Outmatched witch, p.1
Outmatched Witch, page 1
OUTMATCHED WITCH
MISS MATCHED MIDLIFE DATING AGENCY
BOOK THREE
DEANNA CHASE
BAYOU MOON PRESS, LLC
Copyright © 2022 by Deanna Chase
Editing: Angie Ramey
Cover image: © Ravven
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in, or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the publisher of this book.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locals, business establishments, or persons, living or dead, are entirely coincidental.
Bayou Moon Press, LLC
www.deannachase.com
Printed in the United States of America
CONTENTS
About This Book
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Deanna’s Book List
About the Author
ABOUT THIS BOOK
A paranormal women's fiction novel
Just as Marion Matched’s relationship is heating up and her business is exploding with clients, her estranged sister, Charlotte, shows up after accidentally unleashing an unlawful curse on all the men down at the local bar. With treatment resistant acne and erectile dysfunction the new norm for most of the men in town, matchmaking in Premonition Pointe has more challenges than ever. Now, with her sister living with her, Marion not only has to come to terms with their strained relationship, but she needs to help Charlotte find a way to reverse the curse before her business goes under or the law comes knocking.
When it turns out there’s something more evil lurking than just an accidental curse, the two sisters end up facing past traumas that threaten to break them both. The lives they’ve started to build in Premonition Pointe are on the line, and now they’ll have to learn to work together or else they face losing everything…including their new sisterly bond that neither ever saw coming.
CHAPTER 1
The little brown and black mini chihuahua darted across my house into the dining room, straight toward my boyfriend, Jax, her high-pitched bark piercing my eardrums.
“Minx, baby,” Charlotte, my red-headed half sister cooed. “Come here. I have a treat for you.”
Minx ignored her owner and promptly jumped up into Jax’s lap, growling at him with her teeth bared.
“Holy hell,” Ty, the young man I thought of as a son, muttered, running a hand through his dark locks.
“You can say that again,” Kennedy, his partner, added.
“Ahh, she’s cute, as long as she doesn’t eat his face off,” Aunt Lucy said.
My father, his girlfriend Tazia, and Aunt Lucy’s boyfriend, Gael, all looked on the scene with wide eyes. We’d been at the end of a family dinner when my half sister, Charlotte, had suddenly arrived, uninvited and without warning.
“Now be nice, baby,” Charlotte said in a patient tone as she eyed her pup lovingly. “We don’t want to overstay our welcome in the first five minutes.”
Jax glanced at me and then down at the pup, who had her paws on his chest and was acting as if she was going to rip his nose off.
“Charlotte, can you get your dog before she bites Jax,” I said, moving toward them.
“Oh, she’s all bark and no bite,” Charlotte said, flipping her long red locks over one shoulder. “Don’t worry about it.”
“That’s easy for you to say,” Jax said, leaning back to keep clear of the small dog’s muzzle. His dark eyes were weary as he watched her.
“Just put her down.” Charlotte moved into the kitchen and made herself right at home as she opened the cupboard and pulled out a chocolate bar I had stashed away for emergencies. She ripped it open, took a bite, and closed her eyes in obvious pleasure as the chocolate hit her tongue.
Jax reached out to the dog still snarling on his lap, but Minx lunged for his hand, barely missing taking one of his fingers off. “Son of a bitch,” he muttered, eyeing the dog warily.
“Charlotte!” I cried as I reached for Minx.
The dog squatted, and before I could rescue Jax, she peed right there in his lap.
“Fuck!” He stood abruptly just as I snatched the tiny creature into my arms.
“I’m so sorry, Jax,” I said, holding the dog as she snuggled happily into my chest as if she hadn’t just tried to eat my boyfriend.
He glared at Charlotte and then stalked off to my bedroom.
“Well, that was quite the entrance,” my father said mildly.
The rest of my family all nodded in agreement.
“Hi, Pops,” Charlotte said, all smiles, not a hint of remorse in her demeanor. “You know me. I do love to put on a show.”
“Charlotte,” my dad said with a nod. He had a tiny smile on his face as if he were amused. A spark of anger ignited in my gut. Shouldn’t he be pissed as hell? He’d done everything for her, and the minute she turned eighteen, she’d walked out, never looking back. As far as I knew, she only called him on his birthday and Christmas. It wasn’t much gratitude for the man who’d treated her as his own. Where had she been when he had a cancer scare? Or when he suffered a broken leg in that car accident and needed someone to look after him for two months while he couldn’t walk?
I turned to glare at my sister. She was wearing a brilliant red silk blouse that showed off her generous cleavage and a pair of painted-on jeans with the cutest red and black Mary Jane heels. “What are you doing here, Charlotte?”
She lifted her head and met my gaze. Disappointment flashed in her eyes before she straightened her shoulders and asked, “Do I need a reason to visit my only sister?”
“No, but since it’s been quite some time, I’d have thought you might call first,” I said, trying to sound diplomatic. It had been ten years since I’d heard from Charlotte. I wasn’t even sure how she knew where I lived now, though it was likely Dad had told her the last time they’d talked.
“It’s been too long, don’t you think? I was in the area and just decided to surprise you.” She held out her arms, taking Minx, who was now squirming to break free of my hold. “But if it’s a problem, Minx and I can find a hotel room.” She frowned. “Do you know any pet friendly hotels in this town?”
I closed my eyes, trying to tame my frustration with her.
“Marion wouldn’t send you to a hotel,” my dad said, giving me a look that conveyed everything I needed to know. If I sent her away, he was going to have words with me.
If I was an evil child, I’d suggest she go to his house. Except he lived with my aunt Lucy, and subjecting my favorite aunt to my sister’s whirlwind of chaos wasn’t something I’d do.
“Of course not,” I said. “The guest room is free.”
Charlotte grinned at me. “Minx and I are grateful.”
“You should be,” I muttered to myself.
“What was that?” Charlotte narrowed her eyes, clearly having heard what I’d said.
“I said, does Minx want a cookie?” I pulled open a drawer where I kept treats for Ty and Kennedy’s dog, Paris Francine, and waved the bag in her direction.
“Oh, no thank you. Minx has a delicate stomach. She only eats all organic, homemade treats that I get at the barkery.”
I held back a snort. If they were sold at a barkery, then by definition, those treats weren’t homemade.
Minx whimpered as I put the bag back in the drawer.
“Sorry, baby,” I said to the pup. “I tried.”
Charlotte let out an exaggerated sigh. “Now she’s going to pout all night unless I give her one.”
“So, give her one?” Ty said as he and Kennedy stood and started making their way toward me.
“She has to wait until tomorrow. We don’t want to ruin her figure, now do we, Minx?” Charlotte held her dog up and made smooching noises at her.
I did my best to contain my eyeroll.
Ty had no such reservations and was clearly holding back a chuckle when he gave me a kiss on the cheek and told me that he and Kennedy were headed out to the studio apartment for the evening. After Kennedy gave me a hug, the two quickly disappeared out the front door. Aunt Lucy and Gael followed.
As Lucy gave me a hug goodbye, she whispered, “Call me later to fill me in on the drama.”
I promised her a full report, and once they were gone, that left me, Charlotte, Dad, and Tazia. Jax still hadn’t reappeared from my bedroom.
“Charlotte,” Dad said, using his Dad tone. The one that as a child had always made me straighten up and step back into line. “What aren’t you telling us?”
She gave him a look that screamed, who, me?
He raised one eyebrow. It would’ve been enough to make me spill all my secrets. But this was Charlotte. E
Charlotte’s cheeks turned pink as she averted her gaze. “I… um, well, it appears I need some help.”
“With what?” I asked, narrowing my eyes at her.
“That curse I accidentally unleashed on the men down at Hallucinations.” She bit her bottom lip as she grimaced, trying, and failing, to seem innocent.
I let out an exaggerated sigh and took a seat at the table, pressing my fingertips to my temples to try to mitigate the headache that was forming. “Why were you cursing anyone, let alone a bar full of men?”
“I didn’t mean to curse them,” she said, flopping down beside me. “I was trying to cast a love spell on one man in particular and then…” Her lips turned down into the pout she’d perfected as a teenager. The one that always got her out of trouble with everyone, including my father. Well, everyone except me. I saw it for what it was.
Charlotte had always used her charm and good looks to get herself out of a bind. And more often than not, I’d been the one left to pick up the pieces behind her. It was after I’d stopped putting her life together for her that she’d pulled away from us.
“A love spell? Really?” I said. “You know those never work the way you want them to.”
Dad frowned, showing his disapproval, but he didn’t say anything as Charlotte raised her hands, palms up, as if to say, oops.
Minx jumped out of her mother’s lap and into mine. She promptly rested her head on my chest and stared up at me adoringly. My heart melted right then and there. It didn’t matter that her first impression had been to have an accident on Jax. In that moment, she had me wrapped around her paw with those big eyes and her sweet expression.
“Traitor,” Charlotte said under her breath as she eyed her dog.
“She’s brilliant,” I said, scratching her ear. The dog melted against me, and I was pretty sure I’d just made a friend for life.
“She is the sweetest,” Tazia added, smiling at us. She was holding Dad’s hand and watching us carefully.
“And who might you be?” Charlotte asked, her tone curious but also laced with a bit of suspicion.
“Char, this is Tazia,” Dad said. “She and I are dating.”
“Oh.” Charlotte pursed her lips. “Really? Dating?”
“They are dating. Really,” I said, letting Dad off the hook. No doubt Charlotte was wondering just how serious Dad could be, considering his past dating history. Once Mom had left us all, he’d been a serial dater, never committing to anyone, no matter how right they might be for him. After all this time, he was finally giving it a shot with Tazia.
“That’s great,” Charlotte said, sounding like she meant it. Then she turned to me and held her hands out. “Can I have my dog back please?”
I reluctantly handed the tiny pooch over.
“It’s nice that you came to Premonition Pointe,” Tazia told Charlotte. “Something tells me that you and Marion could use some time together.”
I studied the woman across from me. Her auburn hair was pulled up into a messy bun, and she was wearing a peasant top with a flowy skirt. She often looked like she’d just walked off the pages of a fashion magazine from the 1970s. Tonight was no different. But what one didn’t usually notice at first glance was that she was a seer of sorts. She sometimes just knew things. The fact that she thought Charlotte and I should be spending time together, made me a bit nervous.
“Tazia,” I said. “What’s that mean exactly?”
“Yeah, I’d like to know, too,” Charlotte added with a small frown.
Dad leaned across the table and said, “Tazia is a bit clairvoyant. When she talks, it’s good to listen.”
Charlotte looked at Tazia with renewed interest. “Yes, Tazia, tell us what you meant when you said Marion and I should spend time together.”
She smirked at us. “That’s not for me to say, but I will add that it looks like the two of you are in for a wild ride. I can’t wait to see this.”
“We always are,” I said, not bothering to keep the exasperation out of my tone.
Charlotte scoffed. “Please. You act like it’s always my fault that things don’t go as planned.”
“Isn’t it?” I raised my eyebrows and stared at her pointedly.
“Hell no.” She crossed her arms over her chest. “What about that time we took that trip just before my eighteenth birthday? We ended up stranded outside of Las Vegas with a bad alternator because you told the mechanic that he and his girlfriend wouldn’t last three weeks. And if that wasn’t bad enough, you went on to suggest he should be dating one of his coworkers.”
“Hey, that was all true,” I insisted, though she had a point. I’d learned to keep my mouth shut after that. It wasn’t my place to blow up relationships just because I could see if people were compatible or not.
“His coworker was a guy. Neither of them were ready to open that closet door,” she said, shaking her head.
“Fine,” I conceded. “You’re right. I should have kept all that to myself.” No one had asked my opinion. “Though I’ll have you know that I did hear from them a few years later, and that guy and his coworker did finally get together. It took them a few years, but in the end it worked out.”
“Sure it did. Marion always knows best,” she said under her breath.
I ignored the dig. Charlotte saw me as the bossy big sister, and I saw her as the flighty, irresponsible little sister. It wasn’t like either dynamic would change any time soon. After a few seconds, I looked over at her. “Tell me about this curse. What happened, exactly?”
Charlotte stared down at her dog and concentrated on petting her. The fact that she was averting my gaze was very telling. She wasn’t one for contrition unless she’d done something serious.
“Char?” my dad said. “Tell us everything.”
Charlotte closed her eyes for a long beat. When she opened them, she had a determined expression on her face. “I’ve been seeing someone casually for about a month, and I like him a lot, but he’s been really hard to read. You know, the type that takes you out, acts interested, but then goes radio silent for days on end. So I figured I’d hit him with a temporary love spell, just to speed things along a bit.”
“You’ve been here for a month, and you just now stopped by?” I asked, more annoyed by that than the alleged curse.
“No.” She scowled. “Why do you always think the worst of me?” Shaking her head, she added, “Never mind. I met him in Portland. He just moved down here, and I figured I’d come visit him and you. I got in yesterday.”
I wasn’t sure I believed her, but that was plausible. Unless the guy she’d been seeing cut her off after he realized he’d been cursed.
“Did the love spell work?” Tazia asked, though I could tell by her expression that she already knew the answer.
Charlotte shook her head.
“You said it was a curse,” I reminded her. “How is that possible if you just cast a love spell?”
“I have no idea.” She blew out a frustrated breath. “One minute I was leaning in for a kiss, and the next, Eli broke out in the worst case of acne I’ve ever seen. I mean, we’re talking worse than a teenager with raging hormones.” She visibly shuddered.
“Acne fades,” I said, trying to be diplomatic.
“I hope so, because it wasn’t just Eli. I gave it to every man in the bar. But that’s not the worst part.” Charlotte covered her face with both hands as she shook her head.
I shared a concerned look with my father. Neither of us had ever seen her like this. When she messed up as a teenager, she just shrugged it off without a care in the world. This time, though, she seemed worried. “Dare I ask, what’s the worst part?”
