Once Upon Stilettos - Page 98/125

I had the distinct feeling I was being manipulated, but I wasn’t sure where he was going with it. I took the card-like crystal from him and put it in my pocket. “Thank you.”

“I’d like a report at the end of the week, if you don’t mind.”

“No problem.” In the meantime, it looked like I’d be doing more baking. Then there was the treasure hunt, which was the least of my worries. I handed my clues over to my team and made a couple of suggestions about deciphering them, but otherwise I let the people who were truly enjoying themselves play. I had bigger puzzles to solve.

That evening, as I baked another favorite family recipe, I reflected that I might actually be in better shape than the last time we’d had a crisis, despite what felt like a lack of progress. Before, we’d relied on my dating ability to save the world, and I was a much better cook than I was a potential girlfriend.

This batch of cookies I put in a plastic bag tied with ribbon, which I was able to hide easily in my tote bag. I waited until Owen arrived at Merlin’s office for a meeting, then I headed down to R&D with the cookies and the crystal card. Along the way, I passed at least two teams of treasure hunters, all wearing their company caps. Everyone was laughing and smiling, which was a nice change of pace from the previous week, even if it was mostly because of magical company caps. One team had on matching outfits. The other stopped in the middle of the hallway to give their team cheer, which had something to do with how dominant the Dragons were. My team was going to lose. We hadn’t even reached the point of looking for items. We definitely didn’t have a cheer, a mission statement, or a team uniform.

As Merlin promised, the card got me easily through the front door at R&D. Ari was in her lab not too far from the entrance, her feet propped up on a table while she read a book. She wasn’t wearing the company cap, which didn’t surprise me. I suspected she was doing even less for her team than I was for mine. “Hi!” I said.

She looked up from her book. “Oh good, you’re not one of those treasure hunt nutcases. I’ve had three people so far thinking something was hidden in my lab.” She glanced at the bag I carried. “Let me guess, another Santa mission.”

I tried my best to look vague. “Maybe.”

“You’re carrying a bag of cookies.”

“That doesn’t mean they’re for my secret Santa.”

She rolled her eyes. “Don’t even try to lie. You totally suck at it. Coffee?”

“Yes, please.” As usual, the cup popped into my hand. I was proud of how nonchalantly I handled it. “What are you reading?”

She held up the antique-looking book. “Love-spell book I swiped from Owen’s lab. Somehow, I doubt he’ll be using it anytime soon. He only has it because it’s by some old wizard he’s been studying. There’s a spell in here for getting the attention of human men. I may have to give it a try—at the next full moon, I can take a canary feather and sprinkle it with rose essence, then wave it in the path of my target.”

“Or you could say, ‘Hi, come here often?’ Even I manage to make that work sometimes.”

“It also has spells to make people fall in love with each other. Want me to hook you up with anyone?”

That was the last thing I needed, magical interference in my shambles of a love life. “No thanks. Besides, remember, I’m immune.” Well, I was once, and I hoped I would be again.

“Oh yeah. I keep forgetting that. But that doesn’t mean the spell wouldn’t work on him. What do you think? Wouldn’t you like a real date with a certain dark-haired, blue-eyed someone who otherwise will never get around to asking anyone out?”

“I’ll pass.”

“Let me know if you change your mind.”

I finished my coffee, put the cup down, and said, “Guess I’d better get back to my mission. Thanks for the coffee.”

“Don’t mention it.”

As Merlin had no doubt arranged, the coast was clear in Owen’s office and lab, so it was easy enough to drop off the cookies. But it looked like I wasn’t the only person who’d taken advantage of Owen’s absence. The place was a mess—not the comfortable clutter that was usually there, but a real mess. Someone had apparently been looking for something, or else had been causing destruction for its own sake. I left my cookies on a table, then ran back down the hall to report it.

I shot past Ari’s lab on my way to the exit, then turned back. “Can I use your phone?” I asked.

“What is it?”