The Witch's Halloween Hero (Nocturne Falls) (2 page)

“Are you bleedin’ kidding me?”

“No. It’s what Missy wanted.”

“Do you always give people what they want?”

“Like I said, when they’re paying for a spell, we try, yes.”

Stanhill mumbled a few curses.

“Look, we’re going to do our best to figure something out. And we will. I think. But in the meantime, you need to do your level best to make her fall for you again. Right now it’s the only thing we can come up with that might break the spell.”

“Your mother’s a stubborn woman. She wouldn’t go out with me for the first two months I asked.”

“True. But she seems to think you’re cute. That’s a start, right?”

“Sure, if you’re adopting a puppy. You seem to be forgetting that she didn’t like me kissing her, then she couldn’t remember it!” He sighed. “You have to find a way to make this right. I can’t lose your mother. I love her.”

Pandora put a hand on his arm. “I know. Just make sure she does too.”

***

Corette walked into the kitchen where her other daughter was. Charisma was at the counter, deep in serious discussion with herself, a habit she’d had since she was a little girl. It had been adorable then. Now it had become one of the tenets of her life-coaching services. “What are you talking about in such ominous tones? You’d think someone died. Aren’t you going to the ball?”

“Not this year, Mom.” Charisma turned toward her and smiled weakly. “I see Stanhill gave you the corsage.”

Her hand went to it. “It’s lovely. Mari did a wonderful job.” All of her daughters were extremely talented.

“Yes, she did.” Charisma’s gaze took on a more thoughtful glint. “So what do you think of Stanhill?”

“He’s handsome enough.” He was ridiculously handsome, but Corette was reluctant to admit that about a man she’d just met. “I like the British accent too. Looks like a bit of a playboy though, don’t you think?”

Pandora came in. “Did you just call Stanhill a playboy?”

“Yes, she did.” Charisma glanced at her sister before answering. “He’s not at all, Mom. He’s a stand-up guy who’s been there for you every time you’ve needed him. For all of us, really. We all love him.”

Corette leaned against the counter, careful not to wrinkle her gown. She’d special ordered it from her Paris couturier just for the ball. It had cost more than her last two Black and Orange Ball gowns combined, but it was silk and stunning and she knew she looked amazing in it. She just couldn’t remember why she’d gone to such extravagance. “Your father was a handsome man and everyone loved him. Including his secretary.”

“Stanhill’s not a cheater, Mom.” Pandora crossed her arms. “He’s nothing like Dad. Nothing.”

“He’s handsome,” Corette countered. “They have that in common.”

“So do a lot of other guys,” Charisma answered. “That doesn’t make them cheaters.”

“Exactly,” Pandora said. “Now go to the ball and keep an open mind.”

Corette shrugged and collected her purse and wrap from the counter. She knew her daughters meant well, but her decisions were hers alone. “I always have an open mind, but I’m not interested in getting into another relationship so soon after the last one.”

“Mom.” Charisma shook her head. “Other than Dad, which was decades ago, there was no last relationship. Everything you’re feeling is just residual from Missy’s personal stuff that went into her spell.”

“Well, it feels real.” Corette tossed her wrap around her shoulders. “And right now, fun is the only thing I feel like having. I plan to dance with every man who’ll have me tonight.”

Pandora groaned and put her hand on her head. “Charisma, we need to figure this out and fast.”

“I hear you,” Charisma answered. “Mari needs to get back here as soon as she can.”

Pandora nodded. “She will.”

Corette gave them both her best withering, mother-knows-best look. “Honestly, the two of you act like I’m in desperate need of a man. I’m not.”

“No, you’re not. And no woman should be, but you were in love with Stanhill until that potion splashed onto your arm.” Charisma took Corette’s hand. “You deserve to be happy, and Stanhill does that for you. Besides, we don’t want to see either of you hurt because of this accident.”

Corette patted her daughter’s hand. “I am happy. I have you girls and a darling granddaughter. What else could I need in life?”

“Speaking of Saffie,” Pandora said. “Stanhill brought her and Charlie Merrow cupcakes from Delaney. How did he know we were babysitting her and Charlie tonight?”

“No idea.” Charisma shook her head. “But he always seems to know that stuff.”

Pandora gave Corette a thin smile. “He’ll be waiting for you in the foyer by now. I hope…I hope everything works out. I’m really sorry I tipped that stupid cauldron over.”

Corette tucked her evening bag beneath her arm and cupped Pandora’s face in her hands. “Stop apologizing. No harm’s been done. You all say I was in love with him, but I can’t remember that, so it’s not like I’m suffering.”

Pandora’s frown remained. “You would be if you could see things from our side. You have your phone, right?”

Corette patted her evening bag. “Of course.”

“Good. Keep checking it. We’ll message you the minute we have the counterspell to this worked out. If it’s a potion, one of us will run it over to the Ellingham estate, so don’t go traipsing off.”

“I don’t traipse,” Corette said. “Honestly, I wish you’d all just give up on this silliness and come to the ball with me. Pandora, put a dress on and call Cole.”

“Mom, I can’t. You know he’s out taking Kaley trick-or-treating. This is her first Halloween here; I’m not making her give that up. And besides, I need to be here, working on this mess.”

Charisma nodded. “Agreed. This takes precedence. Marigold will tell you the same thing. She’d probably also tell you that Saffron will freak if she finds out Stanhill won’t be around anymore because of something her mother and aunts did. I can’t have my niece looking at me like I’m a monster.”

Corette smiled at the thought of her granddaughter. “Saffie likes Stanhill that much?”

Charisma snorted. “Did you hear the part about how he brought her and Charlie cupcakes tonight? He brings her a cookie from Delaney’s Delectables
every
time he sees her, which is clearly a level of planning we should all be in awe of. The man is gold, Mom. Now go have fun, and seriously? Don’t dance with anyone but him.”

Corette gave her daughters a long glance. “I’ll dance with whomever I please. But your words have given me a lot to think about.” She lifted her hand in a little wave. “Love you both.”

“Love you more,” they responded in unison.

Awash in affection for her girls, Corette headed to the foyer.

Stanhill stood there, waiting patiently. He
was
remarkably handsome with that kind of salt-and-pepper, well-aged, proper British thing going on and looked to be in phenomenal shape, although a tux could hide a multitude of sins. He smiled when he saw her, his eyes coming to life with a dazzling glitter that sent a shiver of curious anticipation over her.

Could it be that her body remembered him when her mind did not? That raised all sorts of questions, and in her current state of being, she didn’t seem to have any of her usual inhibitions that might have prevented her from asking. Not that she had many inhibitions to begin with, but a proper Southern woman didn’t talk about certain things.

Fortunately, she was a witch first and a proper Southern woman second. She sidled up to him in the hopes of getting a few answers.

He smiled at her. “Ready to go?”

“In a moment. I have some questions.”

He held his arms out. “I’m an open book, love.”

His accent trilled over her skin, more attractive than it should have been. “You look at me like we’ve been…intimate. Have we?”

He swallowed, and the sparks in his eyes turned to heat lightning. His arms came to rest at his sides, and even through the fabric of his tux she could see his body tighten in response. A body that looked like it had very few soft spots. “Yes.”

“More than once?”

He nodded, a taut, barely controlled movement that spoke volumes. “Oh yes.”

“I see.” Based on the way her skin was tingling, her body definitely remembered him. “And I take it those occurrences were mutually enjoyable?”

“Hell yes.”

Heat rose through her. She blamed it on the satin. It wasn’t the most breathable fabric. She took a deep breath. “I see.”

“Bloody shame you don’t remember.”

She agreed with him but wasn’t about to tell him that. “We should go.”

He offered her the crook of his arm. “The ball awaits.”

She slipped her arm through his, happy to feel that the body beneath the tux was as hard and trim as it looked. A second later, a sense of déjà vu passed through her. “Have we done this before?”

“Gone to the ball?”

“Yes.”

He nodded. “Every year for the past four years.”

“People expect to see us together at this event then, don’t they?”

“Yes.”

She blinked, thinking through the possibilities. “I don’t want them to know there’s anything amiss with me. You’ll keep my secret, won’t you?”

Seriousness shone in his gaze. “I would do anything for you. Keeping your secret will not be a hardship, but may I ask why? Are you worried someone could use it against you?”

She took a breath, then nodded slowly. “It’s Samhain and I’m under the influence of magic. My own could even be compromised. I just think it’s best if no one else knows.”

He put his hand over hers, his large, warm palm reassuring against her knuckles. “Perhaps we shouldn’t go.”

She snorted softly. “I may not remember you, but I remember how much I paid for this dress. We’re going.”

Chapter 2

Escorting Corette was as easy for Stanhill as breathing, but the ball had been under way for half an hour and there still hadn’t been word from her girls about a counterspell. Corette had warmed to him a little since their discussion in the foyer about their intimate past, but every once in a while he caught her looking at him with the sort of appraising glance he’d seen her use on indecisive brides in her shop.

She was either trying to figure him out or decide if he was worth the effort.

All while the engagement ring sat heavy in his pocket.

He couldn’t give it to her now, not like this. She’d never agree to marry him. And rightly so. But time was running out. What if giving her the ring was just the thing to bring her memories of him back? What if giving her the ring could make her love him again?

Hugh Ellingham walked up to him. “What’s eating you?”

“Nothing.”

Hugh sipped his wine. “Liar.”

They’d known each other too long. It was hard to hide anything from someone who knew you so well. “Shouldn’t you be dancing with your wife?”

“Delaney’s in the kitchen giving the caterers instructions about the cake. And shouldn’t you be dancing with Corette?” Hugh looked around. “Where is she?”

“Marigold needed her for an opinion on the flowers. By now they might be in the kitchen with Delaney for all I know.”

Hugh frowned. “A night out with Corette usually puts you in a better mood.”

Stanhill sighed and glanced around. “Things are not going the way I’d hoped this evening.”

“You still plan on proposing?”

“I have no bloody idea.”

Hugh clapped him on the shoulder. “Nerves?”

“Hell no.” Stanhill’s gut clenched. “You can’t tell a soul, but there was a little mishap at Corette’s this evening. Some witchcraft gone wrong.”

Hugh’s brows shot up. “And?”

“And she’s not in love with me anymore.”

“Bloody hell.”

“Exactly.”

“I assume her daughters are working on it?”

Stanhill gazed toward the kitchen, looking for Corette. “Yes.”

“But you don’t think you should propose until they’ve fixed it.”

That brought Stanhill’s head around. “You sound like you think otherwise.”

“What if that kind of declaration is enough to put things right?”

“I thought the same thing. But what if it isn’t?”

“Then you’ve lost her. But that could be the exact same result of doing nothing tonight too.”

“Damn good point.” Stanhill swallowed the last of his whiskey. “I won’t be the first chap to have gotten turned down.”

“Love is an awful thing, isn’t it?”

“Not for you, you fanged muppet. You’re blissfully happy with Delaney.”