Page 62 of Magical Melee

Great.

Stay chill.

I glanced through the beads to see a shadow against the window out front. I narrowed my focus and saw Keegan standing in the dark. His tense posture and steely gaze made my chest tighten. He wasn’t looking inside. He was staring down the sidewalk.

“Keegan’s outside.”

Nova smiled. “I’m not surprised.”

“What’s his deal? Why does he keep hovering around me like some brooding guardian angel?”

Nova’s expression didn’t change, but there was a hint of something—amusement, perhaps? “Keegan watches because he cares.” Her smile only grew. “More than he lets on.”

“That’s reassuring,” I said dryly. “He’s as transparent as mud.”

Nova chuckled softly. “Give him time. He’s guarded, but his heart is in the right place.”

I wasn’t sure whether to laugh or groan. “Great. So, I’m supposed to navigate goblins, cryptic townspeople, and now a man who can’t decide if he wants to help me or push me away.”

Nova’s eyes sparkled from the candlelight. “Stonewick has always thrived on its mysteries, Maeve. The more you explore, the more you’ll understand. But it’s not my job to tell you.”

I exhaled, feeling the weight of her words. “I don’t know if I’m ready for this. For any of it.”

Nova leaned forward, her voice gentle but firm. “You’re stronger than you think. Trust your instincts and trust our little town. Stonewick will always guide those who belong.”

I nodded slowly, the knot in my chest loosening just a bit. Despite the overwhelming strangeness of it all, there was a part of me that felt… right at home.

Could it be that I was finally stepping into a story that had been waiting for me all along?

“Keegan made it sound like not many people could handle staying at the cottage for long. Is that because of Twobble?”

Nova chuckled and nodded. “Partly, but that cottage is…special. If he doesn’t see to your exit, others often will if you don’t belong.”

“Good to know.” I whistled and shook my head.

Stay chill.

“Don’t worry. It would have happened already.” She grinned a toothy smile.

As I stood to leave, Nova reached out, placing a hand on mine. “Remember, Maeve, that the answers you seek are already within you and surround you. Stonewick is here to help you find them.”

I started toward the door and stopped to see Frank at my heels. “Nova, you promise me that the goblin is real. That it’s not some elaborate prank with a toddler in a costume?”

“No, we’re not that clever.”

I chuckled and stepped back into the cold night air with my four-legged companion. Keegan was still there with an unfamiliar expression as he watched me from the shadows. For once, I didn’t press him for answers. Instead, I nodded, a silent acknowledgment of the road ahead, and I went home where I belonged—to my little stone cottage just outside of town with a goblin as a gatekeeper.

And I realized the goblin was still much better than my ex-husband.

Chapter Sixteen

The cottage was quiet as I locked up for the night. The only sounds came from the faint rustle of wind through the bare trees outside and the soft patter of Frank’s paws on the wooden floor. The fire in the hearth had burned down to glowing embers, casting flickering shadows across the walls.

I glanced out the window one last time, half-expecting to see Keegan or Twobble staring at me before I closed the heavy drapes.

The one thing I forgot to ask just about everyone was where were the matches. It was great that people could wink at a fireplace or snap their fingers to lock a door, but I needed a good old-fashioned matchbox.

Or a lighter.