She passed her neighbor’s house, and at the edge of the driveway, she cut across the front lawn, passing beneath the tall oak that was nearly bald from shedding its leaves—leaves that shuffled and crunched beneath her boots.

She jaunted up the front steps, and stopped on the porch, pausing long enough to find the cord to switch on the stand-up plastic pumpkin she’d set by the door for decoration. Afterward, she turned her attention to the bundle of mail hung on the hooks of her letterbox.

The post lady had secured what looked to be a stack of postcard advertisements and store circulars in a large rubber band, and at the core of the folded over bundle it was a small 4x6 shipping box with a large green “perishable” label on it. Someone had also marked the box with several red ink stamps that marked the contents “fragile”.

“Ooh, goody,” she said to no one, and slipped the box out for better inspection. She didn’t recognize the return address right away, but candle supply companies often sent her samplers, sometimes candles themselves, and sometimes scented wax chips or wicks to test out in her shop.

Once in the house, she flipped on the lights and tossed the mail in the basket on the side table. Glad to be home, she dropped her purse in the chair, kicked off her boots and slipped out of her jacket, leaving everything where it landed.

She’d turned to pick up the package when Moon padded into the room, greeting her on sight with a string of staccato meows. The gray tabby leapt up onto the arm of the couch and flexed his toes on a well-worn spot. Dara mimicked his meows for a second before she picked him up and snuggled him.

“How was your day, kitty-beast? Did you miss me?”

Moon purred, rubbing his whiskers against her chin. Dara gave him a smooch on top the head then carried the cat and the package through the house to the kitchen where she set both on the countertop.

Moon meowed at her until she opened a pouch of kitty kibble into a dish for him. She then went to the fridge and took out the container of leftovers and popped them into the microwave.

While waiting for the timer, she left Moon to his dinner, tucked the package under her arm and walked through the house, coiling her long, silvery blonde hair into a knot at her nape of her neck.

In the bathroom, she set the box on the counter and slithered out of her jeans and . After pulling off her blouse and bra, she slipped into a cotton robe, and with a wave of her hand, set her bathwater running, and lit the myriad of white lily candles around the bathtub.

The timer went off in the other room but she ignored it, leaving the chicken and potato salad to cool off in the microwave. She took a pair of cuticle scissors from her vanity table and sliced through the shipping tape on top of the package. Inside, she dug through the foam peanuts and found a small burgundy candle and an invoice. She spread out the sheet and read over it quickly.

“We welcome you to try our candle making supplies. For best scent results, please use sample prior to Halloween.”