“Ask it to bloom,” said Calli.
“Ask it?” He shot a glance at her.
“Yes,” Calli repeated. “Ask it to bloom. Hedge magic is about the connection, remember? You’re connecting to it, asking it, not commanding it.”
Because she was still touching him, she could feel the moment he connected to the jasmine.
Bloom for me.
She could feel his spell within her because of their connection, almost as if it was passing through her. It was such a seductive request coming from him. Calli’s body turned warm and hunger burned her womb as she felt what was requested of her. The jasmine blossomed with slender trumpet-like white blooms that had small starburst shapes on the ends. A sweet, intoxicating scent perfumed the air in the kitchen so strongly that it overwhelmed the apples and pumpkin that had filled it just a moment before.
Calli stared at the thickly blooming night jasmine with pride. She leaned in close to Malcolm’s ear and whispered, “Open your eyes.”
His dark lashes fanned up, then widened in shock as he gazed at the blooms. “I did that?”
“You sure did.”
Malcolm turned his hand over to grasp her hand in his and squeezed before raising it to his lips to kiss her fingertips. He’d always been told that hedge magic drained the life out of the world around it, that it was lazy, taking from other sources. He realized that the life he drew upon around him was freely shared, that the energy came from so many sources, it wasn’t depleted. No creatures or living things were harmed, because it was about a connection, a sharing of power.
“No one ever told me how beautiful hedge magic could be. How it makes you feel to grow and create life. It feels pure.”
“That’s because it is. Plants have no evil within them. They live and bring more life before they pass. In the old days hedge witches were often called white witches because they rarely practiced magic that hurt anyone. They were healers, witches who wanted the world to grow and flower.”
A gleam of deep understanding reflected in Malcolm’s green eyes.
“You make everything sound beautiful,” he whispered. “I didn’t realize how much I’d shut out the beauty of this world until I met you.”
Calli ducked her head. His words were affecting her more than she wanted to admit. She had spent the last decade closing herself off, pretending she didn’t want or need any more than she already had, convincing herself she was content.
When Malcolm had crashed into her life, she had gotten a taste of the larger world. Rather than withdraw, she wanted to see more.
In a way, she had been like the night jasmine, not blooming until Malcolm had reached for her. The appearance of Persephone was proof that something was changing inside her. She couldn’t help but wonder what else might change the more time she spent around Malcolm.
He caught her chin with his hand and lifted her face up to his. Those bewitching green eyes cast spells that ran like quicksilver beneath her skin. Part of her warned that this sexual intensity between them was just because they were so close to witch-locking, but she couldn’t find it in herself to care enough to stay away. She wanted to touch him, to unburden her soul to him, and she wanted more than anything to kiss him.
“Fuck, you’re beautiful,” he growled. He lowered his head and kissed her. His lips moved over hers slowly, his sensual, warm breath was like the cinnamon in the hot cocoa they’d made after the hike. How was this man so damn addictive? She loved how tall and warm and hard he was. She wanted to tuck herself against his chest and burrow into him. His hands grasped her hips as they kissed for a long, wonderful few minutes. A sudden bark distracted them, and they jerked apart.
Hades stood in the doorway, the little kitten perched on his shoulders. Both of their familiars were watching them.
“I need to feed him,” Malcolm chuckled as he nuzzled Calli’s ear. “You get the cream for Persephone.”
“Okay. Sephie probably should have a bit of meat too,” Calli replied, still half-lost in the hazy warmth of this man’s kiss.
“Sephie?” Malcolm kissed the corner of her mouth.
“I thought sometimes Persephone can be a bit of a mouthful. She should have a nickname.”
“Sephie’s cute,” he agreed.
The kitten let out an insistent little meow, and Calli could feel the kitten’s hunger through the familiar bond.
Malcolm’s hands dropped from her body, and Calli had to hold in a sigh of regret.
With the moment gone, Calli retrieved some cold chicken from the fridge and poured a little bowl of cream, then passed them to Malcolm to lay out.
“I was thinking of making some snickerdoodles. You want to help?” she asked.
Malcolm straightened, having set Persephone’s cream somewhere where Hades couldn’t take it all in one big lap. “Definitely. Just tell me what to do.”
