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Celeste had a life waiting for her in the Human Realm and she intended to go back to it.

I tightened my arms around her slightly, wishing I could somehow stop time and remain here with her forever. For a hundred years, I'd believed that nothing could be worse than being trapped between life and death, unable to participate in the world around me. But now, with Celeste resting so trustingly against my chest, I realized there was something infinitely worse.

It was the thought of having to let her go.

21

CELESTE

I snuggled close to Garrik, still feeling bad that I hadn’t been able to break the curse all the way. What had I done wrong? We’d done everything the spell had said with a great deal of enthusiasm, I added to myself, with a blush as I remembered the eager, hungry way Garrik had tasted me. That was certainly a memory I’d cherish when I had to leave Hidden Hollow and go back to the real world and my hum-drum boring life. I’d never been with a man who was so entirely focused on my pleasure before.

Just thinking of the way he’d made me come so hard was making me hot all over again. In fact, I was just about to ask him if he thought maybe we should try the “nether lips” kiss again, when a familiar voice spoke up from down by my feet.

“Well, well—so it didn’t work?”

Looking down, I saw Bartleby sitting there and looking up at us, his tail curled neatly around his paws.

“Hush, you infernal beast!” Garrik growled. It was clear that being interrupted during intimate moments aggravated him.

“It worked, but only partially,” I told Bartleby. I sighed. “I just wish there was a way to figure out what I did wrong.”

“You didn’t do anything wrong, sweetheart,” Garrik said firmly.

Really, he was taking this remarkably well, I thought. With his hot temper, I would have expected him to be angry with me for not breaking the curse completely and returning him to his body. Instead, he seemed extremely grateful for the little I’d been able to do.

“I did do something wrong or you’d be back in your body,” I pointed out. “I wish there was someone I could ask.” I sighed. “But it’s too late to go to the Red Lion and talk to Goody Albright again tonight.”

“Why don’t you call her on the magic mirror?” Bartleby suggested.

I frowned and so did Garrik.

“Magic mirror? What are you talking about?” he demanded.

“Oh, didn’t you know you had one?” Bartleby’s tail was swishing like a cat’s does when it’s playing with a mouse. I realized he was enjoying himself immensely.

“I don’t have one,” Garrik said, frowning.

“Then I guess that round, shiny thing I found when I was exploring in the attic doesn’t count,” the cat remarked breezily.

“Wait—there’s an attic too?” I asked.

“Of course—Blackthorn Manor is quite extensive,” Garrik said. “Of course the attic is only used to store old furniture and items that no one has any use for anymore. Some of the things up there are probably hundreds of years old, but I wasn’t aware of any magic mirror.”

“Let’s go see it,” I suggested. “Maybe I can talk to Goody Albright before I have to go home.”

“Oh…must you really leave?” He looked so stricken that for a minute I wished I could stay. But that wasn’t going to be possible.

“I’m sorry, Garrik, but I have a life back in Tampa…er, back in the Human Realm,” I reminded him gently. “I have a job to get back—at least, I hope I do. And an apartment to pay rent on and bills to pay.”

“All of those reasons you’re giving for going back to Tampa sound perfectly miserable,” Bartleby observed. “How do you humans stand it?”

“Well…it’s my life.” I shrugged lamely. I knew what I was describing didn’t sound exciting—maybe because it wasn’t. But I couldn’t just give everything up and go live in a magical town I’d only just found—could I?

“Of course it’s your life,” Garrik said firmly. “And you must go back to it. But first, let’s see if Bartleby is right about a magic mirror in my attic. It would certainly help to get some outside perspective on why the spell didn’t work entirely as planned. Not that you did anything wrong, sweetheart,” he added, putting a hand on my arm. “It was probably my fault. Maybe I wasn’t…thorough enough in my kissing.”

As he spoke his eyes went half-lidded again and I felt my stomach flutter.

“Excuse me, if you two love birds could pay attention to business for just one minute, I’ll show you where the mirror is,” Bartleby said.