Page 81 of Wishing for a Werewolf
“I like what I see so far.” Mrs. Greely smiles up at Rune. “This is a very auspicious start, young man.”
He gestures to me. “It’s all Autumn’s doing.”
But the wish swap spell—or maybe her fascination with his handsomeness—keeps her eyes glued to him.
I step forward anyway. “Do you need helpnavigating the maze, Mrs. Greely?”
“No, I want to experience it as the townspeople will. If I get lost, I’ll consult the map I have.” Now she does look at me, waving the binder she holds in her free hand. “You did follow the map I approved…” She lifts an eyebrow.
“We did.” I nod, but the skeptical look doesn’t fade from her face until Rune reassures her as well.
Effing hell, I may as well be silent and invisible, at this rate! It might be the wish swap spell causing it, but it’s still irritating.
The elderly women disappear into the maze, and I stalk around the outside, headed for the exit. Deep breaths, Autumn. Remember your calm.
At the exit, I triple-check that everything’s in place. There are two prize tables, one with packets of candy corn and another with sample bars of goat-milk soap, so something for kids and adults. And there’s a goat petting area, which holds Babybelle, Mozzarella, Cheddar, and Gouda. A table set just out of their reach holds the butternut goat cookies I baked this morning, so the people have safe treats for the animals.
I rearrange the sample-soap trays, sliding them a couple of inches left before shoving them back over to where they originally sat. In addition to the farm’s usual lavender and peppermint, I’ve also set out small slices of my fancy PSL soaps, wrapped in pumpkin-colored ribbons that hold tags with the address of my hidden webpage on them.
“Are you all right?” Rune leans close to rumble in my ear.
“Fine,” I whisper-hiss. “Just fine. In fact, Ilovebeing ignored. It’s my favorite thingever.”
He snorts. “Now you sound like I always imagine Babybelle does.”
That startles a laugh from me, breaking some of my bad mood. “Nah, she’s not sarcastic. She’s just self-centered in that honest way animals have.”
“It’s going to be okay.” Rune’s big hand swallows my shoulder as he gets me to meet his eyes. “They’ll love the maze.”
“But if they don’t?”
“If they don’t, I’ll charm them into changing their minds.”
“You know what? A couple of weeks ago, I wouldn’t have believed you, but you were very charming with Mrs. Greely at the town meeting.”
He steps closer, his eyes flashing gold. “I mean it. I’d do anything for you, my fire.”
My heart skips at his words and the sweetness of the pet name, tears prickling the back of my eyes. “Thank you,” I whisper. “I know the spell made you do it, but it really means a lot to me that you’ve helped me with all of this. I… I’m not used to having that kind of support.” My besties believe in me and give me tons of emotional support, which is amazing, but it’s not the same as having Rune here with me, helping on the farm, doing the physical work.
“I didn’t do it because of the spell, Autumn.” His eyes burn into mine. “I did it be—”
“Well, young man, you’ve really outdone yourself,” Mrs. Greely says, waving her binder, which is open to the map I submitted as part of my application. “The maze is complex enough to be fun without edging over into frustrating, andthe little decorations in each dead end are a very nice touch.”
“It was all Autumn’s doing,” he repeats and is again ignored.
“And these are good.” She uses her cane to point at the prize tables before swinging it toward the corral. “But the goats?”
I lift my hand up over my head and give the signal.
Babybelle recognizes her cue and comes bounding toward the temporary fence of the petting area. “Me! Me! Me! Look at me! I’m adorable!”
It works exactly as we planned, and all of the women ooh and ah over my familiar, who hams it up, reveling in the attention.
Rune and I share a hopeful look while we wait, and it’s not long before Mrs. Greely makes her way back over to us. “Well done. Keep the quality up for the next three days, and you’ll be a strong contender for next year.”
As the other members of the events committee walk by, Rosie snags a sample of my PSL soap from the prize table. When she makes the other women smell it, they all turn and come back to get a sample of their own.
“Rune, this is lovely!”
