Page 23 of Grimoires & Glamoury

“Hi Chloe, I’m Lorna. What do you say we try and find your parents?”

“Okay.” She held up her arms wanting to be picked up.

I scooped her up and settled her on my hip. “We’ll head over to the checkout counter and ask the Broussards if they know who you belong to.”

“I like your hair,” Chloe told me, tangling her fingers in my long ponytail.

“I like your face,” I told her and she thought that was hilarious.

With my free hand I grabbed the plant cart handle and began to make my way down the main aisle of the annual section. The girl gave a happy bounce and began to laugh.

The garden center was packed with shoppers that day, and it wasn’t easy maneuvering with a child on my hip and pulling a heavy wagon full of annuals. My respect for the mothers I saw shopping with more than one child instantly went up—like tenfold.

By the time I made my way to the checkout area I spotted Hattie Broussard—Hattie Lloyd, I reminded myself. She had gotten married a few months ago.

“Hey Lorna!” Hattie waved at me.

With my hands full I could only nod. “Hey girl. I found this little one all on her own over by the geranium tables. She says her name is Chloe.”

Hattie grinned, completely unfazed with the news. “Gave your Daddy the slip again, did you?” she said, tossing a wink at Chloe.

“Hi, Hattie.” Chloe smiled, and there was a whole lot of mischief there. “Can I have a sucker?”

“Sure you can,” Hattie said to Chloe. “Hang on a second.” Then Hattie reached to her waist, pulled out a walkie and spoke into it. “Attention employees,” she said. “Could someone let Mr. Montgomery know that Chloe is currently at the front checkout counter?”

Montgomery? I thought. Nah…it couldn’t be Charles Montgomery. Montgomery wasn’t an unusual surname. This was simply a coincidence. Surely I would have heard if he had a family.

The reaction to Hattie’s announcement was immediate. Several laughing replies sounded off through the walkie. “That’s less than five minutes,” one woman said, chuckling. “Who found her this time?” another voice asked. “I’m with him,” a new male voice replied. “We’re on our way to the front.”

I tried to set Chloe on her feet, but the child would have no part of that; she clung firmly to my neck. Hattie passed the girl a sucker and Chloe had it unwrapped in a flash and popped into her mouth.

“Yum,” she said to Hattie.

So there I was, stuck in place with a line of customers waiting to check out, my plant cart blocking the counter, and with Chloe in my arms. “Sorry,” I said to a couple that were trying to maneuver around me.

“No worries,” a woman said to me. “Your daughter is adorable.”

“She’s not my—” I stopped myself from trying to explain the situation.

Hattie clipped the walkie back on her belt. “Chloe and her Daddy are regular customers of ours,” she explained. “And this little minx likes to sneak off and hide while she’s here. Drives her Daddy nuts.”

“I’ll bet,” I said,

“Hi Daddy!” Chloe said brightly and began to wave at someone behind me.

Turning around, I discovered that Charles Montgomery was indeed walking toward me. My eyes widened in surprise, partly at the realization that he had a child and partly because I’d never seen him dressed so casually before. He was wearing dark jeans, sneakers, and a casual polo shirt.

He didn’t seem like the all-powerful ceremonial magician from the snazzy part of town at the moment. Right then he seemed down-to-earth, approachable and holy cats…he was still handsome as sin.

“Chloe Alexandra Montgomery,” he said, shaking his head and sounding resigned. Then his eyes focused on me. “Well hello, Lorna.”

“Montgomery,” I greeted him politely.

“I got a purple sucker, Daddy!” Chloe announced, bouncing in my arms.

“Young lady.” He sighed. “How many times have we talked about you staying by my side and not running off while we’re here at the nursery?”

“Hide and seek is fun,” Chloe said from around her sucker.