Page 43 of Dragon Touched
Flying from Margaret’s shoulder, Cyan landed on the back of Fin’s chair.
“Do you have it?” His carmine gaze cut to her.
She patted a pocket of her apron, then slid her fingers inside for a moment.
For a few seconds, panic stiffened Fin’s body. “Woman, if you lost it—”
“Oh, uhm.” A triumphant smile softened the lines of her face. “Here it is.” She held a small, golden pea between a thumb and index finger.
“Let me see it.” Placed onto his palm, the little gold vegetable looked innocent, cute even. “Please, Sacha,” he breathed, “be what I need.”
His arm lifted to unclasp the chain.
“Here. Let me.” Her nimble fingers released the latch.
The little pea rolled against the pads of his fingers. He slid it next to the cloned etching on the ring’s surface.
A trickle of sweat dripped into an eye, and he blinked. Every second felt excruciating. His concentration kept wandering because a mental image of Vito and Matteo punishing Sacha for her momentary taste of freedom engulfed his mind.
Margaret’s breathing stopped, and out of his periphery, her little humped neck leaned closer to peer at the old, splintered table.
“Come on”—he nudged the golden pea forward, within half-an-inch from the ring—“don’t be a little bugger.” If the spell considered Sacha a true princess, then the perfect little sphere should fly to the band’s etching like two opposite magnets unable to fight polar attraction.
Nothing happened.
Fin’s veins swam with building rage, and he wanted to throw the table over and release every cursed enchantment he’d ever memorized. The violence within his body neared the surface, and he closed his eyelids and breathed.
Keep calm and don’t squander the power.
“Look, Fin.”
Margaret’s words carried a hint of excitement, and he refocused on the golden pea and ring.
A sparkle peaked from steel grays, and she pointed.
An unseen breeze blew through the tower. Drifting in the air; sweetpea blossoms and fresh rainwater filled his nose.
It washed away the pain in his shoulder and the fury in his heart.
Cyan circled around Fin’s head and trilled.
Could it be?His eyes slammed closed for a moment.
Sacha’s alluring scent clung to his skin. He could feel her silky tresses once more, her cool mouth on his burning lips, and her fingertips skimming over his body.
He growled and forced his eyes open.
With an invisible pull, the little round object slammed into the ring with a metallicclang. In place of the usual etching was an upraised form of a pea, shining with a whitish-gold light.
“Oh, my.” Margaret clapped her hands and threw a hug around Fin’s shoulders. “It’s done.”
When he grunted in pain, she stepped back.
“So sorry, dear. I forget myself sometimes.” She patted his cheek. “But this is wonderful. We can go home.”
He let the ring slide onto the table with aplink, then dipped his middle finger into the band and wiggled it on.
The moment it was secure, magic surged into his arm and through his body. It was sweet, hot, and powerful.
