Page 17 of Kiss and Spell
“Do you come to this place often?” he asked.
“I practically live here,” she said. “I inherited the family sweet tooth. If I could put sprinkles on bacon, I would.”
There was a trace of laughter in his voice. “My godmother’s the same way. I caught her pouring rainbow sprinkles in her tea.”
“That sounds like an adventure,” Ursula said with a grin.
Xavier wrinkled his nose in disgust. “I wouldn’t use the word adventure to describe that drink.”
“Maybe I can convince Gwen to put it in on the menu,” Ursula offered. “She owns this place, and it’s only going to get more crowded once Smitten by the Shore starts.”
Xavier scratched his beard. “Tell me about Smitten by the Shore.”
Ursula slapped a hand to her forehead. That’s right. He had no clue what was coming this spring. As she went over the ins and outs of the festival, Xavier finished his food and drink, listening with his face scrunched. Once she was done telling him about the upcoming occasion, he crossed his arms.
“So basically the town becomes a huge matchmaking festival,” Xavier said slowly. There was a sharp edge to his voice, as if someone played an elaborate trick on him. Maybe he was looking forward to a quiet stay in the Grove. You didn’t come to the Grove to rest; you came here to let off steam. To revel by the Shore. Ursula pushed on, wanting to explain to Xavier what the return of Smitten meant to Freya Grove.
“Other than Halloween and the Founders’ Day Festival, Smitten was one of the biggest and sparkliest events in town. It was so popular that even the goblins wore sequin capes and danced around.”
“Was Smitten canceled because of a love spell gone wrong?” Xavier leaned forward, seemingly interested in her response. Everyone who came to the Grove assumed that magic was the root of all trouble, but it wasn’t when it came to Smitten.
Ursula waved her hand. “It had nothing to do with charms or spells. The festival organizers spent more money than they were making and went out of business. The town took it hard.”
Xavier nodded slowly but said nothing. She hoped that her answer calmed his concerns.
Ursula took a deep breath to keep down the swell of emotion. Secretly Ursula had been completely crushed when she received the email that her beloved festival wasn’t coming back. She saved every souvenir T-shirt in her closet and kept all the tickets and pictures she collected over the years in her scrapbook. She believed in her heart of hearts that she’d meet her soulmate during Smitten season, just as her grandparents had, and finally start her love story. Once the festival was gone, Ursula felt silly for being so romantic. She put her memories in a box and stored them in Mama’s storage unit. Soon after Smitten’s demise, she and Lincoln met, and she forgot how joyful she had been about the festival until now.
Smitten was back, and she would take full advantage of this moment. Eat, drink, and be absolutely sexy.
“Everyone’s excited it’s back. The full schedule’s already online.” Ursula tapped her phone. “Freya Grove loves to help locals find for their own happily-ever-after. Don’t worry, you won’t notice the event that much. No one’s going to sneak a love potion in your latte.”
Xavier gave her a guarded look. “I should hope not.”
“You might run into a few matchmakers and Cupids, but no one’s going to make you fall in love,” Ursula said gently.
Something uncertain flashed across his face. “Are you looking to be smitten this spring?”
There was a hint of hesitancy in his voice that gave her pause. She once was love’s most passionate defender, but love had let her down when she needed it the most. Ursula needed to find her way back to celebrating love, but for now she was taking a break from the emotion.
“Ask me on another day,” she said. “You don’t want to hear my answer.”
He lifted a brow. “Forgive me, Madame. Your words earlier piqued my curiosity.”
“I said a lot of things,” Ursula joked.
“You’re not looking for something serious. May I ask why?”
All her reasons bubbled up in her head. Fun nights in the local tavern. Torrid love affairs. Freedom to make magic. Those reasons, while perfectly fine, weren’t the true heart of the matter. When she fell in love again, she wanted it to stick for good. She wanted forever.
“I want to get it right next time,” she said finally.
He made a small, empathetic sound. Maybe His Highness had his own troubles with love. A tony-looking couple on the sidewalk holding their drinks glared at them. Gwen, cleaning off a nearby table, caught Ursula’s attention and signaled to the time limit sign by the door.
It was time to head out.
“I think we’re being rousted from our table,” she said.
Xavier glanced at the hovering couple. He gave Ursula a sheepish grin. “I didn’t even notice. Where are my manners?”