Page 11 of Voodoo Doll
“That they do,ma chère. And please, I have told you to call me Bash. I believe we are becoming friends, and I insist you call me by my real name.”?
“So Mr. Broussard isn’t your real name?” she asked in challenge, setting the mug back down on the table. I took the mug from her, my eyes holding her gaze as I took a sip. Immediately, her shoulders relaxed, and she took the mug back from me, taking a drink for herself. Her eyes lit up with pleasure. “Oh, my! What is this?”?
“It’s a special blend. One I create myself. Do you like it?”?
“I do! It’s warm and spicy, and … calming, somehow. It’s quite delicious. Thank you.”?
“You are quite welcome. Now, back to your question. My real nameisSebastien Broussard, but those who I allow to be close to me call me Bash.”?
“So, you want to allow me to be close to you?”?
“I would like you to feel comfortable with me, yes. Will you tell me what is troubling you?”?
“What makes you think something is troubling me?”?
“It’s very obvious,ma chère. Your body has been racked with anxiety and nervous energy since you walked through that door. The question remains; what is the cause of such worry and stress? Is it trouble with friends? Perhaps work? Or has the muse left you?” I asked, watching every expression on her face with rapt attention. If there was one thing I was good at outside of magic, it was reading people. Most of those idiots and touristswho came through my doors seeking a fortune were as easy to read as a children’s book. It took no magic to tell them what they wanted to hear and send them on their way.?
“My muse?” She asked quizzically.?
“Yes, is your muse failing you? Are you struggling with your sketches?” I watched as her jaw dropped in shock.?
“How did you know I was an artist?” she asked in the barest of whispers. While I wanted nothing more than to feed her belief in my abilities, I knew that the real purpose of this visit was to gain her trust.
Patience, Sebastien. All will come in due time, ancestors willing.?
I reached across the table, taking her hand in mine and flipping it over until I could see the pads of her fingers. Softly, almost sensually, I let my fingers glide over the darkened smudges where the charcoal had permanently darkened her skin. “Such stains only occur with repeated use of charcoal, if I am not mistaken. So, I assumed you are an artist, and your preferred medium is charcoal sketching of some kind. Am I correct?”?
Without pulling her hand back from my own, she smirked, nodding her head.?
“Your powers of deduction are quite astute, Mr. Broussard.”?
“Please, call me Bash,” I reminded her gently.?
“Alright, but only if you stop calling me Ms. Landry. Makes me feel like my mother.” Her nose scrunched up in distaste in quite a charming way.?
“I think I can agree to that… Luna.” My eyes scanned over her body, from the way her lashes curled darkly around her chocolate brown eyes, down to the cupid’s bow pucker of her mouth. A mouth I wanted so badly to fuck, right this very minute. Those eyes would look even more beautiful with tearsrunning down them, ruining her meticulously applied mascara. “Now, back to the matter at hand. What is it that troubles you?”?
“You’re not going to let that go, are you?” She smiled again, bringing the mug to her lips once more. The way her head bowed and her eyes lowered had my cock hardening further.?
“Not at all. It is my calling. So, if it isn’t work related, could it be something with that friend of yours you brought with you the other day? Ms. King, if I remember correctly.”?
“Oh, no. Kayla is great. We’ve been friends since our preteen days. It’s not her. It’s my idiot, bastard boyfriend.” Her shoulders dropped, her back arching forward until she sat hunched over. It was a posture of safety, wanting to protect oneself.?
“Surely, you mean ex-boyfriend?” I postured, hoping that she’d had the sense to cut the loser loose and kick him to the curb where he belonged.?
“No, he’s still my current boyfriend.”?
“And why is that?” I asked calmly.
“I have no actual proof he has cheated. So, I can’t just break up with him. I have to know for sure. I need to know the truth.” She shrugged pathetically, looking down into her cup of tea. The pain she felt was strong, and the urge to just claim her and keep her, to use her to my delights, was stronger still.?
Shifting out of my seat, I slid around to the chair beside her, turning towards her until my body faced hers. Tenderly, I took her hands off of the cup, grasping them within my own in a gesture of kindness. The more kindness I showed her, the more she would trust me. And if she would only trust me, then I could appease the ancestors.?
“Luna, you do realize that you do not need a reason to end a relationship. You can leave at any time, for any reason, or for none at all.” My eyes bored into hers, noting the glassyappearance just barely noticeable from the potion I had given her.?
“I know. But I’m scared.”?
Delicious.
