Page 118 of Magical Midlife Conclave

“Yes. They were very eager to take the magic. Very eager. They let it unfurl within them however it wanted to. Then they tried to use the added power to kill the heir. Hindsight.”

I’ll say.

The circles re-formed, locking Austin and me in the middle. I stepped closer and took his hands. His eyes roamed my face before sticking to my lips. He leaned down to gently kiss me.

“I love you,” he murmured.

I told him what Ivy House had said. “I’ll be right here, okay? We have two bonds. I can help you through those, and with the connection and my bullheadedness, we can do this, Austin. We can. This magic was meant for two people like us, who love each other. Who want the best for each other. Who will do anything for each other. We can do this, you and me.”

He kissed me harder.

“Should we not hold hands, or does it matter?” I asked Ivy House.

“No one has before, but that doesn’t mean much.”

Indeed.

“Okay.” Austin took a deep breath. “How do I do this?”

“He must open himself to it,” Ivy House told me. “Once he’s ready, I will begin.”

“No blood oath with him, huh?”

“His bond to you is his oath, and he’s done that a few times over. What do you want, his balls dipped in gold and mounted on your shelf?”

That was a bit much.

I relayed what she said…mostly. He steeled himself, and then relaxed everything except for the hold on my hands. He closed his eyes.

“Stay with me, Jess,” he murmured. “Keep me grounded. You’re the only one who ever could.”

His body jolted as though struck by Hollace’s lightning. He tensed, muscles flaring. A plethora of emotions tumbled through the bonds. The connections wobbled and fluctuated, one moment wispy and not right, the next blaring at me. His hands tightened on mine. His teeth ground.

His eyes peeled open slowly. The beautiful cobalt blue now held a little shimmer, as though he weren’t totally in this realm anymore. As though he had a bit of the otherworldly about him. They burned and blazed, off-kilter. Violent. Hostile.

A burst of power rocketed from his body, cutting through me. It didn’t hurt. Instead, it swirled the power within me, pulsing.

Another burst, and the trees waved as though from a large gust of wind. Storm clouds rolled in, dark and volatile. Rain threatened. The crackle of thunder wasn’t Hollace’s doing. Skeletons rose, and the dolls were on the move. He was playing with the power at his disposal.

His gaze stayed on mine, and I held it. He yanked me forward a little, then pushed me away. The emotions in our mate bond increased to a fever, fear and anxiety and elation and hunger.

“Do we fight the skeletons, or…?” Cyra called.

“Fight the skeletons?” Fred shrieked. “Are you crazy? Run from the skeletons, y’all. Run!”

25

Austin

Tumultuous power tore at every part of him. He struggled to breathe through it, pulled down into the surge, overwhelmed and overcome. His gaze blurred as little strings of power felt like they attached to him and then warmed. Then turned to fire, burning into him. Through him.

He yanked on one, trying to detach it. Thunder rolled overhead. He tugged at another and felt a person at the other end. Tristan.

More latched on to it, burrowing down deep. Darkness filled in the gaps. Still that power glowed. Throbbed, threatened to wash him away.

Within it…rage. He vibrated with it, like in the days of his youth. Thrashed against it, afraid of what he’d do.

“Stay with me,” Jess told him. Love and support fought the blistering intensity. “Play as much as you want, but stay with me. I’ll share it all with you. You don’t have to fight to have access to this power. You don’t have to fight for control. It’s already yours.”