2 A Charming Cure
Page 15
“Try it.” Her eyes glistened. “In honor of you.”
Carefully I took the yummy goodness off the plate and bringing it up to my nose, I took a sniff.
“Umm...” I closed my eyes to enjoy every single smell. Splitting it in two, I handed Raven half. “Here’s to us.”
“Ding Dong, the witch is dead.” Laughing out loud, we tapped our two halves together before we devoured every single morsel.
“Yes, the witch is dead.” I knew my smile was filled with chocolate teeth. “This is amazing.”
I followed Raven back up to the front of Wicked Good. She handed me a box of June’s Gems.
“I must go. My customers wait.” I gave her a quick hug and headed toward A Charming Cure, Mr. Prince Charming next to me the whole way, his tail wagging in the air.
My heart filled seeing Belle’s Baubles overflowing with customers. Bella looked out the window and winked before she buried her head back in the jewelry case.
Across the street, customers were in a line to get a table at The Gathering Grove Tea Shoppe. I was sure Gerald was already reading someone’s tea leaves.
“Excuse me.” I barely missed a collision with a man carrying a very large crystal chandelier out of Mystic Lights.
“I smell death.” Constance Karima rushed past me with her twin sister, Patience, on her heels. Both dressed in housecoats, they hurried along.
“Yes, death.” Patience repeated after her sister.
Death?
But, quickly dismissed the notion when a kangaroo hopped out of Glorybee Pet Store and Petunia running after it flailing her arms in the air.
I ran as fast as I could to cut the joey off at the pass, but Mr. Prince Charming had already come face-to-face with it, stopping the kangaroo dead in its tracks.
“Gotcha!” Petunia pushed a few of the leaves that were dangling from her messy up-do back in place. “I hate it when good souls come back as an animal they do not want to be. At least you came back to life,” she scolded the animal after grabbing it up.
Before I reached A Charming Cure, I peeked my head into A Cleansing Spirit Spa.
“You are going to make a fantastic mother,” Chandra chuckled and rubbed the palm of the young woman sitting at the manicure table in front of her. “Oh, twins too!”
“How did you know?” The woman let out a cry of joy. “The only other person that knows is my husband.”
“Honey, I can see it in your hands.” Chandra glanced up at me with a twinkle in her eye that matched the sparkle on the gem in the center of her turban.
I waved and skipped next door to open A Charming Cure.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
“Welcome to A Charming Cure.” I greeted each customer that came in.
“I was in here a couple of days ago. You gave me a cure for my acne.” The blonde reminded me of her visit only a few short days ago, but it seemed like a lifetime had happened since then. “I wanted to thank you. It was gone by the time I got home. It was like. . .” She searched for a word.’
“Magic.”
“Yes. Magic.” She turned and began looking around the shop. Fortunately, nothing she needed jumped out at me, or better yet, at my intuition.
But the young man standing in the corner of the bath salts did grab my attention.
“Can I help you?” I asked the bewildered gentleman who had a distant look on his face.
Bouncing on the balls of his feet, his curly red head jiggled, a little bit like Bozo the Clown. “I. . .um. . .have a little problem.” He glanced down toward his nether region.
“Oh. . .” I stammered, feeling a little flushed.
He leaned in. “I heard you might be able to help. I mean, homeopathic cures are like the new thing. Right?” Worry set deep in his eyes.
“Yes.” I rubbed my hands down my apron, and clasped my hands together. “I think I might have exactly what you need. I’ll be right back.”
This was a new one to me, and very exciting.
The cauldron was ready to go. I grabbed some Ginseng, L argentine and Gingko Biloba off the ingredient shelf, along with a pinch of banana peel, salmon, and pine nuts. Carefully I stirred each ingredient in, focusing on my customer’s sexual desire.
There was a little something missing. I peeked around the petition and grabbed the gentleman’s attention. I waved him over.
“Do you have a picture of your significant other?” I asked knowing it was a strange question.
He didn’t question me; he pulled his wallet out of his back pocket and retrieved a wedding picture of a woman with the same colored hair as him. “It was our wedding day. She’s lovely.”
The pride swelled on his face, never taking his eyes off her as he handed me the photo. Without warning, I tossed it in the cauldron. His eyes grew big.
“It’ll be done in a few.” I planted a grin on my face and disappeared back over the cauldron.
The indigo potion reflected against the copper cauldron sending out gold flashes. The elixir whirled and twirled, causing a small funnel cloud about one inch above the glowing tonic. It thickened with each stir of the oar, causing the cloud to go slower and slower until it disappeared into the air.
The masculine cobalt blue empty potion bottle lit up behind me, letting me know it was the right bottle for this man’s. . .little issue.
With the golden lid unscrewed, I plunged the bottle into the cauldron, allowing it to fill to the top. I wanted to make sure he used every single ounce.
The smell of bagels engulfed my senses. Screwing the lid back on, his potion was complete and his problem would soon be gone.
“Here you go.” I held the beautiful masculine bottle out when I found him in the crowd. “You need to sprinkle a couple dashes on your bagel every morning.”
He held the bottle up to the light. The thick mixture had turned to a fine grain, the size of salt.
“Oh, if your wife mistakes it for salt, it won’t affect her in any way.” I winked. “Only you.”
We walked back to the cash register to make good on what he owed me.
Ding, ding. The bell above the door dinged, but I didn’t know how another customer was going to fit into the store. It was filled beyond fire code.
Aunt Helena tipped her head back when I looked up. I couldn’t help but wonder what she wanted of me now that all the drama was over. We never seemed to see eye-to-eye, but I guess that was most families. Just not mine.
Her face caught a light that brought back a memory of an image that was buried deep in my mind. Only in the memory she didn’t have her scar, she held out a doll. In the memory, a young girl took it. The young girl was me, standing next to my dad’s coffin.
Our eyes held for a minute and she knew. She knew exactly what I remembered.
Without a word spoken about it, she walked up to the counter.
“I’m glad to see business doing so well.” She glanced around the room. “I have a present for you before I go back to Hidden Hall.”
She put a brown paper bag on the counter. I unrolled the top and reached in, pulling out an old photo of Darla, my father, and me standing in front of my cottage on the hill.
“Thank you.” I reached out to hug my aunt, but she was gone. I held the frame close to my heart and hugged it. It was the only picture I have of my family. Darla always told me that memories were kept in your heart. But it was nice to have the real thing.
I studied how happy we looked and wondered what they would’ve thought of my life and how it turned out. I couldn’t wait to hang it up. It was going to stay in the shop, where I spend most of my time.
Throughout the day, I found myself glancing at the picture and smiling. My intuition told me that they approved of how things were turning out.
“Are you ready?” I rubbed my hand down Mr. Prince Charming’s back, while looking out the front window of the shop wondering why Oscar hadn’t stopped by.
There was a strange gnawing in my gut that made me question whether or not Oscar had changed his mind.
Was he keeping his distance so he didn’t have to face the embarrassment of having kissed me in the hospital? Was it a spur of the moment kind of thing?”
Tapping each bottle of ingredients before I left, I took another look around my shop.
“Well, Darla,” I walked over to the picture that Aunt Helena had given me of my parents. My finger slide down the face of my mother and I stopped on her lips. I didn’t remember my father’s voice, but I remember Darla’s. Suddenly I wished I could hear her voice just one more time. “How do you think I turned out?”
Madame Torres lit up and I turned to see what smart-aleck thing was going to come out of her mouth. She wasn’t the sentimental type and tried to make me laugh when I was.
“Proud,” The voice that came out of the crystal ball sounded just like Darla.
“Madame Torres, that’s not funny.” I walked over and peered deep into the ball.
“Oh, June.” My parents stood inside Madame Torres with their arms around each other. Darla grinned. “We are so proud of you. Keep listening to your amazing intuition. We love you.”
Before I could answer, they faded away. Tears filled my eyes as more and more memories of my family flooded my mind.
“They are only a wish away.” Madame Torres appeared. There was even a tear in her eye.
Well, if I didn’t have Oscar, I at least had my parents.
“Alright. Time for bed.” I picked up Madame Torres, the box of June’s Gems and locked A Charming Cure behind us.
Tomorrow was another day that was going to be rewarding, providing people with the cures for what really ailed them.
The dark night sky took me off-guard. I hadn’t left the shop all day, and the bright full moon let me know that.
The fireflies darted about, teasing Mr. Prince Charming as we made our way back to our little cottage on the hill.
“Darn teenagers.” I laughed, watching Mr. Prince Charming bat a few of them down.
A flying spark in the distance caught my eye. I followed the flicker all the way to the Rock.
Just as I was hypnotized by his kiss, the sight of him had an even greater hold on me. A smile crossed my face as I watched him try to cast with his wand and nothing but a spark came about.
A twig broke underneath my shoe, exposing my presence.
A vaguely sensuous light passed between us as our eyes met. It was the first time we were alone since. . .the kiss.
Chapter Thirty
“How did your first day back go?” Oscar put the wand in the pocket of his pants as if he wasn’t practicing.
“Busy.” Cautiously I walked up, looking for any sign of rejection.
Maybe it was the magic in the air, or a true desire, but I couldn’t help but replay how soft his lips felt against mine.
“You look like you’re back to normal.” He shuffled his feet, his blue eyes meeting mine. “I wanted to give you time to heal, and change your mind if you wanted to.”
“Change my mind?” The closer I got, I was sure he could hear my heart that was about to beat right out of my chest.
He grabbed the box of June’s Gems out of my hand and placed it on the Rock. He turned my palm over and ran a finger along the lines.
“It doesn’t take a palm reader to tell that a very dark, handsome policeman is going to take up a big space in your heart.” He pulled my palm up to his lips. The heat felt like his lips were tattooed on my palm.
Meow, meow.
He glanced at Mr. Prince Charming, and then back at my palm. “The other side of that heart is taken up by an ornery white cat.”
My emotions whirled as he swept me weightless into his arms, claiming my lips for his own.
His wand bounced out of his pocket and shot up in the air creating the biggest spark I had ever seen.
Pulling away, we watched the spark fly into the sky, bursting into a display of the most amazing fireworks, blanketing the entire town of Whispering Falls.
“Welcome home, June Heal.”
I snuggled against him, thinking about the words he had just spoken.
Home.
Yes, his arms felt exactly like home.
“Why do I have to sit here and watch this?” Madame Torres groaned from my bag. “Can’t you take me home, and then. . .”
Oscar stuck my bag in the tall grass, muffling my snarky crystal ball before he took me right back into his arms, giving me a kiss that melted my tired soul.
About The Author
International bestselling author Tonya Kappes spends her day lost in the world of her quirky characters that get into even quirkier situations.
When she isn’t writing, she’s busy being the princess, queen and jester of her domain which includes her BFF husband, her teenage guys, two dogs, and one lazy Kitty.
Tonya has an amazing STREET TEAM where she connects with her fans on a daily basis. If you are interested in becoming a Tonya Kappes Street Team member, be sure to message her on Facebook.
For more information, check out Tonya’s website, Tonyakappes.blogspot.com.
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Table of Contents
Other books by the Author
Copyright
Reviews
Dedication and Acknowledgments
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
About The Author