Page 84 of Love, Magic and Misfortune
“Should you check on the wine?”
“Thewine.” Jasper placed his gifts aside and stood. When he was gone, Violet sunk into the couch and exhaled, placing her palm against her forehead.
What the heck was that?
It had almost felt as if he was waiting for something. Or considering something? Violet shook her head, hoping that whatever it was, the odd moment had passed and was behind them. Hopefully she wasn’t about to be fired for a fourth time…
When Jasper returned, his demeanor seemed to be reset to normal. He smiled as he handed her a mug half-filled with dark red liquid—the rich cinnamon, honey and star anise swirled up with the steam and filled her senses.
“This smells divine.”
“I hope it’s good.” He sat beside her, peeking into his own mug. He lifted it, grinning. “Cheers to your amazing talent and getting your art into the world.”
“Cheers toyourbirthdayand continued health and good nights of sleep.”
After a quick tap of their mugs, Violet brought her drink to her nose first, inhaling deeply before taking a full sip. Warm and divine, she could taste the subtle hints of orange and the heady essence of brandy. She sighed. “Mm… This is wonderful, Jas.”
“You like it?”
“I love it. You know, if you ever tire of writing—which I hope you never do—you could have a prosperous career in culinary arts. The frittata you made that one time was also scrumptious.”
Jasper shrugged. “I’m just following recipes. I’m not special.”
“Some people can’t even manage that. Even more, some people don’t bother to try. I dated a guy who told me he’d never even boiled water. Everything he ate was either restaurant takeout or from the freezer section at the grocery store.”
“Was this person a teenager?”
Violet laughed. “No, this was when I was… twenty-two? I think he was twenty-six. He bragged about it and thought it was funny, actually. He only ate home-cooked food at his parents’ house on Sundays—family tradition. His mom demanded it. He’d always tell me, ‘I’ll eat better when I’m married,’ which totally rubbed me the wrong way.”
Jasper drew back, frowning. “That’s a pretty bold insinuation. What if his spouse can’t cook very well?”
“Oh, he told me he’d make sure she could. He didn’t say it directly, but in his mind, feeding him washerduty, you know? Cooking was not, quote, ‘the man’s job.’”
“That’s so weird, Vi—why were you dating this person?”
“I didn’t date him for very long after that conversation. Unfortunately, he wasn’t the first person I’d dated with chauvinistic expectations. That whole ‘I’m a manly man’ rhetoric, you know?”
“Mm.” Jasper nodded. “Patriarchy.”
“Exactly. Grumble grumble—go make me a sandwich and wash my clothes. Stuff like that.” Violet chuckled, but there was an awkward pause as Jasper stared down at the coffee table. Violet leaned forward to catch his gaze. “Is something wrong?”
He blinked, serious as he looked up at her with his light eyes. “Are… those the kinds of guys you like?”
She shook her head, making her curls bounce. “Not at all.”
“Then why did you date them?”
Violet sat back against the couch, making herself comfortable. “Well, growing up… it’s like I was taught that relationships were supposed to be a certain way—Gram didn’t teach me that, specifically. It was in the messages all around me. In TV shows or movies I watched. Books I read. But then, as I got older and tried to date—tried to conform to these set rules and expectations, it felt all wrong for me. I felt stifled and miserable being with those guys. It took me some time to realize that.”
Jasper nodded, watching her and listening intently. “So, what kind of relationship do you want?”
Violet stifled a smile as she looked up toward the ceiling in contemplation. “Hmm, ideally, a relationship where I can just be myself—where I’m not constantly playing sidekick to someone else’s much more important life story. A partnership, and we’reboththe main characters. And we can enjoy life and respect each other. Openly learning and growing together.”
Jasper lifted his hand, his face scrunched as he mussed the top of his hair. “Is that so difficult to find, Vi? Mutual respect and openness?”
She huffed, one eyebrow raised. “You’d be surprised. You’ve been stuck inside so you don’t really know. But trust me, it’s rough out there.”
“I’ve been thinking about that lately,” he said, dropping his hand and looking toward the window, the heavy snowflakes cascading down. “There are so many things I’ve never done. Never tried…” He turned, meeting Violet’s eyes. “I’ve never been swimming or seen the ocean. I’ve never been to an amusement park or a coffee shop. I’ve never danced!”
