Page 63 of The Lone Wolf Café
“Just…” Juniper let out a long, deep sigh, adjusting the large tote bag hanging over her shoulder. She leaned closer, as if telling me a dire secret. “Be careful, okay?”
“With what?” I tried my best to look innocent, but I could feel my face was on fire.
“Well… with… Rowena. Just… be careful around her.”
“Why?”
Oh gods, here it is.Was Juniper finally going to tell me why Rowena was an outcast? Every last bit of me begged to know.
“It’s just… she’s…” Juniper fumbled over her words, biting her upper lip as she struggled to finish her sentence. “…she’s dangerous, okay? Try not to be around her alone outside of café hours. If you can avoid it.”
Dangerous?
But how? Why!?
I nodded, trying to appear calm even though my brain was as turbulent as a winter storm. “Uh, okay. I will.”
What the hell else am I supposed to say?!Like always, I was too scared to pry further. I didn’t ask any more questions. I had no idea if my attraction to Rowena was apparent to the rest of Wisteria Grove, but I certainly couldn’t tell Juniper I was falling for the herbalist witch.
“Awesome.” Juniper looked relieved, and I felt like I was about to vomit. “Anyway, I hope you have a good afternoon, Nettie. I’ll see you around.”
I stumbled blindly across the café once Juniper left, falling dejectedly into my high-backed chair. I tried taking another sip of my coffee, but it was no longer hot, and it suddenly tasted more bitter than usual. I dumped the rest of it in the sink, which made Mavro squeak angrily at me. He didn’t like us wasting the coffee and tea he worked so hard to make.
“I’m sorry, buddy…” I froze, fumbling with the mug in my hands. “I shouldn’t have dumped the coffee like that. I just… I’ll be right back.”
Gods, I’m going to be sick.
I was hunched near the fire, with my cloak wrapped tightly around myself and my eyes squeezed shut to force out the nausea, when Rowena arrived back inside.
“Sorry about that,” Rowena apologized. I opened my eyes and turned around, watching her brushing her palms against the side of her dress. “So ironic that we chloromancers have to deal with weeds… uh, Nettie, are you okay?”
I shuddered as she walked toward me, black boots clicking on the hardwood. She crouched down so we were at eye level, placing a hand on my shoulder.
Just like she always did. Because she was a sweet, comforting person.
Be careful around her. She’s dangerous.
She’s dangerous.Those two words repeated in my mind, over and over again. I couldn’t make them make sense.
“Yeah…” I sighed. “I’m fine. Just… suddenly feeling a bit ill.”
“You cold?” Rowena asked, rubbing my shoulder. “You’re two feet away from the fire, and you’re wrapped up in your cloak like a caterpillar.”
That comparison made me giggle – a tiny crack in my mounting anxiety. I nodded, feeding into the lie. “Yes. I’m cold.”
“Well here…” Rowena sat down, crossing her legs in front of her, and pulled me into a hug. “Let me warm you up.”
She felt so good. Her soft skin, her sweet smile, and the floral scent of her perfume lulled me into a trance. It made me feel safe.
But it also made me feel sick. Was our budding relationship really that fragile? There we were, hugging in front of the fireplace like we were the only two women in the world, oblivious to the fact our secrets could destroy us both.
I had no right to be panicking. Juniper may have said Rowena was dangerous, but I was, too.
I was one bad full moon away from ruining everything we had.
“Want me to make you some coffee?” Rowena asked. I remembered the look on Mavro’s face a few minutes earlier when I dumped my mug down the sink, and my stomach did a backflip.
“Um, no thanks. I’m good.”
