Wicked by Any Other Name

Stasi Romanov uses just a little witch magic in her lingerie shop, running a brisk side business in love charms. A disgruntled customer threatening to sue over a failed love spell brings Trevor Barnes to town. Trevor's the best attorney around, and he just happens to be a wizard. Everyone knows that witches and wizards make a volatile combination--sure enough, the sparks fly and almost everyone's getting singed. Add to that Cupid playing a practical joke, a lunar eclipse that nearly precipitates a witch hunt, and some very mysterious goings on at the magical lake, and the feisty witch and gorgeous wizard have more than simply a possible lawsuit on their hands. Can they overcome their objections and settle out of court--and in the bedroom? PRAISE FOR LINDA WISDOM'S 50 WAYS TO HEX YOUR LOVER: "Bless Jazz Tremaine's witchy, Prada-loving heart--she's captured mine! A series that's pure magic!" --Vicki Lewis Thompson, New York Times bestselling author of Wild & Hexy "Do not miss this wickedly entertaining treat!" Annette Blair, Sex and the Psychic Witch "Ready for a book that will make you laugh?" Simply Romance Reviews "With loads of sass and sensuality, plenty of laughs, and a host of oddball characters who'll leave you in stitches and asking for more." Book Loons "Clever writing, a high sensuality factor, and an unfettered imagination.' Publishers Weekly "Filled with loads of sass and sensuality, plenty of laughs, and a host of oddball characters who'll leave you in stitches and asking for more.' Book Loons "Jazz is a heroine I'd want to hang out with, and 50 Ways to Hex Your Lover is a funny, wild ride.' Candace Havens, Charmed and Dangerous "A high-power keg of excitement.' Coffee Time Romance

<p>Excerpt from Chapter 1</p><p>"Can you believe this absolute nonsense? I"m being sued!" Stasi stormed into Blast from the Past with the force of a Category 5 hurricane. She held up a sheaf of papers that looked suspiciously like ancient papyrus with lines of gilded lettering streaming across it. The large, embossed seal stamped at the bottom made it official. "And in Wizards" Court, no less!" </p><p>"Uh, Stasi, love, I have customers." Blair"s gaze darted to the four people prowling her shop, who were now looking at Stasi with fascination. Blair"s shop specialized in authentic retro items, from a 1940s Madame Alexander doll to a 1950s chrome table and tie-dyed clothing from the 1960s. It was easy for Blair to keep a varied inventory when her sister witches tended to clean out their closets of personal treasures every so often and were happy to have Blair sell them on consignment.</p><p>She quickly held up her hands. "Freeze frame, make it so!" She moved swiftly toward one woman who had frozen in the process of returning a tall Warner Bros. Roadrunner glass to the shelf, grabbing the glass just as it slipped from the woman"s fingers. She placed it carefully among the other glasses and turned to Stasi.</p><p>Stasi"s mid-length sunny brown hair flared around her with a life of its own as she stomped to the rear of the shop. She pulled herself up to sit on the waist-high counter and tossed the papyrus down on the polished surface. "This is insane," she snarled, staring at the parchment so hard Blair was amazed it didn"t burst into flames. "Hic!" A perfectly shaped iridescent bubble escaped her lips.</p><p>Blair stared at her best friend in amazement. Anastasia Romanov was known for her sweet, romantic temperament and calm, almost placid, demeanor. Right now she looked ready to go off into a major witchy hissy fit, as evidenced by those angry bubbles. This was not the Stasi she"d known for more than seven hundred years! Stasi hiccupped and two more bubbles floated into the room. "Now isn"t the time to get the hiccups! Take a breath," Blair ordered, running a hand through her dark auburn curls. "And tell me what is going on. Slowly!"</p><p>Stasi closed her eyes, hiccupped again (three bubbles this time), and pulled in a deep breath, then another. When she opened them, she looked a bit calmer. And when she hiccupped again, only one tiny bubble slipped out. Blair relaxed a little.</p><p>"Carrie Anderson is suing me for alienation of affection. She"s claiming it"s my fault her rotten husband didn"t come back." Dark purple sparks shot out over her head.</p><p>"Stasi, you need to calm down!" Blair said firmly. She glanced at the front door and promptly set a stay out spell on it. The last thing she needed was someone walking in to find customers playing Statue and Stasi shooting off magickal sparks. "Everyone knows Carrie"s totally delusional about things." Blair glanced at the papyrus. "Why would she sue you for alienation of affection?"</p><p>Stasi"s golden brown eyes glittered with unshed tears that had more to do with fury than sorrow. "She"s claiming that I did something to the sachet I tucked into her package that made sure her cheating, lowerthan- scum husband wouldn"t return to her and that by giving her a charm that harmed her marriage I interfered in mortal affairs. The ‘cheating and lower-than-scum" description is mine. She"s claiming he"s the love of her life and she just knows he would have come back to her if I hadn"t done something horrible to make sure he wouldn"t return. He"s, what, her fourth husband? It"s a well-known fact that every man she"s been with has been driven to cheat on her! And I"ve never made a claim that the sachets I put in the bags do anything. I make it sound like a joke that they inspire romance, and the customers love it. And it"s not as though I can do much more than that, anyway. If I did, Cupid would be on my butt faster than a flea."</p><p>"Oh yeah, he"s real protective of his job and doesn"t like anyone interfering in his field," Blair agreed.</p><p>"Like most of the people in town, Carrie knows I"m a witch and she thinks my romance sachet should have brought Kevin back to her." Stasi crossed her arms in front of her chest, a full pout on her lips. "So now she"s mad at me and wants vengeance. To top it off, she somehow persuaded a top wizard lawyer to file suit against me in Wizards" Court!"</p><p>"It can"t be done. It has to be prosecuted in Witches" Court." Blair wasn"t an attorney, but over the centuries she"d learned more than she liked about witch law.</p><p>Stasi shook her head. "Obviously it can, if that bottom-feeding wizard lawyer took the case and filed it. It would be bad enough if she"d hired that one that"s on the late night paranormal channel. Herve Rovenal will take any case to defend innocent mortals from the ones who prey on them. But she hired Trevor Barnes!" Her lip curled as she glared at the parchment again. This time a thin wisp of smoke curled up from its surface but was quickly snuffed out—not by Stasi, but by the parchment itself.</p><p>"We can"t discuss it here," Blair said. She checked the black Kit-Kat clock hanging on the wall. "It"s almost closing time anyway. I"ll herd these people out once I"ve unfrozen them and we"ll see what"s going on. Okay?"</p><p>Stasi nodded. "They"ll have another thing coming if they think I"ll put up with this insanity," she muttered, hopping off the counter. "It"s not my fault that Carrie"s husband left her! Kevin used to be a nice guy, and she treated him like dirt. I"ll make her sorry she started this." She marched to the door, which opened and closed behind her without her hand touching it or the brass bell hanging over it making a sound.</p><p>Blair quickly unfroze her customers, made a sale to a bewildered woman, and ushered the rest out before they realized what was happening.</p><p>"Girlfriend"s got a problem," Felix, the black Kit-Kat clock Blair had owned since the 1930s, announced from his spot high up on the wall. His large eyes swept from side to side as his tail swung back and forth above a sign proclaiming him Not for Sale. </p><p>"No kidding." Blair emptied the old-fashioned cash register that had once resided in Moonstone Lake"s general store back in the mid-1800s and tucked the checks, cash, and coins into a bank bag. With the spell surrounding the bag, no thief would dare try to steal it unless he wanted his hands covered in nasty itching powder that wouldn"t disappear for years. Blair Fitzpatrick took her revenge spells seriously and did the<br>utmost to protect her assets. No shoplifter would get away without some serious pain.</p>