“And the timing is perfect, because my current lease will be up on July 1st, and I haven’t had any luck finding a place I like.”
“Great,” Connor said. “We’ve already gotten most of our stuff out of here, but we’ll make sure it’s cleared out, and I’ll have my cleaning crew come in to really get into the corners.”
“It’s perfect,” she replied, dark eyes shining as she looked around again. “So much nicer than where I am now.”
“And the rent’s okay?” he asked. He’d told me he felt funny charging anything at all, but I’d said he should ask for some kind of rent, even if doing so went against his familial instincts. Paying for something tended to make people take better care of it.
Mason laughed. “Are you kidding? You should be charging double what you’re asking, and you know it. Not that I’m going to argue,” she added hastily.
“No worries.” He glanced over at me, then said, “Since we’re here, I’m going to run next door and grab a few more supplies. Just give me a couple of minutes.”
“Sure,” I replied. Although he’d cleared out a lot of his stuff from the studio next door, there were always odds and ends left over. Since we were here anyway, it made sense for him to get what he could.
He went out, and Mason wandered into the kitchen, obviously eyeing the cupboard space. Then she let out a contented little sigh. “I cannot believe I’m lucky enough to get this place.”
“I’m glad it could all work out,” I said sincerely.
“Same for you two,” she said. “I was a little worried for a while there, but it looks like you’re all okay now.” She ended the comment on the slightest of questioning notes, as if she wanted to make sure.
“Definitely okay,” I told her with a smile, then lifted my left hand and flashed the diamond at her. “Actually, more than okay.”
“Oh, wow!” she exclaimed, and emerged from the kitchen so she could give me a hug. “Why haven’t you two announced it?”
“Well, things have been busy with the house and…everything,” I finished, waving one hand vaguely in the air. No one knew about our meetings with Lawrence and Andre, and I wanted to keep it that way. If I succeeded and the curse was broken, well, then we’d tell everyone what we’d been up to. But I didn’t see the point in getting everyone’s hopes up beforehand.
“I’m really happy for you,” Mason said, but then her smile wavered a bit, compelling me to ask,
“What is it?”
“Oh, nothing,” she replied. Then she bit her lip, glanced away from me, and added, “I’ve just been getting some flak from my parents. They don’t see the point in me getting my master’s degree when all I’m going to do is end up staying here in Flag and getting married eventually.”
She sounded so unimpressed by the prospect that I had to inquire, “You don’t want to get married someday?” To be honest, she hadn’t talked much about guys, but then again, when she and Carla and I had gotten together for coffee or whatever, the conversation hadn’t really veered in that direction. But maybe she was into girls.
“Oh, someday,” she said. “But Carla just got engaged — ”
“Did she? I didn’t hear about that.”
“Well, you and Connor have had other things going on, so that’s probably why Carla hasn’t said anything. And it’s not that I’m against the idea in principle, it’s just….” She sighed, shaking her head. “It’s one thing if you’re fated for one another or something interesting like that. But in my case it’s marrying some cousin I’ve known my whole life, which isn’t all that romantic, you know? Or finding a civilian I think’ll be open-minded enough to deal with marrying into a witch clan, which isn’t as easy as it sounds. So I figured if I stayed in school and got my master’s, it would put off the evil day for a few more years.”
“There’s no law that says you have to get married,” I said gently. “I mean, it’s not as if the Wilcox clan is going to die out if you decide to stay single.”
She let out a reluctant laugh. “True that. No, I don’t really like the idea of spending my life alone, but I also want to do something with it. That’s partly why I’m getting my master’s in education — I’d really like to go on the reservation and make a difference, assist in setting up new programs and things to help improve the situation there.”
“Wow,” I said, impressed. This was a side of Mason I hadn’t seen before. Then again, we’d never really had a chance to talk alone like this. Before, it had always been Carla and Mason and me, and when Carla was around, the conversation tended to be a lot more gossipy. “I think that sounds incredible.”