Sleaze on the Beach Read online

  Sleaze on the Beach

  by

  Sara Bourgeois

  Chapter One

  “Hold still,” Starla said to Presto as Blossom lit the candles. “I’m pretty sure this won’t hurt.”

  “Much,” Blossom said with a wink and a laugh.

  “Don’t forget that you’re turning me back into one of the most powerful witches that ever lived. Perhaps you both shouldn’t tease me,” Presto said.

  “Maybe we should just leave you in there,” Blossom said. “If you’re such a powerful witch, get yourself out of your pickle.”

  “Enough you two,” Starla said with a huff. “Let’s get started, okay?”

  “I’m still not exactly sure what I am supposed to do,” Kane said.

  “You just follow our lead and stand where you’re supposed to stand,” Blossom said.

  “I’ll say the chant first, and then Blossom will repeat it. After that, you say it,” Starla said.

  “And that’s going to turn the cat into a person?”

  “Not exactly. Damek is trapped inside Presto. Presto is still a cat. So, we’re going to separate the two of them.”

  “What’s going to happen to the cat?” Kane asked.

  “We’re not sure. Its life has been unnaturally preserved by Damek’s presence in him, but we’re hoping Presto will get to live out the rest of the days he had left before Damek was stuffed into his mind.”

  “Nothing but trouble,” Kane said. “You’re nothing but trouble.”

  “I thought that’s what you liked about me,” Starla said with a wry smile.

  “No, it’s what I love about you.”

  “Oh my goddess. I’m going to puke,” Blossom said. “Can you guys cut it out before I lose my lunch.”

  “Right?” Presto said. “I hope I’m never in love so that I’m never that stupid.”

  “I’m pretty sure you never have to worry about that,” Blossom said.

  Everyone but Presto cracked up.

  “Okay, seriously, guys. Let’s get started. Take your places,” Starla said.

  She placed Presto in the center of the stone circle, and the other two witches went to their spots. Presto settled down into the sand and his tail swished back and forth. He looked back with a hint of disgust at the fluffy appendage. It was now full of sand, and that was abysmal, but the witch inside, Damek Dred, knew the sandy fur was about to be someone, or something, else’s problem. So he swished away.

  “We call this circle at the pleasure of the goddess above,” Starla said. “I enter it with love and light in my heart. How do you enter?” she asked as she turned toward Blossom.

  “We call this circle at the pleasure of the goddess above. I enter it with love and light in my heart. How do you enter?” Blossom asked as she turned to face Kane.

  He took a deep breath and looked at Starla. “We call this circle at the pleasure of the goddess above.” He stumbled through the line but made it without completely faltering. “I enter it with love and light in my heart.”

  “So mote it be,” Starla said, and the others repeated “So mote it be.”

  The ritual lasted about ten minutes, and Kane eventually relaxed. Starla watched him become more comfortable with his role in the circle, and she began to wonder if they really could start a coven. Four wasn’t necessarily the best number to work with. Sure, it was good for calling the corners, but she’d much rather have five, seven, or thirteen. Thirteen would be amazing, and thirty-one would make them practically unstoppable. But she’d gotten ahead of herself. They were four, about to be five, and she’d have to find a way to make do. Five was the number of the pentacle. Starla knew she could work with five.

  As they finished the chant, a cloud of blue swirling vapor rose from the sea and drifted to the center of the circle. It danced around Presto and then enveloped him. The neon of the blue grew brighter, and in seconds, they could no longer see the cat.

  Thunder crashed from invisible clouds and stars fell as Starla held her breath in anticipation. In her peripheral vision, she could see a mermaid emerge from the water and then watch from the beach. It was almost impossible to look away from the magnificently beautiful woman, but Starla managed to turn her attention back to her workings.

  The cerulean light around Presto began to dissipate as if it were evaporating into the dark. As the magic mist cleared, it became apparent there was nothing in the center of the circle. It was just Presto sitting there. Starla’s shoulder’s slumped.

  “I don’t think it worked,” she said.

  “No way. There is no way it’s going to end this way. This is so lame,” Blossom said.

  “What’s lame?” a deep voice asked from behind one of the stones.

  Just then, a man with long, black hair, dressed in leather pants and a black linen shirt, stepped from the darkness. He had a warm aura about him, and there was an intense power radiating from that aura. Blossom gasped when she saw Damek for the first time. Starla had to admit he was easy on the eyes, but it was Blossom who was instantly smitten.

  “Wow,” Blossom said after a heavy sigh. Damek crossed the distance between them, pulled Blossom into his embrace, and kissed her hard on the lips.

  “You are the most infuriating woman I’ve ever met, but I’ve wanted to do that since I first laid eyes on you,” Damek said, and Blossom nearly fainted.

  “I… uh… I don’t know what to say,” Blossom sputtered. “You know what; I do know. Kiss me again, just like that.” And he did. When they finally came up for air, Starla and Kane were waiting patiently.

  “Sorry, guys,” Blossom said. Her face was bright red, and she was breathing hard.

  “I’m not,” Damek said. “Damek Dred. A pleasure to meet you all.”

  “I’m pretty sure that we’ve met before,” Starla said with a laugh. “Just not like that.”

  “I apologize for taking liberties with Blossom, but I have been completely infatuated with her from the start,” he said and looked at Blossom. “In all my years on this earth, I have never met a woman who made me feel the way you do.”

  Starla bit her lip to stifle a chuckle when she saw Kane roll his eyes. She elbowed him softly, and he wrapped his arm around her waist.

  Presto the cat, who had become just a cat, rubbed himself against Starla’s legs and meowed. She looked down and smiled at him before scooping him up and holding her familiar against her chest.

  “I still love you, Presto. Even if you don’t have the spirit of a hundreds-of-years-old witch inside of you anymore,” Starla said. “Speaking of which. Damek, how did you get a body?”

  “I don’t know. You freed me from the cat, and here I am,” he said. “And you know what, as you pointed out, I haven’t had a body for hundreds of years, so now I want to use it. Is anybody up for a moonlit swim?”

  “Do you think it’s safe?” Blossom asked. “It hasn’t been that long since the storm hit. Is it safe to go in the water?”

  That was about the time that Starla remembered there was a mermaid standing on the beach watching them. She turned to look, and the stunning redhead was still there.

  “Uh, guys. I think we have a visitor,” Starla said. “Hello,” she called out to the woman.

  The mermaid waved back at her, but she did not take a step forward. Starla didn’t pick up the vibe that the woman meant them any harm, so she decided she’d go down to the beach.

  “Come on. Let’s go see why she’s here,” Starla said.

  The group crossed the few hundred feet to the spot on the beach where the mermaid waited. She smiled sweetly as they approached, and Starla noted that the closer they got, the more relaxed she felt.

  “I’m sorry to intrude,” the mermaid said. “I was just swimming close to the i
sland and I felt the magic. It was powerful stuff, and I couldn’t resist taking a peek.”

  “It’s okay,” Starla said. “I’m Starla. This is Blossom, Kane, and Damek.” She pointed to each of her friends. “I’ve never met a mermaid before.”

  “I’ve never really met a witch before either. We weren’t allowed to talk to you before. Most of the others are still kind of afraid, but I don’t think you guys are scary at all,” she said. “I’m Noelani. You can call me Noel for short if you like.”

  “It’s good to meet you, Noel,” Starla said.

  “Noel!!!” a voice called from the water. “What on earth are you doing?”

  “I have to go,” Noel said sadly. “I’m sorry. My people don’t understand yet, but I’m sure that they will soon.”

  “Will you come back another time and visit us?” Blossom asked.

  “Tomorrow night. I’ll come here again,” she said and turned to run back into the water.

  “Well, that was interesting,” Kane said.

  “I wish she could have stayed longer. I have so many questions,” Starla admitted. “I want to know all about them.”

  “You’ll get another chance,” Kane replied. “You can come back tomorrow night and meet with her again.”

  “I’ll come too,” Blossom added.

  “That’s a good idea. It could be an ambush,” Kane said.

  “Why would the mermaids ambush us?” Starla asked.

  “I don’t know. You’re the one who said you didn’t know anything about them.”

  “That’s a good point,” Starla agreed.

  Chapter Two

  “Damek and Blossom appear to be content at the beach, would you like to have a cup of coffee with me?” Kane asked.

  “Sure, that’ sounds great. Maybe they’ll have some croissants left too.” Starla responded.

  Not many people drank coffee on the island, but there was one coffee shop near the hospital. It stayed open late for the hospital employees, but the dining area would be a ghost town at that time of night.

  Kane knew that he and Starla could sit in a booth and have a quiet talk without much disruption. If they took a table in the back corner, they wouldn’t even be interrupted by the doctors and nurses coming in for a latte to go.

  “Sure,” Starla said. “Can you drive me to my house first so I can drop off Presto? I don’t think they’ll let me bring him into Magic Beans.”

  “Yeah, I can do that.”

  They walked back to his car and Kane opened the door for Starla. “Such a gentleman,” she said.

  “Not all of us are troublemakers, you know,” he said and gave her a wink.

  They drove to Starla’s house with the windows down. The cool evening sea breeze danced through Starla’s hair, and she inhaled the salty scent deeply. She’d hated Clownfish Cay when she’d first arrived, but now she could see and feel that it was paradise. There was a constant vibration in the air that wasn’t quite magic, but it was the thing that came before magic. It was primordial and elemental. The longer Starla spent on the island, the more intensely she could feel it.

  She’d almost allowed herself to be lulled into a trance state, but her positive vibes were about to be interrupted. When they arrived at her house, the front door was halfway open. “Stay in the car,” Kane said.

  He got in the trunk and retrieved his badge and gun. Starla rolled down the window. “Kane, wait. I can stay in the car, but I think that my magic is a better way to protect us than a gun.”

  “I’m not taking a chance. And maybe don’t announce that whole M-A-G-I-C thing to the entire neighborhood.”

  Starla rolled her eyes at him and then rolled up the window. She figured fine, if he wanted to go all Alpha male on her again, he could watch his own back.

  She had that attitude for about two seconds before deciding with a huff that he needed her protection more than she needed his. Starla opened the door and got out. She set Presto on the ground and summoned a protective shield around herself and the cat. Once she was closer to Kane, she wrapped him up in a bubble of magic too.

  “I told you to stay in the car,” he said when she walked through the front door.

  “I’m trouble,” she said. “I can’t help it.”

  He grunted. “I’m going to check your bedroom and bathroom.”

  She watched as he made his way down the hallway. A few seconds later, Starla heard him call out.

  “All clear,” Kane said. “There’s no one in the house. You should take a look around to see if anything was stolen. I’m going to run out to my car to get the paperwork.”

  “Okay. I’m so sorry,” Starla said.

  “For what?”

  “Because, I know you’re joking when you say I’m trouble, but it’s true. When I think about everything that has gone wrong since I’ve been here…”

  “Oh Starla,” Kane said.

  He crossed the room and pulled her into his arms. “Don’t talk like that. You’re trouble for sure,” Kane said and kissed her. “But none of what’s happened is your fault in any way.”

  “How do you know that?”

  “Because I’m a witch too,” he said. “I’ve got instincts. Whatever is going on around here has nothing to do with you. It’s either a coincidence that you showed up when it started, or we’re lucky that you’re here. Actually, when I think about it, we’re lucky either way.”

  “Why?”

  “Because we’ve got you to help protect and care for us. I talk a big game, but I know how powerful you are. I can feel it.”

  “It doesn’t feel like it. My powers are back, but it’s nothing like in the past,” Starla said.

  “Give it some time, sweetie.”

  Kane went outside to get the forms he needed to fill out. Starla walked around the house with Presto in tow. Knowing that someone had been in her house made Starla feel violated.

  She went to her bedroom closet and pulled out her chest of magical items. Since her magic was back, she’d taken it out of storage. It only took her a moment of rummaging to find the sage smudge stick she’d been looking for.

  Starla went back to the kitchen and used a burner to light the sage. She began walking around the house waving the delicate smoke through the air.

  “Whoa. Whoa. Whoa,” Kane said when he came back in. “Just because you’re a witch doesn’t mean you can smoke that stuff.”

  Starla laughed.

  “Thank goodness you got that awful mage out of me.”

  Kane raised his gun. “Who was that?”

  “Kane, put your gun away,” Starla said.

  He followed her eyes down to the cat seated at her feet. Presto sat there licking his paw and swiping it over his ear casually.

  “I really can’t thank you enough. That witch was insufferable,” Presto said.

  “Presto?” Starla asked as she knelt in front of the cat.

  “Starla?”

  “Oh gosh.” She pressed her fingertips to her lips. “All that time, you were trapped in there behind Damek.”

  “Tell me about it. No, wait; you don’t need to tell me about it. I’ve been stuck in there for centuries.”

  “So, are you a witch or wizard?”

  “No,” Presto said. “I’m your familiar. I’m supposed to be the familiar for your family going back generations, but I’ve been stuck on mute.”

  “The cat still talks,” Kane grumped.

  “Kane. Come on.” Starla shot him the look.

  “He’s just mad because he doesn’t have a familiar to talk to him,” Presto said and then jumped onto the coffee table. “You guys got any tuna.”

  “Canned?” Starla asked.

  “Fresh.”

  “Oh great; the cat is a diva,” Kane said. He thought about it for a moment and made his decision when he glimpsed the hopeful look on Starla’s face. “Alright, let’s go get the talking cat some fresh tuna.”

  “Really?” Starla asked.

  “Well, he’s been stuck in there for centur
ies. We can get him some fish. The market is probably still open. Thomas, the owner, expanded his hours after the storm. As far as I know, he hasn’t started closing up early yet.”

  A big, goofy grin spread across Starla’s face. “You’re a huge softy,” she teased. “And you’re totally a cat person.”

  “You’re going to make me regret this, aren’t you?” Kane started off sounding gruff, but he couldn’t help the grin that turned up the corners of his mouth.

  “Presto, will you be alright while we run to the store?”

  Presto just looked at her blankly. For a moment, she thought perhaps she’d imagined that her familiar had been talking to her. Then, Starla realized the cat thought she was stupid.

  “Let’s go,” Kane said and took her hand.

  Thomas, the shopkeeper, was locking up when they arrived, but he let them in and sold the couple a tuna steak. “It’s best to get the fish sold while it’s fresh anyway. I would like to make it quick, though. My daughter is walking from her job at the Hen’s Diner to meet me. I don’t like to keep her waiting in the dark.”

  He wrapped the tuna in plastic and white paper, took Kane’s money, and promptly locked the door behind them after their exit. With a wave, Kane and Starla got back in the car to take Presto his very expensive dinner.

  “Do we have to cook it?” Kane asked as they pulled into Starla’s driveway.

  “I don’t think so. Good thing we can ask him,” she said and hopped out of the car before Kane could come around and get her door.

  “You really should let me get the door for you,” he said.

  “I can get my own car door, Orion Kane, but thank you. I’ll take it into consideration.”

  “Did you still want to go for coffee after we deliver the tuna to your talking cat?”

  “You know what, Mister Man? It was your idea to go out and get Presto the fish, so don’t go getting all salty with me,” she said and stuck her tongue out at him as they walked to her front door. “How about a walk on the beach? Then maybe we can hit up one of the tourist bars for some mozzarella sticks. The tourists are starting to trickle back in after the storm, but I’m sure the local businesses could use our support.”