“That’s what they all say.”
“Well, you could just try it out.”
Silva shrugged and shook her hand but snatched it back as if burned. Giuliana did the same, eyes widening. “You’re—”
“A worker for Kalinda, and it’s nice to meet you. The vintage shop is yours, I think?”
“Um, yes.”
Well, that wasn’t weird at all.
Kalinda wondered at the interaction, but Silva turned to lead them into the shop before she could ask any questions. Still, Kalinda wasn’t going to let it go, and would have to get Silva alone to understand what had happened.
Silva had been an odd hire for Kalinda after losing Zoey. She’d had experience in baking, managing, and customer service skills to boot, making her an instant attractive prospect. But she’d had no references, no real history, and didn’t seem like she wanted to share it much. Living in portal cities wasn’t exactly the safest place to be, and Kalinda had gotten used to the certain level of anonymity the people liked to have at times, but Silva still pushed the envelope into crazy-weird.
Her interview had consisted of baking a three-tier cake, each layer made from a different flavor, then assisting with serving while managing clients. She’d excelled at it all, impressing Kalinda greatly. But in the time she’d known Silva, Kalinda hadn’t found out much of her past except she was Fae and had no intention of living within Fae land borders.
The inside of the shop smelled of flour, sweets, and food, a scent that soothed Kalinda instantly. This she knew and understood. Her kitchen gleamed from the polished stainless steel, thanks to Silva who, it seemed, had stayed diligent in keeping it that way.
“Giuliana, I’ll be in here for some time working. If you’d like, you can be in my seating area. I have cable and a setup in there for you to be comfortable.”
“Sweet! I can catch some DIY shows while I’m at it.”
The wolf was gone instantly, and Silva released a breath.
“Silva, you’re on sous.”
For a time, they worked silently, Kalinda pushing her magic into food as she chopped, blended, and slid batter into the oven. She had cuts of prime rib warming for Giuliana and figured enough time had passed she could ask what was going on with Silva.
“What was that earlier?”
Silva’s hands froze for a moment before she went back to mixing her frosting for the coffee cakes. “I don’t know what you mean.”
Kalinda lifted a brow. “You know me better than that by now.”
“It’s not something I like talking about. Where have you been?”
“Is this one of those ‘I’ll show you mine and you show me yours’ moments?”
“Maybe.”
Silva never looked up, but Kalinda could sense this was important. She sighed. “The whole thing with the Viscount Pride seems to lead the wolves to believe the lions are attracted to my changing magic.”
“It has been arcing lately.”
“Jeez, it seems everyone but me noticed it.”
“You noticed. You just didn’t think about what it could mean. You’re a workaholic, Kalinda, and everyone knows that. I was surprised you could stay away from this place for a few days, despite what happened.”
“It’s my business.”
“And your shield.”
Kalinda looked up and met Silva’s gaze. She’d never really looked into Silva’s eyes before, and now could see they were green with a rim of purple around them. They were beautiful, but as Kalinda stared, those eyes glittered golden and the pupils dilated.
“Well … yes,” Kalinda forced out. “It has become a place of comfort. I built this with my own two hands. I use my mother’s old recipes every day to pay homage to all she did for me and my sister.”
“And now your magic is shifting, changing, and that group, the lions, were affected by it.”
