Flipping the Bird (Shift Creek #1) - Carrie Pulkinen Page 0,50

it got going again, it felt like her crow had turned into a hummingbird and was trying to break free from her ribcage.

She was mad at Donovan for accusing of her of theft, but seeing him there, hurt filling his eyes, sent a warm tingling sensation down her spine. The flowers suggested he’d come to apologize, but she had no intention of letting him off easy.

Stopping two feet in front of him, she crossed her arms. “What are you doing here?”

He held her gaze, his mouth opening and closing once, as if he wasn’t sure where to begin. “I owe you an apology.”

“Damn right you do. I’m not a thief.”

“No, you’re not. And I’m sorry I accused you of such. The only thing you’ve stolen from me is my heart.” He offered her the flowers, and she took them, not because she’d forgiven him, but because she loved flowers, and these were the most gorgeous, full, richly colored roses she’d ever seen.

“Really?” She ran a finger across a velvety bloom. “I’d hoped it was freely given.”

“It was. It still is if you’ll have it. I took Marty’s word over yours,” he continued his apology, “and I should know better. I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me for this.”

“For this? You say it like there’s more you need forgiveness for.” She pressed her nose against the soft petals, inhaling the fragrant aroma. The man knew how to make an apology; she’d give him bonus points for that.

“There is plenty more.” He lowered his gaze as if ashamed.

Uh oh. That didn’t sound good. “You’d better come up.” Alice opened the door, and Donovan followed her upstairs to her apartment. She gestured to the sofa in the open living area, and he sank onto the cushion while she filled a vase with water and arranged the roses in it.

“The flowers are beautiful. Thank you.”

He nodded. “Even as I accused you, in my heart, I didn’t believe it. But Marty has been with me since I was a teen, and he knows how important the amulet is to me. It’s no excuse. I had no reason to believe you would steal from me.”

Alice sat next to him, angling her body to face him. “We both know your familiar doesn’t care for me.”

“It’s not you. It’s…” He closed his eyes for a long blink and exhaled slowly. “Marty put the amulet in the trash because he didn’t want me to have its power. He saw it on you the first time we met, but he kept the information to himself.”

“When he motorboated me.”

“Yes, and when you caught him trying to steal it back, he accused you of taking it to keep himself out of trouble. I’m so sorry, Alice. Marty is sorry too.”

“I…” She gritted her teeth. He didn’t deserve to be let off the hook so easily, but she was in love with the man, and he’d apologized. Wasn’t that enough? Staying mad wouldn’t help anyone. “I forgive you. Heck, I forgive Marty too.” Holding a grudge against a familiar would be like holding one against a child. Their brains weren’t as developed as an adult’s.

“Thank you.”

She rested her hand on top of his knee. “Why didn’t Marty want you to have the amulet’s power? All it does is let you swap magic with someone, right? Is it dangerous?”

Donovan swallowed hard. “I’m afraid this is where my transgressions get harder to forgive. I’ve omitted the truth, led you to believe things about me that aren’t true, and I’ve lied.”

She returned her hand to her own lap, a sense of dread sinking in her chest. That sounded a whole lot worse than her transgression of taking something from his trash and not telling him.

Of course, he had another life back in New York. Probably a family and a scrawny little chihuahua named Cujo too. He and his gorgeous wife went to the theater and the opera and ate snails and fish eggs and other disgusting delicacies only rich people liked. Ugh. I am a homewrecker! “You’re married, aren’t you?”

“No, it’s much worse than that.”

“What’s worse than infidelity?” She gasped. “Do you live with your mother?”

“No, I told you she passed away when I was young.”

“Right. Sorry.” Way to go, Alice. She clamped her mouth shut because a closed mouth gathered no feet—and she might never get the taste of rubber off her tongue now. In her defense, yes, he’d mentioned both his parents were deceased, but she not-so-conveniently forgot that