Page 20 of Of Poison & Pumpkins
“Adventure, survival fiction. Like that guy who got stuck rock climbing and sawed his own hand off.” His smile transforms his face.
“Of all things, that makes you smile?”
“No, you make me smile.” He steps back. “Look, my distraction worked. You’re not freaking out anymore.”
“I wasn’t freaking out.” I tuck my hair behind my ear and glare into his otherworldly eyes. “You care too much about what others think of you, and haven’t cried a day in your life, and—” I step forward. Not even one of these balloons could fit between our chests with how close we are. “And you still park terribly.”
“And?” His smile doesn’t falter.
“And your cat is a nuisance.”
He gasps, but that adorable, awful, perfect smile remains. “Take that back. Goosie is an angel.”
I cross my arms. “Last night, Tinz texted me that Momma Kitty was howling. She went to check on them and Goosie was somehow there, taking up all the space, cuddling with the kittens.”
“Unspeakable!” Elias throws up his arm. “Toss him into the feline detention center.”
“She needs room to nurse!”
Elias’s gaze bores into mine, then drops to my mouth. He licks his lips and a different nickname for him comes to mind, one only meant to be used in bed, but that’s not our path. His attraction to me, despite being flattering, is temporary and only because I’m the new fruit in a big jungle or something. I don’t know, I’ve never been good at metaphors. He sees me as a shiny new apple, ripe for the picking, but he will quickly find a grape, or cantaloupe, or juicy melon that will suit his hunger.
“Why are you listing off fruits?” he asks.
How much had I said out loud?
“You were wrong,” he says, and dares to brush a finger along my jawline. “The last time I cried was at my grandpa’s funeral.”
His skin against mine should not feel this explosive. If a slight feathery touch sends a spasm through my core, then I need to get laid, and soon. Maybe Porter will be available tonight.
I clear my throat and gesture at the balloons. “We should untangle ourselves before someone needs one of these,” I say, yanking on a string and making the balloons bounce.
“The shop’s empty. No one will miss us.” His voice is thick with a feeling I shouldn’t investigate.
Though, he’s right. It is eerily quiet here. Only the sound of the pumpkin clocks tick-tock can be heard. Not that I can see if they’re truly pumpkin-shaped through this balloon bubble, but I’d bet they aren’t shaped like flamingoes. A flamingo-themed shop. Now that would be eccentric. Flamingos. Ha. A strange laugh bursts out from the seams of my lips, wild and inappropriate. Elias’s playful eyes sparkle with intrigue, and he joins along while poking the balloons with his finger, causing them to bang into our foreheads.
“Aaaah,” he half-sighs, half-sings. “So, what now? We could hide in here forever, but you get hangry. Since you’re vegetarian, only I’d survive if there was an apocalypse.”
“Are you suggesting that you’d eat me if necessary?”
His eyes narrow playfully, then asks, “Are you volunteering to be eaten?”
I dip out of the balloon cage to get away from that remark.
“The popsicle sticks in their hands were purple.” I start tidying his shelves just for something to keep my hands busy. With each item I move, Elias softly replaces it to its original position as he follows me. That doesn’t stop me from continuing down the entire aisle.
“I thought Alexandra only wanted revenge on her husband. So, why is she passing out poison to random Nergs? And why did she pick such an outrageous curse? How far is she going to go? How many people? I need to stop her from handing out anything else.”
“Why don’t I use my magical wish on you now?” Elias offers his power of the month like a refillable cup of soda.
“No, I won’t accept it. Find someone else.”
The front door swings open and a few customers skitter inside, whispering to each other and checking over their shoulder at the commotion. At least a dozen first responders circle the victims, flashing lights bouncing off the metal fountain.
“… be okay?” one customer finishes.
“Never seen anything like that …”
“… purple store, my friend said …”
