Page 33 of A Roar for Magic

“See?” His grin turned playful. “This is why we’re fated mates. Who else would get this excited about magical aromatherapy?”

“Careful there, tiger.” She stole one of his fries. “A girl might think you’re actually happy about this mating thing.”

“I’m a shifter. A fated mate is a dream come true.” His expression softened into something that made her heart stutter. “Would that be so terrible?”

Before she could answer, her phone buzzed with a text from Romi:Dinner tonight at Golden Lotus? Xabir’s treating! Say yes because I need someone to help me convince him that enchanted fortune cookies are a brilliant business opportunity.

“Speaking of sharing meals,” Clover showed him the message. “Want to help your friend avoid my cousin’s more creative business ventures?”

“Bold of you to assume I wouldn’t encourage them.” But his eyes crinkled with amusement. “Though I have to admit, enchanted fortune cookies sound potentially disastrous.”

“Dinner it is then. Purely to protect the citizens of Mystic Hollow from magical food-related chaos.”

“Of course.” She typed out a quick acceptance to Romi. “Nothing to do with following Madame Zephyrine’s advice about spending time together.”

“Absolutely not.” His foot bumped hers under the table. “Though I should warn you – Xabir knows some incredibly embarrassing stories about my college years.”

“Now I’m definitely going.”

His mock groan of despair carried them through the rest of lunch, and Clover found herself reluctant to leave the comfortable bubble they’d created. But work waited, and they had formulas to develop before Hudson could cause more trouble.

Still, as they drove to Weaver’s Botanicals, she couldn’t help thinking that maybe Madame Zephyrine was right. Maybe some bonds really were written in the stars.

Even if those bonds came with meddlesome seers, sarcastic familiars, and the constant threat of dark magic.

Weaver’s Botanicals welcomed them with a symphony of magical scents – lavender and rosemary mingling with more exotic aromas of moon-blooming jasmine and star peppers. The afternoon sun streamed through stained glass windows, painting rainbow patterns across workbenches laden with bubbling cauldrons and crystalline vials.

TWENTY

“Fair warning,” Clover said, leading Rook to her private workroom at the back of the shop. “Some of these ingredients have minds of their own. The star peppers especially get snippy if you handle them wrong.”

“Snippy?” His eyebrow rose.

“They sneeze fire when offended. Which happens... frequently.”

A shelf of colorful bottles caught his attention. “Are these your signature scents?”

“Some of them.” She pulled her hair back into a messy bun, trying not to notice how his gaze tracked the movement. “The blue ones are protection blends, the purple for emotional balance, gold for energy enhancement.”

“And the red?”

Heat crept up her neck. “Those are... experimental.”

“Experimental how?” He picked up a crystal vial filled with swirling crimson liquid that seemed to pulse with its own heartbeat.

“They’re attraction enhancers,” she admitted. “But they’re too unstable to sell. Last test batch made everyone in a ten-foot radius start spontaneously serenading each other.”

His laugh rumbled through the workroom.

She busied herself gathering ingredients, painfully aware of Rook’s presence as he moved around the room. His tiger energy filled the space, making her magic practically purr. “Right. Let’s start with your base formula. Walk me through the components.”

For the next hour, they worked side by side, blending scientific precision with magical intuition. Rook’s methodical approach complemented her more instinctive style. Where he measured exact proportions, she added pinches of magical herbs guided by the way they sang to her power. When she wove protection spells into the mixture, he suggested molecular structures that would bond better with the enchantments.

“Try this,” she said, passing him a vial of shimmering liquid. “Moonflower essence mixed with your stress-relief base. But I’ve added a twist.”

He sniffed cautiously. “Is that... silver sage?”

“Good nose.” She grinned. “It anchors emotional healing spells. Combined with your formula’s natural calming properties...”

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