to kill him. At least he came up with a possible remedy for our little problem. It sounded plausible. We just need to hop over and get a unicorn annulment at the Heart of Wells, and I can come back and pick up my life.
Damn, I hope it doesn’t take too long. I’m going to have to ask a friend of mine to take some of my appointments until I get back.
And now I feel bad. Here I am, worried about my appointments and the inconvenience of taking a few weeks off when this is literally a life-or-death matter for him. I’m still pissed as hell about the whole situation and the way he just barged in here like he had a right to, but now that I have some distance from the shitstorm, I’m able to find a bit of perspective on the matter. I can’t imagine waiting years and years for a mate—being lonely—only to be rejected. It must have been hard for him to give me that out. If nothing else, I’ll try to remember everything I see to tell Harriet when I get back—maybe even bring a little keepsake home for her—to ease at least one person’s disappointment.
Harriet gives a slow sigh and nods, a tiny smile on her lips.
“Yeah, okay. But I still really think it would be nice to have him as part of our family. He’s a unicorn, and there is no one as magical as that. What did he bring you?” she asks me.
“I don’t know. Let’s go see,” I say with a quiet chuckle as I walk over to the table.
A green plastic cone hides the bouquet nestled within it, so I must pick it up to see what exactly it contains. Since he’s a unicorn, I’m pretty sure it is something ostentatious like a pricey bouquet of roses or maybe some sort of expensive exotic flowers meant to impress and flatter me. I know my ex always splurged when it came to flowers because he saw it as a reflection of himself. I don’t expect any less from a unicorn. I glance down into the wrapping and blink in surprise.
Wrapped up is a mass of cheerful daisies. He brought me daisies—a flower just shy of being a weed among some gardeners. That’s what he chose. I feel the corners of my lips twitch, and my eyes fall on a small package tucked inside of them. I carefully ferret it out so as not to break any of the stems and choke on the laugh that comes bubbling up.
Gummy worms! A majestic, magical creature brought me daisies and gummy worms to court me. A giggle escapes me, and I clutch the package of cheap candy and bring it to my mouth, trying to stifle the laughter. It might be the silliest gift I’ve ever gotten from a man interested in me, as if he were absolutely clueless and just going off of what he thought I might like… and somehow, I find that really sweet.
I wouldn’t be surprised at all if that were the case. I haven’t heard of unicorns running around, and that would be something certain to get attention if it happened. This could be his first time in the human world. Goodness knows that the fae races don’t have the same social norms that humans have. Despite that, he tried. And that actually does mean something. It gives me hope that maybe we can end things between us on good terms if I don’t let my judgments get in the way. I’m sure if our positions were reversed, I would make all kinds of social blunders.
And, of course, just thinking of that makes me afraid all over again.
Shit! Going to the well means I’ll be in entirely unfamiliar territory. I swallow back a wave of anxiety and focus instead on tearing open the package of gummy worms with my teeth.
Popping one in my mouth, I suck at it for a moment, enjoying the taste of sugary candy slipping over my tongue before chewing it up. I pass a gummy to Harriet as I come over to Mama’s side and tip the bouquet so she can get a look at what it contains.
“Daisies!” she exclaims, her eyes sparkling with amusement as she takes them from me. “I’ll go put these in water for you before I leave. Dinner’s on the table, although it’s probably getting cold by now. All the same, go ahead and get started.”
She smiles down at