Page 28 of Dragon's Midlife Secret Baby
“Maybe you should have Amanda look at that.” Chelsea found the right slot for the lavender and put it in the back.
Tina shrugged. “I will when I get around to it. I’ve been busy with training, sales, and trying to findnew suppliers now that a few of the ones I’ve worked with don’t want to give me the same kinds of discounts anymore. But if you’re not here to work, you probably don’t need to hear all that.”
“I don’t mind,” Chelsea countered.
Tina sighed and looked up at her over her glasses. “I’m trying to get you to spill. You obviously want to. It’s practically oozing out of your aura, so just get it off your chest. And put this one up there, too.”
As she placed the tiny bottle of tea tree in its spot, Chelsea tried to get her thoughts together. “It’s Beck.”
“Right. Shit! That was close.” Tina had nearly dropped a bottle, but she’d saved it with her other hand. “Go on.”
“We have the fated bond all of us have been hearing about since we were kids. When he and I met, I just felt that spark between us. It was like the movies or something, and it wasn’t just that I thought he was hot. It was this palpable connection, and I’ve never felt anything like it before or since.”
Tina cleared her throat. Chelsea had spaced off, but now realized that Tina was passing her another bottle.
“Sorry. Anyway, even though Ifeel that, it’s impossible to just pick up where we left off. I mean, I eventually chalked him up as dead. I had to force myself to move on, even though it wasn’t like I was moving on to another man.”
“Although that might’ve been a possibility, eventually,” her sister noted as she took the last bottle from the box and reached her hand up. “Help an old woman up, will you?”
“You need to get a little rolling stool or something,” Chelsea suggested. “It’s not like you’re that old.”
“No, just creaky.” Tina flashed her a grin and headed for the stockroom. “I don’t think anyone expects you to just pick it all right back up, Chels. Not Mom or the rest of us, and probably not even Beck. You’re putting unnecessary pressure on yourself.”
They slipped through the black curtain that separated the main store from the stock room. Several more boxes were stacked near the back door, and Tina fetched a knife to cut the top one open.
“I just feel like something needs to happen. I can’t sit around and wait. I’ve already done that for long enough. And now we have some unseen enemy out there, someone who at least wants to make life harder for Beck.” Chelsea curled onehand into a fist. “You know, I’m kind of pissed at him.”
“At Beck? Or this unknown person? Or maybe whoever sent me these awful shirts! Look at this!” Tina held up a boxy white t-shirt.Witch, please!was written along the bottom in blocky letters. That wasn’t all that different from some of the other tees Chelsea had seen in The Crystal Cauldron, but the clipart style witch’s face above it was another matter. It came complete with a crooked nose, a wart, and a hat that’d been poorly pasted on.
Chelsea took a step back. “You ordered that?”
“Hell, no!” Tina chucked it back in the box and set that carton aside. “I can abide a bit of cheesy witch humor. That’s just part of running a business. I have to give people what they want, and it’s not my place to judge them. But those? I’m judging those! Anyway, continue. Who are you pissed at again?”
“Oh, right.” She’d gotten so distracted by the corny t-shirt that she’d nearly forgotten, but that was exactly what she needed. Chelsea knew she could always count on her sisters. “I’m pissed at Beck for leaving. He thinks he has to stay away from Corbin and me until he figures out who’s after him, but I didn’t want him to leave.” Chelsea sounded like she was whining, but she didn’t care.
Neither did Tina. “It sucks, but I’ll bet if the circumstances were different, you’d do the same thing.”
“Yeah,” Chelsea admitted. “And, of course, I want to keep Corbin safe. I don’t want him to get caught up in the middle if someone actively wants to hurt Beck. But then, how can I trade off love for safety? That doesn’t seem very fair. I just wait in the wings while he goes out to fight a battle?”
“You’re not,” Tina pointed out. She took the most recently opened box from the top of the stack and slid it into an empty spot on a nearby shelf. “You and Mom went to that guy to see if he can help you find whoever put the spell on Beck. You’re not just sitting on your hands, Chelsea.”
“But there’s got to be more I cando,” Chelsea insisted. “I hate this. I’ve never been one to stand idly by and let the world happen.”
“No, you haven’t.” Tina folded the knife and put it in her pocket. She turned calm eyes to Chelsea and put her hands solidly on her sister’s shoulders. “You’ve always taken responsibility even when you didn’t need to. You were always trying to fix my problems or Kristy’s, even when we didn’t want you to. When Corbin came along, you worked hard to make sure you did right by him, and you have.You’re good at stepping up, but sometimes, there’s only so much you can do. Stop beating yourself up for it.”
Pulling in a deep breath, Chelsea let it out slowly through her nose. “I’ll try. That’s all I can promise.”
“Then I’ll take it. Now, if you’re really desperate for something to do, you can rearrange the display of athames to accommodate my new stock.” She pulled a short, silver dagger out of the latest box she’d opened and slid it out of its sheath so that it gleamed in the light.
“As tempting as that is, I should get back to Corbin. I think he’s been a little confused to have Beck show up in his life and then leave again. I know he’s too young to really understand the significance of all this, but?—”
“But children are far more perceptive than we give them credit for,” Tina replied quickly.
Chelsea nodded. “Yes. Exactly.”
With the final opened box in her hands, Tina gave her sister a smile. “Corbin is a special boy. We all know that, and lately, he’s proven to be even more special than we’d realized. I know you’re worried about him, and that’s your job. But I’m confident that he’s going to be just fine. Just be patient.”
“You know, I really shouldn’t betaking advice from someone who doesn’t have children,” Chelsea remarked.
