Page 4 of Magic Touch
"I'm not certain. I've healed many people but never has the magic remained after the healing. Perhaps I overextended, and this effect will fade." She sounds doubtful.
I force myself to look again, and the glowing fades. I should excuse myself and leave her. Instead, I pull up my stocking and button my breeches at the knee. My leg offers no resistance to movement. I stand and sit several times, and still there is no pain beyond stiffness and a very dull ache. It's as if I was never wounded. "Do your healing activities often leave you so drained?"
"No." Already looking stronger, she sips her wine.
"How was this different?" I should ask how any of this is possible. I should deny everything I have seen, but I'm not a man to lie to myself. She healed me with her hands, and there is no doubt about it. Somehow, with some power I can't possibly fathom, she coaxed a bit of metal out of my leg, and healed the wound. My suffering is a shadow of what it has been. Even now, the remaining discomfort continues to wane.
She shakes her head. "I'm not entirely sure. Perhaps it was moving the object from flesh and bone. Perhaps it is my own fault for wishing to help you more than was objective."
My pulse quickens. Could my desire be shared? Don't be a fool. I lean forward to bridge the distance between us. "I don't think I understand."
Those eyes I so admire shine with passion and ferocity. "I am attracted to you, William. I know you and I are not part of the same circle, and I have no designs or desire to quit my sphere, but attraction is part of being alive, and I'll not be shamed over it."
"Shamed?" It’s impossible for my heart to beat any faster, or for that organ to withstand the joy flooding it. "I certainly would not wish you to feel shame."
Her chest rises and falls faster, and her cheeks pinken. "You should go now, Sir William. I'm sorry to have been a burden, and I'm pleased I was able to help you."
Obviously dismissed, I stand. "What is the fee for your services, madam?"
"A healing is one sixpence."
"May I ask how you did it, or is it some mystical secret?"
She tilts her perfect face and those green eyes smile up at me. "It's not, but it is very hard to explain to someone who has no frame of reference."
"Will you try?" I'm stalling, but also curious.
"As a healer, I can see the broken parts in a person or animal. I can use my magic to reach them, and will the body to heal."
I am mesmerized by her lips as she speaks and can't look away as they close on her last word. If anyone can wield magic, it must be Esme. She has me completely under her spell.
I don't want to leave her. There is no expression of thanks that will do justice to what she has done for me, and her admitting her attraction is a balm to my soul. I dig two shillings out of my purse and place them on the table near the door. She will likely be angry to find I paid four times her fee, but I'll be long gone. "Thanking you hardly seems enough, madam. You have done for me what I was told could not be done. I am in your debt. If you are ever in need, you should come to me, and I will do all I can to help you."
"I'm glad you are well again, sir." Her voice is tight, but her gaze is direct.
How I would love to have those eyes on me while bringing her pleasure. She is a dream. Nodding, I open the door. "Esme?"
"Yes, William?"
"I'm attracted to you as well."
She nods. "Yes, I know."
Smiling, I plod down the steps. I collect the shrapnel from the table and put it in my pocket before walking through the shop to the door. The bolt is thrown, and I realize it won't be possible to lock it from the outside without a key. I exit through the kitchen and secure the door behind me.
As I exit the alley, Samuel jumps down from my waiting carriage and opens the door.
Taking one last look at the shop, I climb up and think of moss-green eyes and the most kissable lips I've ever seen.
Chapter
Two
ESME
The moment Sir William Meriwether walked into my shop last evening, my heart soared. It was some kind of strange dream come true. Except, he came for help, and I nearly drained myself to give him what he needed. It was a foolish mistake. If he'd not been so kind, I might have lost consciousness in my kitchen and lain there for hours with who knows what consequences.
Luckily for me, he is a good and kind man, and I had an elixir recently brewed in my rooms. He paid too much for the healing. I will send a note around to his home with the overage.
