Chapter 2

“WHAT HAVE YOU two done now?” Megan stalked inside The House of Light, the store she owned with her two sisters, and glared at them.

Lara and Jessica glanced at each other, then faced Megan together, looks of confused innocence on their faces, not that Megan bought that for a minute.

“What are you talking about, Megan?” Lara asked innocently.

“Oh and I suppose you two idiots have no idea why both Jerry and Steve just hit on me.”

“Who’re Jerry and Steve?” Jessica looked at Lara, who shrugged and said, “More importantly, are they cute?” Both women turned back to Megan expectantly.

“Cute?” Megan threw up her hands. “Maybe. If you consider ninety-eight-year-old men cute. You know how I know they’re ninety-eight? Because they told me so. I learned their entire life stories in the five minutes they detained me outside C’s. Steve went on and on about his stamina being great for his almost ten decades on earth and Jerry told me he’d rock my world if I’d only give him a chance. When the two started arguing about who would be a better match for me, I escaped into the store.”

“Wait.” Lara laughed. “Are you talking about those two old geezers who sit at that picnic table outside the grocery store all day long, chatting and playing chess?”

“Now you’re getting it.”

“Why, those old coots,” Jessica said. “I had no idea they had it in them.”

“I’m sure they don’t. So why don’t you two fess up? What have you been up to? Because it wasn’t just Steve and Jerry.”

“It wasn’t?” Jessica grinned. “Well, come on. Who else was hitting on you?”

“Let’s see, Craig Miller – you know, the married owner of C’s – hit on me in the frozen foods section and then his daughter Barb asked me out when I was paying for my groceries.”

“Isn’t Barb engaged?” Lara asked.

“No, that’s his other daughter, Natalie. But that’s not the point! Why has everyone gone mad? Did you two cast another spell?”

Silence.

Megan stared at her sisters’ guilty expressions. “You did, didn’t you? What did you do this time?”

“It was only a little spell!” Lara burst out.

“We hardly gave it any power at all,” Jessica said. “Just a little push, nothing major.”

Megan huffed. “Your nothing major always turns into a disaster. I’d hate to see what you’d accomplish when you’re really trying. Now tell me exactly what you did.”

“We just burned some herbs and asked for help, that’s all,” Lara said.

“What herbs and help from whom?”

“Basil, nutmeg, bay leaves.” Jessica said.

“Lavender, cinnamon,” Lara said.

“Verbena, crocus,” Jessica continued.

“Seriously? What’d you guys do? Use every herb associated with love potions?”

“Every one we had or could find.” Jessica grinned.

“And that was a lot,” Lara said. “Though we might need to replenish some of our stock.”

Megan huffed out a breath. “And the help?”

“Eros and Aphrodite,” Lara admitted.

“What is wrong with you two?” Megan exploded. “You just threw everything at the universe in the hopes of what? That chaos wouldn’t come knocking?”

“Well, actually, we were just hoping for a virile, hot guy,” Jessica said.

“Preferably one young enough to wear you out,” Lara said. “We weren’t exactly going for the nonagenarian set.”

“Nona-what?” Jessica asked. “You just made that word up.”

“I did not. It means someone who’s in their 90s. I think at the very least the universe could have given Megan a sexagenarian.”

Jessica laughed. “Yeah. A sexa-something anyway.”

“You two are too much. You need to figure out how to reverse that spell and now. I don’t have time for a man, even if he is a nonagenarian.”

“I think we can do better than Jerry and Steve,” Jessica said.

“Definitely,” Lara agreed. “Maybe we need more lavender.”

“Or elder. We really should have waited for our next order to come in,” Jessica said.

“Or maybe not gone casting at all,” Megan snapped.

“Oh, that wasn’t an option,” Lara said. “You’re so uptight all the time, Megan. You’re constantly working and driving us crazy, wanting us to do the same.”

“And there it is,” Megan said. “So you didn’t even cast a love spell for my benefit.”

“Of course it was for your benefit,” Jessica said. “We’re not the ones in dire need of sex.”

“Ahem.”

The cleared throat made all three women jump. 

Megan whirled and gaped at the man standing just inside their shop door. 

Tall and lean, with sandy-brown hair and green eyes, he was the epitome of the virile, hot guy Jessica had mentioned only moments before.

“Well, hello there,” Lara said. “Can we help you?”

* * *

Cole grinned. “Perhaps I should be asking that question.” 

Two of the women laughed, but the third glared daggers at him, even as a blush covered her face and traveled south. He wondered how far that blush went. 

Ah, redheads. They were so much fun.

“Was there something you needed?” The angry blusher asked. “Because if not, we’re very busy.”

Cole made a show of glancing around the shop and then back her way. “Yes,” he said dryly. “I can see that.”

He didn’t think it was possible, but her face turned even redder.

“So,” one of the other women spoke brightly. “What brings you into our shop today? Were you looking for a gift, just window shopping or…” She let her words trail away suggestively.

Now Cole was in a quandary. He’d come here for a reason and had even rehearsed what he was going to say on the way over. How to say it without causing offense or suspicion. Now though, every word he’d rehearsed was gone from his head. Which wasn’t necessarily a bad thing since accusing someone of trespassing was no way to make friends.

And he and his cat definitely wanted to make friends with these lovely ladies. In fact, the second he’d stepped into the store, his cougar, usually a lazy cat in the afternoons, had stretched and come to attention. His focus hadn’t wavered from the three women in front of them since.

Closer, his cat rumbled.

With a sigh, Cole obliged and took a step forward, inhaling deeply. Their scents were different than he expected.

Human, but with something a bit more. A tang or a spice and one scent–

Ours. His cat swiped at the air, trying to catch that scent. 

They’re human, Cole snapped while fighting to keep claws and fur from sprouting. Stupid cat.

Ours.

Ugh.

The angry blusher made an exasperated sound and muttered something about defective spells as she swept behind the counter. 

Great. He was off to a fabulous start.

“Don’t mind her,” one of the women said. “She’s always like that.”

“Cranky,” the other woman agreed. “I’m Jessica and this is Lara.”

Cole grinned and introduced himself, then asked if they were sisters. 

“How could you tell?” Lara asked.

Cole laughed. “Just a wild guess.” Involving lots of gorgeous red hair and freckles. 

Not ours.

Of course they’re not. I told you. They’re human.

“Lara, Jessica,” the woman behind the counter snapped. “We have work to do. If you’re not going to help, you might as well just take off. And work on reversing something important.”

Ours.

Jeez, his cat was ridiculous today.

Lara and Jessica both grinned. 

“But Megan, I think it’s working perfectly,” Lara said.

“Yes,” Jessica agreed, “I’m pretty sure we ordered hot and vir–”

“That’s enough!” Megan snapped.

Megan, Cole’s cat rumbled. Closer.

Cole obliged, moving across the room toward the counter where Megan was pretending to work. At least he thought she was pretending.

Ours. His cougar was now pressing against his skin, trying to get as close to Megan as possible, trying to savor her scent, which Cole had to admit was intoxicating, a fine layer of sweet with an undercurrent of spice, unlike anything he’d ever encountered. 

He waited, hoping to get a glimpse of her eyes again, to see if maybe he was wrong and there was an animal lurking somewhere inside, but she just kept her head down, shuffling things in the case, refusing to look at him. 

“So you’re Megan?”

She grunted.

“I’m Cole.” He leaned against the counter and inhaled. 

Human. Definitely human. 

Ours, his cat rumbled again. 

Okay, okay. Fine.

“So,” Cole drawled out the word, trying to remember his plan. What was he supposed to be asking again? Something about trespassing. And naked dancing. He couldn’t believe he’d missed seeing that! 

Megan darted a glance at him, enough for him to see that she was perfectly human. Not a hint of an animal anywhere in her gaze.

Disappointing.

“If you don’t need anything–” she began.

“A date,” Cole blurted. “I-I mean, I was wondering if you’d like to go out sometime. To dinner.”

Her hands stilled on a piece of jewelry, but only for a moment. If he hadn’t been watching her so closely, he would have missed it. 

“I’m busy.”

Cole laughed. “I haven’t suggested a time yet, so–”

“I’m always bus–”

“That sounds great!” Lara startled him as she bounded up and hooked arms with him. 

He’d completely forgotten the other two women were there, his attention had been so focused on Megan. 

“She’d love to go out with you. How about tonight?” As Lara spoke, she turned them toward the door and started to walk him out. 

“Lara!” Megan exclaimed behind them.

“You can pick her up at seven,” Lara said cheerfully. “Does that work?”

 “Um. Yeah, sure.”

“Great!” Lara pulled open the door and practically shoved him out. 

“All right, so I’ll see you tonight, Megan!” Cole called as the door shut in his face.

* * *

“What is wrong with you?” Lara whirled around and glared at Megan.

“Me?” Megan exclaimed. That was just like Lara, acting like someone else was to blame, when the entire fiasco was clearly her fault. “What about you? What do you mean telling him yes?”

“Well, someone had to do something!” Lara exclaimed. “Otherwise, you were going to let all that sexiness just walk out the door. What a waste of our time!”

“And herbs!” Jessica agreed.

Megan threw her arms up in the air. “No one asked you to go love-casting and I certainly didn’t give you permission to use up all our herbs on such a fruitless quest!”

“The herbs belong to all of us,” Jessica said. “Just like this shop and the land out back. You don’t get to make all the decisions just because you’re the oldest.”

“Oh, really?” Megan said dryly. “From what I can tell, you two are the only ones making decisions around here and ones that directly affect me and no one else.”

Jessica and Lara glanced at each other, then back at Megan. 

“Okay, valid point,” Jessica said, “but we did it for your own good.”

Megan glared. “Oh don’t give me that good-for-me crap. I don’t need a man to make me happy.”

“Of course you don’t,” Lara said soothingly. “But wouldn’t sex be nice, at least every once in a while?”

“That’s what batteries are for.”

Jessica blanched and Lara giggled. 

“I really didn’t need to know that,” Jessica muttered.

“Well, at least she’s taking care of some of the stress,” Lara said. “Otherwise, she might have exploded by now and not in a good way.”

Megan rolled her eyes. “Whatever. One of you can go on that date tonight because–”

“Oh, no,” Jessica said. “He didn’t ask us out. He asked you.”

“Because of your stupid spell,” Megan exploded. “What were you thinking? I don’t want a man who’s only interested in me because of some stupid spell you two cast!” She shook her head. “What am I saying? I don’t want a man at all, but definitely not one under those circumstances.”

“Oh, but we were really careful,” Lara said.

“Yeah, we cast the spell specifically for your true mate.”

“And how does that explain Jerry and Steve? Or Craig and Barb?”

They both shrugged.

“Feedback?” Lara suggested.

Megan groaned. “You two are crazy. I’ll go on this date, but only because it would be rude not to. But I’m not fancying myself up and I’m not shaving!”

Lara’s eyes widened and she tossed a panicked glance at Jessica.

“Close the shop,” Jessica ordered. “This is an emergency.”