I open my mouth. “Did you fix me? You fixed me! Oh, thank God!” I throw myself at him, curling my arms around his neck and burying my face against him. “Thank you, thank you.”
His hands come to my back and rub gently. “Romy, Romy. What were you doing?”
I don’t want to look at him. “I had a sore throat. I’ve been impatient to try spells, and I thought it would be something easy. I don’t know what I did wrong!” I keep my face pressed to his shoulder.
I feel the change in the air around us, his body tightening, heat emanating from him. My nose is right near his throat, and I pull air in, breathing his scent. My body shifts involuntarily closer to him, and my fingers brush over the back of his neck where his hair is clipped short and his skin is tender.
My inner muscles squeeze and throb. I feel the tension in his body, the way his breathing quickens, his hands tightening on me. God, I want him to kiss me. I want his hands everywhere on me. On my skin.
Slowly I move my head to tilt it back and look at him. His eyes burn into mine. We stare at each other. My tongue slips out to wet my bottom lip and his gaze drops there, his own lips parting. I’m seized with lust.
“Fuck.” He lowers his head, shaking it. Then he gently moves me away from him. “You’re making this so damn hard.”
My bottom lip quivers. “I-I’m sorry.”
He makes a frustrated noise. “Don’t. I didn’t mean that…”
“Then what did you mean?” I swallow.
He’s silent for a moment, his gaze moving over my face. “You know that Joe and Cassie took me in after my family died.”
“Yes.”
“I was a little asshole to them at first.”
I nod.
“I acted out because I was grieving and didn’t know how to handle my emotions. I was pissed at the world. I was—” He stops. “I was a jerk. But they were patient and firm and… if it weren’t for them, I’d probably belong to the Black Kats.”
“The what now?”
One corner of his mouth lifts. “It’s a gang. Not all witches are upstanding citizens. There are witches involved in criminal activity. They use fronts like normal businesses for cover and to make money, but they’re usually dealing drugs or… worse.”
I stare, wide-eyed. “I had no idea.”
“Anyway, my point is, Joe and Cassie gave me a lot. They’re trusting me to teach you, and I don’t want to betray that trust.”
“You are teaching me. I don’t understand how you and I being together would betray them.”
“You’re Joe’s daughter,” he reminds me, although it’s unnecessary. “He trusts me to look after you. Like Magan and Felise.”
“You’re not my brother. Not even half brother.”
“I know.” He closes his eyes, his face tightly drawn. “But you’re Joe’s daughter.”
Okay. I get it. He doesn’t want this, and I have to stop hoping. I nod. “I understand,” I say, trying for light and breezy, although my face is hot. “Totally. Thank you again for fixing my throat!” Shit. We still have the rest of the afternoon to get through. “Okay! What are we working on today?”
I was going to show him the app I created for crystal gemstones and their properties, making it much easier than memorizing everything. But right now I’m not sure he’d appreciate it.
14
Trace
I arrive at Joe and Cassie’s place for dinner on Sunday to find the three girls out on the patio, giggling over cocktails. I’m a tightly wound coil of nerves in anticipation of seeing Romy again. I feel like shit after what happened yesterday. She was so sweet and hot and looked at me like I was a god and she wanted me more than anything in the world. Not only was it ego-boosting, but it was also exactly how I felt about her. I wanted her. Resisting her took all my fortitude.
Then I had to endure a couple of awkward hours, pretending nothing had happened. All the while I just wanted to strip her clothes off and lick her everywhere.
Romy is sitting on one of the big chairs with her legs curled under her, her shoulders bare in a bright pink sundress. Her dark hair looks different—instead of smooth and sleek, it’s tousled and piecey with a just-been-fucked look. My dick responds instantly even though my gut tightens.
She looks up and our eyes meet, and an electric current zaps straight to my balls.
Shit. This is goddamn inconvenient.
She immediately flashes a tight smile.
“Hey, Trace,” Felise says.
“Ladies. What are you plotting?”
“World domination,” Magan says.
“That does not surprise me one bit.” I take a seat. Do they even realize that the power the three of them might have? Telling them might be dangerous.
I catch Romy’s eye again, but she quickly looks away. Great.
I remember the night we met—how easy things were. How it seemed meant to be that she showed up instead of Amy Whoever, how she wanted a distraction and fun, and somehow I stepped right up to give her that. Now I’ve fucked it all up.
A tight feeling grips my chest. Not only is she Joe and Cassie’s daughter, I’m no good at relationships. That would really create an awkward family dynamic. Right now the discomfort is just between her and me. Imagine if it was the whole family. I’d be banished. I’m not really one of them, and if I hurt Romy…
I can’t risk that.
The girls continue their chatter about the new design Romy is doing for the store, and I listen as I sip a beer. Romy’s laptop is sitting on the table, and she picks it up to show them some mockups she made. I lean over to get a glimpse. They’re fantastic.
She talks with confidence and competence. “Making it visually appealing is important,” she says. “But in the end, it’s how functional the website is that matters. You don’t want to lose customers because they can’t navigate your site.”
“Agreed,” Magan says.
“I love this one.” Felise points at the screen. “But I wish the font was a little more flowy.”
“We can do that.” Romy focuses on her computer for a moment, and with a few clicks makes the change. “How about that?”
“Oh! Yes. That’s perfect.”
“I love it too,” Magan says.
I can’t stop watching her. The sweet curve of her mouth, the shine of her hair, the way her eyes sparkle…
Joe comes out of the house to join us. “What’s up?” he asks.
Guilt smacks me in the face so hard I nearly fall over backward in my chair.
The girls show him what Romy’s working on, and he studies the site. “That’s impressive, Romy.”
“Wait till it’s finished.” She grins at him. “It’ll blow you away.”
“Have you looked at the website for Dream Homes?” he asks her.
“No.” She raises her eyebrows. “Should I?”
“Take a peek. See what you think.”
I watch her blue eyes focus, moving over the screen. She purses her lips, clicking through the site. “It’s good,” she finally says.