Romance Rules for Werewolves (Charming Cove, #3)(65)

I grinned. “Tomorrow will be even better.”

“Don’t be focusing on the curse, now,” he said. “We need to finish that house.”

“I know, I know.” And he was right.

As I went up to bed, I typed out a text to Aria. Now that I had the seeds and some dirt from the stone circle, I had almost everything I needed to break the curse. I just needed a bit of her help. We sorted out a plan, and I was asleep almost before my head hit the pillow.





The next morning, I was out of the house before dawn. I dropped the dirt and seeds by Aria’s house, an adorable little cottage right on the coast within walking distance of town. Her familiar, Boris the badger, lay asleep in the bushes, a half-finished donut by his paw.

Someone had a big night. Poa sniffed disdainfully.

“As if you haven’t done the same.”

I always finish my donuts.

I laughed, then knocked. Aria opened the door, a cup of coffee in her hand and a man’s large T-shirt acting as her dressing gown. Her hair was pulled up in a messy knot, and she had a happy glow on her face. Behind her, a shirtless man was flipping pancakes on the stove. He waved at me, and I waved back, then looked at Aria with raised eyebrows. “No wonder you look like you’re in such a good mood.”

“Callan makes the absolute best pumpkin pancakes in the world. Want to come in and have some?”

“Wish I could, but no time.” I nodded down to Boris, whose little feet stuck out from underneath the bush. “I’m sure he’d be interested, though.”

Aria scowled down at him. “Absolutely not. That little heathen stole the entire box of donuts that was meant for this morning.”

Ah, that explains the unfinished donut. I could hear the respect in Poa’s voice.

I shook my head and looked back at Aria. “Pumpkin pancakes sound like a better deal, anyway.”

“You’re right about that.” She grinned. “Coffee to go?”

“No, thanks. I’m headed into town to get bribery coffee and pastries from Margot’s. I want to be the contractors’ favorite client.”

“Uh-oh, did something go wrong?” I explained what had happened, and she nodded. “I agree with Rafe. It’ll be better if you’re there.”

“Here’s hoping.” I turned to go, then watched in shock as Poa sauntered into the cottage and straight up to the man with the spatula. “And what do you think you’re doing?”

She looked back at me. Getting breakfast. Will you tell him I like a lot of milk in my coffee?

“You weren’t invited.”

Aria grinned. “It’s fine. The invitation was for both of you.”

Poa stuck out her tongue at me, and I glared. “She likes her coffee black.”

Poa hissed.

“It’s all right, cat,” Callan said. “I know you take a lot of cream.”

“How can you possibly know that?” I asked.

“She’s a cat.”

“Okay, good point. I’m out of here before this goes further off the rails.”

Aria took the bag of dirt and seeds from me. “I’ll see what I can do about getting these to bloom ASAP. Check back with me tonight.”

“Thank you. Lifesaver.”

We said our goodbyes, and I headed into town. My first stop was the Aurora Coven headquarters, where I tested my ability to open the locked door without a key. It worked, which still shocked me. I texted Emma to let her know, then went up to the workshop to consult one of the curse-breaking books I’d seen before. I already had an idea about how I would do it, but I wanted to confirm something.

I got lucky and found the info on the first try, along with some supplies that would come in handy. I texted Emma to ask permission before taking the vial of fire suppression powder, and once I had it, I was on my way to Margot’s. The whole stop at the coven took less than twenty minutes, and I was out of Margot’s even quicker, loaded down with goodies for the guys.

By the time I made it back to Lavender House, it was right before nine. I parked at the house and carried my treats to the front door. I was nearly there when a truck pulled in behind me.

Charlie, Lee, and Carlos climbed out, wary looks on all their faces.

I gave them my most charming smile and held up the box of pastries and the tray of coffees. “I got your favorites.”

There were some grumbles and smiles, and I took that to be a success.

“I’m not sure I want to go in there with a hot cup of coffee in my hand,” Lee said, and I hated to admit that he had a point.

“Why don’t we leave them out here?” I set everything on one of the chairs we sat in during lunch, then headed into the house.

They followed me, footsteps slow and a bit wary.

Nothing was wrong with the house, as far as I could tell—no stench, no groaning, no popping floorboards—and I looked back at the guys with hope on my face. “Well?”

“It’s certainly better than it was yesterday,” Charlie said. He’d made it about two meters into the foyer. “House? Are you cool that we’re here?”

The house said nothing, of course, but I decided to go the extra mile and say, “I’ll be here all day with the guys. They’re going to make you feel better.”

I felt the house’s pleasure, though I couldn’t describe the actual sensation. I was sure it was okay, though.