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The shop was practically her whole world, and she craved attention from the opposite sex, not that she’d admit it to anyone. Only in her private thoughts did she dare go there. Her guard had been up since she’d relocated to New Hampshire. A bad relationship and being booted out of a job could ruin a person’s confidence.
“Are you seeing a return on your investment?” He went back to his desk and sat.
She watched his every move. “I’m starting to make a profit. It wasn’t easy. I hope Andy doesn’t ruin everything I’ve worked for.” She sighed, wishing her ex would crawl back into the hole he’d come from.
“I hear stories about these spineless con-artist who prey on innocent people all the time. As I said, he doesn’t have a leg to stand on.”
Andy’s motives were always selfish and manipulative. Money was his end goal, and Krista knew he didn’t care who he dragged through the mud to get what he wanted.
“I hope you’re right.” She fidgeted in the chair, her emotions escalating. Jon was understanding and compassionate, the kind of man she’d yearned for. “I’m surprised I haven’t met you before. This area is so close to mine.”
“I’m a homebody. I haven’t gotten out much with work being so time consuming. Maybe to play a game of golf with my colleagues once a month, but that’s it.”
She smiled, wishing she wasn’t so nervous. Before she realized what was happening, he stood and headed toward her. Was Jon about to make a move? If so, she wasn’t resisting.
He planted himself in front of her and took hold of her hands to help her stand. With a smooth sway of his hips, he slowly slipped his hand around her back. Tunnel vision altered all perception of reality, and she closed her eyes as he gently pulled her up against his chest. Jon’s touch aroused her mercilessly. There wasn’t time to react. Her panties moistened and her nipples tingled. The tiny stubble on his face gave her skin a slight burn, and it unleashed her wild spirit. She dug her fingers into his back. A sense of belonging came as a surprise. Jon cradled her in his arms, and she surrendered to his advances.
His passionate touch filled her spirit with longing. It didn’t matter if they were strangers. When their lips touched, it felt right. A quiet echo and a brightness filled the room as if the goddess of love hovered over and shined light upon them. The connection was solid, and it practically knocked her off her feet.
Steadying herself, Krista stared into his eyes with her heart racing. As Jon moved in again and plunged his tongue deep into her mouth, he caressed her back, and she surrendered to his touch. Each passion-filled kiss felt as if he was a long-lost lover who had reappeared and claimed her heart’s desire. There was no telling what might happen next.
Her whole body relaxed as he nuzzled her ear, teasing her with playful nips at her neck. All rules had been broken, but it didn’t matter. His hard shaft rubbed up against her, and she swayed back and forth, unable to break away from temptation. Jon’s breathing sped up as his hands traveled up and down her back. She quietly moaned, lost in another world. Every movement brought her one step closer. Was she lonely enough to have sex with a man she’d just met? Each kiss weakened her guard. Maybe it was fate.
As his hand trailed across her back, her body rocked with his. Each flicker of his tongue along the sides of her mouth was electrifying, as if he wanted to devour her, and she found herself in a trance-like state. This was what she’d been missing.
Running her hand across his firm bicep, the room spun. The warmth of his body was raising her level of arousal. Here, in the middle of his office, she experienced a passion like no other. Everything seemed right. Lust took control of her senses, and she let herself go with it. With each kiss, he cradled her in his arms, his embrace warm and protective like a warrior of love. How did this happen? Had she found the man she was destined for, or was it all a dream?
Chapter 2
Jon pulled back and let Krista go. A clattering in the back of the house pulled him out of the intoxication from the sweet smell of her perfume and the softness of her lips. With a quick turn of his head, he listened closely while his heart pounded. Annoyed by the disturbance, he rubbed the back of his neck and clenched his jaw. He was disappointed and frustrated. Moments before he’d been lost in the sweetness of Krista’s embrace. His massive erection still throbbed.
“What is it?” she asked as she straightened her clothes and smoothed down her hair.
“I heard something drop. I’m sorry to do this to you, but I’ll be right back.”
A tightness began in his throat and traveled down to his gut. Each time he’d opened his heart, a wall hit him in the face. The racket was all too familiar. This time, he’d had enough. He didn’t care if he had to go to extremes and hire an exorcist, get a priest, or find someone else who knew the answer. Years of hiding from the world due to his mother had finally worn him down mercifully. Sleepless nights had led to a stomach ulcer and forced him to change his diet. An Italian without garlic was unheard of!
He wanted someone to share his life with, but how was he supposed to explain the curse that had ruined his life? A man his age needed a partner. His mother lived on in limbo, from a curse bestowed upon her, unable to cross over to the other side, due to a feud with an evil witch years ago. Now he lived in isolation, hiding from the truth, too afraid to ruin his reputation.
With each step he took, his frustration fueled his anger. He burst into a room in the back of the house to find his mother sitting on a corner window box filled with velvet pillows, staring out at the yard. Her once rosy complexion was pale, and her once robust figure nothing but skin and bones. An oversized white dress didn’t hide what had happened to her three years ago when she died. The curse had left its mark on her beautiful soul by taking away any hope of peace.
“How did you know I had company? Did you have your ear up against the door?” He stood next to her.
“I’m sorry to be a bother. I tripped over the rug and dropped a tray. I picked it up.”
Her expression was sullen and her frail hands trembled. It broke his heart. Although the interruption had angered him, he appreciated the sacrifices his mother had made to send him to college and law school. She had raised him well. When his father had walked out while he was in grade school, she had worked three jobs to make ends meet.
“Don’t mind me,” he said. He didn’t want to be a selfish idiot, but his life and needs mattered. Years of loneliness and a deep longing to connect with a woman had been unleashed today with the magnificent woman in his office. His skin crawled with the very thought of the hell his mother had endured. It had to stop!
What had gotten into him? It wasn’t his mother’s fault. Years ago, the miserable Maggie Mazur had performed her cruel magic on one of the most caring, committed witches of her time. Mona Bartolo was a dedicated New Hampshire coven member who had practiced her witchcraft with an open heart. He was proud of his mother and the way she had chosen to live her life. How was she to know that the man who had courted her after his father left was Maggie’s ex-husband? The disturbing vision of the night when he was seventeen and their house was set on fire by the scorned witch still haunted him. He could still hear her cackling when she pointed to his mother and marked her for misery on earth, never able to enter eternal rest.
A journal given to him by his aunt had a dedicated section describing how to remove a curse, but it hadn’t proved beneficial. If only he had the missing piece to the puzzle. Yet hope lingered in his heart. If she were set free, he would return to his past life without hesitation, and she’d find the peace she deserved. She’d suffered long enough.
With multiple failed attempts to free her himself, he gave up and waited. After years of research, the ritual still baffled him. He was rusty and hadn’t used the magic he had learned as a child for twenty years. The world of witchcraft didn’t fit into the life of a man with a busy law practice, and fear of being shunned by his colleagues had kept him away from his heritage.
He kissed his mother gently on the forehead, the weight of the world on his back. “I’m going to wrap things up with my client. Will you be okay for the rest of the afternoon?” He bent down and touched her bony knee. Worry took over his mood. He squinted, blinking away a tear, guilt creeping in. Her agony weighed heavy on his heart.
Years of living a lie had taken its toll. Making excuses, keeping his friends away from his house, and avoiding commitment didn’t fit for a man who yearned for a fulfilled life. All of his college buddies had gotten married over the past five years. Rumors about him being a playboy buzzed around town, and he knew it.
