Page 10 of Pure Magic
Goddess, why must my name sound so good from his lips? Indulging in one last moment with his arms and magic surrounding me, I draw a deep breath then step back. “You are in the light. I sense no more darkness in you than I would in any witch.”
There is no mistaking the state of his erection. “Did you test the other two men in the coven?”
“To some degree.” My cheeks are on fire.
His jaw ticks, and he crosses his arms. The threads of his magic seem almost reluctant to unwind from me as they slip back into his heaving chest. “And were the results similar?”
This is the most awkward conversation I’ve ever had. If this were anyone else, I would state facts and feel little embarrassment. Why is he so different? I swallow hard. “If you are asking if they or I became aroused by magical tests, the answer is no. Perhaps your earlier declarations have something to do with it.”
Even with two feet of space between us, heat emanates from us. “My arousal may be more prominent from the spell, but I can assure you, I have been in some state similar since first seeing you in your kitchen.”
As high priestess, I want him to stop saying such things. As a woman, I want to let him take me here on the ground of the sacred circle. Pulling my shoulders back, I look him in the eyes. “I have responsibilities.”
He crosses his arms over his broad chest, making the ties of his shirt open enough to show his throat. Today he wears no cravat. “I understand.”
How can he? Yet, he makes no move forward to touch me or convince me that sex would ease this thing burning between us. Maybe he does know my struggles. A glimpse of skin below his collar shouldn’t be erotic. “The balance of elemental magic inside you is something I’ve never seen before. You are blessed by the Goddess.”
Thrusting his hands into his pockets, he stares out at the shadows of the woods. “As with all gifts, there is a cost. Elemental witches are said to have shortened lives. It’s said the magic drains life.”
It shouldn’t matter to me. Why would I care if he dies in twenty or thirty years instead of living to two hundred or more? It shouldn’t. Unable to think about his death, I change the subject. “Do you need to rest, or should we continue with another test?”
“May I sit for a few minutes before we continue?” His skin is paler than when we arrived, and some of the spark has dimmed in his eyes.
“Of course.” Knowing he’ll be hesitant to sit while I stand, I go to the smaller rocks in the center, where a fire would burn, and sit.
He cradles his head in his hands. “I feared my fire magic would put you off.”
“No element is evil. Minerva is a fire witch. She hid her nature for many years, though we are very close, and I knew. She feared others would shun her based on the nature of her magic.” It’s hard for me to admit to my own prejudices, but by the slump in his shoulders, I see his worries are not eased. “I used to believe as my mother before me, that men were likely to turn to darkness. I have learned no witch is immune to the lure of power with dark origins.”
Sitting straighter, he takes my hand. His is warm and has calluses of a man who works. “It was hearing that the Windsor coven was open-minded that first urged me to write to the great mother. I looked for a new home in Scotland, but some covens sent me away for being a man, some for being elemental, and some only wanted my seed to breed more witches. I’m not a horse to be put out to stud.” Anger rings in his tight voice.
I long to know how he comes by his rough, strong hands. “Many men would be happy to provide such a service.”
His head snaps up, and his eyes are fierce until he sees I’m teasing. He squeezes my hand before lifting it to his mouth and kissing the back. “I’m looking for a family. If I fathered one child or a dozen, I wouldn’t be going anywhere. Preferably, my children would be borne of a woman who cares for me and wishes my company.”
Pulling my hand away causes me to immediately miss his touch. “I’m sure you could easily find a woman to warm your bed and give you children, Adam. She need not be a witch.”
“Perhaps.” He grins. “I may have set my standards too high.”
“How so?” It’s hard to look at him without desire flooding me.
Leaning on his elbows, he stretches his long legs out and crosses his ankles. He looks like the perfect man of leisure, without a care in the world. “I want more than a woman to warm my bed. I want a partner in life, and I want to love and be loved.”
A sharp laugh pushes from my mouth before I can stop it. “You have set your goals very high, Mr. MacNab. I wish you luck on your quest.” I stand and return to the center of the circle.
He follows. “I liked Adam better.”
“When you speak of love and lifetimes, I feel it better to return to formality.” I have no idea how I will clear my mind and focus on the test when my mind is full of Adam’s life with some random village woman who dotes on him and fills his home with children. Don’t be an ass, Sara Beth. I shake off the vision.
Something fierce flashes in his eyes, but he says nothing. “What would you have me do, high priestess?”
Closing my eyes causes the visions to intensify. Adam with a blonde laughing on a porch while sipping wine. Adam working in a back garden with a brunette. Adam toiling in a still room with a red-haired beauty. One by one, these images flash in my mind like poison.
Goddess, help me.
Warmth flows over and around me, and I know Goddess is here.
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