He went back to chopping wood, and I inhaled a shuddering breath of fury. Looking down, I saw a mound of snow gathered within an empty window box. I reached inside and scooped my hand to form a ball, then packed the snow together between my palms. Narrowing my eyes, I blew magic into the snowball, and like a needle penetrating a voodoo doll’s limb; I aimed for Jack’s back when he bent to reach for another sip of water.
Bullseye!
The snowball hit with perfect precision, and Jack grunted in surprise. I flattened myself against the bathroom wall unable to control a snort of laughter.Fine. Let him think he’s won.There were other ways to solve my problem. All I had to do was fill the tub and then use a spell to warm the water. The whole process would take longer, but it was a small price to pay.
Pushing away from the wall, I popped the lever on the shower to make the water pour into the tub, only to slump down on the edge when I realized there was no stopper. I searched the bathroom and even went into the room next door where I’d bathed the night before, but the stopper was missing.
“That wretch,” I grumbled, marching back to my room. It looked like for the time being it was a cold shower or nothing. Hyping myself up, I dove beneath the icy stream and took the quickest shower of my life, shivering so hard I thought I might knock my head against the tile.
After putting on my warmest clothes and drying my hair, I went downstairs to search for coffee to heat my insides. Grandma Jean stood over the stove stirring a pot of oatmeal.
“Coffee’s on the sideboard, dear,” she said, setting out a bowl for me and filling it with oatmeal. “Oh, I turned the water heater back on. Jack must have flipped the breaker switch last night, so by this morning the water had cooled. Give it an hour and we’ll have hot water again. I hope it wasn’t too much of a surprise this morning.”
“No, it was fine,” I said even though it was pure torture. “I should have expected as much.” I polished off my breakfast, watching as Grandma Jean spooned the rest of the oatmeal into an insulated bowl and screwed on the lid. “Is that Jack’s breakfast? Mind if I take it out to him? I feel like we’ve gotten off on the wrong foot and a little one-on-one conversation might help.”
“That would be wonderful, dear.” She handed me the container and placed the empty pot into the sink.
I bundled up for the weather and tucked the container under my arm, then went to go find Jack. This early, the tree lot was still empty of customers, and Grandma Jean had mentioned business was slow this year. I passed by a cute wreath stand that was fully stocked and then walked past a line of pre-cut trees leaning against a fence.
With a devious flick of my wrist, I sent the trees toppling like dominos. It was petty, but it felt good. Maybe Jack’s Scrooge-like tendencies were already rubbing off on me, or maybe turnaround was just fair play.
I found Jack around the corner in the woodshed, stacking the logs he’d chopped. On the ground near the stack was the chainsaw that had interrupted my sleep the night before. He’d taken it apart in an apparent attempt to fix it, but no amount of repairs was going to do the trick. I made sure of that.
Leaning against a post, I unscrewed the bowl’s lid and breathed in the delicious scent of warm oatmeal. Jack paused when he sensed my presence, his whole body tensing.
“Good morning, Jack. Isn’t it beautiful out today? The sun is shining, and the wildlife have returned to their nests.”
He threw the last log onto the pile and rested his hands warily on his hips.
“Did you enjoy your shower, Delia?”
“It was very invigorating. I’ve always wanted to do a polar plunge, and now I’ve had some training.”
His eyes locked onto the bowl in my hand. “Is that my breakfast?”
“It is. Did you want some?” I dipped the spoon into the oatmeal and then fluttered it around in the air and took a bite.
Jack’s gaze darkened when I went in for a second round. He strolled closer, boots crunching over the hard-packed snow. Right when he was an arm’s length away, I tipped the bowl over and let it fall from my hand. Oatmeal spilled to the ground in wet clumps.
“Oops. I dropped it.” I pursed my lips into a pout. “Too bad I ate the last of the oatmeal before I came outside. I hope you weren’t too hungry.”
“I’m starving, Delia. You shouldn’t have done that.” Careful to avoid his fallen breakfast, he leaned in, lifting a hand to place it above my head on the post, trapping me with his body. My pulse jumped from his closeness and the scent of soap on his skin.
Had he taken a cold shower too?
The air sizzled between us as I watched an array of emotions filter across his face. Irritation morphing to interest and then settling on something wolfish that made heat pool inside my stomach. I stilled as his thumb brushed the side of my mouth, skimming over my lip.
“You missed some.”
Coherent words fled from my mind as his focus remained on my mouth, almost as if he fought himself to taste where his thumb had been.
The harsh ding of a service bell broke the spell and forced us apart. Jack peered around the shed while I blew out a tension-filled breath and tried to put myself back together. That hadn’t gone exactly as planned. So much for my cold dish of revenge. Instead, I was thawing at his feet. Thankfully, the bell had rung some sense into my head and reminded me why I was here in the first place.
“I have to deal with a customer,” Jack said, turning back to me. I was shocked by the regret that flashed in his eyes, and I backed up a few steps, needing to put some space between us.
“Yeah. I should get back to the inn, myself.”
He nodded and left me standing under the woodshed wondering what I’d gotten myself into. None of his pranks had even come close to making me pack my bags. But the look he’d given me while leaning against the post had tested my resolve.
