Page 20 of Cursed Love
“You know, you don’t have to be an ass about it.”
His answering smirk threw her off.
“What about the other things?”
“What about them?”
“Sweet Lord. If you aren’t here to help me, why are you still here, Ryan?”
“Werewolves smell like dirt. Lemures are zombie-like ghosts. Ghosts are typically nice and helpful, but you won’t see them much if at all. Not all witches are like us. There are other demons out there. Tubars are just the dumbest ones.”
“Wow. You aren’t a people person, are you?” Brandy asked after his fast summary of this new-to-her world.
“Why do you say that?” he asked, shifting in his seat.
“Ryan…” She sighed before continuing. “You seem to forget all this is new to me. I wasn’t born into it. Giving me a quick rundown like that? Not helpful… at all. I’m not—”
“Hey… you need to calm down,” he told her as he shifted his knees in her direction.
Her heart raced, and her body heated. “Don’t tell me to calm down!”
His warm hand rested on her leg. “Sweetheart, look around. You need to calm down.”
The endearment left her staring at him a second longer. Doing as he asked, she found her things floating once again. “Oh shit,” she whispered.
“Take a breath and focus on bringing it down slowly,” he said, his tone soothing.
Brandy focused on the warmth radiating from Ryan’s hand. She was so pissed, she had missed the tingling sensation running up and down her body. If she was honest with herself, the feeling was becoming more normal to her. She did not know if she should be concerned or relieved.
Breathing in deeply, she focused on the objects. She watched them bounce in midair a few times before they lowered. Most of them landed with a soft thud while only a few hit the ground with a louder thump.
Ryan squeezed her leg where his hand rested, bringing her back from her concentration. The touch now warmed her for an entirely different reason. Her heart pounded against her sternum, a mix of the energy she had spent on the objects and what his simple and platonic touch did to her body.
“Great job, sweetheart!” His voice was husky, telling her without words he was not unaffected. “You need to get a better hold of your emotions though.”
Annoyed at his words, she faced him. Her chest raised as she forced herself to take a deep breath. “It’s not my emotions causing problems…”
“Are you saying I am?”
“You sure aren’t making things easier. This is hard on someone who didn’t know all those movies at Halloween time weren’t entirely off base.”
“I’m sorry.” He stood, taking his hand with him and leaving her cold. “I’m not good at this—”
“Obviously,” she whispered to herself.
“I’ll answer your questions as best as I can, but first, I want to help you get a better hold of your powers.”
Brandy smiled. “No more being an ass?”
“Not on purpose.”
“That’s fair,” she said and pushed to her feet. She put out a hand and waited for him to shake it. When their palms touched, her breath caught. She stared at him a long moment. What she could only describe as a ball of static energy passed between their skin.
Ryan’s eyes narrowed before looking down at their joined hands. Stepping back, he cleared his throat. “Are you done?” he asked, tipping his head toward the pizza box.
Unsure if her voice would work, she nodded.
“Okay, I’d like to help. How about we work on making things move on purpose rather than randomly or solely charged by what you’re feeling? Do you think you can handle that, or are you still tapped out?”
