“Shockingly, I don’t. Nor do I know an Obi-Wan to show you the way of the Jedi.”
“I thought Yoda did that?”
Ethan lifts his head off the pillow. “We’re going to watch Star Wars later, because it’s obvious you haven’t seen it.”
“I’ve seen it! Just not for like years and years and years and I think I fell asleep during like all of them. My dad is a huge Star Wars fan.”
“Good. I’ll have something to talk about at dinner.”
I smile and hook my leg over Ethan, not wanting to leave the bed. We lounge around for another hour and then force ourselves up, only to make coffee and move to the couch. So much for being productive, right?
Though the second half of the day actually is, and we go through more of my Book of Shadows, I make an attempt to cast a protective circle around the house, and I sit with a bay leaf in my hands, trying to unlock more memories.
We go to the barn in the evening so I can take care of Mystery, and go into the woods, stopping at the threshold of the trail. Ethan is armed to the max again, and I have my magical dagger. We’re more than prepared to fatally injure a Pricolici, but none come. After an hour and a half, I’m cold and have to pee, so we go back to the barn.
Leslie is putting her grooming supplies away, and she eyes me curiously, no doubt thinking Ethan and I went off to have sex in the woods. Maybe next time, we’ll go the other way through the woods, coming from Ethan’s dad’s house instead.
We repeat the same thing the next day: practice magic, Ethan gives me a basic training lesson on hand-to-hand combat using the dagger, and we walk through the woods. And again, nothing happens. It’s nice, that’s for sure, to have a couple of days off, but the whole sitting around waiting to be attacked thing is driving me in-fucking-sane.
I’m wishing for demons by Thursday and keep looking into the woods while I ride Mystery around the outdoor arena. Bob is in his place, being creepy and awkward like usual, and none of the horses grazing in the pasture next to us are on high alert.
Ethan is at his dad’s, doing something for the Order again. His dad, Sam, and Julia just got back from the job of clearing ghosts out of that apartment complex, and I can just hear Sam giving Ethan shit for staying here when things have been mellow.
“It’s not even winter and I’m already sick of the cold,” Leslie says when I get back into the barn. She has her horse in the cross-ties and turns on the warming light above them.
“The temperature did drop a lot,” I reply, debating if I should bust out Mystery’s blue blanket. He looks so handsome in it, but I know he shouldn’t wear it just yet. I like him to get a longer winter coat of fur so he doesn’t get too cold when we go on rides through the snow later in the season.
“And I was the idiot who didn’t wear a jacket,” she grumbles.
“Take mine,” I tell her and pull it off. “I’m leaving anyway. Ethan is having dinner at my parents’ tonight.”
“Ohhh, sounds serious.”
“Really?”
“He’s meeting your parents, totally serious.” She takes my jacket and puts it on. “Thank you. You are seriously a life saver. I have two more horses to work and you know how much I hate the cold. I seriously don’t know why I live here.”
“It’ll warm back up…and then get cold again. I question New York winters every year too.”
“If California weren’t so damn expensive, I’d be there in a heartbeat.”
“Hah, me too,” I say, though Aunt Estelle’s house flashes in my mind. I miss that place for some reason, and it’s the same feeling I get when I dream about the magical door that appears in between two trees. “I’m gonna take off. I need to rush so I can make it home in time to shower and get ready.”
“Have fun at dinner!”
“I’m sure I will.” I give her a wave and hurry out, realizing we’re the some of the last ones at the barn. Now that the sun is starting to set later, not as many people as usual are here at this time. I don’t think Hollow Creek Stables is of any interest to