The only magic Donovan had ever wielded himself came from one of the many artifacts he bought and sold, and the amulet promised to allow him to siphon the magic from another, keeping it for himself. Of course, he’d never steal another living being’s magic. That would be something his father would do. But a self-restorative body of water could do without its power until the next full moon, when it could heal itself by reversing flow.
Now, with the amulet MIA, he’d have to hope the creek really was as powerful as the website touted. Otherwise, he’d come all this way for nothing.
No, not nothing. He was the new owner of a vast, pristine piece of property. At the very least, he could put the place up for sale while he was here.
“Human alert. Three o’clock.” Marty dropped to all fours and squeaked like a mundane mongoose as two women approached.
“How cute,” the brunette said. “Can I pet your ferret?”
Marty growled low in his throat, and for a moment, Donovan considered telling her yes to get even with the mongoose for farting inside his satchel. His familiar wasn’t fond of being petted by anyone other than him, but in his current mood, Donovan didn’t want to deal with the whining that would follow.
“Better not. He needs to see the vet soon.”
As if to drive the point home, Marty let another stink bomb rip before scurrying into the satchel to hide. One woman covered her nose, while the other curled her lip in disgust and dragged her away.
Donovan laughed as the women crossed the street, and he sipped his latté, gazing at the art shop across the way. “Shifted Treasures. Functional, quirky home aesthetics and gifts.” He rose to his feet, shielding his eyes from the sun. Sculptures and wall art occupied the display windows. Salvage art. If anyone knew where to find junk that had gone missing, it would be the artist inside.
Chapter Three
Alice padded behind Megan into the storefront, and her shoulders slumped when she found her mom standing by the counter with two Styrofoam cups in her hands. “Hey, Mom.”
“Don’t sound so glum, little chick. I brought you ladies some of our famous sweet tea.” She smiled, deepening her laugh lines. Other than that, Alice’s mom hardly had any wrinkles to speak of. With her deep-green eyes and black hair, Alice was a mirror image of her mother…if the mirror subtracted ten years. Seriously, her mom was twenty-five years older than her, but they could pass for sisters.
Being called her “mini-me” used to ruffle Alice’s feathers, but if she could age as gracefully as her mother, she was glad of it now. Don’t look a gift horse—or great genes—in the mouth.
“Thank you, Janice.” Megan elbowed Alice on her way to take the drinks. “That was so nice of you. How are things going at The Crow’s Nest?”
Alice’s parents, Janice and Edward, ran the town’s most popular—and only—café in the square. Of course, all the supes understood the name for what it was. They lived above the restaurant, so it was literally their nest. But for the humans passing through, the nautical theme implied the place was named after the lookout point attached to the highest mast of a ship.
“Slower than it should be, but rumor has it that’s about the change.” Her eyes brimmed with excitement. “I heard one of the Rainecourt brothers is back.”
Alice pressed the straw to her lips and sucked in a giant gulp of her drink. It was overly sweet, but that was how Texans liked their tea. “I hate to be the one to pluck your tailfeathers, but the man who moved into the manor isn’t a Rainecourt.”
Her mom fisted her hands on her hips. “Are you sure? Patricia is the only real estate agent in town, and she said the house was never for sale.”
“I’m sure. I just got back from city hall.”
“Oh.” Her posture deflated as she slipped her purse strap on her shoulder. “I’m going to have words with Patricia. She ruffled my feathers for nothing. And here I thought I was bringing good news.”
“Sorry, Mom. Thanks for the tea, though.” Alice walked her to the door. “Tell Dad not to work too hard.”
She laughed. “He hardly works.”
Alice waved as her mom crossed the street, and then she leaned her head back inside the studio. “I’m going to prop the door open. It’s nice outside.”
“Good idea.” Megan returned to soldering her bird statue, and Alice grabbed the concrete-filled bucket, which looked like a flowerpot with a metallic daisy growing from it, and positioned it in front of the open door.
As she bent over to slide it into place, her new amulet swung forward, catching the sunlight like a prism, scattering it onto the ground in a sparkling green-tinted rainbow. She straightened, and her eyes locked on Donovan Drake. He stood across the street, shielding his eyes from the sun as he looked right at her.
Her breath caught, and she walked backward into the store, tripping over the doormat and nearly falling on her butt. Luckily, she caught herself on a multi-media mermaid statue before she could eat tile, but as she jerked on the plastic faux-seashell top to straighten herself, the statue’s left boob came off in her hand. “Sorry. I’ll fix that.” She couldn’t let the poor fish-girl go around lopsided.
“What’s got you so spooked?” Megan scurried around and took the taillight-turned-teat, setting it on the counter.
Alice swallowed hard before daring to peer out the open door. “Holy mermaid mammaries. He’s coming this way.”
“Who?” Megan sidled next to her, cocking her head. “Well, hello, handsome. Is he who you’re scared of?”
“That’s Donovan Drake.” Alice gripped the amulet, dropping it down the neck of her shirt as she stepped to the side, out of view. “Why is he coming here?”
“To buy some art, of course. He looks like a man who could appreciate what we do.” Megan tapped a finger to her lips. “The more pertinent question is: Why is he carrying a purse?”
Alice dared another glance. “It’s not a purse. It’s a satchel. He has to have somewhere to put his mongoose in public.”
“Most men keep them in their pants.”
Alice grabbed her arm, dragging her away from the door. “I’m talking about his familiar. What are you talking about?”
She grinned. “His dick, of course.”
“You’re impossible.”
“For him, I’d be easy. You didn’t call dibs, did you? Otherwise, I might get really familiar with him.”
“I did see him first.” Alice bit her bottom lip and leaned so she could see out the window. Donovan paused to let a woman pushing a baby stroller pass before continuing his trek in her direction. Her stomach fluttered. He was even more attractive in the daylight.
“Okay, you can have him.” Megan sounded reluctant, until she winked. “I’m holding out for a Rainecourt, anyway. You better hurry up and find one.”
“I’m working on it.” She straightened her spine as Donovan paused in the doorway, wiping his shoes on the welcome mat before adjusting his satchel and stepping through the threshold.
He wore a dark blue blazer with matching slacks and a light blue button-up. Like the suit she’d seen him in before, it appeared custom-made, fitting his broad shoulders and muscular thighs perfectly. Every lock of his wavy, light brown hair lay in just the right place, and the set of his dark eyes gave him a mysterious, brooding appearance. Yum.