Page 11 of The Pumpkin Spice Spell
She stirs her mug and murmurs something, then says, “So, what are your plans now that you’re back?”
I take a breath, weighing my answer. It’s a simple question, but I know it’s not simple for her. Or for me.
“I don’t know yet,” I admit. “Fix up the old place. Maybe stay through fall. I haven’t thought much beyond that.”
Her brow arches. “Mm-hmm. And Willa?”
That name on her tongue hits different. Soft and sharp at the same time. Like a match striking. “What about Willa?”
“Are you planning to fix things there, too?” she asks bluntly.
I sip the coffee slowly, buying myself a second.
“Honestly? I don’t know if I can, but I’m going to try. She’s not exactly eager to forgive me.”
Lilith nods in agreement, leaning back in her chair and studying me.
I run a hand over my jaw. “I messed up.”
Lilith leans forward now, elbows on the table. “Why did you come back?”
That one catches me off guard, not because I don’t have an answer, but because I’m not sure how honest I want to be with Lilith right now. What is it with Maren women confronting me, anyway?
I swirl the coffee in my mug and then set it down carefully.
“I missed it,” I say quietly. “This place. Her. Everyone. All of it.”
Lilith softens at that, her eyes warming. “Well…good. Because this town hasn’t been quite right without you, Tate, whether Willa admits it or not.”
I look around her kitchen, the black lace curtains, the pumpkin centerpiece on the table, the cinnamon sticks in a jar by the stove and realize how much it really hasn’t changed.
It’s as if Wisteria Cove has been waiting for me to come back and pick up the pieces.
Lilith’s watching me again with that look, the one that says she sees every thought running through my head.
“I missed you, Lilith,” I say finally, smirking. “Even your meddling.”
She laughs then, rich and full. “Oh honey, I know. But I figured a little motherly meddling never hurt anyone. Plus, I missed you something fierce.”
I shake my head, stand, and drain the last of the coffee. “Well…consider me officially meddled with. And you can call meto hang out and not pretend you need me to fix anything. But I will always help you fix things if you really need it.”
She follows me to the door, pulling me into a quick hug before I leave.“Willa’s stubborn,” Lilith says with a small smile. “But she’s got a good heart. She just needs time.”
I nod, because I know that’s true. And maybe—just maybe—time will be enough. Still, loving her from a distance is the only thing I’ve ever really figured out how to do. I don’t know if Lilith’s words are meant to reassure me, but they do. Enough to stay. Enough to keep hoping that maybe what I feel isn’t just mine to carry.
I have no doubt Lilith’s working whatever quiet magic she can to see that Willa and I end up together again. That’s just how she operates, pulling strings behind the scenes, always two steps ahead. But after the storm, after my dad went missing, my mom drifted away from her. Something happened between them that night, something I was too young to understand, and whatever it was, it built a wall I couldn’t see over. The mother I had before the storm and the woman who emerged after? They weren’t the same.
“Okay,” I murmur as I step outside, the cool autumn air sliding over my skin, crisp and clean, sharp with the scent of fallen leaves.
I pause on Lilith’s porch, breath misting in front of me, feeling the tug of this town, the history, the secrets, the way Wisteria Cove never quite lets you go.
And for the first time in a long time, I wonder if I even want it to.
Chapter 5
Willa
This is fine. Totally fine. I do not have feelings for Tate Holloway. I absolutely, one hundred percent, do not have feelings for Tate Holloway.
