Page 23 of Cursed Touch
The last thing Carter wanted to do was host this week’s family dinner. He just wanted another night alone with a glass of whiskey and whatever action flick he landed on. He loved the crazy bunch, but slapping on a smile and a jovial mood would not work. His family would see right through the charade.
He grabbed his phone, called their favorite Italian pizza joint, and ordered five pizzas, two salads, and two pasta dishes. There was a good chance even that wasn’t enough food, but he hoped it would cause the night to end early.
His week had dragged. He’d spent it analyzing and debating his date with Vanessa—what he could have done differently and what he wished he could change.
How could he feel this strongly for her without even barely knowing her?
Magic.
He groaned at the word. Magic had transformed his life since the moment he realized he was different. This thing with Vanessa was easily the first time he’d felt the urge to give it all away.
After their family learned of the secrets his parents had kept, they had been told explicitly of the dangers of humans learning. Debbie, Junior’s wife, was human and had zero magic in her, but she also knew how important it was not to blabber about questionable things. Andrea, on the other hand, could also see spirits like his brother, albeit not as frequently or strongly. They could only guess the magic in her blood was diluted and minimal.
He worried about Vanessa. Who had she confided in about the things she had seen? Was there any magic in her bloodline?
His doorbell rang, drawing him from his line of thought. Carter pushed to his feet and took the time to mentally prepare for his family’s loving and overbearing ways as he moved toward the door.
“Wow! You really do look like shit,” Junior blurted, his face contorting with concern before he leaned forward. They pounded each other on the back. “What’s wrong?”
Thankfully, Debbie pushed forward. “Ignore him. Hi, honey.”
He wrapped her in a tight embrace and sucked in a calming breath filled with the scent he associated solely with Debbie. “Hi.”
Releasing her, he was disappointed to see no one else had arrived. He was not in the mood to have Junior’s razor-sharp attention on him. “I put in an order of pizza just a little bit ago,” he said as he pushed the door closed.
“Wait up!” Brandy called, and when he pulled open the door, he saw her hauling Gia in her car seat.
“Here, gimme the princess,” he said, taking the carrier from Brandy, who sighed with relief.
Rising to her tiptoes, Brandy pressed a kiss to his cheek and patted the other. “Hi, Car. I remember looking like that,” she muttered before slipping past him into the house.
He opted to ignore her comment. “Where’s Ryan?”
“He’s getting the Pack ’n Play out of the trunk,” she called over her shoulder.
Carter set the carrier down and kneeled before his niece. “Hi, baby girl! I’ve missed you,” he said as he unbuckled her. “You won’t bring up what a mess I am.” He brought her to his chest and pressed his lips to the downy hair on her head.
“I think my ovaries just exploded.”
Carter rose to his full height and turned. Andrea stared at him with hearts in her eyes, unlike James, who looked on with horror.
“Careful, Andrea,” Carter said. “I think he might vomit.”
She smacked James in the stomach. “Oh, stop it! You’ll be a great dad, and you know it.”
By the look on his brother’s face, he did not believe her words.
“Look who we found,” Ethan called, and the world quit spinning.
Carter froze in place, squeezing Gia to his chest as Ethan, Serena, and Vanessa walked in with Ryan hot on their tail. Afraid he would say the wrong thing again, Carter stared. A thousand different sentences, some intelligent and others not, flew through his mind.
Something in his chest shifted, and a joy like no other filled him at merely her presence. Gia gave a little cry, which caused him to break eye contact with Vanessa.
“Yo, how about you don’t squish my baby?” Ryan called as he set the Pack ’n Play down. He hurried over and scooped the baby from Carter’s arms, which left him with nothing to do with his hands.
“Why don’t you try saying hi?” Serena whispered before kissing his cheek.
He nodded but still no words left his mouth.
