Page 65 of Bargains with Benefits
“Mom used blood magic on the inn,” I said, falling farther into his waiting arms, knowing he’d bear whatever burdens I gave him. I wasn’t used to wielding magic, at least not with such intention. It hadn’t been enough to know Mom had used blood magic. I’d needed to fix it. I’d needed to cleanse, to undo everything she’d done to keep me from my fae heritage. Resting more fully against Vincent, I let my magic wander the room a final time.
His hands trailed down my arms in reassurance. The bloodmagic was gone. I still couldn’t believe she’d done it. No matter Mom’s intention, she’d taken things from me, taken a relationship with my father, and I was having a hard time reconciling that with the woman I had known.
I wished she was here to ask. From the memory, I knew she’d been trying to protect me. I could feel that as firmly as I was sure she’d felt it the day it happened, but just because Darius had let her down didn’t mean he would let the same thing happen to me.
“Darius tried to give the inn to me. I could have come here more regularly and had a job when I was ready to move to Sandrin.” I swiped a tear from my face. “She thought he would use it to control me.”
Vincent squeezed my shoulders again. “You cleansed it? Do you need to do anything else here?”
I was dead on my feet, and I so badly wanted to lie down. Cleaning up this mess left by my parents’ relationship was exhausting. Before my chin fully dipped in a nod, wind swooped me into Vincent’s arms, and he carried me down the staircase.
“I can walk,” I said half-heartedly. It must have been unconvincing because my head was leaning against his chest. He pulled me closer to him. Collapsing against him shouldn’t have felt so good, but cradled in his arms, I felt safe.
“I know you can, but you don’t have to,” he whispered.
My heart melted, and I nuzzled in farther, taking pleasure from the increasing beats of his heart. The moon’s light was still bright. His wind slipped away, unfurling from its place around me as we entered the forested part of the property. When we were at my cottage door, the wind returned, wrapping around me again as it pushed the door open and handed me a moonflower.
I smiled, smelling the flower, until Vincent set me on the couch and turned away. “Vincent.” I sat up immediately andtracked his movement. He went to the kitchen instead of the door. I was so afraid he would leave in some misplaced attempt to give me space, leave me alone with my thoughts. I’d need to process them, that was true, but they were not my immediate concern. There was nothing I could do about Mom’s choices. And I’d already taken steps to reconcile with Darius. I’d made decisions with the new information presented. I’d continue to do so in the future. All of that would take time.
The one thing I hadn’t done was discuss my feelings with Vincent.
He’d taken off his jacket, hanging it by the door. “I’m here,” he said, rolling up the sleeves on his shirt and exposing his forearms. “You look like you could use some tea. Did you say you make your own moonflower blend?” Wind swept around the flower stem in my hand, and I smiled down at it.
“There is some in the cupboard.” Now that I knew he wasn’t leaving, I slumped across the back of the couch, watching him. “They were such a mess—my parents.”
Vincent smiled softly as he continued his work, boiling water and searching my cupboards for the promised tea. His silent acknowledgment urged me to continue.
“I knew Mom didn’t like Darius, but this seemed excessive. She was so ready to see him as the villain of my story. It was a role already cast for him since he’d turned into the villain in hers.”
“He did say he didn’t protect her from the fae. I know you’ve only had glimpses of what that can be like, but imagine how my parents treated you at the restaurant…but even more direct, every day.”
I considered this. “I know she was trying to protect me, but I can’t help but wonder if she ever would have come clean about his intent. When would she have let me decide if I wanted to have a relationship with him? Now she’s gone, and I’ll never know.”
“As you said, I don’t think we can know, but it felt like you fixed whatever she did?”
“I think so.” I shrugged. “It’s also good to finally know what triggers my magic.”
He smiled. “It makes perfect sense that it was moonlight. When I saw you standing in the moat at Parkside Tavern, I thought you were a goddess of some unknown moon court. It was like the moonlight was drawn to you. I should have known then.”
My cheeks heated. “You were too confused about whether to be taken with me or angry at me to be responsible for such details.”
“You have no idea,” he replied. The water boiled, and he poured it into two mugs, adding the moonflower tea. He handed me a mug and sat with his on the other side of the couch. “Then it seems like we’re ready to feature the inn,” he said. “Which is good because Long Night is in two weeks.”
“I don’t think Darius’s deadline was real,” I said. “I think he was trying to motivate me to figure out my magic in his own way.”
He laughed. “Yes, well. Doesn’t mean we can’t still accomplish our original goal.”
I scooted closer to him on the couch. “I don’t want to use you for the thing everyone else seems to. You’re worth more to me than promoting the inn.”
He reached for my moon-touched strand of blond hair, twisting it around his finger. “I know. That’s why I want to do it for you anyway.”
I took a sip of the tea. “What about your end of our bargain?” It seems I’d been granted everything I wanted, but the opposite could be said for Vincent.
“The tip is obviously false. I’ll find another story to get into feature work.”
I pursed my lips. “Darius did say someone was doing what that tip accused him of, it just wasn’t him.”
“I noticed that, too. I’ll search more and see if there is anything else in the documents my editor gave me.” He shrugged, and his dark gaze held mine. “It’s not what’s most important to me right now.”
