Total pages in book: 35
Estimated words: 33542 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 168(@200wpm)___ 134(@250wpm)___ 112(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 33542 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 168(@200wpm)___ 134(@250wpm)___ 112(@300wpm)
“Then what’s the problem?” I asked.
Closing his eyes, he appeared to be debating what to say.
“That time we slept together, I thought I was doing the right thing by leaving. I thought she was just interested in a one-time thing. I mean, I wanted more from her, but she wasn’t making it seem like that was something she wanted as well.” He pushed his hand through his hair. “Why are women so complicated?”
“Not sure,” I answered.
“I left when she fell asleep, and I’m positive that’s why she’s so pissed off. Instead of talking to me about it, she puts up this wall and turns into a royal bitch.”
“Did you tell her you were leaving?”
The look in his eyes told me he hadn’t.
“Damn, dude, she thinks you ghosted her. No wonder she’s pissed.”
“I didn’t know what to do. It was different with her, and if she wasn’t feeling the same as me… I don’t know. I can’t explain it.”
Frowning, I asked, “What do you mean, it was different with her?”
He sighed heavily. “Sex with Kristin was different. It felt different. It wasn’t just about a one-time fuck. It felt deeper, and I think a part of me got freaked out by that, so maybe I just put it in my own head that she wasn’t returning the vibe. Ever since then, she’s been cold to me. I don’t blame her.”
“Have you ever thought of talking to her about it? Maybe it was different for her as well.”
With a shake of his head, he pushed off the counter and opened the refrigerator. He grabbed three beers. “She hates me, Lucas. She’s made it abundantly clear she wants nothing to do with me. Why bother telling her now?”
I shrugged. “Because maybe it’s a defense mechanism that she is using to keep you away or to keep her own feelings hidden.”
“I don’t think so.”
I was about to tell him what Hollie thought when Alex walked into the kitchen. “What in the hell are you two doing in here? I’m ready to take Dayton’s money away from him.”
“I’m going to order some pizza,” I said as I motioned for the two of them to head on back to the poker table.
When I pulled my phone out of my pocket, I saw I had a text from Hollie.
Hollie: Good luck tonight!
Me: Thanks, I’ll need it.
After ordering a few pizzas, I headed back to the poker table where I lost the first two hands.
Hollie
When Kristin had shown up with the largest bottle of wine I’d ever seen, I knew it was going to be easy to get her to go along with my little plan.
After eating Chinese take-out, I sat us down at the table where I had a little altar set up.
“What spell are we doing tonight?” she asked, rubbing her hands together.
“A good luck spell for Lucas. He’s playing poker with Shawn, James, and Alex.”
I watched for something on Kristin’s face when I mentioned Shawn’s name, but it was blank.
“James tried to get into my pants a few weeks back at the holiday party at my father’s law firm.”
“No way!” I said with a giggle. “What happened?”
“I brushed him off, but somehow, I ended up agreeing to go to dinner with this guy, Martin. Wait, is that his name? Yeah, Martin. My father likes him, and I thought maybe it would earn me some brownie points.”
I gave Kristin a sad smile. Her whole life, she had been trying to make her father happy. He always seemed to put her down at any chance he got.
“Okay, so what do we need to do?”
“You want to do the spell with me?” I asked.
“Hell, yes! What did Sarah say? A spell is good with one witch, but a coven of witches makes it stronger.”
I giggled. “Okay, we need to write ‘money’ on the green candle, then write it on this piece of paper. Then under it, write ‘luck for poker night.’”
Kristin nodded as she wrote, and I wrote some things myself.
“Now what?” she asked.
“We place the coins on the top of the paper. Four pennies, one quarter, five dimes.”
Kristin and I laid out the coins.
Picking up the lighter, I took the green candle. “Hold onto it with me, and really put your emotion into it. Sarah said it’s really important.”
Nodding, Kristin said, “Got it.”
“Now, we have to say seven times, ‘Like the trees growing free, luck for Lucas shall be.’”
“Really? Can’t we come up with a cuter rhyme than that?”
Shooting her a warning look, I said, “It’s not a rhyme, it’s a spell!”
“Is that really the spell?” she asked with one brow raised.
“No, but it’s close enough.”
“Fine. Let’s do this.”
As I lit the candle, I nodded for her to speak with me. “Like the trees growing free, luck for Lucas shall be.”
We repeated it seven times. I handed the candle to Kristin and folded the paper toward me, turning and folding it until I couldn’t fold it anymore. I took a green ribbon and held it up.