Page 76 of Charmed, I'm Sure

“Hey,” I snap at one of them as they drift past me. “I am not evil.”

“Look away Neil, you don’t want her to take your eyesight for looking too long.” One of the ghosts grabs his arm and pulls away from me.

Rolling my eyes, I’m about to find an exit out of this hellscape when Maisie all but shoves a cinnamon roll in my hand. “For strength and endurance.” She winks at Miles, who is standing next to me with a bewildered look on his face. “Takerealgood care of our dark witch.”

Moon and stars, can the cobblestones open up and swallow me whole? What is happening to everyone?

Miles, on the other hand, looks like he was just given an enormous gold star badge that says ‘Boyfriend of the Year’. He’s beaming, chest puffed out, and his damn dimple on fulldisplay.

Throwing his arm over my shoulders, he leans against me, a mischievous smirk plastered on his face. “Since…” he drags out the word, “I was such a good boy today and I didn’t ruin any spells or touch anything…does that mean I can come home with you?”

I scowl up at him. “No, you overgrown sheep dog. I already have a full house. Somehow even Sir Hops-A-Lot has managed to move in. So now there’s no vacancy. Sorry, not sorry.”

“You say that,” he says as his dimple deepens. He leans even closer. “But all I’m hearing is ‘Yes Miles of course you can.’”

Before I can even form the words on my tongue, Matilda pops into existence next to us with hearts in her eyes. “Let the pup stay! Come on, he helped save the town, surely that deserves a treat.”

I pinch the bridge of my nose. “I seriously hate this town. Is there a clause that says I can go back to being hated?”

Miles leans ever closer, his nose practically touching mine. “So…that’s a yes?”

“Fine,” I growl. “But, you’re on the couch! I swear if you shed, you’ll be cleaning it up!”

His grin could outshine the barrier we just built. “Deal.” He loops his arm around mine and damn near drags me down the path towards my once quiet home.

I’m practically having to jog to keep up with him. If I had known he would have been this eager about it, I might have said no. Who am I kidding? I might not have wanted this whole fated mate thing, but I can’t deny that he is wearing me down.

“So…” Miles says without turning around. “Is your couch a two-seater or…a full sofa? Just trying to decide how much space I’ll have to spread out.”

“It’s actually more of a chair, you know, those high-back ones from the Renaissance era? Extremely uncomfortable, and likely to give you neck pains.”

“That’s alright.” He shrugs his shoulders. “With my wolf healing, I won’t even notice, really.”

For some reason, I have the distinct impression that nothing I say will dull his shine. As if every problem has a solution that comes so easily to him.

“Nothing seems to bother you, does it?”

He looks at me with a wink. “Well, the way I see it, life is all about its adventures. The good ones, that people will brag about the rest of their lives. And the bad ones, that people wish to forget. But at the end of the day, it’s all about the adventure through the good and the bad.”

I stop in my tracks, my arm jerking as he keeps walking. He turns around, confusion marring his face. I’ve never thought of it like that, all too often consumed by the negatives of my life. Being the dark twin, the curse, and even how my parents treated me. I’ve never once stopped to consider any of the good things in my life. Like Nyx, Elora, my business, and my home. Maybe…maybe having him around will be good for my mental health.

“You good, Trouble? Surely I didn’t break your pretty little mind already?” Miles ribs as he tugs on my hand again.

“You wish,” I say as I follow behind him.

Three crows are sitting on the power line dangling above the path as we walk towards my road. I can already tell they are gossiping because one of them tilts their head towards us and they start whispering furiously. For the love of coffee, please let us make it back to the house without anymore meddling creatures.

Right before we pass under them, I hear one say, “Just do it. It’s your turn,” before another one says, “No, I did it last time.” I can’t help but roll my eyes. We live in a world where this is a normal occurrence and honestly, I don’t know that I want to know what life is like without it.

I think we’ve safely made it when I’m assuming the crow who didn’t want to do it finally speaks up.

“Go, Dog Boy! You’ve got this! Go, Dog Boy! Don’t fail us now!”

To make it even more embarrassing, Miles throws a fist up in the air, pumping it a few times. The crows caw loudlyand flutter their wings exaggeratedly.

I groan, dragging my hand down my face. “You’re encouraging them. It’s people like you who make them more of a nuisance than they already are.”

Miles, beaming with pride, says, “What can I say? Gotta show my fans some love.”