“I do love it out here,” I say. “It’s a little oasis in the middle of the city for me.”
“I love it too.” Felise sits and stretches her legs out on the chaise.
I hand her a glass of wine, then Magan, and set the cheese plate on the small table.
“I had help buying this place,” I tell them. “My mom owned a little house over in Belmont Gardens. When she passed away, I inherited it. I thought about staying there, but I felt like I needed a change. My own space. So I sold it. The equity helped out buying this place.”
“You did good,” Felise says. She sips her wine. “I’m sure Mom and Dad would help us too if we wanted to move out.”
“They seem like pretty cool parents,” I venture. “If you have to still live at home.”
“Well, Mom’s a terrible cook. And Dad can be a little overprotective. Mom kind of settles him down though.”
“She’s a terrible cook? The food was great when I was there.”
They both laugh.
“She can’t even boil toast,” Felise says.
I choke on a laugh. “I see she’s passed her skills on to you.”
Felise grins. “She uses magic a lot.”
“Ohhhhh.” I contemplate that. “Whipping up a gourmet dinner would be a lot easier with magic.”
“It’s a skill that has to be learned.” Magan smiles. “You can probably do it. Are you sure you’ve never accidentally cast a spell or an enchantment?”
I grimace. “No!” I pause. “Well. I’m not sure.” I tell them about Sophia Carmichael ridiculing my flat chest. And the homeless man.
“You have,” Felise says with a knowing nod. “You just didn’t realize it.”
Really? “That’s… wow.”
“It’ll just be a matter of learning how to control your power,” Magan says. “And of course learning the rules. You don’t want to get in trouble with the Board of Elders.”
I bite my lip. “Is that like the witch police?”
Felise grins. “Sort of.”
Am I living in an alternate reality? Because this is bananas. But whatever.
“Trace will teach you all you need to know,” Magan says. “He’s so smart, and of course powerful.”
“It sounds like his family was very important.”
“Yes.” Both Felise and Magan’s lips droop. “Trace’s father was a supreme wizard. And his family has been archmages going back centuries, so it’s almost certain he will be too.”
“Um… archmage?”
Felise explains. “The Orb of Night is governed by the Board of Elders, who are appointed by the supreme wizards, who are the most powerful witches. The board creates and institutes the laws that govern us. The head of the Board of Witches is the archmage.”
“Ah.” That explains Trace’s big witch energy. “Does he want to be archmage?”
They stare at me as if I just asked if the sky is blue.
“Of course,” Felise says slowly. “Who wouldn’t?”
“What about you?” I ask her. “Or you, Magan?”
“There’s never been a woman archmage.”
My jaw drops. “What? Why not?”
They exchange a look. “I guess no woman’s ever wanted to,” Magan replies.
“Well, that’s bullshit.”
They laugh.
“Yeah, it is,” Felise agrees.
“That shouldn’t stop you if you want to do that. Or any woman.” I roll my eyes. “Sheesh.”
“Our coven may be a little patriarchal,” Magan says.
“Doesn’t that bother you?” These two young women seem strong-willed and spirited.
“I don’t have big ambitions,” Felise says slowly. “Maybe I should?”
“Oh, I’m not saying that! You do you and all that. As long as you’re happy.”
“I love our little shop,” Felise says. “I would like to grow our business though.”
“I want to see it.”
“Come by this weekend.”
“Trace and I are meeting Saturday afternoon.”
“We’re open Sundays. Noon to six.”
“Okay. That’ll be fun.”
I feel like I should be asking them bigger, deeper questions about being a witch. But I don’t even know what to ask. It’s all so bizarre. I’m still me, and yet I feel different, even though I haven’t done any real magic yet. I feel like I’m a little bit… special. Something I’ve never in my life experienced. I’ve felt different. I’ve felt like I couldn’t live up to my mom’s expectations of me. But I’ve never felt special.
I also want to ask questions about Trace. I have a deep curiosity about everything about him. Why he has no girlfriend. Why he’s so good-looking. Ha. Why he seems so irked at having to train me. But I keep my lips zipped on all subjects Trace.
“Would you like another glass of wine?” I offer, rising.
“Sit down.” Felise waves a hand at me. She points at our glasses and twirls her finger and… they’re full.
I blink. Whoa. Now that’s a handy skill.
We share stories about our lives growing up and drink more wine, and then my sisters—it’s still weird to think that—declare it time to leave. We exchange hugs at my door.
“I’m so glad we found you,” Felise says. She’s always forthcoming about her feelings. She tilts her head. “It’s so weird that I had a feeling I needed to do that DNA test.”
“You really didn’t have a reason?”
“No.” Her gaze drifts over my shoulder. “Just that feeling.”
“We’ll see you Sunday,” Magan says.
“I can’t wait.”
I close the door behind them, lean against it, and stare across my condo. I took the step. Made the leap. I might be leaping off a cliff into complete darkness. I don’t know what I’m getting into. But so far… it’s been pretty good.
Now I just have to deal with Trace.
11
Trace
I can’t say no to Joe. Even though I’d rather take out my own tonsils.
When he asked me to be Romy’s mentor and help her prepare for her WED, we had a short, terse discussion. He told me I need to do some kind of good if I ever want to become a supreme wizard. I told him the last thing I want is to become a supreme wizard. He said, “Trace. It’s in your blood.”
I grind my back molars. Joe seems to think it’s my destiny. Maybe it was, but not anymore.
I know what he’s doing. He’s trying to draw me back into the coven. And magic. Well, it won’t work.
On top of all that, I’m not a teacher. And clearly Romy’s not even sure she wants to be taught. She still thinks we’re all nuts. So I don’t know how this is going to go.
Also, there’s the issue of her only being half witch. This rarely happens, and to be honest I don’t know how this affects her powers.
And… there’s the little matter of my being insanely attracted to her. Like, I can’t stop thinking about her. I can’t stop remembering how she tastes, how she felt in my arms. I can’t stop seeing her smile.