Page 4 of Meet Cute Magic

“My, my, now what do we have here?” he asks. He doesn’t seem devious or malicious, something I’ve been warned could happen. “What’s your name, girl? My name is Phillip.” Names are powerful in magic, but something in me tells me it’s safe. And if there was one thing my mom taught me, it was to always trust my gut. So: this man, despite having put a curse on my family years before, is safe.

“I, uh,” I start, then clear my throat to speak. “My name is Rosemary Mayfield, granddaughter of Gertrude Mayfield.”

“Mayfield, why does that name sound familiar?” He drifts up in the air, twirling around and circling like he is already bored and needs to move to entertain himself. I take a deep breath, centering myself before answering, forcing confidence and expertise I don’t necessarily feel into my words.

“Because you cursed my grandmother and our entire line years ago when she turned you down for a date. I summoned you to remove the curse once and for all.”

He stares at me, one translucent finger to his chin like he’s thinking before his smile widens. “Ah, yes, I recall now. A real looker, she was. Remind me, what were the exact terms of the curse?”

I bite my lip because I never actually asked for the specific words—even though that’s how all magic works.

“Or, at least, what you know of it. You said Gertrude Mayfield is your grandmother?”

I sigh with relief and nod. “Yes, I don’t know all of the terms. I only know that you cursed my entire family line and made it so when we tell our partners we love them, the relationship ends miserably.”

He nods thoughtfully. “And I assume you want to fall in love? You seem like a sweet girl. It’s a shame it hasn’t happened yet.”

I laugh and shake my head. “Oh, I’ve fallen in love plenty of times,” I say. “It’s the staying in love that seems to be the issue. Just like your curse threatens, when I tell someone I love them, the relationship ends soon after.”

He nods, looking around my living room where I set up my salt circle to keep his spirit contained. “What do you do?” he asks. “Do you live in Heartwood Hollow?”

I nod once more, watching him float along here and there, spinning and twirling as if he can barely stay focused on the task at hand.

“I own my own business. And yes, my sisters and I still live in Heartwood Hollow, where the curse originated,” I say.

“Ahh, yes. You own a bookstore, correct? A teal one?”

My brow furrows, unsure of how he knows that or why it matters, but I nod all the same. “Yes. Yes, that’s me.”

“Does your magic work with the store?”

I sigh, then nod. “Yes. Someone who is ready and willing to fall in love will read a book from my store, and then they fall in love with the next person they date.”

He takes me in, genuine interest on his face. “Fascinating. And yet, you can’t fall in love yourself,” he says.

“Yeah, yeah, it’s so fascinating—goddammit, Percy, no!” I say, as Percy swipes a paw through my salt circle, breaking its containment. Phillip immediately slips through, gleefully and swiftly moving around my house like he’s been let out of prison. I stare at him with panic for a moment, unsure of what to do since Mom told me the spirits always have to stay within the circle or else you no longer have any control of when they leave or stay.

Ignoring my horrified looks, Phillip moves around my room, trying to pick up odds and ends but having his fingers only float through them. My nerves ease with the revelation he’s just exploring, and a hint of pity runs through me. I realize that I don’t actually know much about ghosts or spirits. Can they only talk to people if they’re summoned, and that’s why he’s taking his sweet time, chitchatting with me? Maybe he’s lonely, and this is his one chance for interaction.

But then I remember that this man is responsible for my heartbreak.

“Can we just cut to the chase?”

“And what would the chase be?”

“I want you to remove the curse on the Mayfield line so I can find my one true love and not have it end in heartbreak,” I say carefully. You have to be incredibly specific when asking for something from a spirit, so I add, “I want the curse removed from my entire family, too, present and future, so all of the Mayfield women can fall in love without worry.” I wouldn’t want my sisters to never fall in love.

He looks at me, nodding once, then moves quickly and floats right through me, the bright, near-painful cold running through me and dissipating almost instantly before he’s in front of me once again, a disapproving look on his face.

“What did you have for dinner?”

“What?” I ask, caught off guard by his question.

“What did you have for dinner tonight, young lady?” Phillip asks, more frustrated than before.

“I…” My mind wanders, trying to remember what, if anything, I ate for dinner, but then I recall finding Michael cheating and getting started on my plan instead of eating dinner. It’s hard to eat when you’re experiencing your hundredth heartbreak.

“You didn’t eat dinner today, did you?” he asks.