Page 42 of Wishing for a Werewolf (Ferndale Falls Forever #2)

Autumn

The next afternoon, I take a break from making soap to hit up my besties for a much-needed gab session.

Cake My Day in half an hour? I text. I have news!

Rune news? Skye types back.

Yep. I add a grin emoji.

Skye texts, On my way!

Hannah likes our messages and replies, Meet you there!

Even though the library and Town Hall are way closer than the farm, I’m still the first person to reach the bakery, so I pop into Grounds for Celebration and grab three PSLs to-go. Pepperpot doesn’t have any trouble with people bringing in outside drinks, since it lets her focus on her baking.

When I return to Cake My Day, I snag us one of the cute pastel tables and order three of Pepperpot’s newest treats, apple cider donuts. I set down the plate right as Hannah and Skye enter the bakery. My bangles give a happy chime as I throw my arms around them in a three-way hug. “You guys!”

“It’s good news. I can tell,” Hannah says.

“The best news.”

Skye gives a happy squeal and squeezes me harder.

Then we settle around the table, and I tell them what type of donuts I got.

“These are one of Severin’s internet finds.” Hannah chuckles. It turns out her smirky, I-used-to-rule-realms husband is utterly obsessed with baked goods. “He got Pepperpot to make them last week as a trial, and they were such a hit, she added them to the fall menu.”

I take a bite, and sweet cinnamony goodness coats my tongue, leaving behind the lingering taste of fruit. “Oh. My. God. This is nirvana in donut form.”

“This is good, but you promised guy news, so spill!” Skye nibbles at her donut, her eager eyes never leaving my face.

“Rune and I are in love.”

“Yes, you finally admitted it!” Hannah points at me. “I thought I was going to have to lock you two in a room or something.”

“Ha!” I snort. “I think that’s Skye and Luke you’re talking about.”

“Not us.” My blonde bestie goes beet red. “Luke won’t even speak to me.”

“Have you tried to talk to him?” Hannah takes a sip of her latte.

Skye shakes her head vigorously, her platinum pinup hairdo holding its perfect shape.

“Well, I told him he needs to hire you to help catalog his library.” I put in another plug for Skye when Luke grilled me about my wish magic. He took page after page of scrawled notes, which covered the table all around him in disorganized heaps. “And he didn’t say no.”

Hope breaks across Skye’s face as she leans forward. “What did he say?”

“He grunted,” I admit. When her expression falls, I hurry to add, “But it wasn’t a no grunt! Trust me—getting to know Rune was a crash course in grumpy-guy grunts. I’m an effing expert.”

“He’s never said a single word to me.”

“Rune didn’t talk to me either until the wish swap.”

“And finding out if there could be something between you two would be worth it. In fact, you might say it would be doubly worth it.” Hannah breaks into a knowing grin, holds up two fingers, and wiggles her eyebrows. “Get it? Doubly.”

“Somebody needs to find out for sure that dragons have two dicks,” I say to Skye, bopping her on the arm. “So get in there and take one for the team.”

“Don’t you mean two?” Hannah adds. “Take two for the team.”

Skye turns red again, but she giggles, a hint of her spicy side glinting in her eyes. “We’re not here to talk about my love life or lack thereof. Get back to you and Rune.”

“Well…” I nibble on my donut, drawing out the tension until I can’t hold it in anymore. “We’re not just in love—we’re also fated mates!”

“Freaking yeah!” Hannah whoops, throwing her arms around me as Skye swoops in from the other side.

When they finally let me go, Hannah widens her eyes at me. “So the knot… am I right, or am I right?”

“Oh, god, the knot is next level!” My thighs clench just thinking about it. “We were locked together all night.”

Skye lets out a dreamy sigh. “It’s so romantic.”

“You know what’s really romantic? The mate bond.” I rub at the center of my chest. “I can feel Rune here, all the time. We’re connected heart to heart.”

And it’s the most amazing feeling in all the worlds.

I burst through the door of I Touch My Shelf and lift my canvas totes high, making the bottles inside clink and my bangles chime.

“Hello, Witch Bitches! Sorry I’m late.” Your Bubbly Charm opened four days ago, and everything’s been a whirl as I try to work out how to juggle my responsibilities at the farm with the new shop and spending as much time with Rune as possible.

The gang’s all here, and Babybelle races around the room, shouting, “Me! Me! Me! You want to pet me!”

I laugh as Violeta and the others coo over my familiar, who prances like the little attention hog she is.

Then Naomi puts her hands on her hips. “You’re the one who tore up all the toilet paper.” Babybelle slides to a halt and gives her the full-on innocent-eye act, and my friend melts. “Oh, who can stay mad at you, you little cutie?”

“I know,” the mini-goat baas. “I’m effing adorable!”

“Since when do you say ‘effing’?” I shoot her a startled glance. “It’s not really a bad word, but it’s kind of… uh…” I lose momentum, not wanting to tell her what it stands for.

She stomps a little hoof. “You say it all the time.”

“She’s got you there,” Hannah says, coming over to the sideboard to help me.

“If she said effing, she’s definitely your familiar.” Skye giggles as she joins us.

There’s a scratching at the door, and Kayla gets up to let in Finn.

Hannah startles. “What are you doing here? I thought you didn’t like girl talk.”

He yips at her, his bushy tail swishing, and she laughs. “Someone wanted everyone to remember who the first familiar is.”

Grinning his fox grin, Finn runs around the room, demanding pets.

He wiggles with delight as everyone scratches around his ears or rubs his belly, laughing in a cackle that almost sounds like a hyena.

Finally, he reaches where Babybelle sits.

They come nose to nose, sniffing each other, and I tense, as does Hannah beside me.

Then my familiar says in a bubbly voice, “Do you want to play?”

Finn must read her tone, because he yips and drops his chest to the ground, his butt and tail staying high. Then he springs upward and races for the bookshelves. Babybelle gives a happy bleat and goes dashing after him.

Hannah shares a relieved smile with me, and we return to helping Skye with snack prep. In no time at all, the three of us have cupcakes and cocktails ready for everyone, and Hannah lifts her cup in a toast. “I call this Witch Bitch Spicy Book Club meeting to order.”

“Hear, hear!” I clink my paper cup to hers and take a swig, the spicy sweetness of the pumpkin spice latte cocktail rolling over my tongue.

We’ve been texting up a storm in the group chat, but everyone still asks for details, so I go over all the things I’ve learned about my magic, ending with, “So it was our heart wishes that caused the wish swap, not my magic. It’s a relief to know it’s not as prone to mishaps as I thought, but I still have to be careful when I grant wishes. ”

“In what ways?” Kayla asks. Her slogan T-shirt reads: I know I said hi, but that doesn’t mean I actually want to talk to you.

“I have to worry about wishes taking someone else’s possessions.

Like when Madison wished for money. The wish didn’t conjure a twenty dollar bill from thin air—it took it from Destiny’s wallet.

So I’m trying to find safe things my magic can do.

” Ticking them off on my fingers, I say, “One, I can fix accidents, like a smashed jack-o’-lantern or spilled coffee.

Two, I can bring you something you already own, which means I can find lost things, like missing library books. ”

“Oh, that’s brilliant!” Jasmine holds out a hand. “I wish I had my favorite silk scrunchie.” A tingle of magic zips through me, and an extra-large turquoise scrunchie appears on her palm.

“What are you going to do when people wish for things that violate your rules?” Kayla asks.

“I’ve been practicing that, too.” I grin. “Wish for money.”

She holds out a hand. “I wish I had a hundred dollars.”

The magic spirals through me, and this time I bear down, slowing it, letting myself shape the wish. When I release my power, a bill pops into existence on my friend’s hand—one hundred dollars in Monopoly money.

“Well played.” She holds it up so the other Witch Bitches can see, and everyone laughs.

“What about less tangible things?” Skye asks, her voice a little hesitant. “Like happiness or love?” Ever the romantic, my bestie. Skye’s so amazing she totally deserves to have someone fall head over heels for her, no wishing required.

“I don’t know.” My shoulders ripple in a shrug as I spread my hands. “Rune and I got our heart wishes, but I haven’t tried anything else like that.”

“You don’t need wishes.” Babybelle runs over and leaps onto Skye’s lap. “I’ll make you happy!”

I smile and translate her words, and my bestie sets down her cupcake to give Babybelle a hug. As soon as she lets the mini-goat go, Babybelle lunges for the cupcake.

“I wish I had Skye’s cupcake,” I blurt, and it appears in my hand in a tingle of magic right as my familiar’s teeth snap onto thin air.

“Hey, no fair!”

“What did I tell you about eating human food?” I lift an eyebrow.

She makes innocent eyes. “That it’s delicious, especially if it’s sweets or cheese.”

Hannah, whose witchy power lets her understand Babybelle, slaps a hand over her mouth to try to cover a giggle-snort. “That does sound like you.”

Ignoring my bestie, I point at my familiar. “I never told you that!”

“It’s what you said to the twins!”

“The twins aren’t herbivorous!”

She jumps back down to the floor in a flounce and starts nibbling the toe of one of my favorite red cowboy boots, amber eyes watching me closely, waiting for a reaction.

The little rotten! Instead of giving her the satisfaction of getting a big response from me, I pull my foot free and cross my legs to put the boot closest to her out of reach. She gives a dramatic sigh and flops over onto her side.

Shaking my head, I can’t stop grinning at her antics as I take a big bite of my own cupcake.

“Any more witchy stuff?” Skye asks, pulling a spicy orc romance out of her purse. “Because I thought we could finally talk about the book we’ve been reading!”

A couple of people pull theirs out, but when Kayla says, “I forgot mine!” a bunch of us nod.

I hold out my hand. “I wish I had my spicy book club book.” With a tingle of magic, it pops into existence. The rest of the Witch Bitches make similar wishes, and soon we’re all squealing with delight as we discuss the first spicy scene.

Hannah’s shoulder bumps mine as she leans close to whisper, “Pretty cool power.”

“It is.” Warmth fills my chest. I spent so long thinking my magic was nothing but a mishap waiting to happen. This new understanding of my powers fills me with happiness. Even if all I ever get to do with it safely are little acts, they’re little acts that bring people ease and joy.

And what could be better than that?