He glanced at her. “Subtle.”
She smiled again. “Subtlety has never been my specialty. I think it’s time you make an honest woman out of Carly.”
“Me, too,” Ainsley said, grabbing up her pocketbook. “And I’m not just saying that because I’m married to a preacher.”
I kept looking at Dylan. He kept smiling.
For the first time in a long time, the thought of a wedding didn’t scare the bejeebers out of me.
Ainsley kissed my cheek. “I’ll call you later. If you two decide to elope before then, let me know.”
I rolled my eyes, walked her to the door, and ushered her out. “Get on with you. Scoot, scoot.” As she rushed down the sidewalk, I yelled, “And thank you!”
“You’re welcome!” she yelled back.
I was about to close the door when I spotted someone coming from the opposite direction. I felt my eyes go wide.
Louella led the way as Patricia Davis Jackson strode up the front steps. A breeze ruffled her short blond hair.
“Carly?” Dylan asked as I lingered in the doorway. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” I said to Dylan. I held the door open wide for Patricia and she stepped inside. Louella growled at me as she passed.
Some things never changed.
Yet, some things did. “I’m glad to see you so soon,” I said to Patricia.
She swallowed hard, and I could easily see the emotion churning in her eyes. “You look lovely, Carly Bell. Truly lovely. Ivory is a beautiful color on you.”
“Thank you,” I said softly, taking the peace offering for what it was.
We both turned to look Dylan’s way at the same time. His mouth hung open.
“I, ah—” Patricia started, then stopped. “I mean, could I speak with you, please?” she asked her son. “Perhaps a walk around the block?”
Dylan’s stunned gaze shifted from me to his mama back to me.
Nodding, he headed for the door, motioned with his arms toward the porch. “After you, Mama.”
I closed the door behind them and ran to a window to spy. Delia came up beside me and peeked out as well.
“I have a good feeling about this,” she said.
I did, too.
As I watched Dylan and his mama walk away, I thought about what Delia had said yesterday, about how history couldn’t be rewritten, but it wasn’t too late to change the future . . .
Our futures were bound to change with the choices made today.
I just hoped they were the right ones.
Read on for a sneak peek at the next novel in Heather Blake’s Wishcraft Mystery series,
Gone with the Witch
Coming in May 2016 from Obsidian.
Sunlight burst through the front windows of As You Wish, spotlighting the pink streaks in Ivy Teasdale’s shoulder-length strawberry blond hair and the vehemence in her blue eyes.
“The integrity of our event is at stake, Darcy,” Ivy said to me, the sound of hammering outside punctuating her words like exclamation points. “Along with our sterling reputation.”
She was sitting ramrod straight on the velvet sofa across from me. Her hands were fisted, her black-tipped fingernails pressing deeply into the fleshy skin of her palms. Her perfectly sculpted right eyebrow twitched every few seconds, probably a result of too much stress or a caffeine addiction. Or both. Heavyset, she was in her early forties and as tightly wound as I’d ever witnessed another human to be.
This bright and airy parlor with its soothing aquamarine-and-silver color palette and whimsical design usually set visitors at ease.
Not so with Ivy.
Fairly shimmering with restrained anxious energy, she said, “If she is cheating at the event, she must be caught and stopped.”
The “she” in question was villager Natasha Norcliffe.
The “event” in question was the Pawsitively Enchanting Pet Extravaganza.
“Have you been to the Extravaganza before, Darcy?” Ivy, the Extravaganza’s founder and also the owner of Fairytail Magic pet-grooming salon, wore a black-and-white polka-dot pencil skirt that hit just below her knees along with a turquoise blouse that set off her eyes. Angled to the right, her long legs were crossed tightly at the ankles. Black peep-toed heels showed off glittery silver-painted toenails.
Her stylish flair hinted at a fun-loving personality, but I wasn’t seeing any trace of it right now. All I saw was a white-hot intensity that made me question why she was so high-strung.
“No, I haven’t been yet. I moved to the village shortly after last year’s event.” Right up until Ivy had come knocking, I’d simply planned to attend the Extravaganza to soak in the fantastical hoopla of it all. “But I’ve heard all about it. Good things,” I quickly clarified so she wouldn’t glare at me with that scorching blue gaze of hers.