Part 8 (1/2)

”To my knowledge, it's a gift only our particular line has. And some people are more gifted at it than others. In fact, I've never seen a connection happen without a witch trying to match a couple before. Though it's not entirely impossible. You can certainly tell when two people might be a good fit. You get a tingling from their connection, that tension in the air between them,” Mom said.

”So, let me get this straight,” I said, still trying to digest what they were telling me. ”I have the power to match two people that I think would be a good couple but who maybe are just having a little trouble making the first move?”

”Correct,” my mom answered. ”And apparently even when you don't realize it. But this is not a gift to be taken lightly, Brooklyn. When you're dealing with matters of the heart, things can get very complicated. And in the end, whether they fall in love isn't up to you. That's for the universe and the real Cupid to decide.”

”There's a real Cupid?” I asked, my mouth dropping.

”Just be careful, sweetie,” Dad said, going back to reading his paper and ignoring my question. ”You're dealing with people's emotions here. In some cases, you may end up doing more damage than good.”

”Got it, Dad,” I said, still a little dazed. I got up to give them both hugs and then prepared to leave. I needed some alone time to think about this new bit of information.

As I was heading up the stairs, I heard my mom say, ”Well, that went better than I'd expected.”

I had to agree. I'd definitely gotten exactly what I'd been looking for.

For the next week, I tested out my newfound matching skills, first pairing up two kids in my debate cla.s.s who were always arguing and trying to one-up each other to win their cases. I figured that if there was a fire between them in cla.s.s, imagine what they'd be like as a couple. And they'd been hot and heavy ever since.

Then I'd had a feeling about my World Civ teacher and the volleyball coach and decided they could use a little help connecting, too. Older people always seemed to drag their feet when it came to dating and I figured I'd just help speed up the process. Though they hadn't been as outwardly affectionate as the other students I'd matched, I'd seen them meeting up in the cafeteria for coffee on several occasions.

Almost as soon as I'd learned of this new side of myself, the wheels in my head started to spin. I was slightly ashamed to admit it at first, but there was only one potential couple I wanted to test my magic out on-and it wasn't for altruistic reasons. Asher and I had been growing closer and closer over the three weeks since we'd found out about each other's magical abilities and there were times when I thought maybe there was a spark between us. I wanted so badly to match the two of us but couldn't help feeling guilty about it. What if Asher found out and got mad at me for doing it without his permission? Would he be upset or happy that I'd taken the initiative? And even worse, what if it didn't work? What if once the spell wore off, there was nothing there and we had to go back to being just friends? I already knew that I was head over heels for him, and it would mean I'd be left pining for what we'd had. Only it wouldn't have been real. And what would I do then?

The truth was, I hadn't had these particular powers for all that long to begin with and I was still trying to work out the kinks. Because my parents weren't exactly forthcoming with information, I had no idea if I was even doing things right. I thought it best to try things out on those who weren't me first, just to make sure, so I'd turned to other students and my teachers in the meantime. But now a week had gone by and all seemed perfect in the world of love, which made it difficult to hold back on what I wanted to do.

As I drove up to the Burger Barn, I couldn't help but feel nervous and even a little bit excited. Trying to play match-maker was sort of like playing G.o.d. Of course, just because I willed it didn't mean it would come true. My parents had made it clear that after the initial spell wore off, there had to be a real connection between the couple in question in order for a relations.h.i.+p to develop. My matching would only get the ball rolling.

After that, I had to hope there was more there.

Shutting off the engine, I checked my appearance in the mirror quickly. I had on a pair of jeans and a tank top. A jade-colored necklace hung low across my front, the bottom of the chunky jewels touching just above my belly b.u.t.ton. It was fun but flirty, the perfect mixture of dressed up but not trying too hard. My hair was loose and curls framed my face, which was perfectly done up.

I wanted everything about this night to be perfect.

Taking a deep breath, I made my way over to the restaurant and almost immediately spied who I was looking for.

Asher.

He was sitting in a booth toward the back, pecking away on his cell phone and looking absolutely adorable. His black jacket, fitted white tee, and jeans nearly made me swoon as I watched him through the window. My stomach dropped like it always did when he was around. I'd never felt like this about anyone before, this much was true. Was it possible he felt the same?

Only one way to find out.

I held up one finger and pointed it directly at Asher. Then with my other hand I pointed at myself. While turning my thoughts to what a great couple we would be, I moved my fingers closer and closer together until the tips touched and I felt a jolt.

Right away, my desire to be near him grew. It was like a slow burn that had just been ignited and I was compelled to run inside and let him know how I felt. I had no idea if what I'd done was against any witching rules or even if it was going to work. I only knew that I had to give it a try.

With my eyes trained on Asher, I moved toward the front door of the Burger Barn to see if there was a spark between us after all.

I swept into the burger joint and headed straight for Asher, who was sitting at a table in the back. Our eyes locked when I was only halfway there and his face softened into a smile.

My pace quickened as my desire grew and I wondered why I couldn't get to him faster. It was like we were two magnets being pulled together by some unknown force. Only, I knew what that force was.

I slid into the booth across from him and gave him a grin.

”Hi.”

”Hi,” he answered, returning my look.

If anyone was watching us right now, I was sure they would be gagging over our googly-eyed-ness, but I just didn't care. All that mattered was that I was there, with Asher. It was just him and me and a crazy little thing called love.

I mean, l.u.s.t.

The balloon that had been carrying me along on my high burst as I was reminded that what we were feeling-what Asher was feeling-right now wasn't true love. We were having a moment, bonding together, but only time would tell if we were truly a match.

Still, it didn't make the feelings I was having seem any less real.

Asher continued to stare at me. ”You look amazing.”

”Thanks,” I answered. ”So do you.”

We took a break from admiring each other to order some food and then talked about Abby and the different spells we wanted to try out. I ordered french fries even though I was too nervous to eat any of them. But guys didn't really like it when they were the only ones eating, so I forced myself to choke down at least a few as Asher polished off his own meal.

”I had no idea that those two finally got together,” Asher said, nodding behind me.

I turned to see Shayla and Tucker walk in. They were holding hands and kept looking over at each other giddily. Sitting down at a booth near us, they wouldn't even give up their hands to look at the menu.

”I sort of got to see it happen the other day,” I said, not telling him the whole truth about my involvement in their matchup. ”It was so cute to see them make the first move.”

Asher looked at them curiously. ”Imagine what that must have been like for them. They were friends for, like, ever, yet they both secretly liked the other and never said anything,” he said. ”Good for them. Tucker's a pretty cool guy-he's the real deal.”

”Abby said they were both too afraid to make the first move,” I said, looking down at the table shyly.

”I get that. They probably didn't want to ruin the friends.h.i.+p if the other didn't like them back,” he said. ”But at the same time, think about how many potential couples are single and lonely just because n.o.body had the nerve to go for it.”

”That's so sad.”

”Yep.”

I knew we weren't just talking about Shayla and Tucker. The fact was, we were in a similar situation. As much as I wanted to believe that the spell had worked-or preferably, that we hadn't needed the spell at all-I felt paralyzed to make that first move. To let Asher know just how much I liked him.

Because if he didn't feel the same . . . well, I might just die of humiliation. Or a broken heart. Either way, it would suck.

”So . . .” I said.

”So.”

The air between us was electric, but I knew that nothing was going to happen in a restaurant full of loud teenagers. No, if anything was going to happen, we'd have to leave.

”So, I was telling Abby the other day that I've been having a really tough time with the exploding spell,” I said, trying to change the subject.

”Oh, yeah? Your aim is probably just off,” Asher said, taking a sip of his soda.

I watched his lips fold around the straw and wondered if they were soft. They looked soft. I was never going to be able to concentrate on anything normal ever again if I was constantly wondering what it would be like to be with Asher!