I give him a half-hearted smile.I’m a shit liar.
The big dude in glasses across the table faux-salutes me.“I’m Ward, Tara’s husband.”
I start to give him a wave back, change my mind halfway through the motion, and dive for a fried pickle instead.“Hi.I’m Sylvie.I own the old bookstore.Well, it won’t be old for long.I spent all day cleaning it and books should start arriving any day.”A ripple of excitement pulses through me.
Holy shit.I’m going to be opening soon.
“Tara has been talking about you non-stop today,” Ward tells me.“Welcome to New Hopewell.”
“She’s amazing.Her kolaches might be the most magical thing I’ve ever tasted.”
Prudence’s claws prick my thigh at the word magical.
I shove a chunk of soft brie in her face, and she snags it from my fingers like we’ve been eating pickles and brie together our entire lives.
“You are welcome to come get a kolache and coffee with me every morning,” Tara tells me.She laughs as Ward pulls her onto his lap, and Em scoots around the other side to sit next to Jack, who immediately places a sweet kiss on her temple.
And just like that, I’m all too aware that Aiden and I are the only uncoupled pair at the table.
“So, uh, Ward, what do you do?”Gross.Why don’t I go ahead and ask him how much money he makes while I’m at it?
“I work remote.Finance stuff and project management for a few different corporations.”
“It’s really boring,” Tara tells me, and Ward laughs, nodding.
“She’s not wrong.Compared to you all, it’s definitely a lot of spreadsheets and conference calls.”
“I love a spreadsheet,” I tell him.
“You and Jack both,” Em pokes Jack in the chest.“How did the bookstore thing happen, anyway?Did you buy it?I’ve been trying to find out how to get that property rented out or sold for years, and then all of a sudden here you are.”
“It’s the weirdest thing, actually…” I trail off, thinking about the grimoire that essentially fell into my lap.
Along with the talking cat, who is literally in my lap right now, eating cheese like her stomach and our new apartment can handle it.
Maybe they both can!
Maybe she’s also hypoallergenic!
I blink, realizing everyone’s been staring at me while I’ve been lost in thoughts of stinky cheese cats.
“I inherited it.”
“Oh, that’s so mysterious,” Em says, clapping her hands.“Wait.”She frowns.
I do a finger gun at her, then grab a whole handful of fried pickles and stuff them in my mouth.“Exactly.”A bunch of crumbs spray onto Prudence’s head.
Aiden snorts again, then pushes a long wooden board with a set of different drinks—beer, I presume—toward me.
“Do I want to know?”Jack asks Em.
Tara shakes her head.“You really don’t.”
“Don’t tell me we have ghost problems again,” Ward sighs, closing his eyes and hanging his head back.
I chew furiously because with Ms.Blood Poisoning on my lap eating brie, I’m not about to tempt fate and answer any questions.If the rest of these ninnies want magical cat-scratch fever, that’s on them.
Emotional support cat?
