Page 17 of Witch Unexpected
I wasn’t anyone’s sidekick.
And I wasn’t anyone’s battery.
Never again.
Chapter Five
Two pairs of boots, a fur-lined, fitted jacket, and a cute clutch bag later, my credit card was in tears and begging me to stop the abuse already.
“Ooo,” the ghostly shop assistant said. “This scarf will go perfectly with your cornflower blue eyes.” She dimpled ethereally at me and held the scarf up to me like a sacred offering. “And it’ll totally bring out the gold in your hair.”
Argh, I wanted the scarf so bad, and then I caught sight of the price tag. “Whoa, you’re good.”
She shrugged. “Did this for a living when I was… Well, living.”
I wanted to ask what happened, but in spirit circles it was bad taste to do so. If a spirit wanted to divulge their death story, they would.
“How long have you worked here?”
“Three months. I don’t get picked up for another six.”
Yeah, I knew all about how it worked. I’d worked for Soul Savers Inc, the company that collaborated with the Underealm to organize Reaper pick-ups for souls. In the meantime, these souls were given jobs and places to haunt until their time was really up. Necro City was crawling with ghosts. But most of the time, they made themselves invisible to human and outlier eyes.
“So…no scarf?” She flashed a cute, ghost dimple.
I held up my bag of purchases and smiled widely. “I think I’ll quit before I max out my limit.”
I needed to get back to the house and check on Wren. I’d left him with the TV on, instructions on how to operate the remote, and plenty of snacks to keep him going. He looked like a moody teddy bear, and for now, he was my responsibility, but first a hot beverage and maybe a fresh brownie.
I made the jump to Lumiers, knowing the sugar I was about to put into myself would replace any energy I lost from making the shift. I materialized in the alley down the side of the building so as not to startle any humans passing by with my sudden appearance, although, knowing the way human minds worked, they’d probably rationalize it away.
Heat blasted my cool skin as I stepped into Lumiers, and the delicious aroma of coffee and cake hit my nostrils. The damn place was edible, and I could spend hours in here gorging on Leana’s delicacies and reading magazine after magazine.
Speaking of the talented owner. “Hey, sexy.” I raised a hand in greeting.
Leana looked up from the newspaper she was reading and hopped off the stool she’d been perched on behind the counter. I’d gotten used to how she looked, but every now and then I was struck by how pink she was—skin, hair, lips, and lashes all pink—and how beautiful.
Allowing the door to close behind me, I headed over to her.
Leana slid a plate with two brownies on it across the counter. “I’ll bring your hot chocolate over in a minute.”
She knew what I liked. In fact, she knew what everyone wanted when they stepped through the doors. It was her gift.
I veered toward my regular spot by the window on autopilot and froze in my tracks.
Keith looked up at me with a startled expression, and then his attention flicked to the brunette opposite him.
His date.
He was on a date.
Cool.
He was sitting at my regular table.
Not so cool.
“Cora, hi,” he said.
