Chapter Four #2
I’ve resisted feeling his power too deeply.
He is a mass of magic, old, skilled, and holding back his gifts.
The vibration travels from his palms to mine, almost caressing my magic.
I urge my spells forward, inching closer to him.
At the contact, the walls in the room creak.
My heart races, and my body feels electrified.
“Damn,” I gasp, unable to hold the sensations inside.
“Agreed,” Rome says, his eyes glowing. “We have been looking for each other. Needed each other.” His mouth parts, and he tilts his head. “It’s beautiful.”
“Yes.” I swallow and lick my lips. “Mine wants to join yours.” Witches do magic together all the time.
I’ve done it many times with Lace, my mom, and Savy.
Nothing compares to being next to my bond and feeling the power.
Completing the soul bond will feel similar, but it will be a different connection.
My soul wants to merge with his, but it’s not time.
I have to trust him completely and accept the bond.
“I want you to think of the man,” Rome says softly. “Bring his image to the front of your mind.” I nod hesitantly. “I won’t let it hurt. His emotions are null and void. I’ve taken them.”
“Okay.” I take a deep breath and think of him. He has sandy brown hair. The suit he wears to work is blue.
“Oh my,” Lace whispers. The light in the room goes dark, but I don’t look away from Rome.
“I can see him,” he says, and I can see the image in his eyes. “You’re projecting him.” I hear his words, yet don’t respond.
The woman he killed flashes, and Rome jerks. Tears cover my eyes, not from his emotions but mine. It’s sad to know they were killed. I flip through the pictures, quickly moving away from them, and concentrate on the man.
Find him. Find him.
The movie in my head fast-forwards, past the death and the joy he felt, and stops briefly at the body of water he tosses them into.
Things I didn’t notice before, while I was in the throes of the vision, are popping out.
Without the emotions affecting my judgement, the details are coming forward.
The color of his truck is green. It’s old and not the vehicle I thought he would drive.
The fender is bent and discolored. He was wearing jeans when he dumped the last body, and his shirt had the name of a sports team on it.
The smile on his face is sickening as he gazes out at the water.
He’s satisfied and brushes his hands together.
Find him. Find him.
The image flies forward, and I see him driving.
He’s listening to music, bobbing his head to the beat, his hands drumming on the wheel as he turns it.
Entering a nice neighborhood, he slows and waves to a woman walking her dog.
He’s charming and a good actor. The woman annoys him, but he tolerates her. He has an image to uphold.
Pulling into a driveway, he sighs and opens the garage. The car in it is sleek, black, and very expensive-looking. He uses the truck to dump the bodies. As he starts forward, I see the address on the house. He glances over his shoulder, and I see the road name on the corner of his property.
“Got him,” Rome rasps, and I blink. “Fuck.” His eyes widen, and I look around for the first time since we started.
We’re floating. Hovering two feet off the ground. Sparks of energy pop throughout the room, glowing in the dark. They zig-zag across the ceiling like lightning.
“Holy shit.” I look away from the ground to Lace. Her hair is fuzzy.
“Yeah, we didn’t want to say anything,” she says.
“That was unbelievable,” Archer says.
“Uh…Rome.” I look at him.
“One second, Mara. I’ll get us down,” he says, grinning. I gasp as he closes his eyes and we float down. I brace one palm beside me.
“I’ve never experienced anything like that.” I feel close to Rome, even though I know nothing about him. We connected on a level that not many do. I can feel his goodness in his spells. “My gift has never worked like that.”
“You’ve been concentrating on the emotions.
It forced you to feel them, so it’s understandable.
You needed me to ground you.” He tangles his fingers with mine.
“My mom can teleport. Before meeting Dad, she would pop in and out all over the world without direction. She couldn’t control the direction or where she would appear.
Dad is her anchor. He guides her, so wherever he is, she comes back to.
She can travel the world, safe in the knowledge that she will always find him. ”
“That’s beautiful,” I whisper.
“Annoyingly beautiful,” he replies, and I tilt my head. “She is very expressive of her love. I’ve heard their bonding stories enough times that I can recite them, word for word.”
“I have been on the receiving end of them also,” Archer says as he stands. He stares at me for a moment. “I’m glad we found you. I have felt Rome’s spells many times, but nothing like that.”
“I could see every memory,” Rome says. “I hate that you’ve had to deal with the emotions. Just seeing the acts without them was disturbing.”
“It’s been less than pleasant,” I mumble.
“Well, it didn’t burst this time,” Lace says, looking at the light. “Can you fix it?” She glances at Rome. He tilts his head back, and the light brightens. “Wow. Thanks.”
“What is the plan?” Archer asks.
“Would you give us a minute?” Rome asks Archer and then looks at Lace.
“Lace, give me a tour of the store,” Archer says, motioning to the door.
“Uh…sure,” she says, hurrying toward him.
I watch Rome as he looks over my shoulder. His attention centers on me when the door shuts, and a shiver shoots down my spine.
“I want your opinion about the man, but first…” His hand whips out, grasping the back of my neck, pulling me forward. My knees hit the floor as I’m forced to move as he takes my mouth. I brace my palms on his thighs and eagerly open to him.
I thought our connection was incredible as we did the spell, but as his tongue tangles with mine, I realize I was wrong.
I want to crawl onto his lap and never leave, so I do.
Straddling his thighs, I glide my hands over his shoulders and thread my fingers through his hair.
He lifts my hair, gathering it in his fist, using the handhold to control my movement.
His lips are soft, yet his hands are firm on my body.
His free hand slides across my hips and yanks me closer.
I gasp in his mouth as I feel him pressed against me.
Groaning in protest when he pulls away, he grins and bites my lip.
He allows me to suck in a breath before kissing me again.
I don’t have much experience with kissing.
When I was sixteen, a boy in my class gave me my first one.
It was awkward, and I pulled away when he tried to put his tongue in my mouth.
A year later, I let my boyfriend’s tongue in my mouth.
It wasn’t great. His thoughts were dark, and my spells warned me to get away.
As time passed and my power became more out of control, it was painful to be with anyone.
This is not painful. I follow his lead, mimicking his movements, and the hardness between us tells me I’m getting it right.
“Fuck,” he growls, moving back. “We have to stop. I don’t want to fuck you on the floor when our family is in the building.”
I lick my swollen lips. “Right.” I exhale, gathering myself.
“You feel fucking good in my arms, bond.” He presses his forehead to mine, his breath harsh. “I didn’t expect you.”
“What did you expect?” I ask, hoping he likes what he found.
“I knew finding your soul bond was a powerful experience, but I had no clue how much.” He leans back and palms the side of my head. “We need more time, but when our magic touched, I wanted to keep going.”
“I did too,” I admit, resting my hands on his shoulders. “I haven’t been able to touch anyone.” Awareness falls over his face. “I like touching you.” I don’t like lying. Being with him is what I want. We have to be honest with each other for this to work.
“You can touch me whenever you want,” he says softly. “We can go at your pace. The challenges with your magic must have been hard for you. It’s hard to trust, isn’t it?”
“Very.” My gut is telling me that he won’t hurt me. I don’t know if the soul bond is pushing me or my spells. Our magic is pure and warns us of bad intentions.
“Trust in me,” he whispers. “I won’t hurt you. It would gut me to cause you pain.”
“I can feel you.” I press my hand to his chest. “We are already connected through our spells. Yours is bright.”
“You’ve been hiding your gifts,” he guesses. “Is it because of the touch or your sister?”
“Both,” I admit.
“I can feel Lace’s spells, but they seem to be hidden behind a wall.” He frowns. “I’ve never felt anything like her.”
“She thinks she’s damaged.”
“Fuck that,” he hisses, and it makes me smile.
“I know she’s very gifted. When she meets her soul bond, she will be released.” I don’t talk about it with her. She doesn’t want to think about it, fearing she will never gain her powers. I know she just hasn’t reached her full potential.
“She shouldn’t doubt it,” he says, grabbing my hips. “I’ll help her if I can.”
“Thank you.”
“Now, you have to get off my lap.” He pushes with his hands.
“I’m having a hard time controlling myself.
” I back away, absurdly pleased I affect him so much.
“I see the sparkle in your eye.” He narrows his eyes playfully.
“I can also see years of you getting your way. My dad is the same way. He lets Mom get away with everything.”
“I would love to meet them,” I say.
“Don’t worry, you will. Sooner than I would like, probably.
” He runs his hands through his hair, propping his elbows on his knees.
“Talking about them is the fastest way to stop thinking about getting you naked.” I grin.
“Mom wanted to come with me to meet you. She knows how to find me, so I expect that if I don’t check in regularly, she will show up. ”
“I wouldn’t mind,” I whisper, hugging my knees. “It’s sweet that she is so involved in your life.”
“Where are your parents?” he asks.
“I never knew my dad,” I say and bite my lip. There is more to the story, but I’m not ready to reveal it. “Mom died when I was a teenager.”
“I’m sorry,” he breathes. “Who did you live with after she was gone?”
“No one.” I stand quickly, running my hands through my hair. “What should we do about him?” I ask, not ready to talk about it. He pushes to his feet and gently grabs my hand.
“I won’t push. Take the time you need. We are strangers, even though we are being pulled together. There’s no rush,” he assures me.
“Thanks.” I smile tightly. “I don’t talk about my past.” I inhale roughly. “I love her. She was a good mom. When I’m ready, I’ll tell you about her.”
“I’d like that.”
“We have to do something about the man. He’s going to kill again.” Someone like him won’t change his ways. He has a taste of the thrill and power it gives him.
“So we go to him,” he says. “We make sure he can’t hurt anyone ever again.”
“I’ve never tried to hurt someone with my spells.” My magic is pulsing, and somehow I know that I should try.
“Follow your instincts. I’ll be with you. I won’t let him hurt you.”
I never thought I would meet my bond, do magic with him to find a murderer, and our first date would be to kill a man.
Always expect the unexpected.