Page 2 of The Magic of Discovery
“And as for your... physical body…” She waggled her eyebrows and pinned me with her cornflower blue eyes. “We have the Devil. Sexual. Lust.” Gran enunciated the last two words as she jammed her one hundred percent non-threatening index finger down onto the face of the card.
“Yeah, or materialism or envy or obsession and addiction. I highly doubt I’ll be getting lusty over anybody, Gran.” I stood up and took my empty mug to the sink to rinse it out.
“Dick addiction is a real affliction, Saige,” Gran said in a serious voice.
By the stars, what is she? A rapper?
“You’d know since you’re the Queen of Dick Addiction. If there was a figurehead for Dick Addiction, your face would be on it. The Twelve Steps of Dick Addiction with Bette Wildes,” I bantered back at her, chuckling as I continued cleaning up breakfast.
“More like,” Gran paused, already laughing her ass off at her coming joke, “The TwelveInchesof Dick Addiction, heyoooo!”
We both were dying now, and I felt fortunate that I had such a witty and fun grandma in my life. Wiping my eyes, I scolded her, “Gran. You’re going to make me late to the shop. No more dick jokes.”
“Awwww, man. You’re no fun. But fine, I’ll put a lid on it,” she gave in with an eye roll, standing up from her chair. “But only until I see you for dinner.”
She had raised me and was truly more of a mother to me than my actual birth mother, who had last blessed us with her presence about two months ago. It was the first visit in two years, but that wasn’t unusual at all since she worked for a big magical firm on the other side of the country. Regardless of the physical distance, we’d just never had the typical mother-daughter relationship. My birth mother had only been nineteen years old when she’d gotten pregnant with me. My biological father was your stereotypical deadbeat, a one night stand. Laurie (yes, I call her Laurie) always told me that she didn’t know who he was. They’d hooked up at a party, and she’d had no way of contacting him after that night. Lucky for me, my gran was an out of this world person, and I never found myself lacking when it came to feeling loved or taken care of.
I turned to put my mug back in the cupboard and caught my reflection in the glass of the large window that ran the length of my countertop. High cheekbones, full lips, and a slight upward turn on the end of my nose... those were allmyfeatures. Not Laurie’s and not some sperm donor I’d never met. I’d always been relieved that I wasn’t a carbon copy of Laurie, looks or otherwise. I mean, sure, we shared some things like our red hair, the arch of our eyebrows, and the shape of our faces, but that was where the similarities ended.
Movement outside broke me from my thoughts, and I watched a handful of baby bunnies hopping and playing in the yard. Scanning our wide property, I took in all of the different gardens that covered most of the acreage, ending with the large flowerbed closer to the house. That was when I noticed a row of my tulips had wilted, the blooms sagging so low they were brushing the dirt.What the hell?Those were in absolutely perfect condition last evening! I’d been planning to give them a couple more days to grow before I cut them to sell at my magic shop, The Mystical Piglet or The Pig, as the locals had so lovingly shortened it.I’ll have to remember to check on them when I get home from work later.
Hearing Gran shuffling away since she knew I would be taking off soon for work, I continued to maneuver around my eat-in kitchen, grabbing some snacks to bring with me. Fishing my phone out, I checked the weather forecast for the day.Perfect. Seventy degrees and sunny.
“Oh, damn it.” The sound of Gran’s exasperated voice drew my attention as I walked around the kitchen table and took a right, intending to meet her on the back porch where she always entered and exited my cottage. She had her own sweet set-up along the back tree line. “I completely forgot that I got a phone call yesterday after dinner from a man who wants to rent the apartment above the shop. He already paid the first three months’ rent and the security deposit. He’s due to arrive at The Pig at ten. Here, take these herbs with you.” Gran picked up an overflowing bag that was sitting on the countertop and shoved it at me. Fresh greenery peeked over the top of the bag, the scents of basil, sage, and oregano mixing together.
“A heads up would’ve been nice, Gran. I’m going to have to rush now,” I huffed with fake annoyance, heading back to gather the rest of my things.
Following me, she chuckled. “Just keeping you on your toes, child.” Her phone started ringing, and she silenced it with a curse. “I’ve got to get home. Had a bit of a rager last night, so there are streamers all over the living room and that lightweight Randy Roger passed out in my bathtub. This is the third time! No more tequila for him. I’m the umpire of drinking and questionable decisions, and I call them like I see them. Three strikes, you’re out!”
The dude’s name wasnotRandy Roger. It was Roger, and I’ll let you guess why she threw the other name in there. In any case, Gran had bequeathed that name unto the man, and thus, he was now Randy Roger to everyone in town.
Throwing everything I needed into my backpack, I slipped it onto my shoulders. Glancing at the black cat clock that was ticking happily along on my kitchen wall, I groaned when I realized I really was going to have to rush.
“It’s already 9:45! I’ll be back later, and I’ll call if there are any questions,” I called out as I slipped my feet into my favorite pair of shoes. “Come on, Maven! We gotta hurry,” I yelled to my little furry friend as I ran out the old screen door.
* * *
I could hearGran cackling as the screen door slammed shut behind us.Sick woman laughing at how much I’m going to be sweating by the time I get down there.Shaking my head, I hopped on my pastel blue bicycle while Maven leapt into the large wicker basket attached to the handlebars. He never missed an opportunity to freeload, and my gods, he looked cute doing it.
“Maven, don’t crush those herbs! Watch your tail, son!” He gave a chirp in response and then squirmed down into the basket, that damn tail now pulsating like a pissed off squirrel.Sometimes he can be such a moody little bastard. I pushed off of the brick pathway that led to the main road in front of my cottage. It was a beautiful day for gardening and witching, which happened to be two of my top five favorite things. Frank and Arlo, my two handymen who hauled our items down to our shop, had already been by and picked up today’s fresh supplies. We typically left a clipboard on the side of the shed and marked things that needed to be loaded up and taken into town each day. It was mid-May, so most of our produce wouldn’t be ready for several weeks yet. Good thing we had more than just your usual vegetable fanfare at The Pig.
A grocery store, we were not. I carried everything from smudge sticks, to moonstones, crystals, bulk spell supplies, tonics, elixirs, and I did tarot readings here and there. Selling in-season produce was just a little extra income for me, and it always sold extremely well. Fresh-cut flowers were also a hot commodity, and in a couple of months, I would be up to my tits in blooms.
The bicycle tires bumped along our rocky stone driveway, a path I had walked down a million times. Riding into town was just easier, and it usually only took about ten minutes. I just might make it in time, which would be a good first impression. Whoever this guy was, we were going to be seeing each other a lot, and starting out on the right foot would set the stage going forward.
Thankfully, most of the ride was a straight shot, so I didn’t need to worry about going uphill.This body is not about that type of life.I was curvier than your average woman, but that was just my build. I was in shape since gardening outside and doing most of my own home improvement projects kept me fit enough. Squats were something I had a love-hate relationship with, but with squatting being a near-constant gardening maneuver, my ass and thighs were thicccc.Yes, with four c’s.
I assumed the renter was coming in from Portage Falls, one of the closest areas with more business opportunities than my small town of Emerald Lakes. It was about ten hours south, and I'd only ever heard of the place. I had never actually set foot more than twenty miles outside of Emerald Lakes. In fact, I’d never felt the need or the urge to. When I’d taken my mastery classes, I attended a university that was only ten miles from the cottage. I’d also commuted to save money and so I’d be able to help Gran with the upkeep around our sizable property.
The wind picked up then, blowing my hair off of my neck and breathing life into my body. I loved everything about being outside; I was a green witch, after all. Deriving my power from the earth and the sunlight, I was able to create vegetation and other natural growing items, like crystals and moonstones. The sun’s rays hit my skin, sinking down to my bones, and I groaned. The feeling of my muscles being energized by the glorious golden orb was intoxicating. Nothing like that first blast of vitamin D in the morning to set you up for a fantastic day. My mind thought back to Gran’s tarot reading. It seemed the stars felt I might be getting some of the more fun vitamin ‘D’ soon.I fucking wish.
Entering the downtown area, the road gave way to a designated bike path. Moving my bicycle onto the smoother asphalt, the ding of a bike bell drew my attention to the opposite side of the road.
“Hi, Saige! Hi, Maven!” a cute, tiny voice squealed, and Mr. Grumpy Fluff let out a low growl, not bothering to raise his head in acknowledgment. Ignoring him, I slowed to a stop and greeted the seven-year-old blonde across the street.
“Hi, Anna!” I called back, waving to her and her mother before adding, “Come by the shop later. We have a fresh batch of basil and the moonstones that you asked about last week, Miranda.”
“Sure thing, girl. There’s a reason you’re everyone’s favorite magic shop owner in Emerald Lakes!” Miranda gave me a wink and a smile as she began walking again with Anna pedaling in front of her.
