100% That Witch - Celia Kyle Page 0,13

in his life. He’s so secretive.” She set the boxes of voodoo powder in its home on the shelf, right next to one of the items on Nero’s list.

“I know it,” Nero laughed. “At least about some things. When it comes to others though, he’s surprisingly open. I’m not sure he even owns a shirt.”

“Right?” Tiffany rocked with laughter, and he fell in with her. As much as she felt like she was supposed to be pumping him for information, it was hard not to just fall into conversation. He was likable in a way that was rare with people she just met.

“You’re funny,” she said. “Are you sure you’re a vampire?”

“What?” He let a dramatic gasp and clutched at imaginary pearls. “I’m scandalized!” This earned another peal of laughter from Tiffany. “Seriously, what makes you say that?”

“I don’t know, actually.” She shuffled over to another shelf, feeling just a bit caught out. “Most vampires I’ve met are kinda…um…”

“Snooty?”

“Yes! And brooding. Don’t forget brooding.”

It was easy to laugh with him, and he had her guard down so much, any thoughts of Ryan were whistling down the block.

Nero pushed away from his perch at the counter and wandered closer. “How’s that list coming?”

“Oh! Um.” She turned her attention back to his list. It was mostly botanicals. “What exactly do you teach again?”

“Horticultural studies. I’m a plant guy.”

That made sense. The jumbled mass of brown hair high on the back of his head bordered on man-bun without actually tipping over into full hipsterdom.

Willonia seeds, Terry root, Hyssopia shavings…

“So you work here, huh?” His question caught her in place.

“I’m sorry?”

“It’s just that I didn’t know you had a job. Didn’t come up at dinner. From what I could gather, you were pretty much a full-time student.”

“I was. I am.” For some reason, Tiffany found herself fumbling for words. “I’m actually really new to this.”

“Wouldn’t have thought it. You’re a natural.”

Natural? She’d barely managed to find two of the items on his list. If he hadn’t been “linked” to Nathan, Tiffany would have thought he was flirting with her.

“Thanks.” Hiding a genuine smile, she dug into a bin of Jhenai’s petals. “How much of this do you need?”

“About five ounces or so. Why so new to the job?” He pressed a big hand on a nearby table and watched as she filled a bag of the fragrant dried flowers.

If anyone else had asked the question, Tiffany might have clammed up. It was embarrassing to discuss with someone outside her little circle. At the same time, she felt like it was easy to open up to him.

“Honestly?”

“Only way to be,” he said with a nod.

“I found out I’m failing Dr. Judd’s Potions class.” She cringed at admitting such a thing to another professor at OCU, but Nero just nodded and smiled lightly.

“Guessing you’re not the only one. Word is that guy runs a pretty tough room.”

“Right?” Relief flooded her. As grandfatherly as Dr. Judd seemed, she had known it couldn’t be just her. “I thought I was at least treading water, but no such luck.”

“Still,” Nero furrowed his brow, “if your class work is slipping, I’d say studying would be the better way to spend your evenings, rather than a job.”

“Oh, my gosh, I’d love to have that kind of freedom. But my dad…” She caught herself. Was she really going to fess up to her father tying up the purse strings?

“Lemme guess. Until you get your grades up, the cash flow is off?”

“Yeah,” she said meekly.

The lumberjack-looking vampire just shook his head with a wry smile. “I never get that kind of thing. Making you pile money troubles on top of everything else can’t be a great way to keep your head clear.”

With that, he pushed off from his roost and moved to the opposite side of the shelf she was looking over. It dawned on her how tall he was. He was able to look down at the top shelf with no effort at all.

“Tell you what,” he said, “why don’t I tutor you? Help you get your grades back up?”

Tiffany winced. “Thank you, but I can’t really afford it. Witch Way will help me cover the bills, but there’s nothing left over.”

“I wouldn’t charge you.” He had a funny expression, and Tiffany gawked for a minute.

“What?”

He laid a casual hand on the shelf in front of him. “If things are tough, Tiffany, I’d be happy to help.”

It seemed too good to be true. The prospect of failing was more than demoralizing, so