Page 8 of Sorcia's Heart
Slowly, Marcus lowered her feet back to the floor, his hands sliding away with deliberate slowness, as if daring her to protest further.Her body brushed against his as she found her footing, the heat of him searing into her like a brand.The moment should have ended there, but it didn’t.His presence lingered, overwhelming, the air between them charged with something volatile and undeniable.
“As you wish,” he murmured, his voice low and rough, heavy with unspoken meaning.His blue eyes held hers with an intensity that sent shivers skittering down her spine.“But you can’t keep ignoring this, Sorcia.You know something’s coming, and whether you want me here or not, you need me.”
Her chest tightened, the words striking a nerve she didn’t want to acknowledge.“I don’t need anything from you,” she snapped, the edge in her voice betraying the turmoil roiling beneath the surface.
Marcus leaned closer, the heat of his breath brushing against her cheek, his gaze dropping momentarily to her lips before returning to her eyes.“Lying never looked good on you, sweetheart,” he said softly, his voice like a caress that made her pulse quicken.
“I’m not lying,” she countered, though her voice faltered.Her hands clenched at her sides, trembling with the effort to keep herself from reaching for him, from giving in to the magnetic pull between them.
His lips quirked into the faintest of smirks, though his eyes betrayed something deeper, something that burned brighter than amusement.“Then why are you shaking?”
She opened her mouth to retort but found the words stuck in her throat.His proximity, his unwavering gaze, the sheer force of his presence—it all made her feel like she was standing on the edge of a precipice, her defenses crumbling beneath the weight of her memories.
“I really hate you,” she muttered, her voice shaking, the words a weak shield against the emotions threatening to overwhelm her.
Marcus’s expression softened, though the intensity in his eyes never wavered.“No, you don’t,” he said simply, his voice dropping even lower.His hand twitched at his side as though resisting the urge to touch her.
The tension between them thickened, crackling like a live wire.Her breathing quickened, her chest rising and falling as the silence stretched, laden with everything they weren’t saying.
“Stop it,” she said, though even she wasn’t sure what she was asking him to stop—the way he was looking at her, the way he was unraveling her with every word, every moment of closeness.
“Stop what?”he asked, his voice a husky murmur, his lips dangerously close to hers now.“Looking at you?Being here?Caring?”
“Caring?”she repeated bitterly, though her voice broke at the end.She hated how raw she sounded, hated how he could still do this to her.“Don’t pretend this is about caring.You don’t care.Not after—”
He cut her off, his voice quiet but firm.“I’vealwayscared, Sorcia.That’s the one thing that’s never changed.”
The words hit her like a punch to the gut, the truth in his tone stripping away her carefully constructed defenses.For a moment, she couldn’t look at him, couldn’t bear the intensity in his eyes.
But she didn’t step back.She couldn’t.And when she finally met his gaze again, the air between them seemed to hum with electricity, their unresolved emotions swirling around them like a storm.
“You’re infuriating,” she whispered, though her voice had lost its bite, replaced by something softer, more vulnerable.
“And you’re impossible,” he countered, his lips curving into a small, knowing smile.
The tension was unbearable now, the distance between them razor-thin, charged with the promise of what was to come.Neither of them moved, as though one wrong breath might shatter the fragile balance between them—or push them past the point of no return.
Marcus moved closer still, his towering presence filling the space between them, casting a shadow over her.His scent—earthy, with a faint hint of cedar and spice—wrapped around her like a cloak, stirring something deep and unsettling within her.It was maddening how he managed to ignite both her temper and her desire with such effortless ease.
“You’re in danger, Sorcia,” he said urgently, his voice low but commanding.“And if your coven is in danger, then mine is as well.We all are.So, I’m not leaving until this issue is resolved.”
His words hung in the air like a challenge, an undeniable reminder of the tangled web of fate that bound them together.Sorcia’s resolve wavered as she looked into his eyes, their blue depths reflecting his unrelenting determination.As much as she hated to admit it, she couldn’t ignore the underlying truth in his words.
But her stubbornness flared, fanned by the fire of her lingering hurt and mistrust.She needed him gone, out of her life and away from the vulnerable parts of her heart that he always seemed to touch.
“There’s nothing wrong!”she yelled, throwing her arms in the air, her frustration boiling over.She couldn’t deny that the safety of their covens was interconnected—everyone’s magic was, in some way.The magnetic force of thesphaera, the earth’s mystical energy, strengthened when witches came together.It was why her powers always burned brighter when Marcus was near, no matter how much she wished otherwise.
“You’ve always been a stubborn woman,” he snapped, his tone sharp with frustration.“But you’ve never been stupid!”
“Don’t you dare call me stupid!”she hissed, her green eyes blazing with fury as she lifted her hands, the magic coursing through her fingertips sparking dangerously.
“Not this time,” Marcus growled, his movements lightning fast.Before she could unleash her spell, his hands shot out, grabbing her wrists with unyielding strength.
In one swift motion, he twisted their bodies, pulling her against him with effortless control.Her back pressed into the hard wall of his chest, and his arms held her firmly in place.The sheer heat of him, the raw power in his grip, sent a jolt of awareness through her that left her breathless.
Sorcia struggled, spinning around to face him while her anger flared hotter.But the weightlessness she suddenly felt—like the ground had shifted beneath her—stilled her.Her pulse raced, not just from the adrenaline of their confrontation but from the proximity, the undeniable intimacy of the moment.
His breath brushed her ear, low and heavy, as he leaned down, his voice a gravelly whisper.“You don’t get to push me away this time, Sorcia.Not when everything is on the line.”
