Page 18 of Wolves’ Midlife Reunion (Shifter Nation: Enchanted Over Forty #3)

Tina let herself in the back door of The Crystal Cauldron.

She automatically reached for the light switch and shut off the alarm system, her fingers moving without any real thought required.

Next, she turned on the lights for the front of the store and the point-of-sale computers and went to the main door.

There, she turned around and tried to observe the shop as though she were someone coming in for the first time.

What worked and what didn’t? Were any of the displays too close together?

Did the layout make sense? If someone were looking for a specific item, would it feel natural to find it in a certain spot?

The back door thudded.

“Good morning!” Nia called from the back. She appeared in the doorway between the main store and the stockroom. “I brought doughnuts. Oh. You’re doing your thing again.”

“My thing,” Tina repeated with a smile. “It’s more than just ‘a thing.’ It’s what keeps this place going. It’s why people keep coming back.”

“I’ll have to check the online reviews, but I’m pretty sure no one ever wrote that they wanted to come back here just because the essential oils were in alphabetical order,” Nia teased.

“No, because people don’t really know what it is they want,” Tina explained. “They just want their shopping experience to go smoothly, whatever that might mean. I do my best to make it happen. And actually, I had a woman compliment me on the store layout just last week.”

“Really?” Nia got the window cleaner and a rag out from under the counter and went to the front of the store to polish any fingerprints that’d been left by wayward children.

“Yes. She told me how happy she was that the walkways were wide enough for a stroller to fit through. Apparently, another shop she’d visited was so cramped and narrow that she couldn’t get more than a few feet inside the store.” Tina had been thrilled at the compliment.

“I thought the aisles had to be at least wide enough for a wheelchair to get through.” Nia squinted and then rubbed the glass a little harder.

“They do, but it doesn’t mean every shop owner actually does what they’re supposed to.

I imagine the store won’t be open for long, but you know how it is this time of year.

People are so eager to grab a few souvenirs that they’ll go anywhere without a huge line.

” Tina looked up at the lights. “Do you think we should change the lighting temperature? Maybe something a little warmer.”

Nia laughed. “No one can say you don’t have a passion for what you do.”

“You’re right, and today I’m even more excited,” Tina told her.

“Why?”

“It’s shipment day! Obviously! I know you didn’t walk past those two towering stacks of boxes that arrived last night and forget!” Tina hurried to the back, wanting to see how much she could accomplish before it was time to officially open.

Nia followed her. “Anything new this week?”

“I got some tarot decks from a different publisher that we weren’t carrying before.

I thought it’d be good to have a few more options.

I think we have a couple of new incense sticks, too.

” Tina sliced through the packing tape on a box and opened it, rummaging through the contents to ensure everything on the packing list was accurate before distributing the items throughout the store.

“Oh, these are cute!” Nia opened a box full of wind chimes, all with various themes related to the shop. “Zodiac, celestial, black cats, lotus… These are so cute! It’s too bad we didn’t have these a little earlier. I think we might’ve sold out of them at the height of tourist season.”

“I agree, and I ordered them in plenty of time, but the supplier had some computer issues and got behind. They’ll still make good inventory. I just have to find a good place to put them.” Tina opened the next box, which was smaller but also very heavy. It was full of carved crystal animals.

“Why don’t we hang one of each up in the front windows?” Nia suggested. “That way, people can see them, and we can reuse that old candle display that we didn’t know what to do with.”

“Oh, Nia! That’s a fantastic idea! I think I might have some hooks we can use to hang the display pieces from. Let me see.” She rushed across the stockroom and rummaged around in a drawer.

“You’re in an awfully good mood today,” Nia noted.

“Of course, I am.” Tina found the hooks she was looking for. “It’s shipment day, and that always makes me happy. Would you grab the stepladder?”

They returned to the front of the store. “I know it does, but I think it’s more than that.”

Tina checked the antique clock on the back wall and then flipped over the ‘open’ sign. She didn’t mind if customers came in and saw them working on the display. “What do you think it is, oh wise one?”

Nia unfolded the stepladder and positioned it in the corner near the window. She shot her boss a grin. “A man.”

“I already got a thorough interrogation from my sisters after Dex left the covenstead the other night,” Tina told her as she climbed up the ladder and tested out one of the hooks.

“But you guys are so cute together!” Nia unboxed the windchime with the moon and stars and handed it up to her. “You, Dex, and Sage. You’re like a sweet little family.”

Tina smiled despite herself. She’d started thinking about the three of them like that, too. “It’s too early for such things,” she reminded both herself and Nia.

“Early in the morning or early in the relationship?” Nia quipped.

Tina shot her a look before hanging the windchime.

She climbed back down the ladder, moving it a little further across the floor before she climbed up again.

“It was really nice to have Dex and Sage at the covenstead. I think they fit in pretty well, and I admit it makes me think about the future. But you know by now what my history with him is like. I wanted this to work out for such a long time, and then I’d resigned myself to the fact that my mate was unattainable.

It makes it hard to believe it could be true. ”

The next windchime that went up had seven stones, one in each of the colors of the rainbow, hanging from the center to represent the chakras. “Amanda might like this one,” Tina noted.

“Speaking of Dex, isn’t that him crossing the street?” Nia nodded toward the window.

As Tina stepped back down onto the floor, she spotted Dex charging toward the front of the store, his strides long and firm. His fists were curled at his sides, and his mouth was a short, hard line. “Yeah, but he doesn’t look too pleased.”

“I’ve got this.” Nia held her hand out for the hooks.

“No rush.” She turned to the door just as Dex walked in. “Hey!”

“I need to talk to you.”

She took half a step back. His aura flamed out from him in dark red with flashes of black. He was angry, but there was also some sort of emotional struggle going on inside him. “We can go back here.”

Tina brought him through a side door and into a private room separated from the stock area.

This space was small, but it made her think of an old library with its numerous shelves and cabinets that lined the walls.

She gestured toward a chair at the long table in the center of the room. “Have a seat.”

“I don’t know if I can.” He glanced around. “What is this room?”

“It’s where I keep all the serious stuff,” she explained. Even if he wasn’t going to sit, she did. “Grimoires, records, supplies that are rare or potent. Anything out front would be harmless for someone who’s just a beginner. Not so much in here.”

“Mm,” he grunted as he gripped the back of the chair so hard, his knuckles turned white. “Magic is just what I came here to talk to you about.”

“Dex, just tell me what’s wrong,” she encouraged gently.

He pulled in a deep breath. “Sage got angry last night over a broken toy. She used her magic to throw it against the wall.”

Tina clucked her tongue. “I see.”

“I don’t think you do,” he countered. “She’s only been getting lessons for about a week, and already, she’s used her magic in anger. I can’t have this, Tina.”

“I get it,” she replied, folding her hands on the table. “I’ll have a talk with her.”

“You don’t get it. Sage won’t be coming to you for lessons anymore,” he announced. His jaw was set, and his eyes sparked with anger.

Tina felt her own anger rising inside her. “I don’t think that’s a very good idea.”

“I didn’t ask you what you think. I’m telling you that this is all wrong. If Sage is already this destructive, then she’s better off not learning anything else. If it’s a junky, plastic toy today, what’s it going to be tomorrow?”

“Possibly nothing. Like I told you before, this is all about emotional control and awareness. It’s also knowledge and experimentation.

Sage will understand that what she did last night was wrong.

Maybe she needed to make that mistake in order to learn from it, and then she’ll have that much more experience to build on as she continues her journey.

” She searched for all the right words, wanting to really make him understand how important it was that Sage kept learning.

“She can make a mistake when she’s learning her multiplication tables or when she starts learning how to cook. And what are the repercussions? A few missed points? Some burned brownies? Big deal. But we’re talking about something far more serious, Tina.”

“I’m well aware of that.” The anger was vibrating in her bones now. “That’s precisely why she needs to get a hold of it now.”

“What makes you think you’re qualified to be the one who teaches her?” he snapped.

“May I remind you that you felt I was perfectly qualified when this whole thing started?” she whipped back. “You asked me to.”

“I guess I was wrong.” He slapped his palm on the back of the chair. “I guess I was wrong about a lot of things.”

“So, Sage isn’t the only one who makes mistakes sometimes,” Tina pointed out.

“I’m her father, all right? I’m the one who calls the shots. Not you or anyone else.”

“Then I guess you can go call the shots somewhere else.” She rose from her seat, but she kept her hands on the table for a moment so he couldn’t see how unsteady they were.

Her gaze, at least, was focused like a laser on him.

“I’m not going to listen to any more of this.

You know where to find me when you’re ready to listen and look for a solution. Bye, Dex.”

He turned and left without even saying goodbye.

Tina stood there for a long moment, feeling her wolf thrash inside her. It knew, just as she did, that this wasn’t simply Dex going home for the night or having to get to work. This parting went far deeper than that. She didn’t know if she’d ever see him again.

Slowly, she sank back down into the chair and covered her face with both of her hands. She pressed her cool fingertips against her heated skin. This wasn’t how any of this was supposed to happen.

“Hey,” Nia said quietly from the doorway. “Are you okay?”

Tina slid her hands off her face.

“I saw him blow out of here like a hurricane,” Nia explained. “Figured I’d check on you.”

It took her a moment to answer. She pulled in a breath and let it out through her nose. “Yeah. I’m fine. Or at least, I’m good enough.”

“Do you need anything? Hot tea? Some of those doughnuts I brought?” Nia offered.

Stuffing her face with sweet, fried dough sounded like a great solution to her problem, but it was only a temporary one that would make her feel like shit later. “No, thank you. All I really need to do is get back to work and on with my life.”

“You sure? I can handle the rest of the windchime display.”

Tina stood and walked out of the room, closing the door behind her. “I know you can, but I’m better off if I’m busy right now. If Dex wants to be mad, then he can just go be mad. He can even believe I’m the problem if he wants to. I’ve got things to do, no matter how he feels.”

“I’m going to go turn on some music,” Nia said decisively, heading into the back. A few moments later, some loud rock came over the speakers.

“This isn’t the meditation music I usually play in here,” Tina said when she returned.

“I know,” Nia replied brightly. “I just thought we could use it. You know, get a little energy in here while we work.”

Her wolf whined and paced inside her. Tina’s heart was split, and her mind was distracted. This was just what she needed. Music and work wouldn’t fix her problems, but at least they’d make her feel better for a short time.

“All right, then. Let’s get to it.”