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“Excuse me, young lady,” he said as if he were a million years old. His hair was graying, but not yet totally white, and he stood tall and straight. He couldn’t have been that ancient. He adjusted his wire rim glasses and peered at me intently. “Don’t I know you?”
I shook my head. “I don’t think so.”
“I thought I saw you at the aquarium the other day.”
Oh no. That was never a good sign. I leaned a hand on the wall next to me and peered at him. Did I know him? No. But he did have the purple glow of a witch around him. I swallowed. I really hoped he wasn’t about to yell at me for losing his magic. “I was there,” I admitted. “I adopted a dolphin.”
He smiled, but for some reason it made me shiver. “You participated in that Adopt a Creature fundraiser. How nice.”
“Well, my sister did,” I said, gesturing toward the bar. “She bought it for me for my birthday.” There was something about him that felt wrong, bad. But I guess it could have just been my paranoia. I had had a lot to drink. I hiccuped.
“So good of you both to support the venture,” he said, and he reached out as if he wanted to pat my arm.
I jerked my arm away. I couldn’t help myself. I did not want this man to touch me. I didn’t know what was wrong with him, but something was—I was sure of that. “Well,” I said, glancing around the restaurant for help. “I should be going . . .”
He too looked around to make sure no one noticed us and leaned in closer. “Did you feel when the magic disappeared? It was so strange.”
I didn’t want to know how he knew I was a witch, but I wasn’t admitting anything to him. Putting my best clueless bimbo face on, I asked, “What do you mean?”
The man lunged forward and grabbed my forearm, his fingers digging into my flesh. “Tell me how you did it.”
“Let go,” I said, jerking my arm back, and I fell backward, slamming into another man behind me. I turned around, but he had his hands up and a friendly smile. He was wearing a Silver Springs Fire House 26 shirt, which instantly put me at ease. There were only two fire stations, so I didn’t understand why they named it number 26 but whatever. He looked safe and that’s what I needed right now.
“Are you okay?” the fireman asked, his dark eyes going back and forth between me and the old guy.
I shook my head. I was trembling and I didn’t know why.
The fireman stepped around me and glared at the old guy. “I think she’d like to be left alone.”
“We were just having a conversation,” he said, drawing up to his full height. There was nothing stooped and elderly about this man. “Nothing to concern you.”
“Just the same,” the fireman murmured.
I swayed and leaned against the wall. I was a bit ashamed of myself. I should have fought my own battles, but I was in no condition to fight any battles right now. So I hid behind the guy. When the old guy finally slid back into his seat, grumbling, the fireman turned to me.
“Were you headed to the bathroom?” he asked with a wink. His chin was rough with a scruffy beard, and his dark hair was shaved up the sides, leaving it longer on top. “Because I just happened to be headed that way too. Let me escort you.”
“Thanks.” I smiled and ruined it by hiccupping. I followed him to the bathroom, but before I went in, I glanced back at the old man’s table. It was empty. I shivered. I hoped that didn’t mean he was waiting for me somewhere else. “Thanks again,” I said to the fireman.
He nodded and walked away.
As I went into the bathroom, I realized I’d had no reaction to the fireman. Even though he’d been a handsome guy. Was it that magic at work? I might have to ask Amber how her mate spell worked, since Pepper was out of town. Was there some way I’d been mated to the aquarium guys? Was there some weird magic at work here in Silver Springs? Who was I kidding—there was always weird magic at work in this town.
Maybe I should take advantage of whatever it was? What’s the worst that could happen? I might have some fun before the spell wore off. These kinds of things did that, right? Wore off? I rubbed my head. It wasn’t like I was a shifter who mated for life, although wasn’t Hudson a shifter? I was asking too many questions for my sloshy brain.
I called the Mystic Transit app from inside and lingered near the front door in case my stalker was still around. I didn’t go out until the car was right in front, then I ran across the sidewalk and dived in.
“Where to, hun?” the older lady behind the wheel asked.
I smiled, glad she was a she and not a creepy old man. Then I happened to glance across the street and saw the very man standing under a street light. His silvery hair shone even though his clothes were dark, and his eyes met mine intently.
“Home?” the driver asked.
I nodded but then knew I didn’t want to take him back to the motel. I didn’t want this creeper to know where I lived. “The aquarium.”
Levi
I was checking the aquarium after closing, looking for stragglers, when a loud banging came from the front door. Opening it, ready to tell whomever it was that we were closed, Delphine fell into my arms instead.
