Page 30 of Love's a Witch
Dare what? Oh, this?Oswald nipped at the tassel, and then swatted it lightly with a paw.
“Oswald. Knock it off.”
Knock what off?Oswald batted it again. Lightly. And then, as though helpless not to do it more, he rolled onto his back and beat it up like he was punching a boxing bag.
“You know you have no self-control once you start.”
I am the epitome of control.Oswald hissed, battering the tassel some more, flipping across the bed and back before going another round.Take that! And that!
Go on, lad!Haggis threw his head back and mooed his support, and I sighed. Crossing the room, I scooped up the cat, and he squirmed in my arms, annoyed.
I had everything perfectly in hand.
“I’m sure you did, but from the outside it did seem like you were about to shred the shite out of Mum’s curtains.”
I would never.
“Uh-huh. Like the six times before this, mate?” I deposited Oswald on the floor and he walked sedately down the hallway, his head held high.
Wanna play?Haggis barreled through, his wheelchair clattering, and Oswald leapt about six feet in the air.
No, I don’t want to play. I don’t play. I am a warrior, sent to banish evils.
Tag!Haggis bumped his nose on Oswald’s bum, and Oswald hissed before Haggis took off, racing down the hallway and catapulting himself around a curve.
Like I can’t hear where that snuffling beast is from a mile away?
“Still gotta catch him. It’s not hide-and-seek, you know. It’s tag.”
Why would I remotely be interested in playing such a childish game?
“That’s fine. I’ll just tell Haggis he won when I see him.” I proceeded past Oswald, knowing this would annoy him, and then turned the corner. When he zipped past me, swiping a claw across the back of my leg in the process, I just laughed. He was too easy.
Communicating with animals might be one of my favorite magickal abilities, and when I’d discovered it after the age of twenty-five, I’d crowed in delight. It made the largely empty castle less lonely these days. Sure, my mother had staff—a chef, a butler, a maid—allof whom I loved dearly. But the added companionship of Haggis and Oswald was a real bonus for me.
Grabbing a long wool coat from the front closet, I tucked a tweed newsboy cap on, collected my leather driving gloves, and then stomped through the snow to my Land Rover. It was a blisteringly cold night, and it took everything in my power not to go back inside and light a fire, pour a wee dram, and curl up with a good book instead.
But the thought of dancing with Sloane was just too much to resist.
No, scratch that.
My provost duty. That was the only reason I was going.
I repeated that to myself the entire drive over to the Rune & Rose, which had a function room tucked in the back for events. The car park was almost empty, which was unusual for a cèilidh, and I pulled over beneath a streetlamp. Two snow sculptures now stood in front, one with a scarf and another with earmuffs. Warm light spilled out on the street from the arched windows, and cheerful music caught on the wind, dancing away into the snow that barreled down. Ducking my head, I made haste to the door and pushed inside, kicking the snow off my boots just inside the door. There, I deposited my coat in a pile with the others and waved at a few people as I made my way to the bar.
Music from a live band, a jaunty Celtic tune, boomed through the doors leading to the back room, and a cheerful fire snapped in the stone fireplace along the wall. The light from the lampposts outside illuminated the swirling snow in the large windows, making the fire even more welcoming, and I leaned my hip against the bar as Liam waited on a few customers.
“Mate, how’s it going, then?” Liam stopped by my side.
“Brilliant.” I nodded at the snow swirling outside the window.
“Och, it’s a nuisance, isn’t it, then? Such a shame, really. We were finally getting to see more sunshine.”
“How’s business been?”
“Nothing all that much today. Of course, the cèilidh helps. A little.”
“Not as busy as I expected.” I looked around at the mostly empty pub.
