Page 65 of Book Boyfriends
“A lot of the research I’ve found online is about wishing wells and not fountains made out of wishing stones. But there seems to be a theory that if you shout the wish into the well and then open your mouth to swallow the echo, that will take it back…”
“So, you’re going to shout your wish into the SPN fountain and swallow it?” The skepticism is evident in Hope’s tone, despite her pasted onsure this could totally worksmile.
“No—” I wave my hand at the ridiculousness of her suggestion. “But my theory is if I can get back the not-so-lucky penny I used to make the wish, then maybe I can somehowreverse engineer this and get Owen and the rest of the guys back. You know, if I take back my payment for the wish, then the fountain will take back my wish.”
“How are you going to know it’s your penny?”
“The date,” I say smugly, sipping my tea.
Before I tossed that penny in, I’d sat on the fountain’s edge studying it. It was just your average penny. No distinguishable traits outside of its date. If I close my eyes tight enough, I can picture my thumb swiping along those tiny numbers.
“It had the same date as the year my first book was published. All I need to do is find the penny with that date, and I’ll know it’s my wish. Then I can unwish, andpoof,everything is fixed. My book boyfriends are back to their stories.” Bouncing in my seat, I toss my hands in the air like a magician.
“Didn’t you say the fountain was empty when you checked it out on Monday? How are you supposed to find that penny?”
“What if there are multiple pennies with that date?” Owen adds, his face wrinkled. “You wouldn’t want to accidentally undo someone else’s wish.”
“We’re not saying this is a bad idea,” Hope says, her tone sugary sweet. “We’re just asking questions. We’re just…”
“Wondering if you have a Plan B?” Owen’s indulgent grin mirrors one you’d give a child.
“Ugh!” Whining, I rest my head on the table. While far-fetched in my brain, now spoken aloud, I deflate with the knowledge that this plan is terrible. I can’t just return a wish, like an ill-fitting sweater.
Hope pats the top of my head. “There, there. It will be okay.”
“Says you. I may have to marry a roguish duke or a snarky werewolf.”
“Outside of the occasional shedding, Lars isn’t that bad… And Lord James…hegrowson you,” Owen says, the word “grows” coming out more question than fact.
“Why do you think you have to marry one of them? I thought you said you just needed to pick one of them to send the others back,” Hope muses.
Head raised, I meet her questioning gaze. “I wished for my happy ending. In my books, all my happy endings come with marriage, or at least a proposal. It stands to reason that if my happy ending is one of these three men, then it needs to be a complete one. Like in my books. It’s all connected to mystupidheteronormative books. The penny. Them”—I point at Owen, who frowns. “If we can’t resolve this, it may be the only way to get any of them back.”
“You can’t marry someone you don’t love,” Owen protests.
“It may be the only way to get you back to Selena. For you to have a chance to rewrite your own happy ending.”
“But what about you?”
“I’ll be okay.” I sit up, smoothing my hands against my thighs, and meeting his worry-filled stare.
“You can’t sacrifice your happiness for others,” he murmurs.
“It’s not a sacrifice when I’m responsible,” I say, my throat working. “My happiness can’t come at your expense.”
“Georgia…” He sighs. “It doesn’t need to be like this.”
“Agreed.” Hope squeezes his forearm. “Why don’t we make marriage plan C. Let’s not completely scratch the coin theory, but let’s identify another solution for plan B. We can work both angles together. Georgia, did your research say anything else?”
Raking my teeth against my lower lip, I nod. “Do you know any witches?”
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
FRIENDS?
Turns out finding a witch isn’t that difficult. With one quick Google search, Hope finds three witchcraft shops. Three clicks later, we set up an appointment to meet with a witchy consultant at Four Corners Spiritual Healing and Witchcraft Center.
Several online articles and a livelyRedditthread regarding wishes suggest an undoing spell. It’s the magical equivalent of “backsies” for a wish granted or still in progress. Outside of playing light as a feather, stiff as a board as a teenager, I’m ill-qualified to attempt spell casting.
