“Why don’t we sit and talk for a few minutes?” She pointed to a table in the corner, where two leather armchairs were tucked cozily together with a small reading table.
“I’ll brew us some tea.” She left Malcolm and went into the storeroom, where she had a small kitchenette. She turned on the burner and put the kettle on. When it came to tea, she didn’t rush the process with magic.
Armed with a tray of two hot cups of chamomile and a small pot of honey, she joined Malcolm in the reading nook. He’d fallen asleep. She stepped over his long legs, which were stretched out and crossed at the ankles, and saw Hades trying to play with her little kitten, who batted at the dog’s nose whenever he got too close.
Malcolm looked worn out, and she couldn’t blame him. The magic he had used had been very powerful, and since his magic came from within, he could tire out if he performed too many complicated or powerful spells close together. Hedge witches could also get tired simply from channeling natural magic, but she was more used to using magic than he was. He was going to tire easily, until his body adjusted to the constant flow and replenishing of his powers.
She set the tray down, and the gentle clink was enough to rouse him.
“Sorry. Must have dozed off.”
“It’s okay. You’ve had a busy day.”
He sipped his tea gratefully and let out a sigh. “You can say that again. I did something else too…right before I came here.”
“What do you mean, something else?” Calli asked curiously.
He stared down at his cup of tea. “I think I used a time spell.”
Calli’s breath rushed out of her lungs “A time spell?” She almost choked on the words. “You’re sure?”
“That’s what Sage said. I wasn’t thinking. I just saw a kid run out in front of a truck. The next thing I know, I’m on the other side of the street with the kid in my arms. I hit the library wall so hard I left a dent in it.”
“If Sage said you used a time spell, that must be what happened.”
“Yeah, but how? I never learned a time spell. How can I suddenly start halting time and causing book tornados?”
Calli leaned forward in her chair. “Well, for one thing, you’re in a magical town, one that is an epicenter of old magic. This town will increase your power and focus it.” She struggled for an analogy. “Think of a prism with a beam of light hitting it. A massive rainbow shoots out of the other side, because it breaks apart the light. Here it’s the reverse. Moonstone is the crystal, and your magic is the rainbow that’s being projected into the crystal, resulting in a bright gold pure beam of light coming out the other side. It’s more intense, more focused… at least that’s how my grandmother explained it to me.”
“Do you ever have trouble controlling your magic?” he asked, a note of hope in his tone.
Calli hesitated. “Not as much as you, but I was raised surrounded by this level of magic. It’s going to affect you differently until you adjust to it.”
“So you don’t think this will happen when I go back to New York?”
Her heart sank into a black pit. “You’re leaving?”
Malcolm gave a half-hearted smile. “You still owe me a lesson, remember? I plan to stay for a little while,” he sat up a little. “That reminds me. I spoke to Mrs. Greenlee. The B&B is all booked up.”
Calli felt like an idiot. “Of course. The festival. I shouldn’t have sent you there.”
“It’s okay. Jasper thought she might have a room left too. Then he suggested…” He stopped as their gazes met, not finishing his sentence.
Heat flooded her cheeks and she found herself saying, “My house is available. I mean…I have plenty of extra rooms.”
Then, for the first time since the book tornado, Malcolm gave that charming grin that hit her right behind the knees. “I’ll do my best not to set fire to your rug again.”
She giggled before sipping her tea. “Good. Because I happen to like that rug.”
Hades walked over to them, the little kitten hanging by the scruff of its neck from his mouth. Persephone had a sour expression on her adorable face. Hades, as gentle as any mother cat, set the kitten on Calli’s lap and went to lie down at Malcolm’s feet.
“Is that your bookstore cat?” Malcolm inquired, watching her clutch the little ball of fur to her chest.
“No… This is my familiar.”
Malcolm’s brows rose. “I thought you said you didn’t have one.”
“I didn’t…until this morning. I woke up and there she was, sitting on my chest purring.”
