A mug of coffee blistered against Marie’s fingers as she cupped the drink to her chest, letting it warm her. It was still much too hot to drink but she couldn’t let it go, waiting for the very moment she could take a sip without scalding her mouth. She needed it, after the night she’d had.

  Sleep had eluded her all night, mind racing with Luc’s declaration: I don’t need you. That, and the guilt at doing the very thing she’d asked her not to do: interfere. Help her.

  Sitting at the breakfast table, Marie tried not to let it get to her. Just because Luc didn’t want help didn’t mean that she didn’t need it. It wasn’t pity, it was just doing what she could to help a friend. A friend who clearly had a fucked up mess for a life, judging by what Maisey had hinted at the night before.

  The little sleep she’d gotten could probably be attributed to the girl. Maisey had called the night before, not for long, just enough to tell Marie not to take it personally and she could talk more tomorrow. Today, now.

  She took a sip of her coffee and hissed. Still too hot.

  Putting it down, she turned her attention to her father, who sipped his coffee without a care in the world. How could he drink something so scaldingly hot?

  “Maisey and I are going to be going to the commission today so I can help her put together her magical girl uniform,” Marie said. Her father lowered his paper as she began to talk, giving her his undivided attention. “Is there anything you want me to do while I’m there?”

  He thought about it for a moment before giving his head a slight shake. “I shouldn’t need anything until tomorrow, unless something comes up. About that, I have a few options for your… rival,” he mulled the word for a moment before continuing. “On short notice, it’s hard to come up with housing, especially in town, but I have two options. The commission owns short term housing for traveling mages, and I could waive the costs. Or, there’s a maintenance listing I still need to approve that comes with a room. I hadn’t approved it because it offers no pay, but I don’t think that matters in this situation.”

  Marie thought about it for a moment. Knowing Luc, she wouldn’t just accept an apartment.

  Well, getting her to accept any help would be a battle in and of itself.

  “I think the maintenance position is better,” Marie said. “Is there a way you can make it so only she can accept it? So no one else can take it? I need to find out how to get her to take it.”

  Her father took a moment before nodding. “I can do that.”

  “This isn’t going to cause trouble for you, is it?” Marie asked, the guilt biting at her again. Her father did a lot for her, more than she could ever ask for, and here she was asking for more.

  “It shouldn’t,” he said. “And even if it did, that’s not for you to worry about. Just let me take care of it.”

  “Okay,” she said, her voice soft. “Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  Marie finished her breakfast and her coffee then wandered off to get dressed and ready for the day. Maisey came over shortly after, greeting her with a bright smile on the front step.

  “Good morning,” she said. “Cinnamon roll?”

  She held out a small container, steam building on the inside of the glass from the still warm cinnamon roll. Marie accepted it with a smile.

  “Did you make this?”

  “Well, my mom did,” Maisey said with a shrug. “Stopped home just in time to grab one.”

  “You didn’t sleep at home?” Marie asked. She wasn’t sure how she was going to eat the cinnamon roll in the car, but still carried it with her as they walked back to Maisey’s car.

  “No, I stayed the night at the farm,” Maisey said with a shrug. “Wanted to make sure everything was okay with Luc. Plus, I mean, spending the night with Tobias is always nice.”

  Marie’s cheeks warmed idiotically at the implication, one she quickly pushed past. “How’s Luc?”

  “When I left, Mama Barnes was teaching her how to make biscuits,” Maisey said. “Tobias is going to try and keep her occupied today, I think, and go back for more of her stuff. She’s doing all right.”

  “That’s good,” Marie said with a nod. She wanted to ask if Luc had said anything else about her, but kept the words from her lips. It just wasn’t a good idea to ask.

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  “I really wouldn’t take what she said personally,” Maisey said, as though reading Marie’s mind. “Luc has issues accepting help from anyone.”

  “She accepted help from Tobias.”

  “Under great protest, yeah,” Maisey said. “It doesn’t help that you’re… you.”

  Marie’s face scrunched into a frown. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “You’re all… perfect and intimidating and think you can just throw money around to fix problems. Which, yes, that’s what money is for, but to Luc, that just looks like pity.”

  Marie sucked in a breath. Maybe getting her father to find an apartment for Luc wasn’t a great idea. It had just felt like the least she could do.

  Maisey side eyed her from the driver’s seat. “What did you do?”

  “I asked my father to get an apartment for her…”

  A sigh slipped from Maisey’s lips before she shrugged. “I can’t say I wouldn’t have done the same if I could,” she said. “And she definitely needs a place to live before she decides to bolt from the farm. I doubt we’d be able to keep her there forever.”

  “How are we going to get her to take it?” Marie asked.

  “Well, we can’t tell her you had anything to do with it. That does make getting her to take it kind of complicated though.”

  “Does it help that it’s technically a job?” Marie asked. “I thought that might make it easier.”

  “Oh, that was a good idea,” Maisey said.

  “I thought so,” Marie agreed. “I asked my dad to make it so that only Luc can see the job listing.”

  They pulled up outside of the commission building, parking in a free spot out front. Maisey didn’t make a move to get out of the car, eyes wandering in thought. “That might make her suspicious. I mean, she obviously knows who your dad is.”

  Marie winced. “I hadn’t thought about that.”

  “Doesn’t mean it’s a terrible idea,” Maisey said. “But maybe… can your dad make it so only the three of us can see the job listing? And we can bring it up to Luc. Actually, probably better if I bring it up to Luc. And we just never mention that you were involved.”

  Marie nodded along. “So long as I can help Luc, I don’t care if she knows. Honestly, it would be better if she didn’t.”

  “Yeah,” Maisey said with a laugh. “Then, you’re free and clear to just be the supportive girlfriend, not the meddling girlfriend. Being the meddling girlfriend is my thing anyway.”

  Heat flushed across Marie’s face, a tingle dancing across her skin. “Girlfriend?”

  Maisey’s eyes twinkled with amusement as she spoke. “That’s the goal, isn’t it?”

  “Shut up,” Marie snapped, swinging the car door open. “I just want to get to know her.”

  Maisey popped the car door open to shout after her. “In bed!”

  “Shut up!”

  Her laughter followed Marie to the front door of the commission, where she stopped to wait for her friend to catch up. The girl was still giggling as they walked inside, greeting the secretary at the front counter before making their way over to one of the prep rooms the commission provided. Normally, they’d have to request one, but they all knew Marie, and nobody stopped her as she opened one up.

  The room was simple. A screen filled one wall, a tablet docked next to it. Maisey frowned as they entered.

  “I thought we were going to be trying on clothes.”

  “Well, you are, and you’re not,” Marie said. “Step here.”

  She pushed Maisey onto the dot marked in the middle of the floor, grinned at the girl, then walked over to the tablet. It powered on as she undocked it and pressed a familiar button.

  A light shot out from the larger screen, scanning the girl in one huge beam.

  “Now turn,” Marie inspected, and Maisey did as she was told, spinning in place for the light to scan her again. The beam disappeared back into the wall and a one-to-one recreation of Maisey appeared on the massive screen.

  “What now?” Maisey asked, turning to Marie skeptically.

  “Now, we go through our options,” Marie said, holding up the tablet and revealing a near endless variety of clothing to go through and design her magical girl outfit.

  Maisey took the tablet from her hands, smiling from cheek to cheek. “I’ve wanted to do this ever since I watched Clueless,” she said, and clicked on a skirt. It replaced Maisey’s own skirt on the screen, a price popping up beside it. Her grin only widened.

  They stayed in the room for hours, going through so many options they began to blur. Some were just for fun, others far more practical.

  Marie sighed as Maisey switched the shoes on the outfit she’d been considering for the better part of an hour. If Marie had to describe it, she’d say it was very… sexy librarian. Odd, but it fit Maisey, and wasn’t the strangest outfit Marie had ever seen. Tiny black knit skirt, a cropped, low cut sweater, and a cardigan overtop, as though that would do something to combat the amount of skin she was showing.

  “Bored?” Maisey asked, gaze flicking her way.

  “No,” Marie said with a quick shake of her head. “I was just thinking of getting Luc in here.”

  Maisey laughed. “We absolutely should,” she said. “She needs a makeover.”

  “That’s what I said, and she got mad.”

  “Of course she did. Just give her time, I’m sure we’ll wear her down. And when we do, we’ll dress her up like a doll and have a great time with it.”

  The idea danced through Marie’s mind, bringing a faint smirk to her lips. “I can’t wait.”

  “So what do you think?” Maisey asked, nodding at her outfit. “Too much? Not enough?”

  Marie stared at it for a moment before taking the tablet back from the girl, selecting one more option. A pair of glasses, far more functional than they were fashionable, but it really completed the look. And they’d let Maisey see anything magic made invisible.

  “There,” Marie said, satisfied. “Perfect.”

  “You’re a genius.”

  “I know.”

  sexy librarian for a chapter, but there's a first time for everything I guess)