Page 11 of How Not to Hex a Gentleman (Witches of Edinburgh)

Chapter Eleven

KENNEDY

I spent all day prepping lists for school and going over what's needed for my studies, ignoring everything about magic—and the annoying neighbor upstairs who invaded my dreams repeatedly last night. The girls have been out all day at school as well, but Parker texted the group to meet.

When I step inside The Black Cat it's the busiest I've seen it. After a quick scan of the room, I don't see the girls, so I make my way to the counter.

"Hello, Pet," I greet the cat who opens one eye to look at me and I think give me a knowing smirk? Olivia comes out from the back, placing two plates on the bar, distracting me.

"Hello, Kennedy." She gives me a quick wave before turning toward the couple in front of her. They order two coffees just as the door dings behind me and two more guests come in. This room is quickly filling to capacity and Olivia seems to be alone. I hang my coat near Pet's bed and give the customers another quick scan.

"Can I help?" I ask, leaning over the counter and she glances at me with a grateful nod.

"Could you grab the sandwiches from the oven?"

I nod, walking around the waiting customers and stepping behind the bar. Olivia points in the direction of the kitchen, and I step through the macramé curtains to find two small ovens, both with sandwiches heating up. They ding together, and I grab two plates from the shelf nearby, using the spatula to take them out. I walk back into the main room, handing the plates over, which Olivia accepts with a grateful smile.

"Could you also pour some tea, please?" She points to a dark green teapot on the counter, next to a display stand with teacups hanging off it. "Two cups, fill it to the golden line from the pot, and the rest with the hot water in the dispenser beside it."

She's not even looking at me as she gives me directions while she prepares a cup of coffee, and I do as I'm told before I place the cups on their respective saucers.

"A dash of milk in one." Olivia keeps giving out instructions, as she moves around, taking the next order.

"Where to?" I ask.

"The table by the door," she replies.

I step around the counter, heading for the table, and place the two cups in front of the customers sitting there. As I turn to walk back over to Olivia, something stops me. I do a quick scan of the room, trying to pinpoint what it is. I feel eyes on me and I look over at Petunia, who's watching me steadily with a sort of a knowing look on her face. I take a step toward the counter and I realize what's off. Somehow, the small café is bigger than it was when I first came in here—or it seems bigger somehow, considering it's fitting more people than it should. There are at least twenty people in here now, when it usually only seats seven comfortably. No one else seems to notice anything off, but I swear when I glance at Petunia, she's grinning at me.

I walk back over at Olivia, a question on my lips, but she's already pointing to the kitchen. "Can you please heat two cheese toasties? They're labeled."

I nod without hesitation and walk to the kitchen, glancing over at the array of prepared sandwiches and instructions right next to them. I shake my head a little at the randomness of it all, but I don't hesitate to follow the instructions and prepare the toasties. The smell of cheese and bread fills the space, making my stomach rumble, and I realize that in my haste to get here, I didn't eat.

When I step out with the orders, I hand them over to the customers just as Lily and Parker come in. The table where we sat last time opens up and they beeline for it without a word.

"Did you register for classes and get a job in the span of the last twenty-four hours?" Lily asks when I step up to the table.

"Olivia seemed swamped so I'm helping out."

"Is it me or does the room seem bigger?" Parker whispers and I immediately feel better because I thought I was losing it there for a moment.

The three of us turn to look at Olivia, who catches our eye and winks.

"She's awesome," Parker breathes out, and I have to agree.

"Did you want anything?" I ask.

"A latte."

"Earl grey."

I wink at the girls and head back to the counter with a nod. I relay the orders and Olivia shows me where the Earl Grey is, so I prepare that while she works on the coffee. The bell over the door sounds again and I vaguely wonder if we'll even get a chance to talk with how busy it is as I take the coffee and the tea and walk back around the counter.

A couple moves to the side and I dodge them, managing not to spill the drinks, just as another customer steps around them at the same time. With a whoosh of movement, the guy barely has time to stop. I halt and before I can help it, the tea tumbles over spilling over my hand. I hiss at the pain of hot liquid on my skin but thankfully don't drop the cups. At the same moment, the cups are taken out of my hands, as someone catches my burnt hand and gently wipes it. I glance up to find Bennett's concerned gaze on my hand as he uses the sleeve of his sweater to wipe at the liquid.

"Are you trying to kill or just maim me?" I whisper because suddenly I can't breathe with him standing so close to me, his hand holding mine gently. Not that it's actually his fault this time—mostly just being at the wrong place at the wrong time—but it definitely seems like this is my automatic response to him. Aside from the other automatic response I refuse to acknowledge.

"My goal is for neither," Bennett replies, and when I glance up his eyes are on mine.

"Fine. Are you stalking me?" My question is missing some of its typical bite and I can't make my chest expand enough to take in a full breath—which is quite annoying.

"So it would seem," he replies but doesn't drop my hand and doesn't move away. Actually, I think we both move a little closer, almost like we sway toward each other.

"Kennedy! Are you okay?"

The spell is broken as Lily and Parker descend on me. I jerk my hand back, taking a step away, turning to face the girls.

"I'm fine. It wasn't that hot."

Olivia comes over next with a little ice pack and hands it over. "Just to be safe."

I take it gratefully and realize that the café is much quieter than it was only moments ago. Looking around I find that the majority of patrons have cleared out. I glance at Olivia and she raises her eyebrows at me, looking rather mischievous.

"Well, I'm glad you're okay because now that Bennett is here, we can get started. Bennett, this is my friend, Kennedy Hellebore. The student I mentioned who needed some help."

I blink as Parker motions for us to sit down. "What?"

"Bennett. This is my sort of friend from the university. He's here to talk to us about Scottish witches lore."

I stare at Parker like she's speaking another language. My eyes turn to Bennett and I find he looks just as confused as I feel. "No," I say, turning to Parker. "Absolutely not."

"What, why?" She's looking at me like I'm crazy, and I might be feeling as such—but how do I explain to her the strange array of emotions I feel when Bennett is around?

Not only that, the warning about bad witches flashes in my mind from years of hearing my aunt rage about them, and suddenly I can't turn off the way my brain is coming up with every terrible scenario. He's been around since the beginning and now he's the magic expert? It can't be a coincidence, can it? Is this why I'm feeling so unsettled around him? Can I read emotions or is this my intuition?

My mind flashes to the last book I was reading for research and the information about evil witches sucking the good magic out of other magical beings. What if Bennett is that person? The one who gets close to a witch and then sucks all of her energy out. My emotions rise until I can't seem to catch a breath.

Am I just paranoid? No, I'm not. I'm careful and this is sending all of my alarms off in the worst way possible. My chest hurts and I try to keep myself calm but I'm failing.

Suddenly, the room seems to shrink in size around me, warnings flashing before my eyes as neon signs and I can't breathe. "I have to go," I say, stepping past the girls and toward the door. "I forgot—I have to—" I can't even come up with an excuse as I push past everyone, dropping the ice back on the counter and grabbing my coat from the rack before rushing out the door. I need air, I need to be out of here, I need?—

Lily calls after me, but I don't slow down. I'm feeling one hundred percent unbalanced. The cool early evening breeze hits me in the face, filling my lungs with much-needed air. My feet move automatically, out of the close and into the center of Old Town. I hear movement behind me and then Parker and Lily catch up to me.

"How do you know Bennett?"

"Why are you running away like you've seen a ghost?"

"What's wrong?"

"Are you okay?"

All the questions tumble out of the girls as they link their arms through mine on each side. I stop my escape immediately, calm washing over me at their presence. They step in front of me so they can look me in the eye and I force myself to take a few calming breaths. I really hope it's my overactive imagination, but I can't take that risk. So I tell them what I'm thinking because we're in this together.

"I think Bennett might be evil."

BENNETT

Nicholas has been laughing for a good three minutes. People are starting to stare.

"I should've never told you," I grumble as I take a sip of my coffee. We met up on campus this morning because we both have meetings with the faculty. He's having his monthly check in and I'm having a sit down with my supervisor. I need to figure out which direction to take this paper and Professor Stewart is a good person to bounce ideas off of. Having regular meetings has been helpful, even though I'm still struggling to get a grasp on what exactly I want my thesis to be about.

What was not a good idea was telling Nicholas that Kennedy ran from me like her hair was on fire.

"You really know how to make an impression, don't you?" Nicholas asks, between gasps of laughter.

"Get a hold of yourself, pal." I roll my eyes, giving the two men beside us an apologetic shrug.

"I can’t help it. Mr. Sunshine has finally met his match, and this is the best news I've heard all month.

"This is not funny."

"Actually, it's downright hilarious, mate. You have finally met someone who sets your world off kilter."

"How is that hilarious?" I take another sip of my coffee trying not to think about the anxiety in her eyes last night. There has to be more to it than just me, but I don't know her well enough to ask those questions—even though I really want to be someone she would confide in.

"Well, not for you, but for me. I need to meet her."

"No, absolutely not."

"Why? Are you afraid she'll take one look at me and fall madly in love?"

I wasn't up until this moment, but now maybe I should be. Nicholas does have a way with the ladies and a much more successful rate of conversion.

What am I even thinking? I need to chill. This is fine. Everything is fine.

"I can barely get her to look at me right now. I don't need you to add fuel to that fire by telling embarrassing stories."

"I would only tell her mildly embarrassing ones. She needs to know what she's getting into."

"Nicholas, she doesn't even like me."

And that's the problem right there. It was a battle just to get her to tell me her name. I've only been in her presence three times and I keep thinking of her. I would like nothing more than to take her to dinner and ask her every possible question about her life, her dreams, and her goals. When was the last time I wanted to get to know anyone like that? Of course with my luck, she'll be the one girl who wants nothing to do with me.

"Come on, mate, don't do that sad puppy face. She's probably just overwhelmed you keep popping up where she is and causing trouble. I mean, I'd be concerned too."

"But she ran from me like I'm a serial killer. How do I come back from that?"

"I have no idea. Maybe talk to your friend. Who is that girl anyway?"

That's right. I keep forgetting that I do actually have a connection to Kennedy through Parker. "Remember how last year I was assigned a student mentee? She's one of the ones I had. She's studying magic and occults, and asked if she could pick my brain on some Scotland-specific history."

"You would be the man to ask," Nicholas agrees before taking a sip of his coffee.

"Are they working on a project together?"

"I have no idea. Parker threw a hasty sorry over her shoulder before she and the other girl ran out after Kennedy."

"And what did you do?"

"I didn't run after her, if that's what you're asking. The café owner brought me a coffee and I sat there and drank it before coming back to the flat."

"Just like that."

"Just like that. What was I supposed to do?"

"Good point. Maybe talk to the friend. See where you stand."

Or maybe I should just give up.

The moment I think that, I get an uncomfortable feeling in the pit of my stomach. I feel like I don't have a right answer here. If Kennedy truly wants nothing to do with me, I'll respect her decision, but there has to be a way to know for sure. I can't stop picturing the way she studied me when I brought her the ticket or the way her pulse sped up when I held her hand at the café. The look in her eyes told me she felt it too, that spark of electricity. I can't be making that up, can I? I suppose I could. She does make me feel a bit...unhinged.

I'm still thinking about her when I step inside Professor Stewart's office an hour later.

"Bennett, you're here. Brilliant. Take a seat," Professor Stewart greets me.

I walk over to the chairs in front of the desk. His office always brings me a sense of satisfaction, like he's arrived at a place I'm trying to reach and it's clearly possible. Dark wooden tones and rich leather fill the space. The books on the shelves are old and well taken care of. The stacks of papers on the desk are evidence of his philosophy of doing research by hand. He always says there is something traditional and rewarding in taking notes by writing them out instead of typing them on a computer. I've been following that pattern lately, and I do enjoy how my brain retains information after it's been written out. I hand over one of the books I brought with me, placing it on the desk.

"Thank you for lending me this. There are some fascinating accounts of travel in the Highlands."

Professor Stewart nods, picking up the book and standing from his chair to walk over to put it back on the shelf. "Did you decide which area you're going to focus on?" he asks over his shoulder.

"Yes and no." I've been trying to find a topic for this specific paper for a while. Nothing truly feels right, and if I'm writing a paper on it, I need to be confident I can spend the time I need to on it and stay enthusiastic through the process—a difficult balance in academics, at least for me. My mind tends to wander, but there is a topic that has stuck out a little more this last week and I grab onto that for the idea. "I think I want to do a study of the witches residing in Scotland over the years. There are so many different monuments and memorials that hold history of those times. I think it would be a fascinating study, especially if I can visit some of these places and see if I can hear the accounts as the locals tell them."

Professor Stewart turns toward me from his place near the shelves, pondering the suggestion. It's important for him to approve of the direction I'm going before I get too far into it. The university covers many different topics when it comes to Scottish history, but I haven't seen anyone focus on this particular one in recent years. Professor Stewart takes a moment before nodding thoughtfully.

"Are you sure about this? I'm not too sold on the idea." He pauses for a moment. "Is there anything specific that inspired it?"

Honestly, it was Parker's question about visual representations of magic in Scotland. She asked if there was any history of witches carrying marks, and that sent me down a whole path of research I was going to share with her.

Thoughts of Parker bring to mind another particularly prickly brown-haired beauty, but I push those thoughts aside and focus on the professor. I can't exactly use Parker as an excuse for my paper, but maybe I don't actually need to. Now that I think about it, I've done papers on the royal family and the architecture of Edinburgh already. I need something different.

"Just a few of the things that came up in the books I've been researching," I finally reply.

He nods again and I can't tell if he thinks it's a good idea or a bad one. He stays quiet for a few minutes, mulling it over, before coming back over to the desk and sitting down. "I would encourage you to move away from this subject and see if there is a better concentration for you."

I'm surprised, but I try not to show it. I thought he would be more open to it since he himself has done studies on the lore.

"Do you think the witches concept has become too mainstream?"

He glances at me then, studying me carefully, before he replies. "It might be, but I think the best step for you to take would be to do some preliminary writing. See what you can find and if this is truly the direction you want to take. Do you have a starting point?"

I really thought I'd have to fight him on it, and I feel a little better that he didn't shut me down completely. "I was thinking of starting with the most obvious magical artifact known around these parts," I say. "The Stone of Destiny. It seems like there's enough lore surrounding it that it might give me a good starting point?" Plus, Nicholas just wrote an article about it and he would be an excellent source of information.

There's that nod again and I'm just going to accept it for what it is. He's not enthusiastic about it, but then again, when does Professor Stewart ever show any ounce of emotion? I'll have to impress him with my actual writing, and maybe, if I find something interesting I can pass it on to Parker. Or Kennedy. If she ever talks to me again. Either way, I feel much better having this conversation with Professor Stewart. Now, I need to get going on this research and just the prospect of it excites me.