Page 29 of Pure Magic
Adam’s warmth seeps through my skin before I turn toward him. His thoughts are blocked, but his eyes are caring. “I wonder if you would care to dance with me, high priestess?”
My pulse speeds, and I take his hand. “I would like that.”
With a grin from ear to ear, Sylvia nudges me with her shoulder. “Thank you for the advice.”
I step into Adam’s arms, and he wraps one around my waist while taking my hand. “I’m sorry if I seemed cross earlier.”
“Don’t apologize, Beth. You should be cross. I should be honest. I’m so afraid to lose this new place, as I’ve lost others before, I may have hidden too much and caused my own troubles.” Usually, his eyes are bright, but the light is dim in him.
“Perhaps tomorrow you and I might take some time, and you could relieve some of your burdens. Do you think you’re ready to tell me what happened in Scotland that led to banishment and the rest?” I’m half holding my breath. I need him to trust me, but I hardly trust myself.
“You will send me away.” The low rumble of fear in his voice hardly sounds like him.
I cup his cheek. “I will try to keep an open mind. I can’t promise any more than that.”
Turning his head, he kisses my palm, and his lips send a shockwave of pleasure through me. “Thank you.”
I lean into his body, and we sway to the music.
Kaden watches from the corner, all the lively joking gone from his expression.
A shiver runs up my spine. “I’m not going to send your brother away. I think it might be better to keep him close and keep an eye on him.”
“And if he seduces half the coven before he shows his true colors?” He sighs and moves us around the room. “What then?”
I stand up straight and meet Adam’s gaze. “Do you think him capable of turning good witches bad? Can he wield that kind of magic?” The horror of the spells put on the Kent witches last year still haunts me. They were possessed and in thrall for over a year. They were forced to kill and curse. Some died in the battle to save the Windsor coven and what remained of Kent. Once the demon Forrester had been banished, the bulk of the possessed witches recovered. I lost a witch in the battle and watched the lover from my youth, Orin, die that night.
“I don’t know. This is the first time he’s caught up to me in seven years. Usually, I can feel him coming. I must have been distracted.” He tightens his hold on my waist.
“How do you feel him? Is it the same as the sense between you and me?” A niggling worry that I’ve been manipulated scratches at the back of my mind. I heard Goddess; he couldn’t have misled me. Could he?
Shaking his head, he waits for me to look at him. “Nothing is like the connection with you, Beth. My brother is my twin. When he is near, I usually feel him like a pin prick at the base of my skull. It’s not painful, but I know when he’s near. Yet I didn’t feel him until I was at the door today. He blocked me from knowing he’d come. He knew I’d run if I felt him coming.”
The idea that he’d leave without a word is like a knife in my heart. “I hope you’ll say goodbye if you decide to move on, Adam.”
The music ends, forcing him to release me. He bows. “I don’t want to go anywhere.”
“I’ve recently learned that there is nothing wrong with fleeing, but sometimes one must stand and fight.” A knot forms in my throat, preventing me from saying more.
“Having harm come to anyone in Windsor because of me would be unbearable.” He backs away and walks out the alley door.
I go in the other direction and check on Prudence. She’s holding court by the hearth. Five witches are listening to an old story about my mother and six kittens who lived in the house for a time. I’ve heard the story a hundred times, but it still brings me joy to hear it told.
“Will you dance with me as you did with my brother, high priestess?” Kaden’s soft voice is inches from my ear.
I take a step away before I turn. “Adam and I are good friends. I will dance with you as a lady might dance with a new acquaintance.” I send the thought of a reel toward the musicians and the music changes.
Kaden raises his eyebrow and offers his hand. When we reach the lines of dancers, he stands across from me. When we come together, he asks, “How long have you known my brother?”
“I hardly know. It seems the witches of Windsor have always known him.”
“A very diplomatic answer.” He dances well, as if he’s been doing it all his life. “I wonder how he’s made such a fine impression on you and the other witches. It seems everyone likes Adam.”
“Are you going to warn me off him?” I fumble through the dancing as my temper rises, but I keep my emotions hidden.
He grins. “Why not? I’m sure he’s warned you off me.”
Somehow that makes me even angrier because of the truth in it. “Why don’t you just dance, Kaden, and not speculate? Why ruin such a fine reel?”
