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Why did he think there was more going on? “Yeah? Me too. When I came into see you, I wasn’t just looking for a woman. I was looking formywoman. And you’re it. I’ve been thinking about us, and I don’t want to sound jealous or possessive, but I don’t want to share you with anyone.” The thought of her with some other guy was like a vice to the throat. “I know this is crazy. What do you think? Am I going too fast?”
Excitement sparked in her beautiful eyes. “I feel the same way. I don’t want to share you with anyone, either.”
He sighed, relieved. “Let’s go grab a bite. Are you ready for date number two?”
Snuggling into his chest, she rested her head against his heart. “I have a pretty good idea how the date ends.”
CHAPTER9
BROOKE
The next couple of weeks passed in a blur. They’d been the best of Brooke’s life and the most excruciating, because now a ticking time bomb hung over their heads. She’d been falling hard and fast for Nico from their first date. And now she couldn’t imagine her life without him in it. Their relationship was exhilarating and sensual, everything she’d always dreamed about and more.
Their minds were simpatico, and their lovemaking grew more passionate by the day. Sometimes it was hot and dirty, other times slow and intimate. They spent hours talking about their hopes and dreams, encouraging each other to chase after them. Nico convinced her to write her astrology book, and she gave him ideas for his restaurant expansion. The pull of their lives together in another time and place seemed stronger than ever.
He’d found a way into her heart. And now that sensation filtered through every aspect of her existence, but when summer turned to fall in less than a month, he’d forget all about her. A sick feeling in her stomach spread to her limbs. How would she live without him or go back to her old, lonely existence? She found the other half of her soul in Nico.
Pushing the myriad of doubts to the back of her mind, she kicked off the covers and got out of bed. She went into the bathroom and caught her reflection in the mirror while she brushed her teeth. The dreamy look of satisfaction and bliss on her face caught her off-guard. “I’ve got it bad,” she muttered to her reflection. The end of summer crept closer, like sand slipping through her fingertips
After she showered and dressed, she walked out of her room and stopped on the landing. She stared at the framed portrait of her famous ancestor, Melinda Howe, and placed her hands on her hips. “You’re the one that started all the trouble.”
For a split second, she swore Melinda smiled back at her. Everyone who saw the portrait said they looked exactly alike. They both shared the same wavy, blonde hair, round blue eyes, and long nose that she’d been teased about growing up. Brooke could see the resemblance and the parallels. “Now my life is about to turn into a total shitshow and all because you pissed off the wrong woman. Hell hath no fury like a witch who’s been scorned.”
“Talking to yourself again?” Arabella called up from the bottom of the stairs.
Brooke brushed a finger across the edge of the frame. “I was just saying we need to dust more.” The echo of voices and footfalls greeted her as she descended the staircase to the main floor.
“Have you told Nico about the curse?” Arabella asked, drawing her brows together.
“I’m planning to tell him at the Founder’s Festival.” She’d been looking forward to their big Labor Day fling for weeks, but that was before she started dating Nico—before she fell head over heels in love with him. The plan was to meet the other witches in the greenhouse and conjure a spell and a potion to counter the curse before next week’s full moon when the magick would be at its peak.
“If the invocation works then maybe there won’t be a reason to. It’s going to be okay.” Arabella touched her arm. “I promise.”
Her words soothed some of Brooke’s panic. “I pray you’re right. I want to believe with all my heart that this time will be different.”
* * *
A few hours later, Brooke stood in the greenhouse with Arabella, Delilah, and Gillian on one side of her. Ellen, Saje and Willow stood on the other. Seven anointed white candles surrounded them.
Moonlight spilled into the room from the wall of windows and cast an eerie glow above their heads. A tattered ancient grimoire from their library sat in the center on a book stand next to a hand mirror and a smoking cauldron.
“Are you ready, ladies?” Willow asked, trading glances with each of the women. She cleansed the area using salt and a ritual broom. After she finished, she set pink and green votive candles on the flat surface of the mirror.
Ellen, the high priestess of their coven, flicked her wrist and all the candles flamed to life. Lifting her hands, she waved them over the leather-bound tome. “Show me curses.” The locks on the ruby encrusted book clicked open. The pages flipped and then stopped on a page filled with flames and hearts. Her gaze moved to Brooke. “You’re up, my dear.”
Brooke walked around the other ladies pointing the tip of her wand in a clockwise direction until she formed a circle. “I long to be with a man like Nico who understands my mind and fulfills my passions.” She silently repeated the words and kept them at the forefront of her mind until she completed the circle.
“Potion time.” Saje picked up a copper bowl filled with herbs, then sprinkled them into the cauldron. “Basil for banishment and rose petals for love.” She glanced at Brooke. “Do you have your offering?”
Pulling out the blonde and black braid of her and Nico’s hair from her pocket brought a smile to Brooke’s lips. The contrast made her think of their personalities and filled her heart with warmth.
“I snipped it while he was asleep. I’m not proud of myself.” Guilt slid in her belly. “I hate keeping secrets from him.” But it was the only way to invoke the counter-spell to break the curse once and for all. Closing her fingers over the braid, images of Nico kissing her and making her laugh filled her head. She held on tighter. What if it didn’t work? Her head spun. She found it hard to breathe.
“Easy there.” Gillian pried the braid from her white-knuckled grip.
Brooke swallowed hard and tossed the braid into the cauldron. Flames shot in the air. “He's the first guy that made me feel like I’m enough.”
“Of course you’re enough. But even if you did tell him, do you think he’d believe you?” Gillian’s concerned gaze narrowed in her direction. “It’s not every day you find out the woman you’re dating has been hexed with a generational curse.”
