Marion looked up at McAllister from where she sat on the couch, eyes brimming with unshed tears. She'd been expecting Aidan, not his pixie friend bearing bad news. “So he’s gone?”
“Aye.” McAllister nodded, adjusting his tie. He's switched out the Elvis jumpsuit for something more upscale, but his pink hair flopping on his head like wilted cotton candy meant he couldn't quite pull off the look.
“I see.” She looked down at her skirt, regretting the effort she'd made to look pretty. Her ex had wanted her too much, Aidan didn't want her enough, but she'd been stupid enough to believe it could happen.
The pixie flexed his wings, a nervous twitch."He did not want to go, you understand. He had no choice.”
“Uh-huh.” Marion grabbed a tissue and dabbed her eyes. “Will I ever see him again?”
“I can’t say. It’s hard to make promises when the Queen is involved.”
“Thank you for letting me know.” Anger surged through her when she thought of how Aidan had disappeared in the night without even a simple goodbye.
“He would’ve come himself, but he did not have time. When the Lady calls, you go. That’s just how it is with her.”
Marion gave a bitter laugh. Oh to be a Queen where no one dared displease you, let alone break your heart. The fact was, the elf had a cell phone. He could have called. It would have taken less than a minute, but he couldn’t be bothered. That hurt more than anything. Even the elf-giant, Dougal, had taken a moment to say goodbye before returning to Fairy and he wasn’t supposedly in love with her. He’d also sent her a picture of Eric with his new Eros Fey ‘wife’. Marion might’ve felt a twinge of guilt at Eric’s circumstances, but his wide smile showed obvious enjoyment of his circumstances, despite the chain around his neck.
McAllister cleared his throat, breaking her reverie.“If I may give you some advice?”
Marion shrugged her shoulders and sniffed back tears.
“If it’s really meant to be, love will find a way. That’s how it’s been for me three times now.” Compassion shone in the pixie’s eyes.
“I hope you’re right.” She took another tissue and blew her nose. Much to her irritation, she was succumbing to an ugly cry. “It’s not like I didn’t know this was a possibility.” She just hadn’t thought it would hurt so much. Tears washed down her cheeks and her lips quivered uncontrollably.
McAllister patted her shoulder, his wings fluttering in distress. “Hold it together, lass. Hope is not lost yet.”
“You should go,” she said not wanting him to witness her breakdown. “Thank you for coming.”
He nodded and raised a hand to stop her when she moved to stand. “I’ll show myself out.”
When he was gone, Marion pulled a pillow over her face to muffle her sobs. How was it her love life was such a constant disaster? The only answer Marion could think of was that she was bad at love. Maybe that was why her love potions didn’t work, it wasn’t for lack of love, just simply that she was hopeless.