time of year.

Glowing mushrooms light the paths, Ozan sells enchanted teas in a small booth, and Donnie has the biggest booth of all. Frost-resistant potted herbs, herbal candles, and more. All the proceeds go to the community garden.

Ozan isn’t the only one who showed up to support us. The Hawthorne sisters have a drink booth, a few local artists are selling pieces, and Greene’s grocer has a booth of their own as well. They’re here for free, just to support us with our little dream…

And I’ve never loved Starbrook more.

My job? My job is to chat—at least, that’s what Donnie told me.

“It’s about time we have a community garden,” an elder witch says, pushing her silver spectacles up her nose. “I’ve been asking for this at the town meetings for years, but no one was willing to do the work.”