He caught himself before falling, counteracting the spell, but the coffee carafe in his hand sailed through the air. Hot liquid spewed from the opening in what seemed like a slow-motion arc. The destination: a table full of guests.
No!
I was about to try another spell to divert the scalding spray until Caden beat me to it. Still partially hunched over, he muttered an incantation. The coffee veered just enough to hit the floor and not the nearby table. I almost sank to my knees in relief.
Caden gazed back at me. I expected rage, not the look of grudging respect.
“I knew it. I knew you were one of us,” I said.
He gave me a subtle nod then mouthed something that sounded like, “Behind you.”
A hand wrapped around my elbow and yanked me off the floor. Manicured nails dug into my skin as Angela dragged me into her office. The door slammed closed behind us, and she rounded her desk.
“Are you crazy? You could have given table eight third-degree burns! What were you thinking?”
Regret clamped like a vise inside my chest. “I didn’t mean it. It was an accid—”
“An accident? You were right behind Caden. You tripped him.”
“No. That’s not . . .” I bit my lip, unable to defend myself. No matter how we looked at it, I had tripped him. It was reckless. Stupid! She was right—I could have hurt someone. Why had I let him get to me? I knew better than to allow magic to rule my emotions.
I’d always been the levelheaded one. The straight arrow. Now, I felt unbalanced, as if the script I’d always followed suddenly had a new plot twist.
Angela leaned her fists on her desk, her voice rising. “You came blasting through those doors! That in itself is dangerous. You’ve always been so reliable, and then tonight, you show up late, and now this. I don’t know what your problem is with our new employee, but it’s unacceptable. You’re fired, Elle.”
Panic surged through me. “Angela, please. You’re right, what I did was wrong, but I need this job! Let me have another chance.”
“You got lucky no one was hurt. Hand over your name tag. You’re done.”
I squeezed my eyes shut. Magic bubbled to the surface, threatening to get the upper hand, but I controlled it, breathing deeply through my nose.No more outbursts.Reaching for my name tag, I unpinned it and placed it on the desk with a shaking hand.
“You can pick up your last check when you return your uniform. I have to get back on the floor. We’re now even more short-staffed. Show yourself out.”
I hung my head as she left the office. What a completely rotten night.
Grabbing my stuff, I made my way back to the reception area. I decided to go out the side door to avoid the stares of the other servers. Going anywhere near the kitchen amounted to taking a walk of shame, so to save my pride I planned to slip away unnoticed. The last thing I wanted was for Zoe to make a scene or pull some solidarity stunt that would end with both of us walking to our cars.
The main hall was quiet, and I could hear my footsteps padding over the carpet. My stomach growled and my head pounded from the stress of the past twenty minutes. I promised myself I’d head straight to a drive-thru so I could drown myself in greasy food and Dr. Pepper. Tomorrow, I’d have to start thinking about finding another job.
Almost to the exit, I slowed to a stop when I heard a pair of hushed voices. I craned my neck, spotting Professor Roberts speaking with another woman standing in the shadows. It wasn’t a cheery congratulatory talk either; they were in each other’s faces, gesturing angrily with their hands. Professor Roberts swung her arm, accidentally dislodging a drink from the other woman’s hand. It toppled to the carpet, the clear liquid soaking into the fabric.
Their argument was none of my business. I had bigger problems on my mind now I was out of a job. Still, I lingered, oddly captivated by someone else’s issues.
Misery must like company. It certainly liked me.
Professor Roberts noticed me standing there and went silent. We made eye contact, and she visibly flinched. There was something in her features that made me uneasy. It was almost like fear. She flashed a strained smile as the other woman composed herself, smoothing the front of her well-tailored pantsuit.
“Elle, I noticed you were working tonight. I hoped I’d get to say hello.” Professor Roberts gestured to the other woman. “Julia, this is one of my most promising students, Elle Graves. She’s majoring in business but minoring in history.”
Julia nodded, and I realized I recognized her from around the university. I was pretty sure she was a colleague of Professor Roberts, though I’d never taken one of her classes.
“Sorry to interrupt,” I said, still sensing the tension between the two of them.
“Not at all.” Professor Roberts waved her hand in the air. “I hope your midterm paper is going well. I’m looking forward to reading it.”
“Yeah, it’s coming along.”I’ll have more time to work on it now that I’m unemployed.
“Wonderful!” Her smile was still tight around the corners. “I hate to be abrupt, but we really should get back to the party. See you in class next week.”
