Page 27 of Magic Touch
I don't know if I should push him away or pull him in. I want him with such passion it's hard to think, but we are not in the country for an affair of the heart, and he must be trained.
Telling him it can never be more than a distraction played on his conscience, and perhaps that was unfair. It was, however, the right thing to do. We should both concentrate on magic and education, and not on each other.
William turns to me with sharp eyes. "If today is an example of what holding back my desire will be like, it is more likely to be the distraction."
My most private places pulse with agreement.
Running his fingers through his hair, he lets out a long breath. "I don't know the right answer. I only know I want you so deeply it hurts when I'm not touching you. Never in my life have I known such longing."
"Nor I." My throat is too clogged with emotion to say more.
"Could this be some dark magic?" He plucks a blade of grass and rolls it between his fingers.
Anger slides between my adoration and need. "Are you jesting, or do you think there is a spell placed on us? When would such a spell have been cast? I wanted you from before you walked into my shop, but I would never take away your will to choose. I wouldn't want a man who needed to be tricked to desire me."
As I rise, he does too, and takes my hands in his. "Do not be upset. I only raised the question. There is no accusation. I never thought you would bespell me, Esme. Though, I do feel as if wanting you is magic."
I should pull my hands away and take myself back to the cottage. It's insulting to think his desire or mine could only be the product of dark magic. Yet, I can see why he might think so. If his feelings are as strong as mine, it's hard to resist the pull.
"There is a spell." I swallow and pull my hands free. "It's a kind of divination to root out curses placed on people or animals. It will enlighten us to anything forced upon us, and if we are bespelled, it can then be broken."
Still as a statue, he blinks once, twice, then gazes at the ground. "I never meant to offend you. I spoke what was in my heart. I could never believe anything dark about you."
His hesitation makes me feel the "but" after his sentence.
He nods. "But I think you should work the spell that will verify there is no curse." He says the last word so softly it's almost lost in the breeze ruffling the leaves.
"You will do the spell. I will show you how, and as it is common, I have it in my grimoire. You can see for yourself." I shouldn't be offended, but my pride is hurt. He thinks his attraction must be some devilment. What woman wouldn't be offended?
"I know nothing of spells." He takes my hand and rubs his thumb over my palm. Tension edges out of me with every stroke.
It would be better to snatch my hand away, but he is irresistible, and I thread my fingers through his as we stroll toward the cottage. "Maybe teaching you such a spell and assuring us both that what we feel is in the light isn't such a bad idea."
Simon sits in front of the door and gives me a disgusted glare.
"I think my little man is angry about the splash you gave him." I kneel to scratch his head, and he only holds his anger a second before he closes his eyes and purrs.
"Should we wake Madam Bishop before we attempt the spell?" William asks, taking my hand back into his.
"Let her sleep. This is a simple spell."
He laughs. "You said that about the water, and we nearly drowned."
I squeeze his hand. "I shall be more attentive and give specific instructions."
My trunks are already in my room. Perhaps it would be wiser to take the smaller trunk with herbs, spices, stones and other magical items to another more neutral room, but it's delicious to have him in the room where I'll sleep. I may have lost my mind. Magic or not, whatever this attraction is, I should learn to control it.
Kneeling at the trunk, I open the latch and lid.
William kneels next to me. "What do we need?"
I take a clear quartz crystal and hand it to him. "For purity." I take out several herbs and a vial of blessed water. "You'll need to pull a hair from your head and keep the root intact." I pull one of my own and hand it to him. "Put them in the vial with the water, and then put in a pinch of the cinnamon, and one of the cloves."
He does as I tell him.
I find my spell book and open to the page.
With the vial in one hand and the crystal in the other, I show him where to read. "Out loud and with intention."
