“Where are we going?” she asked, and her voice sounded mechanical, even to her own ears.
“For a walk down Main Street.”
Sadie glanced up at the sky, surprised to see how far the sun had trekked when it felt like she’d woken up only an hour ago.
The harvest-themed shop windows sparked orange and russet and cream. Mayor Elias must be proud. Though the town itself wasn’t strictly magic, it had been founded by the seven magical families, and that meant there was always a trail of glittering enchantment if you looked close enough. The street lights chatted to each other through secretive winks of light, and the benches would move ever so slightly to track the patches of sunlight, so whoever sat there would always be warm.
The townsfolk had grown accustomed to it, never knowing that generations ago, the founding families had spelled the ground and blessed the buildings. Only some of them truly believed in magic, but even for those who didn’t, it believed in them.
She took it all in, the gingersnap wind and the stained-glass window of the church where she’d first caught sight of Jake all those weeks ago. The prisms of light seemed to whisper to her.
“Sade,” he said, now, catching her attention.
She looked up quietly and tried to smile.
“I closed on Rock Creek House,” he said.
“So, we’re officially neighbors.”
“Speaking of, how’s Chief?” he asked, though she didn’t think that was the question he really wanted to know the answer to.
“I’m not quite ready to give him back yet. Soon, I promise.”
“You can keep my damn dog. Please, just, tell me how you’re doing. Tell me what’s going on. This isn’t just Gigi. There’s something else, I can tell.”
She thought about how easy it was to love this new version of him. The lingering love of their youth was still there, would always be there. The sarcastic, challenging, loyal traits were what had drawn her to him in the first place. His booming laugh that came so easy and the crinkle at his eyes when he smiled. But the way he saw through her, his new kindness and patience, the way she knew he’d drop everything to be there for her, that was her undoing. He held the love she’d always longed for but could never have. And still, she couldn’t tell him the truth.
“I have ten days to fix something with Seth,” she said instead.
“And you’re not going to tell me what that is?”
“How’s Bethany?”
“She’s—” He ran a hand through his hair and stopped on the sidewalk. “You know, I never knew I wanted to be a dad. It was always this far-off thing. But when Bethany told me she was pregnant, it kind of woke something up inside me.”
“You’re going to be the best father,” she said, and her smile was genuine this time. She tried not to linger on the images too long because jealousy was sitting just under the surface, clawing to get out.
“I’m excited. But it’s like she’s trying to block me out. She won’t let me put my hand on her stomach. Won’t tell me anything about doctor’s appointments.”
“Maybe she’s just scared.”
“I think you’re scared. And I wish I could help.”
“Jake, whatever happens, I believe in you. Whatever path you take, you’ll make the right choices. And I’ll be cheering you on.” It was as close as she could get to saying, “I love you.”
“And whatever this thing with Seth is, look, I know your family isn’t—” He paused, searching for the right word. “Normal,” he finished, and Sadie actually laughed. “But one of my favorite things about you is that you’ll do whatever it is that needs to get done. You’ll sacrifice anything, make the hard choices even if you don’t want to. So, in ten days, I know you’ll have it fixed.”
When she hugged him goodbye, she held on a little longer than she should, memorizing his scent and the way his arms felt like home.
The house was utterly silent when Sadie arrived.
Her feet carried her to the tea cupboard, and her fingers clumsily moved jars until she found a small vial of what she was looking for. Jerusalem cherry tea.
In small doses it could be used as a sleep aid.
In a medium dose it would knock you out.
In a big enough dose, you would fall asleep and never wake up.
“Never-wake-up berries,” she and Seth had called them when they were children.
The water was boiling before she realized she’d turned the kettle on.
She scooped in a big enough dose.