Not Your Ex's Hexes (Supernatural Singles, #2)(101)
“And I’m sorry about that, Damian. I am,” Julius said truthfully. “But you’re not fighting now. As a matter of fact, you’re doing the exact opposite. You’re giving up the best thing that could happen to anyone. Ever.”
Not saying another word, his brother turned and walked out the way he’d come, leaving Damian standing by his apartment door … and realizing his words made more sense than not.
Hurting Rose was the last thing Damian wanted to do, but he couldn’t see another way. If she was angry at him, she’d keep her distance, and while it sucked right now, time would ease them back to their regularly scheduled lives.
Him being an antisocial grump …
Her being a happy social butterfly …
And both of them without the other …
26
Red Bull Cures All
Rose paced the length of her grandmother’s cottage, a stack of magical quiz cards in her hands. As soon as a question flew from her mouth, she began the invisible timer, and when it ran out, she flicked her wrist, an obnoxious buzz filling the room.
“Hey!” Vi shot her a glare from the couch. “I was about to answer that one!”
“So what’s the answer?” She shot her sister a daring look and waited. “What’s the final ingredient in an Energy Rejuvenation Potion? Thyme? Witch hazel? Or—”
“Red Bull!” Vi grinned wide.
“Lavender, Violet. Lavender.”
“I like my answer better. Goddess knows I could go for a Red Bull right about now. How long have we been at this?”
“Barely two hours.”
Vi flung herself onto the couch with a dramatic groan. “It feels like a lifetime. I need a break. I need a snack. And I really do need a Red Bull … or a Rejuvenation Potion.”
“Is that what you’ll say when the head of a vampire hive comes knocking and asks for your help in keeping their residents in line? ‘I’m sorry you’re having issues with rogue vamps, but I need to rustle up a Red Bull first.’”
Vi frowned. “Well, when you say it like that…”
“Hello! Hello!” Edie’s voice chimed as she entered the house, two brown grocery bags in her arms. “I thought you girls would be finished by now.”
“There’s no such thing as finished when Rose is leading the magical study session. I can’t believe I’m actually missing the tweedy librarian’s flash cards.” Vi perked up. “You didn’t happen to grab any Red Bull, did you?”
Vi and Rose took the bags from their grandma.
“Can’t say I did, sweetheart. Sorry.”
“You know who will have some?” Vi grinned at Rose. “Dad. And I happen to know where he keeps his stash. I’ll be back. Study break!”
Rose cried out, “We’re not—”
She poof’d, leaving her alone with Edie.
“I think I preferred when she couldn’t do that. She’s getting too damn good,” Rose complained, tossing the flash cards on the kitchen table with a sigh.
“She’s getting good at a great many things although I’m not so sure your sister sees all her improvement.” Edie eyed the flash cards knowingly and began putting the grocery items away. “How are things going with potions? Any progress?”
“She thought Red Bull was the last ingredient of a Rejuvenation Potion, so how do you think?”
Edie chuckled. “Technically, one can substitute it for the ginseng, but it’s not common knowledge. Are you sure that’s the only reason why you’ve been at this for hours?”
She plucked a grape from the bowl on the counter. “Why else would I be here on a Saturday night? It’s not like I have something else to do or anyplace to be … or a person to see.”
“No one? Are you sure about that?” Her grandma watched her like a hawk, wearing a knowing look.
Rose growled. “Vi told you, didn’t she? That blabbermouth couldn’t help flapping her lips about Damian. Did she tell you he signed off on my community service hours so that I never have to darken his doorstep again? Super sweet and thoughtful of him, right?”
“Vi? No. She was suspiciously closed-mouth about everything.”
Her mouth dropped. “Olive? Are you serious?”
“It was only out of concern for you, I assure you. Maybe also a deflection as I asked about her current living arrangements—which did come to me through Violet.” Edie focused on Rose from across the counter. “But you should know I won’t be distracted in this instance. Talk to me, sweetheart.”
“There’s not much to say. Damian and I agreed to have a temporary thing.” Even being a grown witch and Edie being Edie, she wasn’t about to say fuck buddy to her grandmother. “It ran its course. We crossed the finish the line. Game over.”
With each word she uttered, it became harder to breathe. By the end, her chest ached.
Edie watched her thoughtfully, her lips pursed in thinking mode. “Are you sure it’s over?”
“I told you he signed off on my community service, right? That was him telling me to have a good life. Seems pretty finished to me.”
“Maybe … maybe not.”
She smiled wanly, and reaching across the island, took her grandma’s hand. “I know you mean well, Gran, but not everyone is as lucky as you and Violet. Not everyone gets to meet their soul mate and live out a fairy-tale happily ever after.”