Page 85 of Castings & Curses

Grabbing a bunch of candles and carrying them in one arm, I tried to balance a full lemonade in the other hand and walk out to the back porch without dropping anything.

The night air was only slightly cooler than the day had been. Fireflies were coming out for the season. There were more than the last time I had come out here to commune with the moon and the stars. In another hour or so, it would be even cooler and more bugs would come out from their hiding places.

It was a tradeoff, be out early in the evening while it was still warm, but there were fewer bugs, or wait for the temperature to drop and serve myself up as a bug buffet.

I lined the candles up on the railing. They were more of a precaution more than anything else. I wasn’t out here to cast. But in case my intentions were misconstrued, I didn’t want to have to slog across the yard out to the fire pit.

I took a sip of the lemonade. Terri-Ann always had a pitcher of lemonade and sweet tea in the fridge. I don’t know how she did it. Everyone was always drinking something, and those pitchers were always full. It was good lemonade too, just sweet enough, but still crisp and tart. My sister excelled at running her family.

That thought felt like a bit of a slap. Here I was struggling with a broken marriage, and a stupid infatuation. I wasn’t managing anything very well. At least I had a freelance project to work on. But if I was going to need to be able to pay rent and cover all of our living expenses, I was going to need more than a project.

“Okay,” I started. “I want to be perfectly clear, I am not sending out some kind of wish for Eric Dupree to fall in love with me. If he does, and as much as I would really like that to happen, he needs to do it all by himself.”

The first candle lit up. Okay, that was understood.

“Secondly, unless I very specifically announce that I am attempting to cast a spell, I am not. So if I say I wish, or any of the words that preface a spell in your understanding without stating my intentions clearly, do not interpret that as a spell.”

Only one candle stayed lit. Well, I guess I was going to have to work on that one.

“Also, and this is more of a request than anything, let Dylan have the life he deserves. And keep him away from me and Liv.”

I held my breath and stared at the candles. The first one was burning strong. The next two flickered to life, but quickly were left as nothing more than a smoking wick. I didn’t like that outcome. It was unclear. Or maybe whatever power that sparked fire with my magic realized I hadn’t actually called on my powers for that last request.

“Are you out here casting spells again?” Terri-Ann looked from me to the burning candle. “Tell me that’s a citronella candle for the bugs.”

I shook my head.

“Well, I hope you were more practical with your spells this time.”

I sat up a bit straighter. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Don’t waste your powers to get things you can’t control. Look what happened with Dylan.”

She wasn’t wrong. But… “How did you know?”

“Paise, you aren’t exactly subtle. What did you expect to happen with someone like him?”

I shrugged. “That he would realize he really did care for me. I know it was stupid. But we were together for so long, I thought it actually worked.”

“What worked was how strong your little love spell was. But when it broke, it broke hard. So no more wishing for boys.” She pointed a finger at me like I was being naughty, and she was scolding me. She looked at the burning candle. It was going strong. “Do not wish for Ash Weiss.”

“Ew, no,” I said.

“Then what’s that for?” She tilted her head, indicating the candle.

I laughed. “I started a fire at the photoshoot. I said I wished the chickens would behave and bam, the hay bale one of the guys was sitting on caught fire. I was not meaning to work magic, it just happened. This is my meaningful and specific request to not interpret those thoughts, or me saying ‘I wish,’ as a spell. From here on out, if I do not state my purpose of spell casting clearly, thoughts and musings are not to be interpreted as magic.”

“You set fire to a hay bale at the station?” Terri-Ann shook her head. I couldn’t tell if she was amused or disappointed. “Only you.”

“We got this awesome action shot out of it. I can’t wait for you to see the calendar. It’s going to be amazing.”

“I’m sure it is.” She crossed the porch and looked at the candles. “What happened here? These blow out? Are you sure you aren’t out here wishing for boys?”

“They never fully lit. I wasn’t casting, but I think the magic thought it was for a second before snuffing them out. And I’ve learned my lesson, no more wishing for something that interferes with someone’s autonomy and self-control.”

“Maybe your intentions’ thing is working.”

I shrugged. “Let’s hope.”

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