CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
Claudia~
Mom called during Claudia’s afternoon break to tell her that she had an appointment with Robin at three fifteen to discuss details of the vow renewal. Ryan would pick Jimmy up.
Victoria cut off her protests. “Robin knows what your dad and I want. She needs to know what you want. Talk to you tonight. I have a waiting room full of patients.”
So at three she left the bank to go to the inn. It seemed pretty pointless to discuss their vow renewal when she and Ryan had still not discussed whether, absent the threat of death, he still intended to obey the head of his clan and remain married to her.
What the heck were she and Jimmy going to do if he left them? But maybe this was an opportunity to ask Robin for permission to bind her spell?
Robin looked as fresh as if she had come from the spa. Despite the fact that the innkeeper’s office was decorated in pastel green and pink chintz and delicate Victorian antiques, it was a businesslike space. Claudia felt at a distinct disadvantage: hot, grubby, and harassed.
Robin greeted her with a kiss on both cheeks. “I hear you and Ryan want to renew your vows.” She closed the door firmly on her words and indicated a floral armchair on the other side of her elegant desk.
“I don’t think renew is the correct word,” Claudia protested. She glared into Robin’s clear green eyes.
“That’s the word we are going to use, however,” Robin stated firmly. “What seems to be the trouble? From my perspective your situation has improved considerably in the last few days.”
Claudia refrained from stamping her feet. “What am I supposed to do now that Ryan has recovered?” she asked curtly.
Robin raised her silvery eyebrows. “Rejoice?” For a long time she said nothing else. “Forgive me,” she continued at last, “But surely you’ve been handed a blessing?”
“Not if full recovery makes Ryan rethink this whole screwy setup.”
Robin’s silvery brows rose fractionally. “Why should it? Did you want him to die?”
“Of course not. But this isn’t about what I want, but about what Ryan wants. What do Jimmy and I do when your magic wears off?”
Robin’s perfectly coiffed head tipped an eighth of an inch to one side and then righted itself. “What magic would that be?”
Claudia rolled her eyes. “Your love spell. I don’t think it’s Ryan’s scintillating charm that made me willing to marry a perfect stranger. I know magic when I’m on the receiving end.”
“Love happens like that between fated mates,” Robin said calmly. “I hear he fell in love with Jimmy just as fast.”
“Maybe. Maybe not. He got his orders from the head of his clan,” Claudia pointed out. “And Ryan’s no whiner. How do I know he’s not faking the whole thing?”
Robin shook her head. “He doesn’t have the aura of a liar.”
“What the heck does that even mean?”
“Habitual behavior, like violence, or lying, leaves traces in one’s aura. Ryan is a hard-headed lion who has seen and exercised violence, but he takes no pleasure in it. For him it’s a tool. And while I am sure he didn’t get to be thirty-four without uttering a social lie, he isn’t chronically deceitful.”
“I know. That’s how I know he doesn’t love me.” Claudia blurted. “If he did, he would say so.”
“Perhaps.” Robin’s rose-tinted lips curved. “Men can be so obtuse about romance.”
Claudia gritted her teeth. “Look, we both know no love charm lasts forever. No matter how strong the setter. What the heck are Jimmy and I going to do when yours wears off?” She leaned forward. “Should I let Ryan go now, before he breaks both our hearts?”
Robin’s laughter was the tinkling of a brook on a summer day. “Claudia, as far as I know, you are not under any love spell. Whatever you feel for Ryan has come from within you. I can tell you for nothing that your auras strongly indicate that you and Ryan are made for each other. If you love him, and he loves you, you have nothing to worry about.”
“I don’t believe you,” Claudia insisted. “It isn’t fair for you to mess with our heads.”
“Why don’t you believe that he is your destined husband? Your one true love?”
“Love isn’t that easy.” Besides she attracted users.
“It can be if the couple are well-suited.” Robin held up her hand. “I admit I arranged matters so Ryan would cross your path sooner rather than later, but that and the paperwork was the full extent of my involvement. I did not meddle with either of your feelings.”
“Oh.” She swallowed bile. So much for that theory. Perhaps the lack of a spell was why Ryan wasn’t in love with her. Just because she felt this awesome transcendental bond, didn’t mean he felt it too. Now what?
“What do you mean Ryan and I are made for one another?” she backed the conversation up a step.
“When two people’s auras resonated the way yours and Ryan’s do, love is inevitable. If you want some free advice, allow yourself to be happy.” The fairy crossed her hands in her lap.
“Oh.”
“Do you want to discuss your reception?” Robin continued coolly.
Claudia pulled herself together. “If there is going to be a ceremony, you should discuss it with both of us.”
“That works. Let’s reschedule.” Robin pulled up her calendar on her laptop.