Page 9 of Brews and Banishments
Ethan grinned. “On a date, Daisy.” He tilted his head again, and he looked so handsome Daisy thought her heart was going to implode. “Can I have your number?”
“Oh,” she breathed, fumbling for some sort of paper behind the counter. “Yes, of course!” She scribbled her number carelessly on the back of a card, her handwriting looking more like chicken scratch. She passed it over the counter to him.
Ethan gingerly took the card, his fingers grazing her skin unexpectedly. “I’ll call you,” he said, his gaze holding onto her face. “Alright?”
“Y-Yes,” she whispered. “Alright.”
And before Daisy could even gather her senses, Ethan gave her a short wave and left Fields’ Herbals.
She moved like a ghost, her feet feeling as though they weren’t even touching the ground. Pushing open the office door, Daisy slipped inside, not caring about the shop as she shut it firmly behind her. Tessa stood in the center of the small room, her hands pressed together expectantly.
“Well?” she asked. “These walls are as thick as molasses, Daisy! I couldn’t hear a thing! What happened?”
Daisy raised her hands, suddenly at a loss for words. “Ethan, he,” she paused, the disbelief still clinging to her despite it allreallyhappening, “he asked me out.Heaskedmeout. Did I say that right?Heasked -”
Tessa suddenly screeched, the sound capable of breaking glass in the tiny office. She shot forward, her arms snapping around Daisy’s nimble frame and pulling her into a tight embrace. Tessa was already plotting the entire evening out in Daisy’s ear, mentioning what the weather forecast was and what dresses she could borrow - since Daisy couldn’tpossiblyhave a cocktail dress that was perfect for a date with Ethan.
Daisy sunk into her best friend’s embrace, the reality of the moment finally sinking into her skin. And when she felt drunkon her inexplicable happiness, Daisy rested her head on Tessa’s shoulder, her eyes gravitating to her desk, where a ripped piece of paper managed to catch her attention.
Now you’ll get what you deserve.
Her arms tightened around Tessa, the sinking feeling returning to her stomach.
What was still yet to come for Daisy?
3
Daisy
“Are you sure you don’t need any more help?”
“For the third and final time,” Susy said in her characteristically high-pitched voice from behind the counter in Fields’ Herbals, “I am okay to close by myself. I promise, Daisy.”
Daisy tapped her fingers on the counter as she glanced around the shop. Everything looked pretty much in order. Her eyes fell on Susy once more. The sixteen-year-old had started working at the shop last summer, when school let out, and she had wandered into the storefront. The poor girl had a tear-stricken face, and she’d begged for some sort of a tonic that could help her parents afford the medicine they needed for her sick dog. As an animal lover herself, Daisy decided to offer the schoolgirl a job instead, promising that a steady wage would be far better than a simple tonic.
Before she knew it, Susy’s dog was bright eyed and bushy tailed once more, and she had more than a pretty penny in her pocket. Despite her working at the shop for over a year, it would be the first time Susy managed to close the shop herself. Daisydidn’t doubt her trust in Susy for one bit. But she couldn’t deny that strange feeling in her stomach, and the peculiar smell that still lingered behind the counter from that strange potion.
The last thing she needed was for Susy to have a similar experience.
“Alright,” Daisy finally said. “But you’ve got all the emergency numbers, don’t you?”
Susy nodded. “I’ve got them all twice.”
“And if you need anything -”
“I will call you or Tessa,” she finished. “Straight away. Now, why don’t you two get out of here?” Susy leaned back in her seat, shaking her head disapprovingly. Her signature strawberry blonde pigtails shook with every move she made. “It’s like you can’t remember what it’s like to have a night off!”
“Well, that’s just it, Susy,” Daisy mused as she turned her back to the counter. “I don’t think I can!”
Tessa laughed from beside the front door, one foot already holding it open. “Don’t worry,” she said. “I’llremember it for you. C’mon, workaholic!”
Slipping out of the store, Daisy draped her thin jacket over her arm. “Says the one who is married to a real workaholic.”
“So I would know, wouldn’t I?”
Daisy shook her head and laughed.
The early spring afternoon was just as it always was. The days had began to lengthen, the sun staying high in the sky for much longer than anyone ever remembered. Downtown Willowbrook had a more popular feel to it during those days, when handfuls of tourists passing through to reach the beach window shopped and mingled. The heat was comfortable, then, allowing Daisy to walk down the sidewalk in a simple t-shirt and jeans. Beside her, Tessa’s long yellow dress flowed with the gentle breeze.
