Page 84 of The Sasquatch and the Hairdresser

The tiny Chihuahua gives a funny little huff and Max chuckles. Then he sets her down and she trots over to Elvira and Waffles, head held high.

The two hellhounds pause their shenanigans when she stops and sits in front of them. She lets out a sharp bark, and Waffles immediately flops down and shows her his belly, all three tails wagging. Elvira and Princess Peach take a moment to sniff one another. They each decide the other is acceptable, and in no time at all, Elvira is following Princess Peach wherever she goes, while Waffles trails behind like their enormous lackey.

“Are the kids at school?” Hal asks Max.

“Yep. And Targan is holed up in his study-slash-library completely immersed in his latest book project.” He leans closer and offers conspiratorially, “It’s actually a history of Mystic Hollow. But you didn’t hear it from me. The whole thing’s super hush-hush for now.”

Hal’s eyes sparkle. “I can’t wait to read it. I’m sure it will be fascinating.”

That’s my boyfriend who loves his books. I can’t hold back a smile, and my mind zips back to that memorable night last week—dancing with Hal, kissing Hal.

As soon as I woke up the next morning, I texted Dr. P, begging for an emergency meeting. When I saw her face on my phone screen, I spewed out a whole mess of confused feelings after my magical date with Hal.

Patient as ever, she talked me down and walked me through everything as we tried to make sense of my emotions. There were kind of a lot of them. I was happy but also scared. Scared I’d fuck this up.

She told me she thinks I’m worried about falling in love because I don’t want to get hurt again. And I have to admit, she’s probably right. Somewhere deep down, I knew that too, but I needed her to say it to my face.

The whole conversation was cathartic. I realized that, despite the fear, the one thing I have no doubts about is Hal. No matter what happened in the past, I know Hal will never betray or hurt me.

It’s taken me a hot minute to build up my courage on this front, but now I’m ready to tell Hal how serious I am about him. But figuring out how to do that’s not easy. Love can fucking break you just as easily as it can lift you up, I know that too fucking well. But I want to believe in the latter when it comes to Hal.

Right then, Waffles throws back his three heads and howls, interrupting my brain wanderings. We all laugh as Elvira eagerly imitates him with her puppy awoos.

Max chuckles. “Hellhounds are such hams, I swear. But OMG, Hal, I simply must tell you what Targan’s been up to,” he says, pride written all over his face. “Skylar, I know you haven’t met him yet, but my hulkalicious honey is brilliant. One of the most respected Otherkind scholars in the world. He’s been inspired by what he’s recently learned about the origins of the magic in Mystic Hollow. He’s been in the library’s archives searching out historical texts from the earliest years on record. From what I gather, he’s also been consulting with scholars who’ve done work on other Sanctuary Havens to compare notes and discuss theories.”

“I don’t know much about all the Sanctuary Havens,” I say, trying to focus back on the conversation. “Are they pretty similar?”

Hal considers this. “Hmm, I’ve only visited one during my travels. It’s out in Montana. That one was a lot more like a farming community than a town like Mystic Hollow and seemed to attract species that prefer isolation and a colder climate. As Ryder would say, it had a very different vibe. Not bad, just not what I was looking for.”

Max shudders. “That’d be way too rural for me, honey. I prefer the quaint and cozy vibe of Mystic Hollow. Not too big, not too small, just close enough to everything if needed. The perfect place to raise a family.” He sighs happily.

“Mystic Hollow’s just extra special, isn’t it?” I tell Hal.

He grins, and my heart does a two-step of its own.

“That it is.”

Hal smiles at Max. “I’ll be interested to learn if Targan’s uncovered any more about the fae connection with our town’s magical origins. Astraea’s been vague about it all, only indicating that she worked with them to establish the protective magic for the Sanctuary Havens in this realm.”

Max waves a hand airily. “Not sure, but knowing Targan, he’ll leave no stone uncovered. He’s a bit obsessive that way when it comes to his research.” He turns to me, his eyes sparkling. “So, tell me how the salon’s shaping up and when you’ll be open. I need to get my sweet ass in your chair and have you save my hair from its current tragic state as soon as you are able.”

I laugh. “I’m on schedule to open on Friday when the festival starts. Akram and I are doing a Blowout and Cocktail or Mocktail special for Opening Day. I’ll be closed on Saturday since I’m helping with setup for the parade and I’m not sure about Sunday yet.”

Max gasps in a dramatic fashion and hugs himself. “OMG, sign me up, honey! That sounds like just the TLC I need to give myself.”

“See, I told you you’re going to be busy from the get-go,” Hal says, smiling brightly at me.

All of a sudden, our phones all ping with a text message from Astraea telling us to get our asses over to Town Hall ASAP. We round up the dogs and get them back on their leads before hurrying downtown. As we get closer to the building, Max is huffing and puffing.

“A pox… on mysterious… dragon goddesses… who like to be… vague and mysterious in their damn text messages!”

Princess Peach yips in agreement.

Astraea didn’t exactly spell out why we needed to get here so fast, but it’s clear it has to do with planning committee business, hence our quick pace.

“Do you think something new has happened with the magic?” I ask Hal, keeping my voice low.

He frowns. “No clue, but let’s hope not.”