“I’ll take care of it.”
He nodded. “I’ll go back to the DIY Depot later and pick up a new light fixture, and a replacement mirror.”
Stevie’s insides twisted at Griffin’s dejected expression.
Griffin hung his head. “I’ll be next door,” he said. “The well needs to be fixed, and I’ve got the supplies already out there.”
She ought to be relieved that the investor was backing out of the deal, but she couldn’t muster anything except compassion for Griffin.
This was no victory for her, merely a stay of execution.
Griffin stared down into the well and frowned. The submersible pump appeared at least thirty years old, which was about a decade longer than they usually lasted. He hated to get into a big, dirty job like this, but with the investor all but certain to back out of the deal, Griffin didn’t have much choice. He started digging to widen the hole enough to remove the old pump. Half an hour into the job, his cell buzzed. Taking advantage of the opportunity for a break, he pushed his shovel into the dirt and wiped his hands on his jeans. His phone displayed Better Bedding Depot. Could Weller have changed his mind again?
Offering up a silent prayer, he answered. “Good afternoon, Mr. Weller.”
“Afternoon.” The man cleared his throat. “Listen, Griffin, I’m hoping we might still be able to salvage this deal. My mother-in-law is driving me nuts. I was thinking that if you had the houses exorcised or whatever, and lowered the price a little, my wife might be persuaded to go ahead with the purchase.”
“I’m listening.” Heart pounding, he walked around the house to the front porch and sat on the swing.
“Of course there are the obvious repairs, which you’re already working on. It’s clear that there’s some sort of paranormal activity at play there.”
Griffin remained silent.
“As often as I swear that my mother-in-law is a witch, she doesn’t actually have those powers.” He laughed at his own joke. “Charity knows a woman who knows a woman who’s supposed to be some big-time medium over in Atlanta. Lady’s got her own cable TV show, so she must be good. Charity contacted her. She charges ten thousand bucks to psychically cleanse a house. Maybe she’ll give us a volume discount on the two properties.”
Griffin rubbed his chin as he mentally calculated what he’d net if Weller lowered his offer by twenty thousand. He could still walk away with enough for his down payment, just not the extra he’d been hoping for to fix up the Brooklyn house. “Would you agree to—”
Stevie’s piercing scream cut through the afternoon like a knife to his gut. Dropping his phone, he raced toward the backyard in search of her.
He found her crouched on the ground by the well, reaching her arm into the hole. Looking up at him, she cried, “Help! The kitten must have fallen in. It can’t get out.”
His heart lodged in his throat at Stevie’s tear-stained cheeks, and the desperation in her voice. “I-I should have covered it,” he said. “I got distracted by a call. I’m so sorry.”
“I don’t care,” she shouted. “We’ve got to get the cat out of there.”
Damn it. He knew better than to walk away from an open hole. If he’d run across that in his job, he’d have cited the culprit. “Let me see if I can get it out of there.” He reached his arm as deep as he could, but not far enough to grab the kitten. “I’ll call the fire department.”
She tossed her phone at him. “Call Aiden first. The cat’s got blood on her fur. Aiden’s a healer. You’ll find him in my contacts.” A shiver racked her body. “I might be able to get her out.”
Slim as she was, she was probably correct. It would be a tight squeeze, but the quickest way to reach the animal.
As Griffin phoned Aiden, Stevie inched closer to the hole and peered down it. “I-I’m not sure I can do this.”
He relayed the message to the healer then quickly got off the phone. Remembering what she’d told him about her fear of dark, enclosed spaces, he touched the small of her back. “I’m right here, Stevie. I’ll get you out of there as soon as you say the word.”
Tiny mews echoed from the well.
Terror flashed in Stevie’s eyes, yet she sat up and squared her shoulders. “I think she’s injured. Maybe she was running from a predator and fell down there.” Beads of sweat slid down the side of her face. “I can’t do this.”
“You can.”
She gulped in a breath and nodded. “I have to.” As Stevie crawled into the hole head first, he held her feet. “She’s definitely injured.”
Another meow.
“Close your eyes and imagine a white, protective light surrounding the kitten,” she called out to him.
He did as she asked.
“Bast of grace and beauty, protectress of all animals, shield this cat from all harm and hurt. Keep it well through day and night. So mote it be.”
In his mind’s eye, he saw the feline, and Stevie’s fingers reaching for it, so close. He concentrated on keeping the circle of light around the animal, and also around Stevie, because this had to be difficult for her.
“I can’t get her. She’s too far down.”
“I’m going to lower you a little farther.”
“I’m scared, Griffin.”
“I’m right here. I’ve got you. I promise.” Tightening his grip on her ankles, he eased her down a few inches more.
“It’s not enough,” she cried.
Bracing himself on the ground, he lowered her a couple more inches.
“I’ve got her!”
Pulling on Stevie’s legs, he managed to get her out. The tiny ball of white hissed in her hands, but as soon as Stevie held the cat against her chest, it started purring.
“She’s definitely been attacked by another animal.”
“Hey there,” a man called to them. “You got it out, huh?”
A tall, brown-haired guy headed toward them. “I’m Aiden,” he told Griffin.
“Thanks for coming,” Griffin said.
“Looks like she was mauled.” Stevie handed the kitten to Aiden, who quickly examined it before sitting on the ground with it.
Aiden shut his eyes and murmured a chant in another language. “Hey, hey, oh wah hey. Hey, hey, oh wah hey.” Then he rocked the animal in his arms for several minutes. When he finally set the kitten down, the cuts Griffin had seen a few minutes before on the cat’s side were gone.
“How’d you do that?” he asked Aiden.
Stevie picked up the cat and kissed its white fur. “He’s a Kachina healer.”
Aiden stood up. “My patients are usually people, but I’m a cat lover, and I’ve learned how to heal them as well.” He shook hands with Griffin. “I’m just glad that I was home and available. I live only a few blocks away.”
“Thank you so much, Aiden.” Stevie gave him a hug. “I owe you one.”
He shrugged. “Your classes do a lot for Darcy. It’s the least I could do.” With a wave, he left.
Griffin watched Stevie cuddle the kitten, and his chest tightened. “Is there anything I can do?”
She looked up at him and shook her head. “I think you’ve done enough.” With that, she walked away.
He stared down the well. The situation could have had a terrible outcome, and it would have all been his fault. Because he hadn’t followed the rules that he should know like the back of his hand.
Despite the fact that he’d now witnessed supernatural events with own eyes, the knowledge that such things existed had him reeling. His whole life was based on certain rules and premises. If anything was possible—events that defied rational explanation—then where did that leave his worldview?
As much as he’d grown to care about Stevie, as much as he wanted her, he knew that this strange new reality was too much for him. And in light of his gross negligence with the well, he couldn’t trust himself to protect her and to be there for her. Heck, he was selling her home out from under her. He was selfish, and
she was too generous. He was all about standing on solid ground, and she was somewhere up in the clouds.
Clearly, it would never have worked out between them.
Stevie’s focus refused to stay with the yoga class she was teaching. All she could think about was the events of the day—the kitten incident, and then the shabby way she’d spoken to Griffin. She needed to apologize to him. That was the least she owed him after he’d helped her save the cat. As soon as her students left, she started next door to speak to him, until she noticed the redhead in his driveway.
“I’ll be leaving in the morning,” Griffin told Pandora Williams. “But you can contact me anytime. I really appreciate you handling the details from here on out.”
Stevie ducked behind a bush. Her heart sank as she listened to Griffin enumerate the repairs still left to be completed—items that Pandora’s contractor would have to handle.
Stevie wondered if she was the reason he was leaving? Not only was she going to lose her home, but now she’d never see Griffin again. Clamping down on her emotions, she quietly returned to her cottage. She tried to meditate to clear her mind, to no avail.
Half an hour after she’d overheard his conversation with the real estate agent, Stevie paced the floor of her living room. Why was the thought of never seeing Griffin again so painful? He’d come into her life less than two weeks earlier. Surely that wasn’t long enough to fall for a guy.
Or was it?
She marched out to her porch and saw one of her neighbors toting his trash cans in from the curb. Which would give her the perfect excuse to check out what was going on next door. She glanced in the small wicker-framed mirror on the porch and smoothed her hair into place. Then she strode to the street for the cans, glancing at Griffin’s place, hoping for one last glimpse of him. But he was nowhere in sight.
Closing her eyes for a moment, she murmured a quick spell. “Goddess, goddess, three times three. Bring Griffin out to look at me. Goddess, goddess, one last time. If it’s meant for me, so mote it be.” Hearing a door open, she looked over in time to catch Griffin setting two suitcases on his porch.
He waved tentatively. “How’s the kitten doing?”
Heart thundering, she put the cans away then met him in the driveway. “Sleeping. She’s had quite a day.”
“We all have.” His lips compressed. “Stevie, I want to apologize for—”
“You don’t need to. I feel awful for losing my cool. That’s not me. I hope you can accept my apology.”
“Who could blame you for being upset? Not only did I endanger the kitten, but from the moment we met, I’ve brought you nothing but problems.” He hung his head. “It was completely my fault. I walked away from an open hole, which is such a huge no-no. I can’t believe that I broke such a basic safety rule.”
A lump lodged in her throat. “That’s not true. My life is richer for having met you.” She reached out for his hand.
He took it and gave her a ghost of a smile. “That’s awfully generous of you to say, especially considering that because of me you’ll have to move.”
Her stomach knotted. How could she let her cats down? Abandoning her mother and her brother had had disastrous consequences. On top of that, she was losing Griffin, which somehow overshadowed the rest. But she forced herself to be strong. “You have to follow your dream. I know your aunt would have wanted that.”
His brow knitted. “I never expected any of this, Stevie. I figured that I’d fix up the properties then head back up to New York.” He met her stare. “I never counted on you.”
Her pulse kicked up several notches.
He skimmed his thumb over her cheek. “You’ve taught me so much. In fact, as soon as I get home I’m going to start looking for my mother. I don’t believe that she’s the awful person my dad made her out to be all these years. I guess that I got so wrapped up in my rules that I failed to see the forest for the trees. The laws of nature don’t apply here all the time, or maybe not anywhere.”
She squeezed his hand. “There’s a comfort in rules—the solid foundation they provide. But at times they’ve got to bend. People aren’t so rigid, nor are the laws of nature.”
Stepping closer, he gave her a sweet kiss. When she looked into his eyes, she noticed a new sparkle there. “What is it?”
“I just realized what I’ve been missing my whole life. It’s magic, Stevie. And that magic is switched on when I’m with you.” He stood up taller and held her at arms’ length. “I’m going to turn down the offer on the properties here.”
She gasped. “You…how will you make the down payment on your house in Brooklyn?”
“I’ve always yearned for a solid foundation, a home of my own. Only now that I’ve met you, I know that the house I’d planned to buy in New York will never be my home, not when it’s a thousand miles away from you. It’s only a building. It has no heart and soul. The solid ground that I’ve sought is a person. It’s you.”
Tears stung her eyes. As their lips met, a million tiny butterflies fluttered inside her. After the best kiss ever, they held each other for several minutes, until her cell phone rang. She checked the display. “It’s my grandma,” she told him.
“Go ahead and answer,” he said. “When you’re finished speaking to her, you and I have a few things to discuss.”
“Yes, I suppose we do.” As she answered her call, Griffin returned to his porch and carried his suitcases back inside. “Hi, Grandma.”
“How are you, child?” her grandmother asked.
She couldn’t hold back a smile. “I’m fantastic. How’s your visit going?”
“Etta and I are troublemakers together.” She giggled like a schoolgirl. “We’ll be there in a little while.”
“What? I was going to drive over tomorrow to pick you up.”
“Etta’s driving us. I keep telling her to slow down before we get pulled over.”
“Oy.”
“My plans have changed, honey.”
Stevie held the phone closer to her ear. “Changed how?”
“As you know, Etta’s granddaughter, Bree lives down in north Florida, at the spiritualist camp.”
“Freedom Moon, yes.”
“Well, she invited us for a visit. Bree says that the camp is undergoing a big expansion. They’re building a senior center and a whole new commerce area. In fact, they’re looking for people who want to open spirituality-related businesses. Why don’t you come with us?”
She brushed off her grandmother’s suggestion. Now that she and Griffin were going to explore the possibility of a relationship, she wanted to stay close to home. “I don’t know.”
“Just think about it. We might need you to chaperone and keep us out of trouble.”
In the background, she heard Cousin Etta’s laughter. “We can discuss it when you get here.” Something about two old women with supernatural gifts conspiring together made Stevie just a little bit nervous.
Chapter Nine
For the past couple of hours—ever since Stevie’s grandmother had phoned her—there had been people at her house. First, her grandmother and Etta had arrived and had ushered Stevie inside the house. Then one of Stevie’s students had shown up. Griffin could hardly have a conversation with Stevie about their future when she had three other people around her.
He paced the floor, stopping every few minutes to check to see if the cars in front of Stevie’s house were still there, which they were. Rather than continue to drive himself nuts, he headed into the kitchen for a snack and fixed himself a peanut butter and banana sandwich.
“What am I going to say to her?” he asked aloud. He cared about Stevie. And he wanted to give this thing a chance. But what if that wasn’t practical? Was he making a mistake by walking away from a potential offer?
He got up to get himself a drink. As he stood at the counter pouring a glass of milk, a book fell off the shelf in the corner. When he retrieved it from the floor, he glanced at the title.
Magic is the Key
He recalled his conversation with Stevie at the park. He’d seen that little orb of energy. All he had to do was explore his own magic. So he shut his eyes and conjured a ball of white light. He felt its heat in his palm. The instant he opened his eye, it evaporated in a puff of smoke.
A chill rolled over his skin. He opened the book, and on the first page, in his aunt’s handwriting—with which he’d become familiar as he’d packed up her things—she’d written, “Follow your heart and the rest will fall in line.”
His heart was telling him not to wait another moment. Grabbing his jacket from the hook by the door, he left. To heck with the crowd at Stevie’s place. Being at his aunt’s house was getting a little too weird.
Before he’d made it off of his porch, though, he got a call. Bud Weller’s name showed on the display. He answered, ready to tell the investor that he couldn’t accept his offer. “Sorry we got cut off earlier,” Griffin said.
“I’ve gotten my wife onboard, so we can proceed now,” Weller told him.
Griffin pinched the bridge of his nose. “Sorry to have wasted your time. Circumstances have changed. I’m going to keep both houses for the time being.”
Weller muttered a curse. “You can’t do this to me. We want to be in that neighborhood. It could be years before side-by-side houses come on the market again.”
But Griffin had to give whatever this was between him and Stevie a chance. “I’m sorry, sir.”
“Listen,” Weller pleaded. “What if I up my offer by twenty thousand?”
“I don’t—”
“Fifty. Has someone else made you an offer? Come on, Griffin. I need this. My mother-in-law is a force of nature. I had all my hair before she arrived here to stay with us. A thick, full head of hair. Now I’m almost completely bald. What does that tell you?”
Griffin chuckled.
“Okay, fine. You win. Another hundred thousand. And that’s my final offer.”
Griffin gulped. If Weller was serious, his revised offer was a lot more than the deal was worth. He couldn’t just turn down all that money. “I’ll tell you what, Mr. Weller. Give me a few days to think it over, okay?”
The Yin to His Yang Page 11