Page 33 of Spellbound & Speechless
“I’ll tell him today. It isn’t a secret, it’s more of a… a delay.” Juniper jabs her fork into her stack of pancakes. “I don’t want him to worry about me.”
“Everyone will worry,” Maple says. “And, actually… I was thinking we should spread the word around town. Other people need to know, too.”
“That’s true.” I bite the inside of my cheek. “I’ll do it. I need to let everyone know I’m home, anyway.”
It’s a small town. Most people will already know I’m back, but they won’t know why. If I don’t tell them myself, they’ll come up with wild reasons for my return. If there’s one thing I’ve learned about taking control of my life, it’s that controlling the narrative comes first.
Rowan clicks silently at her keyboard. I expect her to offer to tag along like she would have when we were young, but she must be busy.
“I’ll go with you,” Mac says.
Everyone turns in his direction, just fast enough to see him petting Timber’s head. Timber likes him. That’s usually a good sign. As much as I’ve been teasing Mac, he may be the only one to keep our family safe. We’re relying on him.
“Are you sure?” Juniper asks. “You’re already doing a lot for us.”
“This is for me, too. I need to get to know more of the locals,” he says.
“If you insist.” I shoot him a cheeky grin.
His gaze issteady on mine. “I do.”
How quickly hewent from barely wanting to talk to me to following me around like… well, like a lost puppy, though I’m sure he would hate the comparison. Mac walks a step behind me as if he’s my bodyguard, and I can imagine the flat look on his face. It’s as if I have it memorized already.
“What do you think about putting up flyers?” I glance over my shoulder.
His expression doesn’t change, not even a bit. “Terrible idea.”
Of course, he thinks it’s terrible. I can’t do anything right in Mac’s eyes. I glare. “Why? Because I came up with it?”
“No. Because the corrupt witch will know everyone knows she’s here. It’s better to talk to people face-to-face. Let the town protect itself and catch her off guard.”
“Hm…” I look ahead again and approach the old ice cream shop. “That’s true. You’re kind of good at this.”
“Thanks.” To my surprise, he opens the door for me. He’s more of a gentleman than I expected.
Sprinkles is another place in Starbrook that’s frozen in time—not only from my childhood, but from before I was born. Classic red stools line up along the bar, and a neon flashing sign welcomes us. There’s still a corded landline hanging on the wall, and last I checked, it’s in working condition.
Naturally, this is one of my favorite shops in Starbrook—the ice cream shop.
I shoot Mac an appreciative look before steppinginside, my shoes clicking across checkered black-and-white tiles. “Is this, like, your job? You hunt down corrupt witches?”
“Depends on your definition of job. No one pays me to do this.”
I know nothing about Mac. None of us do, which could make him dangerous, but the only thing he’s ever done is protect us—protectme. I want to trust him, even though I don’t quite understand where the urge comes from.
“That’s a shame. Whatdoyou do for work?” I ask.
He presses his lips together. “I’m between jobs right now, but… I’m a nature photographer.”
My eyes widen. “Are you really?”
He nods. “It doesn’t always pay the bills all that well, but I, uh… well, I take stock images. It makes some extra income, and I pick up side jobs wherever I go. Kind of like my gig at the bar.”
He seems to like nature. With his sleeves rolled up, I can see the black ink on his arms—tattoos of pine trees, moths, frogs, and mushrooms that make up entire sleeves.
“Look at that. I finally learned something new about you. Somethingreal.”
As fast as he opens up, he deflects again. “What about you? I know you work at the bar, but…”
