CHAPTER 9
Briar opened the shop the next morning in a dreadful mood, convinced he’d offended Rowan with his aura babble and deprived himself of a kiss goodnight in the process.
It should not have been his focus. He needed a strategy to better acquaint himself with Linden, but from their interaction yesterday, he didn’t know how. Linden was an enigma. Fame elevated him. Without good reason to strike up a conversation, Briar’s attempts could look sycophantic at best and self-serving at worst. Grasping for a piece of his power, a touch of his fame. Briar couldn’t very well sayHi, a seer told me we’re destined to be together, so how about a kiss?either. The tithe of silence forbade it. Plus, he’d sound like a numpty.
The stiff competition left Briar hurting for work. He spent a good deal of time hunched over a sewing machine. He’d scraped the bottom of his ingredient stores for enchantments and started resorting to flesh tithes. It was exhausting, so Briar interspersed his work with something he found easier: moping.
Gretchen appeared at fifteen minutes to noon looking uncharacteristically cheerful. At the sight of him, she blanched. “What’s wrong with you?”
“Nothing. I’m just an unkissable failure who couldn’t sell a carrot to a hare, and my entire future hinges upon my relationship to a man who doesn’t know I exist. No big deal.”
“Yeesh.”
Vatii yawned. She’d been kept up late by his whining.
Gretchen said, “Well, I’m feeling great, thank you for asking.”
“How was your roam around town while I was at the festival?”
“Wonderful. I searched the town for clues on how I died. Do you know what I learned?”
“I thought you didn’t care about that?” Though he had wondered.
“I don’t. I mean—just listen! I found out I can—”
The bell tolled to announce a customer. Briar looked up from his work just as Gretchen blinked out of existence. Rude of her to leave him guessing, but she did have antisocial tendencies when it came to customers.
Linden Fairchild stood in the door. He wore pinstripe pants and a waistcoat with an emerald cravat. A traditional witch’s hat, dripping a single string of crystals from the brim, tilted smartly on his head.
He looked too elegant in Briar’s humble store. With a cursory scan of the room, he spotted Briar and smiled. “Ah, hello. I believe we met briefly yesterday. Briar?”
Briar suppressed a scream.He remembered my name.“That’s me.”
“I was wondering, I’ve just filmed a little tour of my shop for Alakagram, and I wanted to introduce my followers to the other places in town. Do you mind if I stream a tour in here?”
“Of course, make yourself at home.” Briar glanced at Vatii to confirm she was hearing all this. She rolled her eyes at his exuberance.
Linden’s grin broadened. He tapped open the app on his phone, held the camera aloft, and spoke to his followers with casual familiarity, showing them around the shop, saying, “This winsome place belongs to Briar Wyngrave, another Reded witch next door to me. Looks like we have ourselves an enchanted clothes shop. Man after my own heart.”
Vatii muttered, “Kill me.”
Linden joined Briar behind the counter, a sweet fragrance like lilacs perfuming him as he sidled close, holding his camera up in selfie mode. A number on the screen showed half a million viewers were already watching. Their commentary scrolled past, along with a spray of stars whenever they tapped the magic wand icon. Briar spotted a few complimentary messages. One person wrote,Is it just me, or is he kind of cute?Another replied.It’s not just you.
A few disagreeable watchers said,I don’t see it, but Briar paid them no mind. Despite very little sleep, hedidlook good.
Linden beamed. “This is Briar, owner of—”
“Briar’s Bewitching Boutique,” he answered, creating the name off the cuff. “That’s a working title. I could give you the tour?”
Linden glanced into the camera as if sharing a secret with his fans. “Isn’t he charming?” Then, to Briar, “Lead the way.”
Briar tried to appear calm, but internally he vibrated with enthusiasm. “I’m only getting started, but here’s what I’m working on for my winter line.” He led Linden to the window display, gesturing to the garments with a flick of his wrist. He reeled Linden closer to show him the embroidered detail, or to run the fabric between his fingers and comment on its quality. He dropped Sorcha’s name, insisting Linden check out her textiles. He spoke quickly and energetically, doing his best to keep the tenuous attention spans of Linden and his fanbase. Lastly, he pulled up the cloak he’d been working on.
“Not to be cheeky, but you inspired this one.” Briar took a step back and whirled the cloak around his shoulders. It still needed hemming, but he was quite proud of it. The emerald green was a trademark of Linden’s, and the high collar gave it an interesting silhouette. “I’ll be adding embellishments to the hem with a charm to repel rain.”
Linden touched the front of it, his long-fingered hand playing along the buckle. Briar hoped he couldn’t feel his heart thumping. He’d jumped to showmanship, and the pause awaiting judgment felt infinite. So many eyes on him through the lens of that camera. This could highlight his work or condemn it, depending largely on Linden’s opinion. In a private meeting, Briar might have been brave enough to turn up the charm, to lean in, to enjoy his proximity to a star upon which he’d made wishes from the time he was a boy.
Linden’s eyes met Briar’s. “I can see you’re incredibly talented.” On his phone, stars exploded, and a number of people gushed,That would look soooo fab on Linden. “You know, I’ve been looking for something fresh. What do you think about making something for me?”
