Page 83 of Meet Cute Magic

“Can I continue on with my miserable tale before I get a lecture?”

Poppy smiles then nods.

“Go on,” my youngest sister says before I tell them about the flask, about dragging Jack into it, our missions. About kissing him and the kiss bond, and making out on my couch just because Jack had never done it. About the night in the field and deciding we could be friends with benefits, knowing that once the curse was broken, I’d find my true love. When I tell them that, they exchange knowing looks, probably seeing where this is going, where my own blinders blocked my common sense.

I tell them about Phillip’s assurance that when the curse was broken, all previous relationships and heartbreaks would be forgotten. Then I tell them about thinking Jack was a safe bet and how he turned into anything but. Finally, through sniffling tears, I tell them about finding him trying to sabotage the potion.

“The moonflowers,” Poppy whispers, her eyes closing. “I thought it was strangely specific, but I’ve gotten stranger requests. I’m so sorry, Rosie.” I shrug, then shake my head.

“It wasn’t your fault. How could you have known when I was keeping everything from you?”

Silence fills the room before Vi breaks it. “But I don’t get it. Why would he do that? Why would he try to sabotage the potion that would help Phillip cross over to the other side?” she asks, then looks around for the friendly ghost who has made himself scarce lately. My heart falls to the floor with the question and how I have to answer.

“Because…” I take in a deep, uneasy breath. “Because he’s in love with me.”

“What? This is all because he’s in love with you?” Poppy asks, breaking the stunned silence after long moments. I nod in agreement, sniffling and wiping at my nose.

“That makes no sense,” Vi adds.

I shrug. “I know, because we were just friends with benefits and—”

“No, that’s not why,” Poppy says, shaking her head like I’m an idiot. “You two have never been friends with benefits, Rosie. We all know it. It makes no sense because you’re just as crazy for him.” My heart stops in my chest, nausea churning at my sister’s blunt words.

“I—”

“So why would he try to sabotage it if, when it was over, there would be no more risk of it going bad? You two are meant to be together. It’s obvious to everyone.” I sigh, then give them the last puzzle piece.

“Because once the curse is lifted, all previous relationships are forgotten.” Her brows furrow.

“But he was a current relationship. If you were both in love and the curse was broken, wouldn’t it just… continue?” I open my mouth, seeing her point, but—

“Unless he didn’t think you felt it too,” Violet guesses, and Poppy nods, agreeing.

“Oh, she was totally playing it down. I bet she kept talking about the curse breaking and finding her true love after, like it wasn’t him all along. That would make anyone feel desperate. But if she just told him how she felt, so it was clear it wasn’t one-sided—”

“That’s the solution, I think,” Vi says with a nod. As I watch them start to have a conversation about me and my feelings with each other, completely ignoring me, the all-consuming urge to scream bubbles in my chest.

“Shut up!” I say, letting the urge win. They both stop and turn to me with wide eyes. “It doesn’t matter what would have happened. Right before it happened, I said I loved him, which triggered the curse. It’s doomed to end now. And he risked it all, betrayed me and broke my trust, and he isn’t even in love with me. Not really.” The words tug at my heart, but I ignore them, knowing that it’s all a facade.

“Rosie…” Poppy says with exasperation.

“It’s the kiss bond. He liked how it connected us, so we obviously redid it a little while ago, and we had sex while bonded. And that’s the real reason he’s feeling this way. Clearly, it’s fucking with his head. I’m not sure of the long-term effects of the bond: I’ve never bonded anyone, much less fucked them while bonded.”

“Rosie, that man has been obsessed with you for some time, kiss bond or no. I think you’re completely underestimating his feelings for you,” Violet says.

“No, I’m not. I’m being smart. Safe. I need to break this curse, and I need to do it now. His mind is melded, and instead of talking to me, he jumped into sabotaging the potion meant to uncurse our entire family. He was fine with messing with Phillip’s chance of moving on. No matter what you guys say, I know that isn’t what my true love would do. He would talk to me, he would have a conversation with me instead of making a decision that impacts not just him, but me, Phillip, and our entire family.”

And I believe that. I have to, if I’m going to survive the next few days.

“Where is Phillip, by the way?” Vi asks, looking around.

“Right here,” my ghostly roommate says, floating in on cue.

“What’s your take on all of this?” Vi asks, crossing her arms on her chest and giving him an assessing glare. “You’re the only one who has known all of this from the start.”

He shrugs. “I think Jack made an idiot decision trying to mess with the potion. Not just because it would benefit me, but because it broke Rosie’s trust, which is the most important ingredient in a successful relationship.” Violet continues to watch the translucent man bobbing in my living room with skepticism. He has a bit less of his happy, goofy flair, and I wonder if he feels the same disappointment I do.

“But?” Vi asks with a raised brow.