Sometimes Strange Magic Casts the Best Spell

A Sweet End to an Odd Year
Jordan loves her job at the new spa in town, and her unusual feline companion.
But the new year looms full of loneliness.
Heather needs recovery after long years of fighting the Y2K bug.
But the loss of a beloved trinket hits hard.
Will the magic of the Hidden Springs Inn and Spa bring the fresh start they need?

Originally appeared in A Weird Holiday Season: A Holiday Anthology

An excerpt from Sometimes Strange Magic Casts the Best Spell:

Sweet Surprises in Unusual Packages


"AJ showed up like that," Suzy said, "a couple of months before our last sweet kitty left us. The vet said he might have been born with his special design. I think it makes him extra sensitive to whatever we poor humans need. Speaking of which, are you all set? Got someone to kiss at midnight? That nice Sandy who came to the Thanksgiving party, maybe?"


Jordan gently set AJ down, muttering apologies the whole time. He let out his usual high-pitched two-part meow—meeee waaaah—before he thumped toward the open door to the spa. The Fletchers swore he was a great mouser, but Jordan remained unconvinced.


This was not a cat who moved on silent little feet.


Jordan wanted to follow him instead of answering Suzie's friendly and entirely reasonable question. She was eager to send her recent dating life off to the dustbin of history exactly like this year, this century, and this thousand years.