Page 17 of Minnie: Double, Double, Toil and Trouble

At times like these, I’m so grateful the potion has my back.

Gorg crosses his arms in front of his chest. “Okay, enlighten me then. Why did you become a barista?”

What do I tell him? That my parents cut me off, and I couldn’t leave Silver Springs to start over somewhere else? That I had no money, no friends, and no one else except Bob from the diner would hire me, so now I work two jobs?

Formula M doesn’t let me admit any of those things, but I manage to give Gorg a half-truth. “Amber’s a friend.”

He doesn’t look convinced. “Really? Is that why you were hitting on her boyfriend?”

“Fated mate,” I correct.

I watch Gorg carefully to see how he reacts. Does he realize we might be fated mates, too? Does he feel the bond between us? Or is it a one-sided curse inflicted by my so-called mother?

Gorg just looks amused.

I examine my nails. “I was not hitting on Julian.” Even though I totally was.

“If you say so.” He purses his lips.

There’s something almost familiar about him, but I can’t trust instinct. Not when it’s constantly telling me I’m into Julian when I know for a fact I’m not. And things are no different now. I just have to get to know Gorg and see if he might be the one.

He tilts his head to the side. “Do you enjoy working here?”

At least he’s trying to get to know me, even if having a conversation with the guy is so frustrating I want to tear my hair out.

And speaking of hair—or lack thereof—the snakes on his head are at a forty-five degree angle, and they’re not shifting around or trying to right themselves. So weird.

“I’ll take that as a no?” he asks.

It takes me a second to realize he’s talking about my job.

I flip my hair breezily, “It’s whatever.”

Honestly, it’s not so bad. I’m grateful to have a job at all, even if it isn’t what I want to do for the rest of my life. And it definitely beats the life Maude Montgomery had planned for me…

Step 1: find a nefarious way to steal Julian away from Amber

Step 2: drag him back home and regain access to my inheritance

Step 3: spend the rest of my life being subservient to Julian while organizing fancy shmancy parties for snooty rich people.

I’d much rather work at Jewels Cafe, thank you very much.

And speaking of my so-called mother, I need to figure out if Gorg is my other half… or just another step in her plan.

The bell above the cafe’s front door jingles, and Tanner, a local gardener who shifts into an Egyptian mau. He’s a nice enough guy, and a regular, but a wave of annoyance courses through me when I see him. Not because of anything he’s done, but because he’s interrupting my time with Gorg.

“I’ll have the usual,” he says.

I just wish I could tell him to come back in ten minutes.

Formula M helps with the annoyance, sending calm coursing through me until I no longer care. Unfortunately, it also keeps me frozen in place, so when I try to get up, I find I can’t move.

“A double shot dirty chai,” Tanner reminds me.

I ignore him.

Gorg looks slightly amused. “I’d do it,” he says, “but I have no fucking clue what a dirty chai is. I’m more of a dirty martini type of guy myself.”