Pumpkin Spice & Poltergeist (Maple Hollow #1)

“Her what?” My stomach roiled but I pushed on. “Never mind. Willow’s really okay? Where is she?”

Jordyn’s hand found mine again. “She’s resting in bed upstairs.” She placed a kiss on the back of my hand. “Iris went to check on her and said she’s back to her normal spirits again but that Wyatt won’t let her leave her room until he can’t scent the poison in her system anymore.”

“Good man,” I said with an approving nod.

“From what I’ve heard, he’s likely exaggerating about how much he can still smell.” Jordyn gave a weak laugh. “Iris told me that the toxin was likely out of her system hours after Juniper died. I know I should have checked myself, but I haven’t left this room since I carried you into it . . . well, except for two minutes.”

I balked. “You’ve been in here the entire time?”

She swept a strand of hair off my face. “I didn’t want you to be alone when you woke up.”

I lifted my other hand and rolled my wrist. The muscles were stiff, but it didn’t hurt to move it. I looked at Jordyn. “How?”

Her cheeks dimpled. “Sometimes it pays to have a witch as a girlfriend.”

She’d fixed my broken wrist with her magic alone?

She cleared her throat. “That is . . . if I am your girlfriend? If I can be your girlfriend still?”

“I . . .” I took a deep breath.

What was I supposed to say? This was all so much. Before Juniper’s attack, I was planning on leaving town and moving on to the next job, next town, next relationship. That was what I did. I messed up one thing and moved on to the next.

I looked around the room. “Where’s Lou?”

“She’s moved on. Permanently this time,” Jordyn said, rhythmically rubbing her thumb across the back of my hand. I knew she was nervous. I’d not so subtly dodged that girlfriend question. “The last thing she said to me was to hang on to you.” She let out a defeated huff. “But I don’t think she realized how badly I fucked this up before it really even began.”

I hummed, not wanting to confirm or deny. Regardless of whether Lou was still here or not, Jordyn had lied to me about her. And knowing that the ghost of her ex-girlfriend had been watching might have changed my perspective on a few of our first encounters.

Jordyn looked at me with those pleading kaleidoscope eyes. “Say something.”

I let out a long breath, buying myself some time, before finally saying, “I think . . . I need some time to think.” I carefully extracted my hand from hers.

I hated the hurt etched all over her face. Hated that I was the one who put it there. But I couldn’t ignore the hell I’d been put through since meeting her. Except when she wet her lips and looked at me like she was now.

“I was nearly murdered. Willow was poisoned. The café is a mess. And the ghost of your ex-girlfriend threw me against a wall while I was still naked after we hooked up. And it’s just . . . a lot.”

She didn’t say anything for a long moment.

“When you say it like that, I suppose it is a lot. And even without all that drama, I’m a lot. My life is a lot. But just know that I’m here and . . .” She leaned in and pressed a final kiss to my temple. “I want to be with you,” she whispered against my skin, sending ripples of goose bumps dancing down my spine. “And I will wait for you to decide, however long you need, but just know that my heart is right here with you.”

My eyes welled.

Jordyn stood, the flimsy mattress wobbling without her added weight. “I’m going to go help with the cleanup,” she said, trying to pretend that she hadn’t just bared a little piece of her soul to me. “Do you need anything? Food? Water?”

I smiled sadly. “A pumpkin-spice chai would be nice.”

She narrowed her eyes at me and shook a finger. “Only if you promise to drink a whole glass of water first.”

“Done,” I said.

“And I’m bringing you a muffin, too,” she added over her shoulder.

The drink request seemed to reignite her spirits. I hadn’t told her goodbye or that I didn’t want to be with her, just that I needed some time and space to think. Clearly, she was going to seize the opportunity to sway my opinion however she could.

I pressed my lips together, watching her until she closed the bedroom door.

Did I really want to get into a full-blown relationship with a witch? In a paranormal town where a monster had tried to end me? But if ever there was a girl wild enough to tame my heart, it would be a witch. And if ever there was a town that could contain my wandering chaos, maybe Maple Hollow was it . . .