Pies and Potions (6 page)

Chapter Nine

“Sex on a stick? Where do you come up with these things? Never mind. Anyway, I think he’s going to be a little distracting around here.”

“A good distraction. We could use a little spice around here,” she said.

“Just wait until Rory sees Tom working here,” I said.

Tom and Rory had this little rivalry thing going on. I guess it was a guy thing.

“Yeah, men.” Mary Jane rolled her eyes.

I looked over my shoulder to make sure Tom hadn’t slipped up behind me. He had tendency to just appear out of nowhere. “Why do you think he’s here? I mean, do you believe his story about the screwed-up magic?”

“I don’t know, honey.” She shrugged her shoulders. “But yeah, I think I believe him. Maybe he just wanted to see you again.”

“What is he going to do here, anyway?” I asked.

“He said he can cook,” Mary Jane offered.

“Actually, I think he just said he had a recipe from his grandmother. That’s not exactly a culinary degree.”

“Well, he can help us clean. Heck, when the women around town see that there’s a new good-looking man in town, they’ll pack this place.”

“Maybe so, but I won’t be doing any more love spells when Tom is near. I don’t want the women after him like they were with Rory.”

“Why, because you would be jealous?”

“No, because I wouldn’t want anyone to have to deal with that.”

“I’m sure guys would think it was such a sacrifice.”

I laughed. “Yeah, well, I don’t need a bunch of drooling women in here.”

“He sure does look good in that apron.”

“Okay, stop ogling the new guy and let’s get back to work. We have a lot to do before tomorrow. I have a bunch of pies to bake.” I moved back toward the kitchen, but stopped at the register to wipe off the counter.

It was going to be so awkward having another person working with us, not to mention it was Tom Owenton. I still couldn’t believe he was back. I would have to call Rory and tell him about this before he just walked in and saw Tom in his little apron behind the counter. That would be really hard to explain. It wasn’t a conversation I was looking forward to.

Not only was Tom back, but he’d be working in the café beside us every day with his spicy scent and his sculpted lips.

“Are you wondering how you’re going to explain this to Rory?” Mary Jane asked.

“Did you read my mind?” I grabbed a towel.

“No.” She chuckled. “But after this many years, I know that look on your face. Why don’t you tell him that Tom is back here for work?”

“Well, that would be lying.” I swiped the counter.

“Not technically. He is back here and he is working.”

“Tempting, but maybe I should just tell him the truth.” I tossed the towel into the bin.

She shrugged. “If you say so, but I still say it would be easier to leave out the complete truth.”

“I love how you can twist things around to make them seem perfectly okay.”

“It’s my talent. What can I say?” She beamed.

As I moved over toward the telephone, the bell jangled above the door. I turned around and saw Rory headed my way. He had a smile from ear to ear, but he wouldn’t be smiling for long. I hadn’t been expecting to see him until our date tonight. Today was a day for surprise visits apparently. Until Tom had entered my life again, I had been thinking of my date with Rory, and by the smile on Rory’s face, I knew he was thinking of it, too. Now I had a lot more on my mind.

“Hi there,” he said.

Just as he neared, I heard the kitchen door swing open and I knew without turning around that Tom was standing behind me. The silence hanging in the air made me shiver. I was sandwiched between two gorgeous men. How about that for a thought? The stunned look on Rory’s face was worse than I’d imagined it would be. Who would speak first? I guessed it would be better if I did. Where was Mary Jane’s chattiness when I needed it?

“Rory, how are you?” Tom asked.

“Tom.” Rory nodded.

Well, that was a start, I suppose. I needed to get Rory alone and explain why Tom was back. No matter what I said, he’d probably be suspicious of Tom’s visit. The ‘magic business’ lie Mary Jane had suggested was sounding like a better idea by the second.

“I just stopped in to say hello.” Rory glanced over my shoulder. “What is he doing here?” he whispered.

“He’s back in town for a little while. It’s a long story, but I’ll explain later.” I glanced over my shoulder to see if Tom was still in the kitchen.

“Don’t be so suspicious,” Mary Jane said as she walked by. She always pretended not to be listening, but she never could fake it for long.

Rory looked at her, then back to me. “Sorry. I guess I’m just suspicious of him is all. He came here before to shut down your café, so I don’t want him to try anything like that again.”

“I don’t think anything like that will happen this time,” I whispered so Tom wouldn’t hear me.

Rory let out a deep breath and looked out the window.

After a couple seconds, he turned to me again. “Not to mention the way he kissed you when he left. I know he has feelings for you. I can see it in his eyes. I guess the question I have for you is do you have feelings for him? I don’t want to lose you.” He slipped down onto a stool.

Wow, I hadn’t expected that. Sure, Tom had kissed me, but that had been months ago.

I sat on the stool next to him and took his hand in mine. “There’s nothing going on between me and Tom. You have nothing to worry about.”

He sighed and nodded. “Okay, if you say so. You just let me know if he tries anything. Magic or no magic, I’ll knock the guy out.”

Great. That was all I needed. Tom and Rory fighting. Maybe both of them needed a little of the happy potion. No one would want to fight with a spell for happiness. Would they? I guess I was about to find out. According to Grandma Imelda, everyone got the magic, either from Mystic Café or other places around town. I just hoped that Tom didn’t go for one of those magic haircuts. They might be magic, but there was nothing magic about the styles.

“I’ll be sure to let you know if he tried anything.” Maybe more dessert would take his mind off my new employee. “Are you going to stick around for a piece of pie?”

“I’d love to, but I have a few errands,” he said with a smile. Rory stood. “You sure everything is okay here?”

I nodded. “I’m positive.”

“All right.” He hesitated. “I have to go, but I’ll see you later.” He leaned down and kissed my lips. I watched as he walked away. What had I gotten myself into this time? Yeah, I couldn’t take my eyes off him either.

Tom approaching broke my musings.

“Okay then, I’m all done back there. I’ll just go get settled in at the hotel.”

I stood and walked toward him, but not too close. There was a buffer zone as far as Tom was concerned.

“You really didn’t have to do all that today,” I said.

“No, I wanted to. It looks as if you have your hands full around here. What do I owe you for the pie?” he asked.

I waved him off. “Employee discount.” I smiled. “I’ll see you bright and early in the morning.”

“Thanks,” he said softly, then walked out the door. “I’ll see you in the morning.”

Chapter Ten

My date with Rory had been just what I had needed to take my mind off the vibrant-colored potions sitting on Mystic Café’s shelf. Rory had taken me to dinner, then we’d strolled around town window-shopping and enjoying the late summer evening breeze. Of course, we’d stopped by the Dairy Queen for a late night treat of sugar cones with vanilla ice cream. We hadn’t discussed anything with the café, magic spices, or potions. And I definitely hadn’t mentioned Tom’s name.

The next morning Grandma Imelda bounced through the door with more energy and enthusiasm than a sixteen-year-old. I was behind the counter adding my fresh-baked cherry pies to the display case when she hurried up behind me.

“Today is the day for the potion. It is the optimal time for it, and all the other magic spots in town are implementing the spell.” There was an excitement in her voice.

Turning around to face her, I swallowed hard and managed to choke out, “So it’s time?”

She nodded. “It’s time. Now, don’t you worry. Follow the spell in the book and you’ll be fine.”

I held my hand up to my forehead. “I think I may be coming down with something. Maybe I should close the café for the day.”

“You can’t give the wrong spell to the wrong person. Not this time. They all get the same one. So suck it up, buttercup.” She chuckled and touched my chin with her index finger.

Funny. My grandmother found my ineptness humorous. Good thing I could laugh at myself.

“Aren’t you going to help me with it before you leave?” I asked with a pleading look.

We moved into the kitchen. Well, I reluctantly followed her into the kitchen. I had been happy with the spices. I never had liked change.

Imelda marched over to the shelf, pulled the spell book down, then plopped it onto the counter. “I know you can handle it. Besides, Tom is here. He can help you.”

Her face was emotionless. No little winks or grins. Was she serious? Help with magic from Tom? No way.

“Even if I wanted him to help, which I don’t, he’s not allowed to do magic right now.” I pinched off the edge of a blueberry muffin and popped it into my mouth.

“That doesn’t mean he’s doing the magic if he gives you a few pointers.”

“Well, I don’t want him involved in my magic, anyway. I can handle it on my own.”

“You are stubborn like your mother.” She grabbed the rest of the muffin.

I opened the book and flipped pages, but concentrating on the words was impossible.

Grandma Imelda looked over her shoulder. “Mary Jane’s not here yet?”

“Um.” I looked up from the book, distracted and lost in my worrying thoughts. “She’s on her way.”

“How’s she doing, anyway? She’s been working so hard,” Grandma Imelda said.

“Much better since she started dating Sheriff Jasper.”

“I certainly hope she’s happy with him. That girl is one relationship disaster away from her fourth cat. This is getting serious.” Grandma Imelda chuckled.

“If it doesn’t work out I’ll stage a feline intervention.”

Just as the words left my lips, Mary Jane bounced through the door. “Sorry I’m late. What did I miss?”

“We were just discussing cats,” Grandma Imelda said, giving me a wink when Mary Jane wasn’t looking.

I stifled a giggle.

Mary Jane slipped the apron over her head. “I have three, but that’s it. I don’t want to be a crazy cat lady.”

Grandma Imelda chuckled again.

Mary Jane grabbed one of the muffins and pinched off a bite. “Imelda, your granddaughter made the best dish the other day. What’s the special for the day, Elly?” Mary Jane asked with a mouth full of muffin.

“The same as last week only because you’ve nagged me about it relentlessly.”

She grinned. “Nagging works.”

“It’s Mary Jane’s favorite dish now,” I said to Grandma Imelda.

“Well, tell me what it is,” she said.

“I made a healthy version of Chicken n’ Dumplins. Except no one knows it’s a healthier version. Somehow, I think they wouldn’t like it as much. I’m not sure how long it’ll stay on the menu. It’s probably not very good.”

From the very beginning, I had intended to take this new café endeavor seriously. Just because I hadn’t known magic hadn’t meant that I couldn’t make the café as successful as Grandma Imelda. The first thing on my agenda had been for Mystic Café to include healthy Southern dishes on the menu—an oxymoron, but I’d made substitutes for even the most fattening offenders. Sure, I envisioned myself a cross between Paula Deen and Jamie Oliver.

I’d jumped in full force with the café and the magic. It was no time to turn back now. My mama hadn’t raised a quitter.

Mary Jane continued to chew. “Maybe they would like it even if they knew. You should give it a chance. One of the best dishes in the house, with a little magic added, of course.”

I shrugged. “If you say so. Thank you for the compliment in spite of my insecurities.”

She chuckled.

I pulled a spiced walnut apple pie from the oven. “You know, I really think some magic is involved in my new cooking skills.” I took off my oven mitt and used it to point in Grandma Imelda’s direction.

She ignored the gesture.

“Remember that pizza I made for us a couple of years ago?” I asked Mary Jane.

She choked on her water. When she stopped coughing, she said, “Yeah, I remember it tasted like cardboard with a little bit of ketchup on top.”

“Exactly.” I stared for a beat. “Wait. It wasn’t that bad.” She raised an eyebrow. “Okay, you’re right. It wasn’t very good. But just look…” I pointed at the pie. “Now I’m whipping up dishes that would make Paula Deen feel inadequate.”

“Hmm. Do you think your grandmother has something to do with it?”

We looked at her, but she continued to act as if she wasn’t listening to our conversation. Yeah, right.

The front door jingled drawing our attention away from the current topic and my stomach instantly flip-flopped.

“That must be our new employee,” Mary Jane chirped.

“Well, I must go say hello and welcome him,” Grandma Imelda made a beeline for the door.

Mary Jane looked at me with a devilish grin. “I didn’t get a chance to ask you. What’s going on with Rory? Is he freaking out because Tom is working here?”

“Well yeah, he is a little concerned. But I told him there is nothing to worry about because there is nothing between Tom and me. Zero, zilch, nada. Maybe I need to fix Tom up with another woman. I could play matchmaker.” I wiggled my eyebrows.

“Yeah, something tells me Tom wouldn’t appreciate that. I think he’s the kind of guy who likes to be spontaneous.”

“He does seem that way, huh?” I said.

Tom stepped into the kitchen. “Good morning.”

“How are you?” I asked while looking down.

“Ready for work,” he said with a flash of his dazzling smile.

The best job for Tom would be out in the dining room at the register. Not in my kitchen.

“If you could take one of those bags of potatoes off the shelf for me. It would be great for you to help out at the register today.”

“Sounds great,” he said as he moved to the other side of the kitchen.  

As I watched Tom pull a bag of potatoes off the shelf, his muscles flexing with the movement, I mouthed to Mary Jane, “Not a word out of you.”

She smiled, but didn’t say anything. I knew she wanted to though.

“Did I mention how good he looks in that apron?” Grandma whispered as she peered over my shoulder.

“A few times,” I said.