Free Frog Hollow (Witches of Sanctuary Book 1) by Savannah Blevins

years, and the friends I made during college. I quickly skip through my life in the foster care system, because between the eight different homes I’d been placed in, not one of them had actually been a family to me. I am enthusiastic, however, to tell her about my college friends, the first people to actually accept me.
    Jade, on the other hand, wants to know about college itself. I explain that I majored in business with a minor in public relations, but I still don’t have a clue what I plan to do with it. Cari explains that many college graduates have that problem, but she is more interested in my abilities. It takes only minutes of me listing my skills to realize I need some training, especially when compared to the things Abby and Sadie can do. Seraphina promises I can catch on quickly, and we decide I should have private sessions with her three times a week until I reach my potential.
    After dinner, Seraphina, who now insists I call her Sera, and Abby offer to show me around town. Abby’s smile is too bright for this to be a normal tour. I suspect they have something else in store for me. The weather is nice, the sun has long set, and a cool breeze drifts through the busy streets, so I agree without hesitation.
    Whatever they have planned, I can’t make myself disappoint them. We walk slowly down the long sidewalks, Abby pointing out different shops and restaurants I need to check out. I’m still amazed by this town and its people.
    Sera seems to know everyone.
    Almost every person we pass stops to talk with her and stares at me from the corner of his or her eyes. The last person, a dark-haired woman around the same age as Sera, stares so intently at me that I keep walking, too uncomfortable to return her smile.
    Abby absently follows me up the street. The square is busy again but not as crowded as the night before. There isn’t any live music tonight, but I can still hear the faint sound of jazz horns from the window of a nearby shop.
    “I love this place.” I tiptoe down the edge of the sidewalk. I stop for a moment, thinking of what I want to say. “It’s simple.”
    Abby laughs behind me, skipping up to my side to throw her arm around my shoulder. “It’s home,” she says. “You probably can’t feel it yet, but you’re a southern girl at heart.”
    I laugh, imagining myself speaking with the slow drawl and elongated vowels like Abby. “At heart, maybe.”
    She purses her lips, sensing I am teasing her. “Just wait,” she says, boasting. “One of these charming southern boys will catch your heart, and you’ll never be the same again.”
    I can’t help the laugh that escapes me. Then I think of the boy on the balcony. I look over my shoulder in search of the bank, but we are too far down the street to see it. “Let’s hope,” I tell her, turning back around.
    “Come along, you two.” Sera strolls past us. “We have things to do.”
    Abby tugs my arm, still laughing at herself, and I follow her up the street. The sweet smell of peanut butter and chocolate drifts from a candy shop we pass, and I find myself skipping along next to her. I suddenly feel like a kid again, or rather a kid for the first time. “Where are we going?” I look back at the candy shop. Even with a full stomach, my mouth waters at the smell.
    “It’s a surprise,” she says, pulling me along again. “Reid’s been working on it all day.”
    “Really?” My shock is genuine. I can’t believe Reid would spend his entire day working on a something for me.
    “You sound surprised.” Sera turns around to look at me.
    I shrug, trying to stay casual. “Reid and I didn’t exactly leave on good terms last night.” Or any night, for that matter.
    “He’ll get over it,” Abby says confidently. “He always does.”
    Sera slows down, allowing us to catch up to her. She wraps her arm in mine, pulling me to her side. “Don’t worry about Reid,” she whispers. “He isn’t much for telling people how he feels, but he