Page 95 of WitchBorn

I stared at them both for a beat, trying to guess intentions they likely didn’t have. “I’m fine.”

As the marketing and project manager, I took over the logistics of the growing appeal of a bakery located in the middle of a fae realm. Seb and Liam crafted the world with layers of wards to protect the locals, while others traveled through. I’d never met a ruler willing to let others traverse their realm, but the magic led travelers to the shops and out, no one stayed, or at least not beyond those accepted by the pack.

“Can I bring you a sandwich?” Seb asked. “Or a muffin? I have some carrot cake ones. They are vegetarian.” He wrung his hands. “Not vegan, but that’s okay, right?”

I swallowed my sigh and nodded. “Sure. Bring me a muffin.” Xiao wiggled in my coat, and I added. “Maybe some macarons, too?”

“I’ll be right in with that stuff,” Liam said, tugging Sebastian away. Neither would be fooled by Xiao hiding in my jacket, but they didn’t bring him up either. I hoped to protect the little king from any future trauma. Was it moot? Probably. But I was already too close to him to see his future. No one asked either, for which I was grateful. Mostly they fussed over me like motherhens until I snapped at them, and then they left me alone to grieve in peace.

I entered my office, set down my laptop bag and opened it while I pulled out my planner and sipped my tea. Events from the beginning of October through Christmas kept the bakery and tea shop hopping. Liam had mentioned wanting to expand into catering next year, and I was trying to find a way that could work without tripling their staff and space. One of the pack began wedding planning, building a beautiful location that could be rented for the event with the option of enjoying the changing weather, and an indoor pavilion. Catering weddings seemed like the best place to start, and I knew Sebastian’s cake recipes would draw more business.

Xiao crawled out of my coat, but I didn’t take it off. I was always cold these days. He made his way to a set of crafted wood paper organizers and curled up on the top one. “You could talk to them,” I said. He curled himself nose to tail and closed his eyes, not acknowledging my comment. Lately he’d been avoiding the witchchild when possible. I didn’t know why they were fighting, or even if they were, but I wouldn’t throw him to the curb either. Most days I appreciated the company, even if it felt like I always had a babysitter.

Liam came in and set a sandwich and a muffin on the corner of the desk, and two cookies beside Xiao on the paper tray. “Ari’s home today. The sandwich is a vegan avocado, tomato, and grilled mushroom on sourdough.”

“Alright,” I said.

“My offer still stands. If the holiday planning is too much…”

“It’s fine.” Busy was better than endless hours of thinking. “You can put the order forms out. I’ve got everything entered into the system for a seamless process. We’ll need to look at either expanding the bakery early next year, or buying a biggerbuilding if you continue to grow like this.” If he hadn’t turned the other half into a tea shop, he would have had enough space.

“None of us expected the shop to be this popular. Either of them,” Liam said.

“Sebastian’s omega aura combined with his power as Summer king draws them,” I said. Twice I’d left the area, only to be drawn back by the subtle warmth of his realm. Not that I’d ever gotten a distance that the sensation faded. “The excellent food helps,” I added, as not to disparage Liam’s magic with sweet bread, sourdough, and the dozens of pastries the shop now offered.

Liam snorted. “Thanks.” Unlike fae of the past, no ripples of magic came from his words. Not even a flicker of obligation. How did they do that? “Eat something, please.” He stared at me a few moments longer before leaving the office and letting me work. I had calls to make, meetings to plan, advertisements to design.

Toby popped his head in to get approval for some art he was taking to the printer, but the day flew by. Xiao vanished after lunch, likely portaling himself back home. Sebastian and Liam looked in on me, or threw occasional questions my way. I added a dozen more things to my ever-growing list, but kept working, scheduling interviews from nearby towns in papers and online media for Sebastian and Liam, food reviews, and even a handful of small party events that would draw more business and need an increase of staff.

I nibbled at the muffin, eating only half of it, and picked apart the sandwich. Not really hungry, I got up to stretch. The front of the store sounded busy. Voices loud and grating, I was ready to go home. The idea of socializing, pretending to be a normal functioning person made me nauseous.

Liam stopped in for the fifth time, frowning over the food still on my plate.

“I’m fine,” I said, again.

“Maybe you should go home and rest?”

Because I looked like I hadn’t slept? I knew how big the bags under my eyes were and was too tired to use glamour. The lack of sleep made it hard to recharge, and sometimes when I closed my eyes, I dreamed of him. When I didn’t, I lay there heartbroken, unable to sleep at all.

Toby refused to give me more sleeping potion. Only after pushing myself to the brink, would I finally drop into a restless sleep for a few hours, then wake and start all over. I’d shifted overnight when I couldn’t sleep and ran a dozen miles through the forest to try to calm my racing mind. Liam understood how maddening it was to be separated from a fated mate.

“I don’t know if I’ll sleep if I go home,” I told him honestly. I’d like to dream of him, as that often gave me a few days of reprieve, heart semi-calming and mind easing. I struggled to focus on work most days, but did my best.

Liam sat on the corner of the desk; his gaze concerned.

“Heartbreak won’t kill me.” I repeated the mantra to myself as if it could become a spell by willpower alone.

“I’m going to have Dylan drive you home.” He waved at the computer. “It’s not like you can’t work from home if you need to.”

I stared at the laptop for a minute before shutting it down and packing it up, silently agreeing. The noise from the front of the shop and the mixers in the back had been grating all day. Not their fault as they were the normal sounds of a functioning business. It was me who was broken.

“Xiao should really talk to Ari,” I said as I stuffed my laptop in my bag and swung it over my shoulder. “He seems pretty lonely.”

“It’s fine,” Liam said. “Ari is learning a lot, and Xiao is giving them some space. I’m grateful you’re taking care of him.”

“Small favors to not be a magic world crafted into a pseudo-human being.”

Liam sighed and followed me out of the office. “We all work with what we have.”