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I’m drunk.
Archer pats me on the head like a puppy while his eyes drift to Lena. Even though I’m on my way to being shit-faced, I still spot the way he looks at her like she’s a forbidden treat.
“Don’t let Rhys walk home alone.” Archer wags his finger at all of us and then grins at me. “He likes to pass out in dumpsters.”
“One time, asshole.” Rhys throws a pretzel at Archer.
“That’s all it takes, OTG. See you around, Miri, goodnight Luna,” Archer calls over his shoulder as he waves goodbye. Lena follows his movement and Rhys slaps down his cards, mumbling something about dickheads and Deb’s stupid dumpster. He pushes away from the table with one word. “Water.”
There were so many inside jokes just thrown at me, I barely know where to start.
“OTG?” I tip my head back, trying to figure that one out.
“Don’t.” Rhys points his finger at his sister from behind the bar. She smiles sweetly, then swivels in her seat to look at me.
“Oscar the Grouch.” I bark out a laugh, but quickly press my lips together, shaking my head and shrugging at Rhys.
“That’s not funny at all.”
“You’re all assholes.” He charges off toward the bathrooms, but the amused smile on his face tells me he’s got a sense of humor about the whole thing, despite his protests.
“What about Luna?” Lena’s cheeks grow redder, if possible, and she faces forward again. Her hair is still perfect though, and I wonder if she ever looks rumpled. Everything about her looks totally put together, down to her red skinny jeans and the white shirt with little lacy capped sleeves. How she’s managed to keep it clean during a shift at the bar is beyond me. Not like it’s been a busy night, but still she’s been cleaning up the place and drinking heavily with me. I have at least one slosh of beer on my shirt. Thankfully, it’s black so no one can see it.
“It’s just a nickname. Something he’s called me since we were kids.”
“You guys have a thing?” Normally I’m not so nosey but all the drinks have loosened my tongue and I am really curious.
“What? No. No, Archer’s one of my brother’s best friends. He would never… That’s not something that’s going to happen.”
I hum noncommittally because from where I’m sitting it looks like Archer wouldn’t mind something happening between the two of them. Considering I’ve known everyone in this bar for less than a handful of hours, I bite my tongue. I’m not drunk enough to think my advice would be appreciated. Lena, however, is drunk enough to spill a venerable avalanche of words.
“It wouldn’t work, anyway. Our families are such a mess, and it would probably make my dad ecstatic to know that I was dating one of the original magical Axis’s kids. And I will do anything to make sure nothing I do makes that monster happy.”
My head swims at the information she’s just dropped. Lena hates her dad. Okay. Nothing I can say there. I don’t even know who my dad is. Also, the fuck did she just say? Original Axis. My eyes dart around the room while I try to act like my heart isn’t about to gallop out of my chest. If I just sit here and keep my mouth shut, will she keep talking?
Dani taught me a lot about magic over the years, she even mentioned that it ran in her family. When I told her I was moving to Wild Haven to take up ownership of my family’s house, she wasn’t exactly thrilled. She mentioned the island held a lot of unpleasant memories for people. Dani included. She left after some bad business went down with her family. It was obviously painful for her, so I never pried. Maybe I should have.
While Dani told me that their family could do magic, she hadn’t mentioned it was so prevalent on the island that people would randomly mention it in conversation. She just told me to keep my eyes and ears open. Dani hadn’t tried to talk me out of moving here, though. She seemed to accept it as inevitable when I got the call from a lawyer about the house, just after my twenty-fifth birthday.
My fingers drift over my jacket on the back of the chair. To the letter tucked in an inside pocket. The letter my mom had sent with me the night Davis took me away. She’d never given me specifics about why I had to leave, but she had mentioned that someday she wanted me to go back to her home, to Wild Haven and that I’d know when the time was right. I had known. I’d never had a desire to go back to the home she’d fled all those years ago, as if it had been a thought forced out of my mind. When I got the call about the house being held in trust for me, it was like a damn burst, and there was nothing I wanted more than to find out about my family. I don’t know for sure, but I’ve suspected for a while now that my mom might have cast a spell to keep me from Wild Haven. I don’t know why I had to wait, but now that I’m here I will figure it out.
“I’m so happy you’re here, Miri. Things get a little stale and repetitive on the island. It’s nice to get some new blood in. Hey, let me know if you want to grab coffee or gossip with someone other than Archer. Oh, and you need to come see me at the library when you get a chance. There are some books about your house!” Her smile is genuine.
“My house?”
“Yes, it’s got a fascinating history. The original house burned down in the fires of 1840. Your family built the house that’s there now on the same spot. There’s some special Feng Shui on that property. Legend says there’s a passageway to Fairy there.” She laughs and waves her hand as if to dispel the ridiculousness of the rumor, but a shiver moves down my spine. Although I admire how a drunk Lena can still eloquently spout island history without missing a beat.
“I read a little about the island before I moved here. Isn’t there the Fae woods here too?” Supposedly there was a stretch of the preserved forest called the Fae woods, named for their otherworldly beauty. There are all kinds of nods to the Fae or fairies on the island. The bakery is named Fairy Cakes, for God’s sake.
“Yes, it’s beautiful there. We’ll have to go for a hike one of these days.”
“It’s a date.” I smile into my beer. Look at me. Being social and making friends. A warm glow spreads over my chest that I think might be more than just the booze doing its job.
I’ve got a good feeling about Wild Haven Island. Moving here is going to change my life.
