100% That Witch - Celia Kyle Page 0,23

she saw a hint of sadness in his eyes. Maybe things with Nathan weren’t going as well as she’d thought. That was a tidbit Ryan would certainly like to hear about, but until she had more concrete evidence, she wasn’t about to report back to him about it.

Besides, her excitement was still running high, and all she wanted to do was talk about how much of a success her night had been.

“You guys,” she said, her voice rising in pitch, “you’re not gonna believe it, but... I think, this is it!”

She dragged her teeth across her bottom lip, eager to see what their reactions would be. Nathan just gave her an amused, “Huh,” and then refilled both their glasses, the ice clinking as he poured the scotch. He exchanged a look with Nero, one that could’ve meant anything, before looking back at her.

“Glad to hear it,” he said, raising his glass in a mock toast. “To love... and all that shit.”

“I’m glad you had a good night,” Nero said, mimicking Nathan and raising his glass. “Do you want to join us for a nightcap?”

“Can’t,” she replied. “I gotta open Kiki’s tomorrow. But you guys have fun.”

With that, she offered them a parting wave and headed up to her room. She had only put a foot on the first stair when she heard the two vamps talking in hushed tones. Even though she couldn’t make out a word of what they were saying, something told her they were talking about her. More than that, their tone told her that whatever they were discussing wasn’t a good thing.

But that didn’t make sense. Or did it?

Nathan was her friend, and Nero was one of the kindest, gentlest men she’d ever met. They had to be happy for her. Everyone knew how much she was into Rhys, so why would anyone oppose it?

I’m just imagining things, she thought, and then made her way to the bedroom.

Deep down though, she knew it wasn’t just her imagination. The boys were talking about her, and whatever the topic was, they’d made it a point to keep her in the dark.

Nine

After several days of work and school, Tiffany finally got the chance to sleep in a bit. Her Potions exam was at ten, and her plan was to stay in bed a little longer than usual. Unfortunately, Hollow House had already grown accustomed to her early-bird routine. And so, as the sun started peeking over the buildings outside, the house made it a point to rouse Tiffany from bed. The curtains were drawn with a loud whoosh and the windows swung open to let in the crisp morning air.

“Just five more minutes,” she muttered automatically, turning and huddling deeper under the sheets. She pulled the pillow over her head, pressing it down with both arms, but the house was having none of that. Hollow House was moody that morning, and since she wasn’t Kelly, Tiffany wasn’t granted any reprieve.

From under the pillow, she heard her wardrobe door creaking as it opened, and a moment later, her robe landed on top of the blankets.

“Fine,” she groaned, kicking the sheets back and sprawling herself on the bed. She lay there for a minute and stared at the ceiling absentmindedly before a surge of excited energy propelled her upright. She put the robe on, stopped in front of the mirror to finger-comb her hair—and to practice her look of joyous surprise—and then made her way downstairs.

It seemed everyone was still asleep. Only Kelly was in the kitchen, which probably meant Hollow House had decided to act as an alarm clock only for Tiffany. She appreciated that most days, but now that she finally had a day off from Kiki’s, she was more annoyed than anything else. Not that her annoyance could dampen her spirit. Not that day.

“You’re up early,” Kelly said, perching on the edge of her seat as she shoved half a danish into her mouth. Her next words came out garbled, crumbs falling from her lips and onto the table.

“Gross, Kell.”

“Sorry,” she continued, swallowing the danish down and wiping her mouth with one hand. “I was asking if you’re working today. I thought it was your day off.”

“It is my day off,” Tiffany replied, glaring up at the ceiling as she sank into the seat opposite Kelly’s with a groan. “But I have my Potions exam today. I thought I could sleep a bit more til then, but it doesn’t seem like the house wants me to have a