She nods.
“Let’s talk about spells, charms, enchantments, and hexes.”
We go over the different forms of magic. Then we take a break. I use her bathroom, taking the chance to further inspect her home. It’s spotless and tidy and… bland. Nice though. It doesn’t tell me much about her personality, because I already know she is not bland. Even though I suspect she tries to be.
When I return to the office, she has drinks and a plate of cookies for us… dammit, chocolate chip cookies. My favorite. And they’re not packaged cookies; they seem to be homemade. Fresh and soft. I can’t resist one. Maybe two.
She sits on the couch beside me so we can both see the book I’m looking at. She’s been taking notes on her iPad. It’s an unusual book of shadows, but I guess there’s no reason she can’t do that.
Sitting next to her, I’m aware of her warmth, her scent, the brush of her hair against my shoulder when she leans over. I guzzle the glass of Coke she poured me, grateful for the ice. I try to focus on teaching her how to make a spell.
“You start with understanding the problem you’re trying to fix. Always remember—be careful what you wish for.”
I meet her eyes, and she nods solemnly. “That’s always good advice.”
“Yeah.” I stare into sapphire and cobalt sparkles. Then I drag my gaze back to the ancient text. “Ask yourself questions about the current situation—who, what, when, where. Why.”
“This I can do,” she says confidently. “I’m good at analyzing information.”
I nod thoughtfully. “Yes, that’s a big part of it. We always want to use our powers carefully, and it’s important to make the correct decisions.”
“That’s my whole life.” She sighs. “Making the right decisions.”
“I’m going to tell you something different.”
“What?” She gazes back at me.
“You also have to consider how you feel about the situation.”
She blinks.
“You have to consider your emotions. Also how others feel about the situation. It helps to write this all down.”
“This seems like a long process,” she complains. “Are you sure there’s no magic wand I can wave?”
I grin. “Nope. Then you have to think about what you want the new situation to be. Ask the same questions. Write it all down. Consider if you can break the problem into smaller, more manageable problems. Start with the goal and work backward.”
“Now you’re talking my language.” She smiles. “That’s exactly how I manage a project at work. The client comes to me with a problem, we figure out what they want the solution to look like, and work backward, breaking it into smaller projects.”
“Yeah. That’s it.” I pause. “That’s what my job is like too. I’m not the designer, but I manage the project—taking the client and the designer’s vision and making it happen with all the other tradespeople.”
“Right.” She tilts her head. “Exactly. It is the same. I bet you’re good at your job.”
“Why do you say that?”
“Just something about you. You seem very… on top of things. You’re a good communicator. I bet you deal with scope creep and budgets with a firm hand.”
I purse my lips. “I try. You have to keep clients happy though.”
“I bet you’re good at that too.”
“All this praise is going to my head,” I say dryly.
She laughs. “It can be a frustrating job too.”
“Oh yeah. Clients who have unrealistic expectations…”
“Yes! Holding everyone accountable….” She nods.
Somehow we get off on a tangent. I could talk about work forever, and Romy’s both interested and interesting, sharing her own experiences.
“Okay, back to studying,” I eventually say.
“Right.” She lifts her chin.
“Who knew your tech knowledge would help you be a witch?”
Her smile beams. “I like it.”
“Setting goals.” I refocus.
“That’s solving big problems. Like, what if I just want to conjure up some scrambled eggs?”
I can’t help it. I laugh out loud. “We’ll start with small things like that, but the process is the same. Over time, you’ll just know what to do.”
“If you say so.”
“The next step is to make your plan.”
She nods confidently.
“That’s what you use your grimoire for.”
“All right here.” She taps the iPad.
“If you’re not sure what to do, you can talk to experienced witches. You can also do research. There are lots of books.” I pull out a piece of paper. “This is a list of resources you can use.”
She studies the titles of the books and names of the authors. “Where can I get these? Amazon?”
“Possibly. The library has them. Felise and Magan sell some books in their shop. Or you can borrow from us.”
“Okay.”
“There may be materials and symbols you’ll need.”
“Such as…?”
“Incense. Music. Chants. Herbs. Stones. You need to know what will power the spell. For something big, it may mean combining multiple sources. The energy can be stored, either in your own body or in potions or amulets or talismans. But most of the energy will need to be channeled through your body, because your body is your only interface between the physical and nonphysical worlds.”
“You’re losing me again,” she mutters. She picks up her drink and gulps some Coke.
“That’s okay. It’ll all make sense. Maybe that’s enough for today.” I need to get out of here before I put my hands on her. I’ve been restraining myself all afternoon.
“It’s only… four thirty.” She checks her iPad. “We could do more.”
“I don’t want to overwhelm you.” I toss back the rest of my drink. “I better go. I’ll tell you what to read for next time.”
“Oh. You’re leaving?”
“Yeah.” I don’t look at her as I write down some tasks for her.
“Maybe we could… have dinner?”
I go still. Shit. I would love nothing more than to stay and explore her unique mind and stare at her sexy mouth. But that can’t happen. We’re going to have to deal with this. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.” The words come out tersely from my locked jaw. I look up and make myself meet her eyes. “I know there’s an attraction between us. But given this situation, I don’t think it’s a good idea for us to be involved… that way.”
“Oh, I know that!” She laughs lightly. “I already figured that out. It was just dinner.”
“Oh.” Damn. “Okay. Well, work on this. How about we get together next Saturday again?”
“Sounds great.” She smiles. “Thank you so much for doing this.”
I stand and she follows me to her door. “See you next weekend.”
“Sure! Have a great week.”
As I leave her building and walk to my car, disappointment settles in my gut like a rock. I would love to have dinner with her. And more. I finally met a woman I’m really interested in, for more than just smashing and dashing. And she’s off-limits.