“I met him when he came to the Fairy Realm to enquire about selling fairy wine through the tavern." I take a sip of my drink, finishing it off, and when Josh goes back around the other side to make me another, he takes over the story.
"They told me of Galan and his family. How they were the makers of the best wine in all of Faery, and so I met with his family. It was instant attraction, I mean, look at him, who wouldn’t be attracted, it turned out that Galen is the younger brother and won’t inherit the business, so he decided to move here. We created a partnership and added onto the brewery. He makes our own brand of wine here with a mixture of earth and fairy grapes giving us a product not available anywhere else." He looks proudly at his partner. “Not only is it hugely popular here, it's huge in fairy too."
I look at Galan and find him looking very uncomfortable, squirming in his seat, I have a feeling there is more to the story, but as long as Josh is happy, why would I pry? "Well, I’m happy for you both."
We spend the next hour chatting about mutual friends. I talk to Josh about getting me some beer barrels to use as display fixtures, which he is happy to do for me. The crowd has picked up, still not a lot of familiar faces, but it’s enough for both Josh and Galen to have to serve, leaving me on my own. The alcohol is giving me a buzz, and I’m feeling no pain when I hear a commotion at the door, and in walks Regan and Maddock. They slide up to the bar and sit either side of me, waving to Josh where he is down the other end serving someone else. He throws them a thumbs up.
"You get things sorted with Josh?" Regan asks, surveying the tavern.
"Yep, all sorted, and with Bram starting work on the shop tomorrow, it should all be good to go by the start of next week. My new candy line will be ready. I’ll have to do some marketing, get some enthusiasm for the island again. Then I’m going to rings Tats and demand she comes home. In fact, I’m going to make all the Tempting Ten come home if it’s the last thing I do." I throw my fist into the air, the guys looking at me with wide eyes.
"Whoa Rubes, what are you drinking?" Regan reaches for my glass and has a sniff.
"The panty-dropper or panty snatcher or something. Watch out, Maddock." I throw a wink at him, and Regan’s mouth falls open. I’m laughing so hard; I realize I need to pee. Jumping off my seat, I wander towards the restrooms, running my finger across Maddock's shoulders as I go. I just wanted to feel if he is as hard under his shirt as he looks. As I walk away, I turn back, and he is watching me with hooded eyes. Blowing him a kiss, I push through the door with the hamster in a dress on it. I pee, wash my hands, and wander back out to the bar.
As I walk past the wine bar, I’m stopped by Galen. He puts a glass of sparkling, glittery pink wine into my hand, waving me off when I try to pay him. "Let me know what you think."
Taking a sip, a sparkling, glittery feeling bubbles on my tongue and down my throat. I’m hit with feelings of lightness and joy. "Wow, this is amazing," I say to him. I have an idea. "Can I get a couple of bottles of this to try in a new fudge recipe when the kitchens running again. I think it would be amazing!"
“As long as I get to try it,” he says, "I’ll send a couple of extra bottles with Regan’s order for the manor."
"Awesome thanks." I salute him with the champagne glass and continue back to the guys. Halfway back, I look up and discover a group of girls have surrounded Regan and Maddock. I recognize the twins Jenna and Julie, as well as Sheree, the girl who left Lucille in the lurch. There are two more, a dark-haired girl who looks to be of Asian descent and another blonde, this one more dirty blonde than platinum. I watch as Sheree runs her finger up Maddock’s arm, simpering smile and fluttering eyelashes. Maddock looks super uncomfortable, and Regan is fending off the twin’s advances. Well, that just pisses me off.
I saunter up to the group, pushing my way between Sheree and Maddock. Throwing myself into his lap, and winding my arms around his neck, I place little kisses along his jawline. His hands come around and grab hold of my hips, stopping me from wiggling in his lap, but it’s too late, I can feel the hardness developing underneath me. "I missed you so much. So kind of the girls to keep you company while I was away." I turn to Sheree. "Though I’m surprised you have the nerve to show your face, considering how rotten you were to his mother this morning." I finish growling at her.
The girls gasp in shock, and Sheree gets a deadly look on her face. Grabbing me by the arm, she yanks me off him. “What do you think you are doing with my boyfriend?” She pushes me out of the way and snuggles up to him. I look at him in surprise, and he gets a sheepish look on his face before his eyes glaze over. I feel a wave of magic, but in my anger and shock, I can’t get a clear read on where it came from or who. I look at Regan, who also has a shocked look on his face.
“What’s going on, Maddock? I thought your mom told this girl that you were taken.” Regan asks him.
“Mom has always thought that Ruby and I should be together. Both she and Prue schemed and planned while she was away, but I’m afraid they are delusional.”
A stab of hurt sears my chest at his comment, and I take an involuntary step back. Regan puts his hand on my waist to steady me. I look between Maddock and Sheree, the hurt must be evident on my face
"Mind your own business, bitch. You don’t know shit about this town, you’ve been gone too long. The Tempting Ten are history." She tosses back in my face. "And before you know it, this town will......" Julie elbows her violently in the side, and she cuts off abruptly.
The girls throw each other some looks, and the dirty blonde puts a fake smile on her face, she looks down the bar. "We need drinks, where is the damn bartender?"
"Who knows, Minnie?" The Asian girl rolls her eyes. "Those two bartenders are probably sucking face out the back, it’s so gross. Why do we come to this bar?" she spits out.
Now that is the last straw. Regan and I both turn to the girl. "Listen, bitch, I don’t know who the fuck you think you are, but that bartender is actually the owner, and you are not even good enough to breathe the same air as him. I suggest you take your skanky ass out of here and find somewhere else to socialize from now on.”
“That man is our friend,” growls Regan. “I suggest, if you don’t like his sexual orientations, you should probably leave and take your friends with you. We will not tolerate that kind of discrimination here.”
I look to Maddock to defend his friend as well, but he still has a kind of vague look on his face. Something is not right.
“Now, now— she really didn’t mean it badly. She has no filter, sorry.” Julie apologizes to Regan, ignoring me. She goes to put her hands on him, and I pull him away. She shoots me a death glare.
I turn to Regan. “I’m done for the night, the bar has suddenly become nauseating, can you take me home? I’ll leave my car here and get it in the morning.”
He nods and goes down to the end of the bar to settle our tab and say goodbye to Josh. I eye the five women and Maddock warily. They have all taken seats at the bar and are whispering quietly to each other. Sheree has her hands all over Maddock, and he doesn’t seem to be putting up a fight. I want to test him for that spell again, but I need to be closer to him.
Regan comes back over, and we leave. He shouts goodbye to Maddock but frowns when he gets no response. He puts his hand on my waist and helps me to the door. Pushing it open, we exit out into the crisp night air.
“Do you know what’s weird,” I say to him, “Supposedly all the young people have left town, and it looks like most are people between the age of eighteen and thirty. But you’re still here. So are Maddock, Josh, and Bram. Can you think of any others?”
Regan stops a look of surprise on his face suddenly. “Huh, you’re right. There’s also Taylor Crimson, and Cullen Crowe, but he is out of town this week. The new mayor is a vamp, looks young, and of course, there is Jandar and Galan, but elves age differently to us. I’m not sure how old any of them are.”
“You know if this is a spell that affects a particular age group, they won�
�t be affected if they are older. Something to look into. But why are you guys not affected? There must be a reason. Also, what was all that in there?” I ask, gesturing back towards the bar.
Regan looks uncomfortable. “The Asian girl is Mia, and she has been dating Taylor. Sheree is obviously with Maddock, and Minnie had been trying to convince Cullen to date her.”
“And Julie has been trying to catch your eye, but the twins keep cock blocking her. Gosh, I love those kids.” I laugh at the look on his face. “So, they have all been trying to date guys who are heavily involved in the town or part of the coven. I guess Galan and Josh are off-limits because they have each other.” He shrugs uncomfortably.
“Look, I need to tell you. Maddock had a negativity spell on him this afternoon, it was heavy and suffocating. I did a cleanse smudge, and it broke the spell. But I felt magic in there.” He nods his head in agreement. “I think it has been redone. We need to find out if those girls are witches, and which coven they are from. Its why I wouldn’t let Jenna touch you. You seem to be unaffected at the moment.”
He looks apprehensive. “What are we going to do about Maddock, he needs that removed. His indifference to you is not how he really feels. I wouldn’t have given you hope if it wasn’t the case.”
“I’m not sure, I’ll have to talk to Mom about it, she may have some ideas.”
We walked to his car, and he drives me back to the cottage. As he pulls up and puts the handbrake on, he turns to me and says, “Hang in there, Ruby, don’t give upon Maddock just yet.”
I just shrug my shoulders give him a kiss on the cheek. I hop out and wave goodbye as he drives back to the manor, the tires on his car kicking up dust on the road. I wait until the taillights disappear, and I head inside to bed alone.
Chapter Ten
Maddock
Watching Ruby and Regan walk away, again, I feel nothing. She told me there was a spell on me this afternoon and removed it, or she said she did. After that, I felt almost normal again, and we had, had a moment. It felt good and right. But thinking about it now, how do I know that she didn’t actually put a spell on me?
The girls are quietly talking to each other, and Sheree is perched in my lap. I’ve had a few beers, I should feel something, anything, but it's like I’m numb inside. It’s like I’m watching from a viewing screen, everything that is going on around me. I can see Josh and Galan having a conversation at the other end of the bar, frowning in my direction. I know I should feel something, but I just don’t.
When Ruby was wiggling on my lap before I felt a whole heap of something, but then it was like a candle in the wind. There and then gone.
A cold breeze blowing on the back of my neck brings me back to the present. Turning around to see where it came from, I can see Cole and Taylor standing in the doorway, looking around. Waving my hand, I gesture to the spare stools next to us. Smiling, they head our way. Jenna and Mia are exchanging whispers before turning and throwing themselves at the guys. Taylor gives Mia a kiss on the cheek, but Cole sidesteps Jenna, and takes a seat next to me, waving at Josh as he does. Joshua heads down the bar. “Cole, Sheriff.” he nods to both of them, “what can I get you?” Taylor’s eyes raise in surprise.
“Two drafts of the Hamster Golden Ale, thanks. What’s with the formality, Josh? You’ve never been like this before.”
“And you’ve never had such appalling taste in friends either Taylor. Even when you were hanging out with those moonshine making bear shifters when we were younger. At least they weren’t bigoted bastards.” Taylor frowns, as Josh walks away. He pours the two beers, places them in front of the guys, and walks away.
I’m guessing Galan's elf hearing must have heard what Mia said before, and they’ve taken offense. Again, I can’t bring myself to care. I watch as Sheree and the girls walk towards the bathrooms. Taylor turns to me with a raised eyebrow. “What was that about?” he asks curiously.
I shrug, disinterested. “Mia made a rude comment about Galen and Josh. Galen must have heard it with his elf ears.”
Taylor looks surprised, “Really? She was rude?” Cole scoffs. Taylor scowls at him, “What?”
Cole shakes his head. “For a smart man, you really aren’t paying attention. Is your nose not working? Every word out of those girls' mouths are half-truths. They smell of dark magic and wrongness. How can you not smell it? They smell of disgust every time Josh or Galen come close.”
Taylor looks stunned. “No, I don’t get any of that. They smell human to me?”
Cole growls, “Well, I would get Prue to check you for spells then because none of those girls are human.” Listening to their conversation, I should be showing some reaction, but again I feel numb.
“Did you know this?” Taylor demands of me, “Why didn't you tell me?”
“Because I don’t care,” I reply to his accusations. “It’s not like we have lots of options in this goddess forsaken town.” That pit of despair inside me grows deeper.
He looks surprised. “But Ruby is back now, so you don’t have to worry.” I finish the rest of my beer before placing it down on the bar and signaling for another. It will be my sixth, but who’s counting right? Josh frowns at me but goes ahead and pours it.
Turning to him, I say, “I wouldn't touch that untrustworthy bitch if my life depended on it.” Josh places the beer in front of me. His, Coles and Taylors mouths drop open in shock at my words.
“What is wrong with you?” Josh asks. Before I can answer, the girls come back from their group trip to the bathroom. Grabbing Sheree, I pull her towards me and mash my lips to hers, her tongue slides into my mouth. Maybe this will help them get the picture. Pulling my mouth away, I settle her on my lap and pick up my beer. Josh snorts in disgust and walks away. Taylor can’t stop staring, but absentmindedly wraps his arms around Mia, pulling her close. Jenna is trying to talk to Cole, but I can see he doesn't want anything to do with her. He gets up and walks down the other end of the bar to talk to Galen and Josh.
Sheree starts to whisper dirty words into my ear. She suggests we head back to my place, and that sounds like a pretty good idea to me. Draining the last of my beer. I head down the bar to settle my tab. Josh swipes my card in judgmental silence, but I can’t bring myself to give a fuck.
Waving goodbye to them all, I grab Sheree by the hand, dragging her out to the parking lot. Realizing I don’t have a car because I came with Regan, I look around for Sheree’s. Then I remember she's not a townie, so no car. “Crap, I haven’t got my car.” Her face drops in disappointment. She thinks a moment, then her face lights up with a suggestion.
“Have you got keys to your mom's store?” I don’t, but I can use magic to break in. This thought should disgust me, but it’s not a bad idea. Certainly warmer than fucking her against a tree.
“Let's go.” Wrapped around each other, we walk towards the ice cream store. It's slow going as we paw at each other. Before we can leave the parking lot, a set of lights flash in our eyes and a car stops directly in front of me. Shielding my eyes, I break away from Sheree. “Fuck, turn the lights off.” I grumble.
“Man, what the hell? Where were you going?” Regan demands as he steps out of the car.
“None of your business.” Snaps Sheree, grabbing my hand to drag me around the car.
“Maddock, I can’t let you do this,” Regan says as he approaches me, hands held up. “You look like you’ve had a few, and I don't want you to regret something in the morning. I wouldn’t be your best friend if I didn’t say anything.” I stop, swaying on my feet while I consider his words.
Sheree puts her hands on my arm and whines, “Are you going to let him speak like that?” A wave of raging anger flows through my body, and before I can do anything else, I pull back my fist and swing it at his face. He ducks, leaning to one side, and I stumble over. Turning around, I go to take another swing, and again he dodges. Sheree has run back to the Hamster screaming “Fight”, and Regan just laughs at me now.
“What the fuck man, you
letting a little bitch get between us?” Furious at his words, I try to tackle him and have more success. We go tumbling to the ground, but he continues to laugh. My fists aren’t coming anywhere near him, and I realize he has done a counter spell. Using my own magic, and the anger I feel, I conjure a knife. That wipes the laughter off his face reasonably quickly.
“Not laughing now, are you?” I slur at him, spit flying out. His look of disappointment is toxic. It spreads through me like wildfire. At this feeling, I let the knife dissipate. Cole and Taylor arrive, pulling us apart, Josh and Galen not far behind.
“Cut it out, Maddock. Regan, get him home before I throw him in jail for disturbing the peace!” Taylor orders Regan. All the fight has left my body. The disappointment in the face of a man who is like a brother to me was enough to break through the fury. What had I done?
Regan helps me to the passenger side of the car, opening the door for me. I grab him by the head, putting my forehead to his. Tears overflowing my eyes. “I'm so sorry, man. I don't know what happened.”
He hugs me tight, clapping me on the back. “Don’t worry, Mads, we will get it all sorted. Tomorrow's another day. Let's just get you home, sleep it off.”
I sit in the car, and he closes the door. Going around to the other side, he gets in and starts it up. Staring unfocused through the front window, I can see a group of girls illuminated in the glare of the headlights. Sheree is surrounded by the others, and the look of fury on her face is enough to rival the one that just left my body. I guess our plans did get ruined; but again, the numbness surrounds me, and I can’t bring myself to care. Regan leaves the parking lot headed for the manor. I guess I’m staying with him tonight.
Chapter Eleven
Ruby
I wake up the next morning with a to-do list a mile long. I look up at the skylights in the roof, I can see the green of the trees surrounding them, but it is indistinct and blurry. Waving my hand at the glass, there’s a flash of light, and the window becomes transparent. The leaves of the giant oak trees that surround the cottage are rustling gently in the morning breeze. A feeling of serenity and clarity fills my body.
Candy Conniptions (Arbor Vitae Coven Book 1) Page 8