The guys turned back to their fire and ignored him.
He trotted back to the station, hoping to find Morgaine waiting calmly exactly where he left her. As soon as he entered the noisy waiting area, he spotted the bench—empty.
Shit.
Sly found Morgaine huddled on the floor of the ladies’ room, struggling to breathe.
He sat beside her and grasped her trembling hand. “Babe, what’s going on? Are you all right?”
“Panic attack.” She rocked, slightly, clutching her chest.
“Here, look at me.” He tipped her chin up, so she was looking directly into his eyes.Mesmerism didn’t work the first time I tried it on her, but what the hell…try, try again, right?
She did as he said, but for some reason his mesmerism didn’t seem to work on her.Damn.Her eyes still blinked and didn’t take on a glassy look. Was he losing his touch or was she just immune? He had never met anyone immune to him before, but Morgaine wasn’t just anyone. She was a powerful witch, and who knows…maybe she was more powerful than he was.
“Your eyes! They change color.”
He sighed heavily. “Yes. I’ve been told.” Realizing he wouldn’t be able to use his favorite trick to get her through this trip, he’d have to come up with other ways to relax her.
“What can I do? Would you like a glass of water?”
“Don’t leave me.”
“I’m not going to leave you. We might have to leave the ladies’ room, though. I don’t think women would appreciate my being here, despite my charisma.” He grinned, hoping to joke her out of it.
She didn’t crack a smile, but her breathing changed. “Don’t worry about visitors.” She pointed toward the door and swept her arm in a wide circle. “There. We won’t be disturbed now. Breathe in through the nose...out through the mouth...”
Sly pulled a lock of hair away from her face. “What brought this on, love? Was it just my being gone for a few minutes?”
“Not completely.” She loosened her fist and let go of the bunched-up dress fabric over her breasts.
“What else factored into it?”
“Some old guy was hitting on me.”
He smiled. “You’re a beautiful woman. And in case you’ve forgotten, I’m an old guy.”
“You are not. You’re only fifty-six.”
That made him smile.
At last, she turned toward him. “I’m so embarrassed.”
“Don’t worry about it. If you can accept my embarrassing moments, I can accept yours.” He squeezed her hand.
“You don’t have any.”
“Sure, I do. I’m embarrassed that I don’t have any money and have to compel people to give me whatever I need.”
She shrugged one shoulder. “I guess… It doesn’t matter much to me.”
He lifted her hand to his lips and kissed her knuckles. “You’re amazing. You deserve someone who’s equally amazing.”
Her eyes widened. “Are you dumping me?”
“No!” He shook his head emphatically. “I’m not breaking up with you. I’ll stay around as long as you want to put up with me.”
She snorted. “And how long are you going to want to put upwith me?”
