Page 35 of Hand-Fasting and Other Hazards
There was steel in his words. But also hope.
I didn’t know what to say, so I said nothing at all. I watched him instead. The way he held himself, tired but resolute: a man carrying the weight of a broken legacy and refusing to let it crush him.
I wanted to believe him. I think I did, even then. But belief is fragile, and I’ve spent so long trapped in fear that I don’t know how to hold onto it.
Still, as he turned to leave, I felt the faintest flicker of something unfamiliar.
Hope.
It will take time to grow. But it’s here. Sparked by the beast who is already more than that to me, though I am afraid to admit it. Even to myself.
CHAPTER 13
Lochlan
“PANCAKES: THE NEW APHRODISIAC.” —THE STELLA RUNE GAZETTE
Lochlan stood at the edge of Third Street, watching the crowd weave between vendor tables and clusters of cops with their canine companions. Nearly everyone held a plate stacked with pancakes, fruit, and breakfast sausage, a delicious spread served up for The Charis Foundation’s inaugural fundraiser for police dogs. The event had drawn families, couples, and a ridiculous number of dogs happily weaving through the sea of legs. Strands of orange and gold leaves decorated lamp posts, and the scent of maple syrup clung to the crisp air, making it feel like October had arrived early.
He would’ve brought Jade, but she didn’t have the patience for this kind of chaos. Honestly, neither did he.
Nia stood by one of the large portable griddles, her black shirt speckled with splatters of pancake batter—a streak of the same marked her cheek—as she smiled and talked animatedly with a mother of three. The youngest, a little girl with wild curls and a syrup-sticky face, tugged at Nia’s skirt. Lochlan watched as she bent down, giving the child her full attention, nodding thoughtfully.
Nia’s expression shifted into something playful and, with a quick glance over her shoulder, she opened her hand to reveal a small cluster of deep purple flowers. Their five-petaled shape mimicked a desert rose. The little girl’s eyes widened with wonder, flickering from the flowers to Nia’s face, before breaking into a delighted, gap-toothed grin.
“Just a little magic trick,” Nia murmured.
Lochlan heard her as though she’d spoken directly to him, though he realized belatedly he’d stepped closer. With so many regulars around, magic had to be used discretely, but the joy radiating from the child in that small moment was pure and unbridled.
“So cool!” the little girl exclaimed, clutching the flowers as she skipped back to her mother and siblings.
Lochlan’s chest tightened. His father had used magic the same way—conjuring a flower in his palm, holding it out with a quiet smile.
Tell me its properties, he would say. What medicines could it make? What spells might it strengthen?
On his loneliest nights, Lochlan would summon a flower in his palm, reciting its properties into the empty room, pretending his father was still there. Now, watching Nia wield the same magic through their bond, he felt a bittersweet pang.
“Lochlan?” Nia’s voice pulled him back. He exhaled sharply, shaking off the memory as her face came into focus.
He cleared his throat. “You picked that up easily.”
She glanced down at her palm, a blush creeping across her cheeks. “I guess I did,” she said, a trace of pride in her voice. “What’re you doing here?”
“How could I miss it?”
“We haven’t done the promise spell with my father yet,” she warned. “It won’t count.”
“I just came to see you, and to see how well the hard work you’ve put into this turned out.”
For the briefest moment, her eyes met his. “Ivy did most of it.”
Lochlan knew better. He’d heard her talking in her sleep about lists and RSVPs, seen the open notebook filled with painstaking calculations to ensure they sold enough tickets to cover the cost of K9 care and safety equipment. She’d poured her heart into this fundraiser.
Before he could say any of this, a pale blonde woman bounded over, her energy bright and uncontained. “Hi!” She extended a delicate hand. “I’m Ivy, the other half of Charis.”
He felt himself return her infectious smile. “It’s nice to meet you. I’m Lochlan.”
Ivy giggled. Beside her, Nia let out an exaggerated sigh, rolling her eyes.
