Page 45 of A Spell of Midlife Mayhem

Chapter 16

I WAS EMBARRASSED BY the whole situation with Raven’s sudden disappearance—again—but not so much that it put me off ordering a cheesecake and eating it.

Once again, Raven had left me to stump up the payment for everything. I paid on my credit card, which was racing towards its limit like a horse with the stables in sight. Then I drove home, my mind in a whirl that couldn’t be explained by the single glass of prosecco I’d had with my meal.

Raven was... an actual raven? Like a werewolf, but much lower down the food chain? Was it even possible?

I’d have to ask Aunt Ruth. She’d know if were-beasts were real or not. But did she know Raven seemed to be one?

What did I mean, seemed to be one? I was almost sure he was one. A were-raven or a raven-shifter, or whatever they were called.

I hadn’t seen it happen in front of me, but what other explanation could there be? One moment, the man himself was there, and the next, a surprised bird gawked at me in his place.

Even his name, Raven, was an unsubtle clue.

Did he have any control over changing form? Maybe not. If he did, why would he change to raven form in the middle of our date? Before dessert, even?

I needed answers, but Aunt Ruth had already gone to bed. I didn’t want to knock on her door and wake her. I’d have to be patient and ask at the first opportunity tomorrow or the next day.

Raven wasn’t home. Perhaps he was too ashamed to come back right now. Maybe he was stuck in bird form, out cruising the night sky, trying to avoid hawks. Whatever the problem, it was an obstacle to our budding relationship even getting off the ground.

I made a white hot chocolate, carried it upstairs to my room and sat in an armchair, thinking. I’d left everything behind in New Zealand to come over to England: a ruined marriage, a crappy job, a few friends I rarely saw due to overwork, my busy solicitor friend Rachel and my daughter who had already moved away from home to university in another city. Rachel and Rose were the only people in my old life whom I missed, and that gnawed at me.

Loneliness overcame me. A few tears rolled down my cheeks. When would I see Rose again in person? Twenty thousand kilometres was a long way.

I picked up my phone and video called her. It would be morning there. She may not have gone to classes yet.

Rose’s don’t-wake-me-up face filled the screen. ‘Mum. Is there an emergency?’

‘No, Rose. I only wanted to see you and hear your voice.’

‘Okay. Can you do that a little later in the morning next time? I have a late start today.’

‘I assumed you’d already be up and studying.’ I wish. She’d probably had a late night out. That seemed to be the student way of life.

‘Yeah, I was going to get up soon, anyway, I suppose. How are things with you? How’s Great-aunt Ruth?’

‘She’s home now, and she’s getting around with her wheelchair. I need to arrange for a few alterations to be done inside and outside the house. Otherwise, she’s coping well.’ But I broke her damned magic mirror.

‘And what about you, Mum? How are you doing?’

I hesitated. How much should I tell my daughter about everything going on for me? ‘I like living here. Aunt Ruth has a lovely, huge old house that’s a pleasure to be in. There’s even a big library upstairs!’

‘Wow.’

‘And Aunt Ruth has a boarder. His name’s Raven, and he’s a hottie.’

Rose grinned. ‘Send me a picture.’

‘I’ll do that when I can get one.’

‘What about a job? Found one yet?’

I beamed. ‘I have. I’m a guide at a seventeenth century haunted manor house. It is so cool. There are fascinating stories about the people who lived there and wonderful old furniture and there’s even a library there too.’

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