Page 4 of Too Sexy for My Hooves (Inn or Out #2)

A still-human Alfred eventually coaxed the still-fearful Prince Robin back to the inn.

Farley helped me fix up the stall. After we were done, I ordered him back inside.

Dinner was less fun than it should have been, but Farley had settled down enough at that point to kiss me goodbye before he went home.

When I went out to check on my guests before retiring, the innkeeper’s clothes reappeared.

While I was sweating in the outfit, at least I got to watch a cute, fluffy bunny dig a hole in a hay bale nearest the closed stall door.

It relieved me physically and mentally that the prince’s allure didn’t pull at me.

Maybe my immunity was a case of out of sight, out of mind . Was the curse visually triggered rather than a matter of pheromones?

Farley’s nose wouldn’t mislead him. If he said the prince was oozing pheromones, I believed him. But I’d be lying if I said the prince’s curse didn’t fascinate me. Collecting unusual spells was a hobby of mine. The best ones—like the spell I’d used to punish Ethan—were often curses.

I smiled down at my rabbit guest. “I’m getting ready to call it a night, Lord Alfred. Can I get you anything before I retire? It sounds like Prince Robin is already asleep.”

There was silence as Alfred and I listened to the prince snoring.

Sighing heavily, Alfred pushed some of the loose hay back into the hollow he’d made in the hay bale. “Could I trouble you for a carrot or some lettuce? Prince Robin refused to eat, but I’m starving.”

I hurried away as quickly as my corset and skirts would allow and soon returned with a plate of assorted vegetables.

I also carried a baggie with a duplicate set for Prince Robin, in case he woke up hungry in the middle of the night.

Alfred thanked me for the food and my patience.

His pomposity was nowhere to be found. He must have lost it while chasing after his royal charge.

A need to ease him gnawed at my gut. “I’m sorry you changed back to a rabbit so soon. When the curse is gone, come back as a human for a visit. I’ll make a special room for you and serve you tea by the fireplace. We can have a real chat. You deserve a break.”

“You’re awfully kind for a criminal. Perhaps you will be granted an early release for your good behavior,” Alfred said with a strange snuffle that I credited as rabbit laughter.

I watched with a smile as he used one paw to scratch a twitching ear before using both paws to dust off the excess hay from his furry chest and belly.

Lord Alfred Hutchley was growing on me, and there was nothing I could do about it.

However, I’d lost interest in the prince when he ran after Farley merely growling at him.

He could have stayed and explained things.

No matter how alluring he seemed, I would never be genuinely attracted to someone like him.

“Well, I’ll do what I said for as long as I’m stuck here. Currently, I have about fifty days left on my sentence. Since the inn’s owner finds a way to add to my prison sentence every time she visits, your chances of catching me are good if you return before the end of summer.”

Alfred tittered at my declaration, and I smiled.

“Okay. I’ll let you get some sleep now. Goodnight, Alfred. Summon me if you need anything. Call my name and the inn will let me know.”

Alfred dipped his rabbit head in acknowledgement. “I am truly sorry we ruined your date.”

“Farley and I being together is inevitable. I should've kept my disappointment to myself. You didn’t ruin anything, nor did you do anything wrong. Also, Farley is not as bad as his growl made him sound. Please give him another chance to make a better impression when he shows up tomorrow.”

Alfred waved a tired paw at me. “It was not the bear’s fault. Open derision from other males is one of the many costs of the curse. Even Prince Robin’s gaming friends react poorly to his presence now. He’s not coping well with being ostracized.”

Morals be damned. What male ever waited to indulge himself?

All the other males I knew would have been having the time of their lives with every female they came across.

They would be enjoying the curse. “I would be interested in hearing the whole story. Perhaps I might be able to lessen the costs of the curse for both of you.”

“You are very kind.”

Was I being kind? I doubted my motives were altruistic, but I definitely felt guilty for trying to get him to leave earlier. The guilt at least reassured me that I hadn’t turned into a terrible person. “Goodnight, Alfred.”

“Goodnight, Selene. Thank you for letting us stay. This is the safest I’ve felt in months.”

* * *

After checking the wards around the stable, I headed back to the house.

Ethan and his mother showing up and causing trouble had made me extra cautious about my wards.

Also, I didn’t trust Carol not to send more wicked magicals my way just for her entertainment.

The Baba Yaga had never been an easy friend, not even when I still liked her.

Stuck in the inn, I lectured myself daily about the need to find someone more normal to socialize with—someone who wasn’t the witch protectress.

Or a member of the council. Or even another witch.

Sighing over my life choices, I nearly stepped on the fairy princess in her human form.

She was seated on the top step of the porch, looking as tired as she had when she visited me before.

Now, I was grateful I hadn’t let Farley stay.

I wanted no listeners in the house when I got that bear into my bed.

I wasn’t usually a screamer, but kissing Farley made me groan loudly, and he growled against me the whole time.

Sex between us would not be a quiet affair.

Peace’s unexpected appearance unsettled me.

She was yet another example of my poor judgment coming back to haunt me.

If Ethan showed up to finish the set, I would turn him into a rat.

Then I would call Fat Bastard to come exterminate him.

Farley had given me some cat treats for their weekly visits.

Getting rid of Ethan’s dead body would be worth the whole bag.

How Ethan’s conniving mother managed to keep her bastard child out of the magic pokey was beyond me. Thank the Goddess, his mother was finally and completely incarcerated. Knowing that lifted a heavy weight from my shoulders.

But why had Carol allowed Ethan to go free? I definitely did not understand her reasoning. Both of them had plotted against her. I shook my head to clear my thoughts of Ethan. I might have to get Farley to clean out the inn’s old well so I’d have a place to put unwelcome trespassers.

Surely, even Jezel wouldn’t find any harm in that. She used it for the same purpose back in her days as innkeeper.

“Hello, Princess Peace and Harmony.”

“Hello, Innkeeper Selene. You can expect Lord Alfred and Prince Robin to show up soon. They are the friends I mentioned.”

“I’m afraid you’re too late. Alfred and Robin came earlier today. Everyone is here now except Batman.”

Peace sighed as she gave me a compassionate look. “Is Batman also a troubled prince in need of a respite in your inn? I did not mean to add to your burdens.”

“No, he’s the fictional Knight of Darkness.”

“Like a vampire or demon?” Peace asked, tilting her head to one side as she gazed up at me. “By fictional, do you mean he’s a ghost?”

“Not exactly, but he is a figment of someone’s imagination,” I said with a chuckle.

I doubted the fairy princess was up to speed on human movies, so I reined in my amusement.

Peace lifted a hand to me. “When he arrives at the inn, please do not ignore Knight Batman on my account. Have you updated another room yet? If not, may I sleep in your garden in my smallest fairy form? I am utterly spent from my long journey. The only good news is that the crystal is now safely in its new location. I finally finished the task Mother assigned to me.”

“Good. Have you talked to your mother about your feelings yet?”

Peace ducked her head and nodded. “Yes. She is another reason I am here. I need some wise counsel, and you are the wisest person I know.”

“If I am wise at all, it’s because I’ve made a lot of mistakes and dealt with the consequences from them.” I sighed and gave in to destiny once more. “The room you stayed in before is available. You can sleep in it if you like.”

“Can we speak more about why I’m here in the morning? Running from my destiny is exhausting.”

I held the inn’s door open for her to enter. “At least you’ve succeeded now and again. I’ve had no luck at all in escaping my destiny at all.”

“You seem very sure of that,” Peace said.

I smiled at her. “I am quite sure because if I had succeeded in escaping it, I wouldn’t be here.”

“Is any of your failure my fault?” Peace asked.

“No,” I said with a laugh, feeling the innkeeper’s outfit fade and my mucking stall clothes reappear.

Peace looked at my clothes. “I am unsure which outfit is more unflattering.”

I grunted. “Both are hideous, but the jeans and sneakers are good attire for cleaning stables.”

“Are you saying Prince Robyn cannot shift?”

I shook my head. “He doesn’t seem capable of changing forms. The curse isn’t allowing it.”

“I fear my role in what has befallen him. Mother insisted it was not my fault and that the curse will be good for his personal growth.”

“That means she said no when you asked her to remove it.”

Peace grunted in disgust. “You are wise and clever.”

At that point, I would have said anything to cheer her up.

“I have a great fashion sense too. You should have seen me today before everyone showed up. I dressed up because Farley and I were supposed to have our third date tonight. When your cursed friends showed up early, the inn once again put that hideous pilgrim witch outfit on me. Lord Alfred didn’t believe anyone would find me attractive enough to date.

Then Farley came, took one look at the gorgeous Prince Robin, and went full growly bear on him. We barely avoided a mauling.”

Peace visibly winced. “I am so sorry that I keep disrupting your sex life. I swear it is not my intention to do so. Also, I would never intentionally come between you and your mate.”

“No worries. Farley is not my mate. We’re just friends trying to be friends with benefits. Life keeps getting in our way, but our bad luck won’t last forever. We want each other too much.”

“Farley is the gigantic bear shifter—I remember him.” Peace bit her bottom lip.

“Perhaps it is for the best that you saw his growly nature before you get intimate. Male bears wander off when they’re done with a female.

I hope I am around to offer comfort when your bear has finished indulging his ravenous urges for you. ”

“Do I dare ask how you know what bears are like?”

Peace shrugged. “I am friends with a few bear sows. They have a negative opinion of most male bears, especially the fathers of their children. I hear such abandonment is a bear thing.”

“Farley claims to be different. He claims to want a companion who would stay with him always.”

“Do you believe him?” Peace asked.

I shrugged. “I believe him enough not to be concerned about him leaving me. The truth is that I’m not in this for the long haul either.

I only said “maybe” to Ethan’s proposal to keep his mother from bothering me while I figured out how to end things.

You can shed all guilt about being with Ethan because I meant it when I said you did me a favor. ”

“A favor should be mutually beneficial.” Peace sighed and shook her head. “Tomorrow, I must ask you for a true favor, but we will first find something mutually beneficial in our bargain—if you say yes. I do not mean to presume.”

I stopped at the steps leading upstairs to the bedrooms. “The room is just as you left it. Only the sheets have been changed. Do you need anything before I head off to bed?”

Peace climbed the stairs slowly. It required a lot of effort, which meant she was as tired as she claimed. I felt as determined to ease her mind now as I did when we first met.

“I need many things,” Peace said. “But tonight I only need a bed.”