Shanna Swendson - Don't Hex with Texas

“Well, with any luck, Idris’ll just hide out from the fairy godmother from hell and his new bosses for a few days and leave us alone so you can rest.” I hesitated, then asked, “How long do you think you’ll be staying?”

He flushed a pale shade of pink, but I couldn’t think of what was so embarrassing about my question.

“It depends. I was supposed to leave today, but I want to make sure we know what Idris does, and I won’t leave as long as I know he’s here. Do you think your parents will mind me staying a few days longer?”

“If you tried to leave before being here less than a week, my mom might hide your car keys.”

A loud squeak on the stairs startled both of us into silence. A few moments later, Mom came into the kitchen in a bathrobe. “I thought I heard voices,” she said.

“We were having a midnight snack,” I hurried to explain. “We didn’t mean to disturb you.”

“Oh, it’s no trouble. I might even join you.” She then got a good look at Owen, and I found the play of emotions across her face to be fairly amusing. At first the mom instincts won as she noticed how sickly he looked. Then other instincts took over. The funny thing about Owen was that as gorgeous as he was, he somehow looked even more gorgeous when he wasn’t looking his best. He was a sight to behold in a tuxedo, but in a T-shirt, his hair rumpled, unshaven, with his glasses on, and with dark circles under his eyes, he could stop traffic. There was a hint of danger to him then, lurking beneath his boy-next-door exterior. Even better, he was entirely unaware of this effect and didn’t seem to notice when he was affecting women that way.

Then the mom instinct fought its way back to the surface. “Are you okay?” she asked. “You don’t look like you’re feeling too well.”

“I must not be sleeping well away from home. I never realized I was so used to hearing traffic and sirens all night long,” he said.

“I can make something for you, if you like. Maybe an omelet?”

He shook his head. “No, thank you. Katie made me some cocoa, and I had some cake. Now I think I’ll get back to bed and try to get some sleep.”

As much as I wanted to get into my own bed, I lingered with Mom for a while. “Are you sure he’s okay?” she asked when the squeak on the stairs told us he’d made it to his room. “He doesn’t look too good.”

“I’m sure he’s just tired,” I said. “Remember how it took me a few weeks to get used to the quiet after I got back here. And it’s never too restful sleeping in a strange place, especially in someone’s home.”

“You don’t think it’s anything we’ve said or done, do you?”

“Mom, he’s fine. He’s having a good time. I just think he’s a little overwhelmed. He doesn’t come from a big family, and he lives alone, so he’s not used to having all these people around. But I think he’s adjusting. He and Teddy really seem to be hitting it off.”

“If you’re sure.”

“I’m sure.” I kissed her on the cheek, then headed toward the stairs. “Now, I’m getting back to bed.

Good night!”

It wasn’t until I’d reached my room that I realized she hadn’t even noticed the fact that both Owen and I had been fully dressed instead of in pajamas and bathrobes. And she hadn’t noticed that she hadn’t heard the squeak on our way down the stairs. For someone who could notice every detail of someone’s outfit and remember how often in the last few months she’d worn it, Mom sometimes wasn’t too observant.

There was no sign of Owen at breakfast the next morning. I hoped that meant he was sleeping in. I wrote a quick note and slid it under his door before I headed to the store for work. Sherri was already there, which was an “alert the media” kind of event, and she was surprisingly cheerful. “Wow, you’re here!” I said, then immediately realized that probably didn’t sound so nice.

“Why wouldn’t I be?” she asked as she straightened the display of small impulse items around the cash register. “I do work here, don’t I?”

“Well, yeah, I mean, uh, well, with everything you’ve been through, I thought you could have used a break.” I thought that was a pretty good recovery from putting my foot in my mouth.

She rolled her eyes. “If my husband is going to be a good-for-nothing, I’d better be sure one of us pulls in an honest paycheck.”

“I’m glad you’re here. We’d be in a tough spot without you. And, um, it would be safe for you to go home now. We saw to that.”

“I said I’d be gone a few days, and I will be. I’ll go home when I said I would.”

“Okay, then,” I said as I headed to my own office with the beginnings of a grudging respect for Sherri. I never would have thought she had it in her. She might even be able to keep Dean in line in the future.

Owen called me about an hour after I got to the store. “I didn’t mean to sleep so late,” he said with an audible yawn.

“You needed it. How are you feeling now?”

“Almost back to normal.”

“I should be able to get away from here in a couple of hours, so you take it easy until then. I hope Mom’s not fussing over you too much.”

“She is, but I don’t mind. She made an incredible breakfast. She said I looked like I could use a good meal. I guess she forgot all those huge meals she’s made in the past few days.”

“She definitely shows her love by feeding people, so get used to being stuffed while you’re around here. I’ll see you soon.”

About an hour after I talked to him, Nita called. “You are not going to believe the morning I’ve had,”

she said. Given her fondness for drama, it was entirely possible that she meant the phone had rung once, so I avoided jumping to conclusions, no matter how worried I was about what one of her guests might do.

“What is it?” I asked.

“I’ve been busy. Three people have checked in so far this morning, and I’ve made a couple more reservations. If this pace continues the rest of the day, I may have to see if the ‘no vacancy’ sign still works. We haven’t had this many people check in on the same day since that big family reunion a couple of years ago.”

“I wonder what’s going on,” I said, instantly even more suspicious.

“I think it may be the rest of the band! And maybe some fans. They all look kind of like the same types. It’s a sort of emo group, right?”

I wasn’t sure I even knew what “emo” was. “They’re hard to classify,” I hedged. “Keep me posted, here or at the house. I’m curious. Are any of the guys cute?”

She snorted with laughter. “Not even! I wouldn’t go this low, even as desperate as I am, and even if they are in a band. Of course, none of them are Indian. Maybe they’re here to work on an album in the peace and quiet. That’ll really make the motel famous if the album is big. Oh wait, would you believe, here comes another one. Gotta go. I think I should get a bonus.”

I was sure there were dozens of highly rational reasons why unattractive young men would suddenly flock to this town, but with Phelan Idris, patron saint of unattractive social outcasts, in residence, I was inclined to think there was something going on.

“I’m leaving for the day,” I announced to Sherri as I grabbed my purse and headed out of the office.

“I’ve got all the orders and invoices taken care of. Call me at the house if you need anything.”

“Is something wrong?” she asked.

I was so surprised that she’d picked up on a subtle social clue from someone she wasn’t flirting with that it took me a few seconds to come up with an answer. “Owen wasn’t feeling well last night, so I don’t want to leave him alone with Mom too long.”

“Oh, yes, you should definitely go home, then.” She sounded really and truly sympathetic, which a few days ago I would have considered nothing short of a miracle.