“I really did think that it was a beautiful sight, but not the only site for the hotel. And I wanted your sister, Harmony, to get the financial help for the city that she kept saying she needed. But you know what, none of it matters anymore.”
“Oh Jonathan, I am so sorry,” I said.
“What do you have to be sorry for? I’m the one who lied to you. I’m the one who supported my dad’s hotel idea, knowing that it would probably hurt both you and your sisters”, he said tightening and releasing his fingers over and over again.
“But one thing Olivia that I didn’t lie to you about; I do love you and I do want you in my life,” he said looking at me. “Don’t worry; I know that that dream is over now. I know that I have broken your trust and that you probably will never believe me again. But I didn’t want to leave town without telling you the truth and asking for you to try to forgive me. I really do love you.”
I sat there frozen. There were so many thoughts going through my head. I knew without a doubt that I still loved him and I wanted more than anything to trust him again.
“Where are you going now Jonathan?”
“Dad is sending me back up north to work in the company office. He thinks that maybe I have a few more things to learn,” he sadly. “We both said some things that maybe we shouldn’t have and it’s better if we’re not around each other for a while. And without you Olivia, there is nothing keeping me down here anymore,” he said slowly rising.
Taking a deep breath and looking out towards the sea Jonathan said, “Olivia, it seems to me that I have given you nothing but sadness for way too long. I fooled around on you in school and when I finally grew up and realized how much I loved you and actually started to win you back, I let you down again. I wish you nothing but happiness, Livy. You deserve to be loved and treasured by someone very special and I hope that you find him. I just wish it could have been me,” he said, giving me a kiss on the cheek and walking back towards the shops on the pier.
I could actually feel my heart tearing in two. My chest hurt so much that I couldn’t pull myself up and off the bench. And the tears that came were soon followed by more slow moving waves of aching pain. I felt as if a part of my heart was being torn from my body and was following Jonathan down the pier.
What did I want…. what did I want? Could I really let him walk out of my life one more time? And then I heard a voice say, “You already know what you want my daughter. You have always known. Now go and get it.” Where had that come from I thought jumping and looking around the pier. I knew that voice. I know I had heard my mother’s voice, I just knew.
Skipping the power walking and going into a full running mode I ran in search of Jonathan. We had both made a lot of mistakes and mine had cost him his job. He was not perfect, but neither was I.
Chapter 17
“I need your help, all of you,” I said, looking at my sisters, my father and Gail as they sat in my living room staring at me. I had called all four of them earlier today and asked them to please come to my house for dinner tonight. I hadn’t given them a reason, just begged them to please come. And they had.
Dinner had been pleasant despite the anxiety that kept breaking through. I had made homemade lasagna, garlic bread and salad and I was happy with how well the meal had actually turned out. Glasses of Pinot Grigio and Chardonnay had added to the lightness of the evening.
Having my father with us couldn’t help but change the dynamics of the group. We almost talked like strangers getting to know each other for the first time. Questions were asked and a few memories were even shared. And Constance had brought a lovely dessert of cheesecake tortes to finish off the meal.
The smell of Hazelnut coffee filled my home as I brought out a tray with mugs of hot coffee for everyone. Sugar, milk or half and half topped off each mug as I prepared to make my request. Sitting around my couch each of my guests looked at me with eyes that were filled with curiosity.
“Thanks so much everybody for coming tonight,” I said. And as I did I noticed that Gail seemed distracted, as if she was seeing someone or something that the rest of us did not.
“Gail, are you okay?” I asked.
“Sure,” she said “We’ll talk about it later,” leaving me to wonder if she was talking to me or some spirit that had wandered into my living room. Mom, maybe? Later, yes, we would talk about it later.
“So you all know that Jonathan’s father sent him back home because of the hotel disaster, right? And you know that we’ve been talking to each other again, right?” I asked as everyone in the room nodded their heads.
“You are not asking our opinions on Jonathan, are you, Olivia?” my dad asked.
“No,” I said, shaking my head.
“So what is it that you need?” Harmony asked, looking a little concerned.
“We all know that the first sight of the Bella Vista Hotel was ruled out because of my, um, involvement?”
My comment was again met with nodding heads.
“And that has caused a lot of heart ache between Jonathan and his dad and maybe even for the city of New Moon Beach.”
“You can say that again,” muttered Harmony.
“Harm,” my dad said with a warning look hyper focused on Harmony.
“What does that have to do with us?” asked Constance. “Oh, other than the fact that Harmony is the Mayor and the City Council members are all being jerks to her now.”
“They have a lot to be upset about,” defended Harmony.
“Yeah, well the help I am asking for will benefit the city as well as Jonathan and his dad…. if it works,” I said.
I took a big breath and continued. “So basically, Jonathan’s dad is being difficult shall we say. He totally blames the first disaster on Jonathan, which really isn’t fair But I guess fairness goes out the window when your father is the boss,” I said.
“Are you telling us that his dad is still not willing to give Jonathan a chance to work on the hotel - wherever they end up putting it?” Constance asked.
“I guess that he feels that his son has to earn his right back into helping on any MaxDon building projects. He’s sort of written Jonathan off. I think he’s being a jerk.”
“Hard fellow,” my dad said, to which each of my sisters raised their eyes in surprise. “What, I think he’s kind of being a bad-ass,” my dad said. “Don’t you?”
Not answering his question I moved on. “There is apparently a lot of disagreement as to whether or not they should even build a hotel in New Moon Beach. No one can agree where it should go and Jonathan’s been left on the outside of the whole thing.”
“Harmony, I really am sensitive to your concerns about the city needing the potential revenues that this hotel would provide. And although I haven’t changed my mind about not wanting the hotel on my street, I think that it still might work somewhere else in New Moon Beach.”
“Really?” was her only response.
“So here is what I’m wondering,” I said holding my breath. “Would all of you be willing to join me in a spell to search out the perfect new spot in or around New Moon Beach where the hotel could go?”
“Olivia - you know that your spell making days have been placed on hold,” reminded our father.
“Oh, I know that. That’s why I am asking you all for your help. It’s not just for me; it’s also for Jonathan and for the city too,” I said, looking around the room at each of them. “I ruined his chances of proving himself to his father and I’d like to change that,” I said. “And my actions may have ended the city’s chance of making some much needed money. So by doing this we’re creating a win-win situation that benefits us all and may just give Jonathan another chance.”
The group was silent for awhile contemplating my request I’m sure.
“What do you mean by the perfect location, Olivia?” Gail finally asked.
“Well, I was thinking that by asking the gods to help us they could direct us to the most beautiful and appropriate site for a new hotel. If the
gods are in favor, who can be against it?” I asked the group.
“I would need to consult My Book of Shadows and the calendar to determine what would be the best day to do such a spell,” Harmony said.
“And we would probably be stronger if we performed the spell together on the beach very late or early in the morning,” added Constance.
“Oh, this should be fun,” Gail said, looking at me with a smile.
My father had still not commented.
“Dad, are you with us on this?” I asked tentatively.
“I need to think about this a little. Call me when you know the specifics and I’ll let you know,” he said.
“You are the strongest witch among us, dad. Your powers would make a big difference,” I said, looking at him with eyes that said p-l-e-a-s-e-.
“Let me know when you have everything set up and I’ll think about it,” he said as he moved off the couch and towards the door.
Stopping and turning towards my hallway, he said, “No Meghan, this is not the same thing!” and with that he left.
Leaning in and whispering to me Gail said, “That’s what I was going to tell you. Both Marv and Meghan are here tonight.”
“I thought that I heard them talking in the back room,” said Harmony heading towards my front door. “I’ll get back to you guys once I know more.”
“Isn’t it just like dad to take off like that?” said Constance. “I guess I still don’t see in him what the two of you do,” said Constance sadly. “I’ll be in touch,” and with that she walked out the door too.
Over the next week Jonathan and I saw each other around town. His dad had finally agreed to let him return temporarily to New Moon Beach as they scouted out a few new potential sites. With each site came a negative response almost as if his father was hoping that this project would die. He made a point of reminding Jonathan over and over again that he had a lot to learn. His dad was really starting to tick me off.
Jonathan was exhausted from trying so hard to meet each of his father’s expectations. On more than one occasion he had fallen asleep on my couch after dinner or as we were watching a movie. I felt so sorry for him. But I was quickly learning that Jonathan was not a quitter.
One morning, about a week after the family dinner, Harmony showed up at my shop. “Okay, I have a date, a time and a spell. I think that we can do this,” she said with a smile.
“Have you told Constance?” I asked
“Yep, she’s on board.”
“How about dad?”
“He said that he’d let us know.”
“Great,” I responded more than a little disappointed. “Thank you so much Harmony.”
“I just don’t know, Olivia. Dad has to make up his own mind. Either way, we can still pull this off,” Harmony offered.
“Oh, and Gail agreed to join us too. We just have to tell her where and when,” I said.
“Liv, does Jonathan know anything about this,” she asked.
“Harmony, I haven’t even told Jonathan that I am a witch, let alone that I perform spells.”
“Well, if you two are going to be together, you are going to have to tell him sooner or later,” counseled Harmony. “That’s not a secret you can keep forever.”
“Yeah, I know,” I said. But I had neither the desire nor the strength to get into that now. I wondered if I would ever have the courage to tell him about the storm. Did I even have to? Would it only make things worse? Oh well, one challenge at a time.
“Tell me what you need in order to perform the spell, Harmony,” I asked. And she gave me a complete run down of everything that we would need to prepare for this spell.
“Harm, is there anything that we can do to help Constance to understand dad a little more. I feel like I’m really starting to get to know him. She’s nowhere near where you or I are and I feel badly for them both,” I said.
“I think that they will find their way to each other over time. Look how long it took you,” she said.
I wished with all of my heart, I could help. But meddling was not something I was really good at. Okay, so you already know that! Instead, I held on to my thoughts and prayed that someday soon things would change.
The last Thursday in September we gathered just before sunrise at the beach to perform our spell. Gail, Constance, Harmony and I made a circle down by the shoreline. The moon formed a clear sliver in the sky and each of us was ready to perform our tasks.
“I will lead the chant and each of you will follow,” Harmony began. The fact that dad had not shown up made my heart ache. I had really wanted his support. And Constance had needed to see that he was really going to be around when we all needed him.
As Harmony raised her hands and faced the moon, we heard, “Hold,” shouted from the walkway above us. It was our father. He had come after all and within minutes he joined us on the sand.
“I’m glad that you made it,” was all that I said and then we moved on.
Forming a circle we scooted closer together. I noticed that my father had placed himself in between Constance and me. As he took Constance’s hand I saw a slight smile form on her lips and then transfer to his. A spark of energy quickly passed above our circle. If I’d had any doubts, this was just the confirmation I needed of just how powerful witch my father was.
Harmony handed us each one blue and one white candle. She lit each of our white candles with her own. And then each of us transferred our flame from our own white candle to our blue one. Once all of the candles were lit, we placed them down at our feet in the sand and rejoined our hands. With that, Harmony began her chant:
Mother Nature Sister Moon
We call upon you tonight to hear our plea
As we close the door to the old hotel site
Shine down upon a new place and glorify it with all of your might
Snakes nor dragons come not here
Spite and venom do I clear
Make this new site a place of joy and love
As you shine down on it from above
Four times she repeated the spell as we continued to walk around the circle. As the spell ended and we held in place, a vision of the perfect location for the new hotel came into sight. It simply floated in the air in the center of our circle. And it took more than a few moments before we all came to recognize the spot.
Why hadn’t we thought of that place before? It was so easy; a beautiful location nestled in the hills of Rolling Rock but still part of New Moon Beach.
And as each of us blew our candles out we were filled with a sense of pride and purpose. The spell had worked. Now all I have to do is to lead Jonathan to this new location and share its wonder with him. He, in turn, would need to sell his father on the idea.
By the time we had finished the spell and returned all the candles it was early morning and we were all starving and in need of some food to repower our systems. The Hang Ten was our next destination; everyone that is except our father, who begged off explaining he had an early morning meeting. How early a meeting could it have been?
Heading off to the Hang Ten for pancakes and bacon the rest of us were all feeling on top of the world. I could only hope that this would last. Unfortunately, I was plagued with a fear that it would not.
Chapter 18
Sunday was the only day of the week that Mystique Creations is closed. It was also the only day of the week that I actually sleep in. And usually nothing gets in the way of my sleep. Most Sundays you’d find me still cozy in my bed well past ten o’clock.
But this Sunday was different. This was the Sunday when I would share the results of our spell and bring Jonathan to the perfect location for the new hotel. I called Jonathan and surprised him by asking him to spend the day in New Moon Beach with me. He sounded pleasantly intrigued with my proposal and promised to meet me in an hour.
I was totally excited, but a little nervous too. I could not predict whether Jonathan or his dad would actually agree with the site selected by our spell. At least I knew that I was
going to give it my best try.
“One thing at a time,” I said out loud. “One thing at a time.”
“Talking to yourself again?” asked Miss Cassandra.
“Sort of,” I answered as I pulled out the cold fried chicken, potato salad and lemonade for my picnic. I had made the meal myself last night and stored it in the frig for today. When I opened my refrigerator and pulled out the potato salad I noticed that a few things had been added to the salad.
“Meghan, I know that was you. I guess you think that you make a better potato salad than I do?” I said looking around. A jar of pickles suddenly appeared on my counter.
“Oh, do you want me to add pickles to my potato salad too?” The jar magically slid further down the counter and away from the container of potato salad.
“Okay, not in the salad, just in the picnic basket?” I said, reaching for a Tupperware container to add the pickles too.
“Hmm, how did I ever get along without your help?” I asked, adding napkins, paper plates and silverware to the basket.
Life had become a little more interesting since Gail informed me that both Meghan and Marv were hanging around my place; well I guess it was really their place too. Only Gail and my father could both see and hear Meghan and Marv. But they still made their presence known to me in many different ways. And Harmony assured me that over time, I would be able to hear them, just as she did.
“Don’t forget the cookies,” Miss Cassandra reminded me. “I think that boy of yours likes the ones that look like little flip flops, right?” she asked as she headed for her warm spot in the sun to lie down. “You can find me here if you need me as I assume I was not invited to join you today,” Miss Cassandra said as she closed her eyes and pretended to sleep before mumbling, “your loss.”
Morning Magic Page 12