by ERIN BEDFORD
“Don’t stare too long at those, dear.” My grandmother placed a hand on my arm. “Your mother once threw up from it. Not a pretty sight.”
My nose wrinkled. “Ew.”
“However, as I was saying...” My grandmother directed me over to a goblin. This one was much larger than the others, almost adult human height, except it was fatter and its head was kind of squashed into its shoulders. “This is Luke. He handles the goblin workers and makes sure they stay on task, else they run askew, and then we all end up with a fiasco like the Perriquinkles Bar Mitzvah.” She and Luke shared a laugh. I laughed along with them though I had no idea what they were talking about.
“Luke this is my granddaughter, Maxine. She’s the guest of honor. Please make sure your employees are aware of her and if she has any changes she’d like made.”
Luke let out a gruff. “Yes, ma’am.”
“Now, Max.” My grandmother wrapped an arm around my shoulders and led me out of the ballroom. “I want you to go upstairs and take a nap. I’ll send someone up to wake you when we need you. We don’t want to start the night off with bags under our eyes, do we?” She stopped us in the hallway to smooth her hands over my face. So much for thinking I was hiding exhaustion.
We started moving again back toward the front of the house. A nap sounded heavenly, but I wasn’t sure I’d be able to sleep not with everything going on. “But what about getting ready? And Aidan’s parents will be here any minute.”
“Don’t you worry, I’ll take care of everything down here. You just get in a good hour or so and then into the shower with you.” Grandmother gave me a little shove toward the stairs. “And please, make sure you are presentable when you come back down for lunch. You don’t want to give the Templars the wrong impression now do we?” She gave me a tight smile that I forced myself to return before marching up the stairs.
I really didn’t think I’d be able to sleep, even though I was dead tired. Maybe I could use some kind of spell to give me a pick me up or something?
“What are you doing?” I asked a maid who was pushing a cart into my room. It had a teapot and one cup on it.
The maid stopped in her tracks, turning with a smile. “Your grandmother requested I bring you something to help you sleep.”
“Oh, thank you.” I followed her into my room and took the cup she offered. It smelled of warm milk, lavender, and just hint of something spicy. Taking a sip, I hummed.
“Good?”
“Yes, it is. Thank you.” I took the cup over to my bed, sitting beneath the covers. “Could you have someone wake me in an hour?”
The maid smiled. “That’s what the tea is for. It is Timer Set Tea. It will put you to sleep and jolt you awake when the time is up.”
“How does that work?” I asked, through a yawn. That tea meant business.
“By adding thyme of course.” The maid smiled. “Just a pinch will do for a cat nap. Or a teaspoon for an hour. You don’t want to use too much or...” I didn’t hear the rest of her speech before my eyelids closed, and I was out like a light.
Just as abruptly, my eyelids shot open, and I sat up straight in my bed. It took me a second to figure out where I was and what I was doing. The teacup I’d been holding had been taken away as well as the cart. The maid had long since gone, probably the culprit behind the missing items.
I stretched and climbed out of bed. “Man, she wasn’t kidding. I feel great.” I checked the time on my phone. “Huh, one hour exactly.”
Sometimes magic really was nifty.
With a bit of pep in my step, I made my way into the shower, and I destroyed some of the classics with my off-key singing while I washed. I didn’t care though. I was in a good mood, and nothing was going to ruin it.
I kept my hair down and used a quick drying spell my mom had taught me before applying some light make up. Lip gloss. Mascara. Done. Feeling in a girlie mood, I pulled on a flower-covered sundress that tied around my neck. A pair of wedge sandals and I was ready for lunch.
Strolling down the stairs, I started for the dining room, but Charlie stopped me. “Lunch is being served on the terrace today.”
“Thank you, Charlie.” I smiled at the older man and then changed the direction of my feet. My hands were behind my back, and I had a bit of a sway to my step, I didn’t think anything to darken my day.
Well, I was wrong.
“Oh, Max.” Sabrina Craftsman beamed that large smile of hers at me. “There you are. We were beginning to think you might sleep the entire day away.” She giggled with my grandmother, a glass of lemonade in her hand.
“Sabrina,” I bit out, determined to keep my good mood, “I wasn’t expecting you here so early.”
“Please Max, have a seat,” my grandmother urged me, not at all bothered by our exchange. “Sabrina has kindly offered to lend a helping hand. Seeing as she’s helped plan several of these events before, we should welcome her assistance.”
Sabrina and my grandmother smiled pleasantly at each other while my mom and Callie seemed ready to hara-kiri with their butter knives.
The chair at the table pulled out for me, and a plate floated from the buffet set up to the spot between the silverware. I took the seat offered, my hand going around my own butter knife.
“Well.” I let out with a huff. “How nice. Don’t you need to get ready for tonight? I know it takes a while for you to put on your face.”
“Maxine,” my grandmother admonished.
Sabrina only giggled. “Oh, Max. Such a joker.” She tilted her head toward my grandmother. “She really does have such a profound sense of humor. Since she’s dating four guys, she already knows what it means to be the butt of every joke. Or is that the whore?” She placed her hand over her mouth in mock embarrassment. “Did I say that out loud? My apologies. My mouth gets away from me when I’m nervous.”
I scowled at her. Nerves, my ass.
However, my grandmother just lapped that shit up, not even jumping to my defense. My mom and Callie though. Man, if looks could kill.
“Oh!” Sabrina jumped up from the table, her lemonade suddenly knocking over and dumping into her lap.
I caught my mom’s smirk and laugh hiding behind her napkin. At least, I always knew she had my back.
“Perhaps you should head on home now,” I urged Sabrina with a megawatt smile. “You’ll want to have plenty of time to get ready.”
With a huff, Sabrina threw her hands up and walked into the house, thankfully leaving us to enjoy our lunch in peace.
“Now, that wasn’t very nice,” my grandmother admonished while I sipped from my glass. “You shouldn’t make enemies with that girl. Her parents have heavy influence in the magical community.”
I snorted. “She made a point to be enemies with me from day one. And besides that,” I took a bite of the pasta salad on my plate, “dating her ex-boyfriend would have definitely put me in her non-friend box without ever talking to me.”
“Still, the girl may not be the most pleasant but blatantly insulting her is not wise.” Grandmother lifted her own fork to her mouth.
“And what she said about Max wasn’t insulting?” Mom argued, her eyes narrowed on my grandmother.
“Yeah, she called Max a whore,” Callie reminded and then mimicked Sabrina. “Oh, I’m sorry my mouth gets away from me when I’m nervous. What a fake. At least, Max is upfront about it.”
Callie and I shared a nod of solidarity.
My grandmother rubbed her temple. “Oh, goddess, give me strength. I thought I was done with these childish games when Margaret left.”
“Well, you wanted Max in your life.” My mom gave her a smug grin. “You got it.”
Grandmother didn’t have much else to say after that. My mom excused herself to go pick up my dad from the university. They’d be coming back later for the party, leaving me with Callie to get ready.
“The Templars are here. Didn’t you want to meet them?” my grandmother called up the stairs, stopping Callie and my ascent.
/> “Ooh,” Callie clasped her hands together. “Does that mean that big one, what’s his name, is here too?”
I rolled my eyes at her. “His name’s Aidan. And probably.” To my grandmother, I asked, “Are they in the kitchen?”
“Yes, and the Templars thankfully aren’t known for having high standards so what you’re wearing should be fine to meet them.” She skimmed her eyes over my sundress, and I forced myself not to feel underdressed. My grandmother didn’t wait for my response before leaving to do whatever it was she needed to do before the party.
“Jeez,” Callie climbed down the stairs behind me. “I’d hate to know what you’d have to wear to meet someone with higher standards?”
I snorted. “Probably a full set of skirts and a corset.” I stepped down the last couple of stairs and moved toward the kitchen. “Come on, let’s go make nice with the parents. Hopefully, I don’t stick my foot in my mouth and end up serving my guests live snails.”
“Ew.” Callie wrinkled her nose. “Sounds gooey.” We fell apart in giggles as we pushed the kitchen door open.
The usual kitchen staff was nowhere to be seen and the rest of the kitchen had been taken over by...
“What are those?” Callie gaped at the small creatures with large noses and big ears.
“Goblins.” I bumped her shoulder with a grin. “Don’t worry, it freaked me out too.”
Callie didn’t answer, her eyes locked on the feisty creatures.
Patting her on the shoulder, I laughed. “I’m going to go find the chefs, try not to annoy any of them. I’m not exactly sure how well they respond to humans.”
“Gotcha.”
Not seeing Aidan anywhere, I searched for the only other people-looking people in the kitchen. A tall woman with blonde hair twisted up on top of her head stirred a pot on the stove. She released the spoon and picked up the salt and pepper, the spoon continuing to stir on its own. That must be Aidan’s mom.
“Hi,” I stepped up next to her. “I’m Max.” The woman didn’t answer, so I tried again. “My grandmother told me to come introduce myself, and seeing how I’m kind of dating Aidan, I thought that...” When the woman gave no indication of hearing me, I stopped talking. I glanced at her and then back to Callie who was trying to take selfies with the goblins and then back to the woman.
What the fuck?
When I was just about to try again, maybe wave a hand in her face, she turned around. A confused expression crossed her face and then a small smile curled up her lips. Her hand went up to her ear, where a small device sat in her ear. She flipped a twitched and said, “Sorry, I had my hearing aid off. It’s easier to concentrate without all the...” She waved a hand at the scrabbling goblins. “... noise.”
My mouth gaped open for a moment and then I clipped it shut. “Yeah, of course. I totally understand.” I stared at her for a moment, not sure really what to say.
Thankfully, she saved me from further embarrassment. “You must be Max.” She held her hand out for me to shake. “Aidan’s told me so much about you.”
I flushed and shook her hand. “All good, I hope.”
“Oh, completely. I’m his step-mom, Diane.” She twisted back toward the pot, turning a knob so the heat turned down. “Aidan’s not here yet. He’s helping his father bring in the other boxes. I’m so excited to go to a coming out party. It’s my first.”
“Mine too.” I grinned and then cocked my head to the side. “You haven’t been to a coming out party before?”
Diane smiled. “Oh, I’ve cooked for one but never actually been invited to one. Aidan’s father and I have only been married for a few months now. I’m not exactly part of the group who gets invited to parties.”
“Another thing we have in common.” I turned and waved Callie over. “This is my best friend, Callie. She’s human but knows about all this stuff.” I gestured to Diane. “This is Aidan’s stepmom, Diane.”
They exchanged greetings, and we made small talk until Aidan and a large burly man came in through the back door. Of course. That’s where Aidan got his linebacker build from.
“Aidan,” Diane greeted, waving a hand over to us. “Look who I found or, well, found me.” She embraced Aidan’s dad, kissing him on the cheek. “This is my husband, Xander. This is Aidan’s girlfriend, Max. Remember?”
Aidan’s dad, Xander, was an intimidating man, even more so than his son when we first met. Except unlike Aidan, he didn’t speak. At all. He didn’t even offer me his hand or even a casual nod of acknowledgement.
Trying not to let it bother me, I turned to Aidan. Wringing my hands together, I peered up at him shyly. “Uh, I wanted to come say hi before my cousin Addy kidnaps me for pre-party fun.”
Aidan’s eyes sparkled with amusement. “You look pretty.”
My eyes shot down to my dress and smoothed my hands over it. “Oh, yeah. Thanks. I woke up in a good mood and thought I’d just...” I flushed, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear.
“Hi, I’m Callie.” She shoved her hand in Aidan’s face. “The official best friend.”
Shaking her hand, Aidan nodded. His blue eyes then moved back to me, he flicked his head to the side. I chewed on my lower lip and then bopped my head.
“I’ll be right back,” I told Callie and then smiled politely at Diane and Xander. “It was nice to meet you.”
I took Aidan’s hand and led him out of the kitchen and out onto the terrace. Leaning against the railing, I smacked my lips. “So, your dad seems nice.”
Aidan grunted.
“I see where you get your talkative side from.”
“He hasn’t talked much since my mother died,” Aidan told me, making me feel like a right ass.
“I’m sorry.” I placed a hand on his shoulder, smoothing it up and down, my face leaning against it. “I didn’t mean to pry.”
“You didn’t.” He took my hand and brought it up to his lips. “It was a while ago. Diane has been good for him.”
“And me?” I asked, moving closer to him so our chests brushed against each other. “Am I good for you?”
Aidan’s lips twitched. “For my patience? No.” His hand moved up to the back of my neck, cupping my head his lips close to mine. “But I’ll live.”
Chapter 18
“Every girl should have her own tiara, I always say.” Addy finished topping off my head with a small tiara filled with white jewels and offset by blue and purple ones.
I grinned up at her through the mirror. “It’s great, Addy. I love it really. I couldn’t have asked for anything better.” I jumped to my feet and gave her a huge hug.
Addy laughed, wrapping her arms around me. “Oh, it’s no trouble, dearie. I’m happy to help.” She settled me back on my feet and adjusted her own hair in the mirror. “So, which one of your man candies is going to escort you in?”
My brow furrowed for a moment not sure what she means and then my eyes widened. Fuck. I knew I forgot something.
“Max?” Addy stared at me for a moment, concern etched on her face. “Honey, are you alright?”
Breathing heavily, my eyes darted from her to the mirror and back. I had the dress, the food, the music, even the god damn tiara but I had forgotten one crucial thing. Something everyone had been telling me to decide on, but I’d pushed it to the back of my mind not wanting to think about it.
Picking just one of them would have implications, implications I wasn’t ready to face. Nor did I want to. I didn’t want to pick one of the guys. I wanted all of them, now and for as long as they wanted to stay that way.
I had no grand illusions that something might come along and ruin the little arrangement we had, but I liked to think it would all end up alright in the end. Who said that it had to end now? Not me. Sure, as hell not me.
“I’ve got to go,” I told Addy, dashing toward the bedroom door. In an afterthought, I paused at the door, looking back at the curious Addy. “I’m sorry, thanks again. I’ll see you at the party.”
“Don’t worry about it
, sweetie,” she called after me, but I was already out the door and headed toward the stairs.
I passed by several goblins hustling to get the finishing touches on the house before the first guests arrived. I almost knocked one over in my hurry.
“Watch out!” the goblin snarled, waving a little fist at me.
“Sorry!” I waved a hand back at him in apology and then smacked right into one of the people I was searching for.
“Max, oh... fuck. You look good.” Ian’s lip curled into a wicked grin that, if I weren’t in a hurry, would have melted my panties right off my body.
“Ha, thank you.” I squirmed in his hands, my eyes scanning his own suited form. “Are the others here yet?”
“What, no kiss for me?” He arched a brow, and I wrinkled my nose at him before pushing onto my toes. I kissed him good and solid, careful not to smear my lipstick. “Well, that’s no fun.” He frowned. “I’d hoped to sneak in a quickie before the party.”
Rolling my eyes at his teasing, I looped my arm through his. “Come on, show me where the others are. I need to talk to you all.”
“About what?”
“You’ll see soon enough.” I grinned at him, feeling very much the Cinderella with him at my side.
“Ah, Max,” my grandmother cooed at the bottom of the stairs. “Now, aren’t you a sight? Why, I remember my coming out party! I was so excited. And your grandfather was dashing in his black suit and tie to match.” Her eyes moved to Ian at my arm. “Is Mr. Broomstein going to escort you? If so, it’s not too late to charm his tie to match.”
I squeezed Ian’s arm and then beamed down at my grandmother. “Actually, I was just about to talk to the guys about that. Have you seen them?”
She frowned slightly at my answer and then gestured to the parlor. “Your friend Trina has also arrived early. She said she had some news you’ve been waiting for?”
Curious about what Trina would have to say, I followed my grandmother into the parlor. When I stepped into the room, Paul, Dale, and Aidan all stood their eyes sweeping over me in appreciation. Trina sat next to Callie and my mom on the couch, while my dad stood by the window, tapping away on his phone.