Yet I made no move towards the woodpile.
Instead I found myself staring at the closed door. Though she stood only a few feet away, separated by little more than weathered wood, already it felt as though some quiet part of me had been left on the other side with her.
Slowly, I unfolded the recipe I’d hidden inside my pocket. The worn parchment had become creased from how tightly I’d held it throughout the day. For several long moments, I simply stared at the final line: the Baker must willingly surrender the deepest desire remaining within her heart.
I lowered myself onto the old stump beside the bakery and rested my elbows on my knees. The price was just as horrific as the first time I’d read it. Not merely a single emotion or happiness or wonder, but whatever mattered enough to have remained even after everything else had been stolen.
My thoughts drifted to Cecelia—to the smile she’d forgotten to hide that morning, the wonder gradually returning to her eyes, the way she’d begun laughing without realizing it, the memories she’d marked on her maps…and the almost kiss beneath the oak. Every day she became a little more herself, reclaiming another piece of the heart she’d spent years giving away.
Just a week ago, I would have given anything to end it. But the wandering no longer frightened me as much as it once had. Now the thought of ending it this way frightened me far more. The recipe crumpled as my fists clenched.
If remaining cursed meant Cecelia kept the smile she’d only just rediscovered, if wandering forever meant she never again had to surrender another piece of herself…then perhaps some journeys were worth continuing.
“Cecelia,” I whispered into the gathering dusk, “I’ll wander for the rest of my life before I allow any spell to take even one more piece of your heart.”
Though the curse remained, somehow, it no longer felt quite so heavy.
CHAPTER 15
Cecelia
I remained utterly still as I leaned against the counter, my hand resting lightly over my heart that hadn’t settled since my outing with Gabe. Memories drifted through my mind, each one another precious ingredient folded into a recipe we had been unknowingly creating together: shared glances over ink and parchment as we studied my maps, the unexpected smiles—and even laughter—he had somehow coaxed from me, the lingering sensation of his hand entwined with mine as we strolled beneath the forest canopy.
Oddly, I found that I could still decipher many of Gabe’s emotions now that the bond was broken. His expressive face seemed to communicate without words. I found myself longing for the way I’d been able to vicariously experience feelings through him, even as I was relieved not to be bound to him any longer. My feet seemed to move closer to him as we walked, even without the tug of magic. Or at least not the kind of magic I was used to.
The brightest memory of all lingered at the forefront of my thoughts. We’d knelt together beneath the maple tree while the light faded behind us. He had looked at me with such quiet tenderness that the rest of the world seemed to fall away. His hand had lifted ever so slightly, as though drawn towards my face…before he caught himself.
For one suspended heartbeat I’d been certain he was going to kiss me. I had waited, scarcely daring to breathe, wanting something I hadn’t yet possessed the courage to name. Then the moment had slipped quietly between us, carried away by the encroaching dusk, leaving behind a strange disappointment that had followed me ever since our parting.
Beyond my fluttering pulse, a warmth gradually spread through my chest, as soft and gentle as sunlight after rain or an embrace after a nightmare. It felt achingly familiar, stirring memories of a feeling I used to know long before I’d forged my magical bargain with the recipe book.
I could sense Gabe’s presence outside gathering firewood—not through the magical bond that no longer forced us together, but through a quieter awareness that had steadily grown the longer we spent together. Whatever enchantment had first drawn us together had long since become unnecessary.
What had once felt inconveniently close now seemed impossibly far away. I found myself wishing he were here beside me instead of outside. The realization bewildered me. Why should the absence of a man I had known only a short while feel so…noticeable?
“I’m pleased to see you had a good time.”
Grandmother’s impish voice tugged me from the forest paths I’d blissfully wandered with Gabe that my thoughts had been happily retracing. I’d been so absorbed in reliving each scenic moment from a journey I wished had never ended that I hadn’teven noticed the familiar tap of her cane as she hobbled into the kitchen.
A knowing sparkle danced in her eyes, one that suddenly made me want to hide every thought that had been filling my heart.
I shrugged, attempting an indifference I already knew she would see through. “It was…alright.”
He eyebrows lifted. “Yet you’re smiling.”
“I’m not.”
The instinctive denial escaped before I realized it. My hand rose to my face, where my fingertips found the unmistakable curve of my lips. I traced it almost absently, astonished to discover it had apparently been there the entire time, likely ever since greeting Gabe.
Grandmother chuckled. “No, dear. I believe it’s become a part of you; this time you simply forgot to hide it.”
I said nothing, my fingers continuing to hypnotically trace the unfamiliar smile as though I scarcely recognized my own face. Could a single afternoon truly leave such a lasting imprint? I had wandered countless forests before, yet none had remained with me the way this one had, leaving me feeling so…alive.
“This can’t happen,” I whispered, torn between confusion at the mere possibility I had begun to feel, horror at the idea of forming an attachment just in time to be ripped away, and unrealistic hope that somehow this could be more than a sweet, fleeting memory.
Grandmother only smiled more gently.. “I think it’s time you stopped stubbornly pretending it isn’t.” Her eyes twinkled again. “Though I will admit I was rather hoping he’d kiss you.”
The blush that had scarcely left my cheeks since Gabe’s first endearing smile deepened until I felt warmer than the bread still baking in the hearth.
