Page 52 of Sweets and Sycamores

FOR BEING YOU

“Ihate it already,” Dom muttered from behind the wheel. He and Allie were driving to Pearls Fields, two days after the Silverbarks had come to Sycamore Falls. Allie wanted to pick up her broom and tie any loose ends with them, and Dominic… Dominic wanted whatever she wanted. He wanted her.

“It’s not that bad,” Allie tried to convince him. She almost did, as she was playing with the hair at the base of his neck, distracting him from the road. But the heat grew with every mile south, and he truly, honestly hated it.

“I’m sweating so much that I’ll lose weight.”

“Did you just try to make a joke?” Allie laughed.

He did try, more and more often, just to hear the crystalline sound of her laughter.

“Don’t worry, Dom. I’ll stuff you with pastries.

And hazelnut cream.” He couldn’t resist glancing at her and caught the shimmer of mischief in her big brown eyes. Gods, he was gone for her.

“I’ll hold you to that,” Dom promised.

They drove for another thirty minutes before reaching Pearls Fields. The town was charming in its old magic way, yet Dom could never survive in this abominable heat.

“This it?” He parked the car on the curb of a dirt road leading up to a manor. Allie nodded, climbing out of her seat.

Dominic circled around the car and took her hand, but only after he had wiped his sweaty palm on his jeans.

They walked along the path through the river birches and magnolia trees, but Dom’s eyes were on Allie.

He wanted to make sure she did not have any regrets, that she did not long for this place.

Dominic understood if she did, but he wanted to be there for Allie if any of these feelings surfaced.

Allie’s face remained unsmiling but carefree. When she caught him staring at her, Allie wrinkled up her nose and stuck her tongue out at him. Dom shook his head.

He had nothing to worry about.

As they approached the manor, a Witch came out through the heavy wooden door and stood outside the entrance.

“Freya,” Allie said.

“Hey, Allie.” She looked from her to Dominic, but his scowling made her eyes jump back to Allie instantly. “Let me go get your broom,” she said and went back inside.

“This is anticlimactic,” Dom mumbled. Allie chuckled.

“Did you expect another stand-off? Wasn’t the one two days ago enough?” He shrugged. It hadn’t been enough for him because he didn’t get to turn any of those sneering Witches into raisins.

The Witch came back and handed Allie her broom, who took it with new light in her eyes.

“For whatever it’s worth…” the Witch started, but stopped abruptly when Allie’s eyes moved from the broom back up to her. She offered Freya a tight-lipped smile, and the Witch snuck back inside without another word.

Dominic waited, thinking Allie might want to take a moment to say goodbye to this place. To look it over. But her brown eyes were plastered to her broom as she turned around and walked away from the Silverbarks’ manor. Forever, if he had any say in it.

“Is this sycamore wood?” Dom asked after he took a moment to look at Allie’s dear possession.

Allie grinned and nodded.

“My mom’s broom was also sycamore. I guess Lydia damned tradition when it came to keeping such a powerful Witch in the coven.

I wonder…” Allie held the broom at arm’s length, regarding it with love in her eyes.

“Maybe Mom made it for me as a clue. That I don’t need a silverbark broom because I wasn’t meant to be a Silverbark?

” She scoffed and shook her head. “It’s silly. ”

“It’s not.” Dom stopped by the car’s door and turned to face her. “Sycamores suit you so much better, Allie.”

She beamed at him, and Dominic stared at her beautiful face, framed by those untamed red curls. He leaned down and pressed a kiss on her lips, fighting the urge to linger there forever. Dom drew back and put effort into what he hoped was a charming smirk.

“Let’s go home.”

Allie was slipping the stone rings on her fingers when she heard a knock on the door.

“Come in!”

Dominic entered, his cedarwood and leather smell filling the studio room.

His chestnut hair was up in a messy bun that she would love to untangle, almost as much as she would like to unbutton his dark blue shirt.

He swept his green eyes over her tall boots and short purple skirt, which he had called “his favorite clothing item” Allie owned.

“Did you plan on us staying in?” he said, closing the distance between them in two long strides. His hands went to her hips as Allie clasped her fingers behind his neck.

“We have a booth to run.” Her argument was weakened by Dom’s touch, his minty cologne, the smoldering look in his eyes, the way his hands tightened around her hips.

Allie shook herself and stepped away from the bewitching man, knowing they would be late opening their festival booth if she spent another second in his arms. His frustrated growl followed her around the space as Allie grabbed her jacket and her dragon and went out into the hallway.

They walked along Maple Street, Ekko flying between them until Dom shooed him away, complaining he wanted to look at his beautiful girlfriend and not at Ekko’s chubby ass.

The dragon enveloped the Mage in a thick puff of steam, then sat on Allie's shoulder…

next to Dom. She laughed heartily. Their constant bickering was rapidly becoming one of the highlights of her daily life.

Her daily life, which was now full of joy, and laughter, and love. Of family, and friends, and Dom. Allie thanked whatever gods were listening for this fortune, and for all the pain and struggles of her past. If it weren’t for them, she would not be here now.

The park was busy with vendors opening up their booths, attendees from Sycamore Falls and the neighboring towns milling about, children and pets running around hiding behind the hay bales, and the band setting up their instruments under the red and white striped canopy.

Even with the heavy dusk settling over the dark auburn landscape, the place was coming alive, lit by fairy lights hanging between the poles and the booths.

A line of customers had already formed in front of Dom’s Sweets’ booth when they arrived. The two of them made quick work of opening, with occasional help from Ekko. Everything had been set up that morning, so they started serving customers just a few minutes later.

Allie loved the full circle moment of smiling at her customers with her entire heart throughout the Harvest Festival.

During her first days in Sycamore Falls, she’d forced out polite smiles to counter all the sneers…

Now everybody was smiling back, complimenting their sweets and pastries, asking Allie about Ekko.

The townsfolk had become her neighbors, and some of them, her friends.

“Your cookies and choux are the stars of the show,” Dom told her when the crowd died down. “We’re almost out.”

Allie felt like she could burst with happiness. She wore a smile so wide her cheeks hurt, hardly keeping the urge to squeal and dance and clap under control.

After the next few customers left, they were out of everything.

Her Mage boss was content and decided to close the booth so they could enjoy the night’s festivities.

They stopped by Mia’s booth, and she waved from behind a group of kids who were listening intently to one of the books reading itself.

Allie waved back and blew a kiss to her friend, who moved to catch it midair and smack it on her face.

Ekko flew to Mia, quickly becoming an equally interesting attraction for the kids.

Music notes sounded on the night’s breeze, and Allie craftily changed the course of their walk toward the festival’s dance floor.

Dom was caught up in his story about the time he and Brandon had messed around with the electric installations for the festival and short-circuited all the lights, leaving everyone in the dark.

“What gave you that idea?” Allie laughed.

“We were convinced we could make it brighter.” He shrugged and gave her a boyish grin, one she was seeing more and more often.

Dominic halted by the edge of the dance floor and said, “Sneaky.”

“Who? Me?”

“If you want to coax me into stepping on the dance floor, there is something else we must do first.” Allie threw him a puzzled look. “You have a Hallows Eve tradition to uphold.”

“I can multitask,” she countered.

Dom looked at her with confusion.

“Don’t you need to be…under the moonlight, or something?” He scratched the back of his head, muttering something about needing to learn more about Witches.

How much deeper could she fall in love with this man?

Allie dragged Dominic onto the dance floor and wrapped her arms around his neck.

“I will teach you everything there is to know about a Witch,” Allie said as they swayed to the slow music. “As long as you keep teaching me to bake.”

Dom’s chuckle rumbled in his chest and vibrated through Allie’s body.

“Deal.”

“Look, over there! She’s right there!” Small voices made everyone turn their heads to the group of kids that had finished the book reading and were now bordering the dance floor. They elbowed each other and waved to Allie, who waved back with no little amount of surprise and confusion.

“The fire Witch of Sycamore Falls!” one of them yelled.

Allie liked the sound of that.

She and Dom laughed and resumed their slow dancing. The fairy lights played around his handsome face, illuminating the beginning of an encouraging smile.

“Are you ready?” he asked, and Allie nodded.

She leaned her head over his chest, listening to his steady heartbeat.

She centered herself and leaned into her magic, steadily grasping at the threads of her power.

The fire was there, burning peacefully, beckoning her to bend it to her will.

Allie held on to it while she reached for the moon, to that warm, pure light that always made her feel whole.

It buzzed and poured with renewed strength, that veil that thinned tonight letting it flow without restriction into Allie’s heart. She felt its presence prickling her skin, balancing the magic she had and the magic she used.

But Allie had barely used any magic since she had manifested, so she flooded the moon with her power, strengthening and enriching its pure magic.

Allie knew her mom was with her, watching over her, and this first time carrying on the Wells’ Hallows Eve tradition.

Mom? I have found my place.

“All good?” Dom asked, worry fizzling into his heart. Allie had been silent and barely moving for the last two songs, and there was only so much multitasking a man could witness without interfering.

“Perfect.” Allie straightened, and he immediately missed her warmth against his chest, even if she was still in his arms. But she directed that blinding smile at him, and the warmth he had missed filled him on the inside. She was so fucking beautiful, and perfect, and his.

How did I get so lucky? Does she know how I feel?

Dominic had always believed that actions speak louder than words, yet he found that this time, with Allie, he wanted to tell her. Tell her what was in his heart, as best as he could, and in probably very few words.

“Allie.” Dom cleared his throat. “I’m not a man of many words.”

“Understatement of the century.” He pinched her, and Allie shrieked, inching closer to him. “Please, continue, Mr. Ranford.”

Dom rolled his eyes but focused on getting out the words he desperately wanted her to hear.

“I am…” She looked at him from beneath thick eyelashes, root-colored eyes warm and kind, freckled cheeks stained red by the chill, lips stretched into a wide smile. Dominic was holding his future in his arms, and he would never let her go. “I am so madly in love with you.”

Allie’s mouth parted for a second, then morphed back into a huge, gorgeous smile.

“I am in love with you, too, Dom.”

He leaned down and kissed her. Slowly, like they had all the time in the world. Because they did. Allie kissed him back, and when she wanted to come up for air, he let her. For a second.

Then he kissed her again. On her forehead. Her cheeks. Her nose.

“What’s this for?” She chuckled.

“For being you. For giving me your heart, and…for accepting mine.”