Page 13 of A Touch of Spring Magic

“When you know you know, and Rustin’s always been mine. He just didn’t know it until I found the magic book.”

“It’s not magic.” Sarah laughed.

“Felt like,” Chloe said, waving her hands around. “I cooked him a meal exactly like the book said while he watched and instructed in a safe zone.” She laughed as her kitchen disasters were legendary. “And voilà. He was crazy about me. Magic. He’s my magic. Has been since I was a kid.”

“That’s true. You followed him like a puppy,” Sarah remembered. “No ring?”

“I want Rustin to focus on pouring all of his money back into the restaurant, and he’s reworking one of the upstairs apartments so there’s room for a music studio for me. Isn’t he amazing?”

“I think the speed is dizzying but romantic,” Sarah said hugging Chloe for about the tenth time. “You never know how long you have, and love should be embraced.”

All of them sobered, remembering that Sarah had had less than two years with her husband before he’d been killed in a horrific skiing accident with friends.

Chloe launched herself against Sarah, who staggered, laughed and hugged Chloe back. “You’ll have many years of bliss, Chloe. I feel it in my soul and my bones.”

“We will get rings, but I don’t want a diamond that pokes up. You know me. I’ll take out someone’s eye. Instead we are getting matching platinum bands engraved with those little sparkle stars, like you see in graphics, and then on the inside of the bands, we’re engravingMy Southern Love Spellon the inside. So romantic,” Chloe trilled. “Rustin says I’m magic. Can you believe it?”

Jessica couldn’t imagine Rustin saying something so vulnerable, and she kept her mouth shut, not wanting to question Chloe’s joy. What did she know about love anyway? She’d thought she’d felt it twice, but she’d been young and had run, and not been polite about her escape.

“The engraving’s a shout-out to theSouthern Love Spellsbook because Rustin first joked that I put a spell on him.” Chloe stated the obvious.

She clapped her palms together and bounced on her toes. “But he cast a spell on me when he was born. Soul mates. Oh, I want to borrow the book, Jessica. Rustin wants to make a digital copy, and I have an idea for the Wild Side and a history project for my students.”

“Ahhhhh,” Jessica drawled out, feeling like she’d been doused in ice water. She’d called Trina this afternoon but the book hadn’t shown up in any of the donations, and when Trina had asked Grandma Millie about it, she’d been vague and had seemed ‘confused.’

Great. Now Grandma Millie knew she’d passed on what might be, but probably wasn’t, a family heirloom—and right when Jessica had to have a serious discussion and a big ask about the future.

“Ahhhh,” she stalled again. “Let me think about where I…”

“Oh, there it is.” Chloe opened the French doors to the porch that had been converted into a sunroom a few years ago. “That’s a weird place to put it,” she said and walked back in cradling the book like it was a baby. “Were you watching a sunset and looking through recipes so you could cast your magic spell on Storm?”

Jessica stared at the book in Chloe’s arms. The way the titleSouthern Love Spellscaught the light, it looked like it glowed a little, though it wasn’t etched in gold leaf. She could barely speak. How in the world had the book reappeared? Could Grandma Millie have found the book and thought to tease her by returning it? Jessica had been outside all day, but not always in sight of the house. But she’d come back to pee a few times and she didn’t remember seeing the book.

But would she have noticed it?

“Huh, Jessie?” Chloe grinned at her.

“Definitely not. Let’s eat.”

“Good. I’m starved.” Chloe plunked down and opened the book.

Jessica didn’t want to sit near the book, so she poured a pitcher of distilled water for her sisters and brought it to the table along with the glasses.

Meghan dished out the tajine and Sarah served, adding the mint-honey yogurt and warmed pita bread that Rustin had also provided.

“I’m thinking about a party—like an engagement party or bridal shower or whatever in May. I was going to ask Grandma Millie if we could hold it in her garden. I know how to host a party now,” Chloe said proudly, referring to her chairing last year’s Holiday Movable Feast.

“We’ll host your bridal shower, Clo.” Meghan laughed. “It’s our sister duty.”

“I’ll host it,” Jessica butted in, suddenly seeing an opportunity to both make amends for her doubts about Rustin as well as keep her motivation revving to rehab the garden. If she worked hard enough, perhaps it could even be a publicity preview. She’d have to work all out through May to have a hope of being ready, but never again would she let Chloe down. Not ever.

“I’ll host it here. It will be my new business’s first event.”

“You’re going to host events—be an event space?” Sarah asked oh so politely.

“Ummmm…” In some of her late-night dreaming and scheming she’d pictured her nursery and garden being a destination—not a tourist attraction exactly, but…

What?

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