Page 72 of Once Upon a Curse for True Love
Sarah cleared a spot on the couch and sat down, her expression softening.“What’s going on, Andy?Why aren’t you out banging Malatesta’s brains out?”
Andromeda told her about the offer from SMPD and the consequent fight with Donatello.Asking if she was being too harsh.But before her roommate could voice an opinion, Andromeda added, “You’d leave your job for Lorcan, right?In a heartbeat?”
Andromeda held her breath, waiting for the confirmation that would vindicate her position and soothe the ache in her chest—the burning heat that had taken up residence behind her rib cage since she’d walked out of Donatello’s house.
“No.”Sarah Michelle’s tone was gentle but firm.“Not in a heartbeat.”
The answer was a cold shower.Andromeda pulled her knees to her chest.“But you and Lorcan are perfect together.You’d choose him over anything.”
“Maybe, if I had no other option,” Sarah Michelle clarified.“But it would be the hardest choice of my life, not one I’d be able to consider on the spot, especially if I was blindsided by it.”
Andromeda frowned, twisting a loose thread from her pajama pants around her finger until the tip turned purple.“I thought you’d at least understand.”
“I do.”Sarah Michelle leaned back, her eyes serious.“But SMPD isn’t any police department, Andy.We’re the top magical force in the country, even more important than New Orleans.To serve in Salem is the ultimate career achievement for a detective—it’s the hardest post to get, only for the best of the best.”
She tucked a strand of her newly blonde hair behind her ear.“So when you’re asking Malatesta to give up his position at SMPD, it’s a lot to ask.”
Andromeda groaned, dropping her head back on the couch.“Why couldn’t we live in an unimportant jurisdiction like, say, New York?”
“Then the biggest threat we’d have to face would be cursed bagels and haunted billboards,” Shelly offered.
They shared a look and chuckled at how absurd the humans would find their description of New York as third tier.But magical significance didn’t map onto human population centers.
“Ugh.”Andromeda kicked the tangle of blankets away from her feet.“So should I just… give up on the job offer?Pretend Chief King never dangled the career of my dreams in front of me?”The question tasted bitter on her tongue.
Before replying, Sarah Michelle weaved a cleaning spell to take care of the mess in the living room—a mini-cyclone whirled around the house, doing the opposite of what cyclones do and leaving behind everything clean and tidy.
“That’s up to you.But before you decide either way, ask yourself if you’d resent him a month from now, or a year, or five years, for being the reason you turned down this opportunity.”
Would she?The thought of passing up the directorship made her chest tight with preemptive regret.But the possibility of losing Donatello created a hollowness that she wasn’t sure a job could fill.
“I’d resent him,” she admitted in a small voice.“And I’d hate myself for it because it’s not fair to blame him for a choice I made.”
“And would he resent you if he left SMPD?”
Andromeda nodded miserably.“He said being a cop is all he knows how to be.”
“Then the solution isn’t for either of you to give something up.”Sarah Michelle’s expression brightened.“What if there was another way?One where neither of you had to sacrifice?”
Andromeda sat up straighter, a tiny ember of hope flickering to life.“Like what?”
“I don’t know yet.”Sarah Michelle shrugged, but determination set her jaw.“But there’s always a loophole, especially in bureaucratic policies.”
“That’s the answer I wanted from him.”A fresh wave of frustration rolled through her.“But he couldn’t see past his black-and-white thinking.It was either him or the job.No room for creativity.”
“Malatesta, for all his merits, is still a man.And men can be so unimaginative sometimes.”She scooted closer on the couch.“But we’re witches.We can do better.”
“What do you suggest?”Andromeda didn’t smother the flicker of hope this time.“I’ve got three days left to decide.”
Sarah Michelle sniffed theatrically.“First, you’re going to shower.”She snapped her fingers, and the mini-cyclone that’d been cleaning the house attacked Andromeda.It whirled over her, disappearing just as fast and leaving her smelling of roses.
“You did not just cyclone me.I could’ve taken a regular shower.”
“This was faster,” Sarah Michelle countered, rising from the couch.“Up now.We don’t have time to waste.”
For the first time in four days, hope flickered inside her.Along with the grime, Sarah Michelle’s spell had washed away most of the self-pity.The living room was in good shape, too.The takeout containers were gone.The blanket nest had been folded into a neat stack, and the scattered spoons had vanished.Even Quill, perched on a clean cushion, seemed less judgmental.
“If you ever quit detective work, Shelly, you’ve got a future in disaster recovery.”
