With determination and perseverance, however, she’d made a place for herself in Mission Grove, and her shop was usually bustling with activity these days. Of course, there were still a few people in town who refused to go anywhere near “the witch,” and they pointed and whispered when she passed them on the street. They were also the ones who routinely told Cameron he was going to hell for liking men, so there was that.
Stepping through the door of the café, he breathed a quiet sigh as the warm, fragrant air enveloped him, allowing him to relax his hunched posture. To be fair, the current temperature would probably be considered balmy in some parts of the country. In his neck of the woods, however, a windchill of forty-eight degrees in early November was downright frigid.
Spotting Linda Picklesimer at a table near the large windows, he unclenched his hands and lifted one in greeting. With the other, he pointed to the counter, then held up one finger, indicating he’d be with her just as soon as he placed his order. Linda smiled and nodded.
“Hey, Willow,” he greeted when he reached the front of the short line.
“Hello, Cameron Stone,” she responded in her throaty, mystical voice. “What can I get you today?”
Her smile was radiant, and he noticed that her usual braid was absent that morning. Her vivid red hair tumbled over her shoulder in shiny waves, the tresses reflecting the amber light of the nearby lamps so that they looked like dancing flames.
“I’ll have a Hunter’s Moon.” He smirked inwardly. The names of the drinks might be odd, but he felt a hell of a lot more manly ordering a Hunter’s Moon than he did a pumpkin spice latte. “Large.”
“You should eat something,” she said as she began ringing up his coffee order. “You won’t get a chance again until dinner.”
It wasn’t the first time she’d told him something so completely random that he had to stop and just stare at her. On the other hand, she had been right enough times in the past that after the shock faded, he added two slices of banana nut bread to his order.
A few minutes later, she placed a large, ceramic mug that looked like a cauldron down on the counter alongside a black saucer containing his bread. Before Cameron could take either, however, she took a card from a colorful deck beside the register and flipped it over. He choked back a sigh and waited.
“The Tower.” She tutted under her breath. “There is change coming in your future. A new beginning, perhaps.”Her brow furrowed as she looked up at him with overlarge eyes of pale, incandescent gray. “Or, it could signify the end of a relationship.”
“Good change or bad change?” He was proud to say there was only a sliver of incredulity in his tone when he asked.
“Change is just change,” Willow responded, a faraway look in her eyes.
Cameron didn’t know about all that. If his house burned down, that would definitely be a bad change. If he won the lottery, that would be really good.
As if she could sense what he was thinking, she smiled dreamily and shook her head, making her fiery locks bounce around her face. “Things can’t be all good or all bad. Everything will even out in the end.”
Not knowing what the hell to say to that, Cameron just nodded.
A new beginning didn’t sound so bad. Maybe that meant he’d sign a new client, or actually win that hypothetical lottery. Yeah, he could live with that. The end of a relationship could go either way. He wasn’t worried that something would come between him and Asher. Sure, things had been rough, but that was all external stuff. Maybe it meant he’d end a bad relationship, like the hate-on he had for Landon Dwyer and Kyle Anders.
Cameron shook his head and chuckled under his breath. He was putting way too much stock in a damn card.It was kind of fun in a strange way, but it didn’t actually mean anything.
“Thanks, Willow.”
Her considering expression cleared, and her bright, cheery smile returned. “Have a blessed day, Cameron Stone.”
He smiled, wished her the same—only not in those exact words—then retrieved his order before setting off across the café to join Linda by the windows. Yes, Willow Bracken was strange and colorful, and he understood why some people in town actively avoided her. He liked her quirkiness, though, and at any rate, at least their interactions were never boring.
“Hey, Linda.” Settling into the seat across from her, Cameron gave her a winning smile. “Sorry about that.” He took a long sip from his mug and sighed appreciatively. “I hope you haven’t been waiting long.”
“Not at all. I arrived just a few minutes before you did.” Her bright blue eyes danced with amusement. “Willow is in fine form today, isn’t she?”
“She is,” Cameron answered around another grin. “Apparently, there is change coming in my future.”
Her lips twitched as she brought her own cup to her mouth, but she didn’t comment further on the topic. “So, I think we’re pretty much set for the event on Monday evening. The hardbacks arrived this morning, and we’re testing the audio equipment this afternoon.”
When Cameron had first been assigned the task of planning the book signing, he hadn’t even known where to begin. He had zero experience organizing anything more elaborate than a birthday party, and the entire undertaking had felt huge and overwhelming. Since Linda had been the one to initially suggest the event in the first place, he’d reached out to her, and it had ended up being the best decision he’d ever made.
As director of the library, head of the Chamber of Commerce, and a City Councilmember, the woman’s connections had connections. It had taken her just two days to plan everything down to the last detail, including enlisting the help of the Mission Grove Police Department for added safety. Of course, they would have private security there as well, but since several members of the press had been invited, Cameron figured an extra layer of protection couldn’t hurt.
They spent the next half hour discussing scheduling, seating, catering, and even parking since they anticipated a lot of readers from out of town. They’d argued good-naturedly about which book Asher should read from, then digressed into a twenty-minute conversation about their favorite scenes.
It was actually the most fun he’d had in weeks, and when they’d finally said their goodbyes, Cameron left the café feeling accomplished and energized. The residents ofMission Grove were his tribe, and he hadn’t realized how much he’d missed them until he’d been away.
Small-town life wasn’t for everyone, but he loved it. Dallas was great for a night out, and Asher’s ridiculous mansion was a luxury he never imagined he’d have the opportunity to enjoy. Mission Grove was more than just buildings and people, though.
