Page 53 of Resurrecting the Witch
He was snarling with need at every turn, and I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t loving every second of it.
We’d gotten into season two of Buffy before we had to call it quits. It was also the calm before the storm and a privilege I shouldn’t have allowed myself since today was Friday. Which meant the Samhain Festival officially began with the decorating of the town and cementing the final plans for the weekend when most of the events would take place.
It’d only been a couple weeks since I first met Patrick, but I already felt like my entire soul belonged to him. I was his mate, and he felt like he could be mine. I didn’t want to think about what him being a conduit meant, if it was a sign from Gran to give him my heart, but I wasn’t ready to fully claim him in that way yet.
And he understood. We both had baggage.
“And what are our High Priestess’s thoughts?” Dom pulled me back to the present with his question.
Right. Movies. For tomorrow. “I say we start with the originalHalloween, then skip all of the others and go straight into theHalloween 2018,Halloween Kills, and finish out withHalloween Ends. I think that will be plenty for tomorrow. We can save Jason’s and Freddy’s sagas or another festival.”
“So,Halloweenon day one?” Gioia asked. She was becoming quite the little film nerd on our watch, and it was beautiful to witness.
I nodded. “Yes, classics day one, then on to modern horror on day two. Start with some Peele—Get OutandUsfor sure—then maybe we could even go back to early 2000s withSaw?”
“Keep in mind, we can narrow it down. I’d like to have more regular film festivals,” Dom added. I knew he’d been wanting to introduce those for a while, so we didn’t need to be overzealous.
I nodded. “Why don’t we just do theHalloweenstomorrow and then a Peele double feature on Sunday and call it good? That will give folks time to prep for the Silent Supper if they are participating.”
“We also wouldn’t have to keep someone here the entire time manning the projectors.” Dom added. Dom and I were adamant the Haven Pass Town Theatre would not switch to digital despite it being increasingly difficult to get reels. Luckily paranormal folks were in every facet of life, and oftentimes the film industry was ripe with folks who knew of the Ó Cuinn HOMES project, so I was able to get more prints than what another person might be able to.
“I know a lot of people from school who are really into Peele and will definitely join in.” Gioia bounced in her seat.
Lennox nodded in agreement. “I will come to the Jordan Peele day because he is my future husband. He just doesn’t know it yet.” Lennox sighed heavily. “I’m positive he will end up here in some capacity one day.”
“I know, sweetie.” I gently tapped her head, and she leaned into the touch. She was joking, but I felt the undercurrent of what she was saying. Lennox was lonely. I didn’t even think it was her needing to get laid either, which was a bummer because we could just hop over to Vancouver or Seattle and rock on. Maybe she should download the app? I made a note to talk to Guillermo about it later.
“Speaking of future husbands, I have to get back to the Brew before the open mic night starts. Patrick offered to help me set up tonight.” My pink-haired friend winked in my direction.
“Cliona and Patrick sitting in a tree,” Gioia started singing, avoiding my smack against the back of her head just barely.
We packed up our notes and started toward the door. We met at the theater tonight in the office upstairs because it was easier to input the schedule directly into the system. And because we liked it here. There was something soothing about the silence of a movie booth. There weren’t any movies playing tonight because we staggered events throughout the week, but it still felt like there was a constant buzz of something movie-related going at any given time.
We walked down the flight of red-carpeted stairs. Unlike bigger theaters with more human patrons, our stairs were open and accessed by most of the guests since it led to the restrooms. There was a gold banister leading up with floor lights lining each step.
“This will be Gioia’s first time seeingHalloween,” Dom told us as we walked toward the front doors. He was wearing black jeans, a plain black T-shirt, and his leather riding boots. He looked badass, even if I knew he was a big softie on the inside of his dragon alpha arrogance. Gioia matched him in all black, and I hadn’t missed how she’d started to mimic him in other small ways. I bet she’d already begged Drew to let her dye her hair blue and white like Dom’s too.
“I’m so excited I can finally watch it.” She did a cute little hop-skip toward the door.
“Why couldn’t you watch it before?” Lennox asked.
“Oh goddess, save me, don’t get him started.” I threw up my arms dramatically before Dom had a chance to answer.
“Because it isn’t part of the curriculum.” Gioia shrugged.
“What do you mean ‘curriculum’?” Lennox asked.
“In order to join the ranks of the Haven Pass Movie Club, you have to go through stages of education,” Gioia recited as if she had Dom’s entire speech memorized. I looked to the dragon who gave her a supportive nod and something like approval gleamed in his crystal blue eyes. “First,History of Film, then—”
“Wait a second,” Lennox interrupted. “Are you telling me this tool,” she paused to point her thumb at Dom. “Has been dictating what movies you can and can’t watch?” Dom looked too pleased with himself to be outraged. “Gioia. Sweetheart. Honey Bun.” Lennox getting ready to go in on the whole idea of a man dictating what Gioia could or couldn’t watch as Dom stopped to lock up the doors. We were out under the stars and the crisp October night bit into my skin. I was wearing a pair of black leggings, my boots, an oversized T-shirt, and a hoodie two sizes too big and still managed to feel the chill. I soaked in the cool air, embracing the change of seasons. It was nice spending time with friends, discussing movies, and simply taking a break from Samhain Festival planning, or a break from the boring logistical parts anyway. “You don’t have to let any man tell you what movies you can and can’t watch. I guarantee no one was up Dom’s asshole telling him what movies he could and couldn’t watch when he discovered film.”
Dom coughed and then looked pointedly in my direction.
“Are you really comparing my thoughtful and engaging introduction to film to the monstrosity of control you have Gioia under?” I glared at my friend, who didn’t look anything less than unimpressed.
Lennox stopped. “Wait, you made Dom do this shit too?”
“No, I didn’t ‘do this shit too.’ The two cannot even be compared.”
