“Well, you didn’t miss much here. Just your mother and Daphne squabbling. I’m getting really tired of their shit.”
“Gran!” Juniper pressed her hand to her mouth.
“I love my daughter, but Jennifer has always been difficult, and Daphne is worse. I’m so glad I have you.” Her grandmother reached forward and patted Juniper’s cheek. “Whatdid you want to talk about?”
I pressed my lips together to keep from laughing. Juniper glanced my way, and I ducked down to check under the sink for another trash bag.
“Well, remember how I told you about Caspian being a selkie and there being a whole I-have-his-coat-marriage-bond situation? Well, it turns out that was more folklore than an actual magical problem.”
Her grandmother hummed, rubbing her chin as she thought. “Interesting. I definitely felt magic connecting you two.”
Juniper hesitated, her eyes flicking between her grandmother and me. I wasn’t sure how to encourage her. A thumbs up seemed like a bad idea with a bag of trash in my hand.
Finally, Juniper exhaled roughly and said, “Turns out I’m his fated mate.”
Fuck yes, she is.
My stomach swooped at the words leaving her beautiful lips.
“Ah, that makes a lot more sense.” Her grandmother reached for her glass of wine and took a long drink. Juniper stared at her. The older woman shrugged. “Honey, it's not uncommon for other magical beings to have fated soul bonds with witches. Don’t look so surprised. So I assume you’ve accepted him?”
“I guess, yeah, I have,” Juniper said, her cheeks brightpink. “But he lives here in Crescent Cove, and I don’t.”
“Don’t be a nitwit, sweetie. You’ll move here and be with him. There’s nothing in the city for you, unless you want to stay close to your mom and sister.”
“No,” Juniper said with a shiver. “Would you like it if I was nearby?”
Her grandmother reached for the cake. “Darling, there is nothing I would love more. Besides, you have a lot more to learn about your magic. Don’t think I missed what you did to the muddy yard.”
“Oh, that,” my little witch said, looking down at her hands.
“I’m very proud of you,” her grandmother said, and Juniper’s head shot up. “Imagine what you can do with some time and practice, now that you’ve met your other half.”
Juniper glanced at me. I hadn’t remembered to look busy. I was just leaning on the kitchen counter, entirely entranced by their conversation. Flinching, I jolted back and started grabbing random dishes to wash.
“We’ll see, I guess.” Juniper’s hesitant, genuine smile crept across her face when I peeked back. “And I suppose I am staying here.”
I couldn’t stay out of the conversation any longer. Before I knew what I was doing, I was across the room with my arms wrapped around her from behind.
“We can buy another house nearby if you don’t want to live with my brothers. We’ll do whatever makes you happy,”I babbled, so happy I couldn’t stop myself.
Her grandmother sighed, taking a big bite of her cake. “Spoken like a man in love.”
“I am,” I said, kissing Juniper’s cheek.
She leaned into my touch, letting out a contented sigh. “Me too.”
“Can I take you home, please?” I asked softly.
She hesitated, glancing around.
“Oh, don’t worry about the mess. It’ll give me something to do tomorrow,” her grandmother said, waving her hand dismissively.
“I hope you don’t mind, but I put in a call to our cleaning crew. They’ll be here first thing tomorrow," I said. “I should have asked before I did that. I apologize.”
“See, there is a man that takes initiative,” she said, patting my arm. “I’d tell you to hang onto this one, Junie, but you’re fated, so he’s never going to let you go.”
“Yeah, I get that feeling,” Juniper said without a trace of indecision in her tone.
