If she didn’t stop this soon, she’d lose her damn mind.
Bringing her brain, and body, and breathing under control again was like trying to hold back starving lions when a wounded, bleeding gazelle stumbled into view.
A knock at the door startled her, draining the strength from her arms, and the blood from her face.
She pulled away, but not before her heart leaped from her chest.
She would have laughed at how quickly he jumped away from her, if she weren’t so entranced by how incredibly hot he looked with his disheveled hair, cravat askew, flushed skin, gasping breaths, and a rock hard erection trying to breach the front of his pants.
She groaned again.
How was she supposed to keep her mind on Perez and his predicament if she couldn’t keep her mind off Logan and his goddamn penis? He stood more than six feet from her, but she couldn't stop devouring him, or from itching with the desire to touch him again.
Meeting his gaze over the distance, he was as bound as she was. She smiled, her lips puckering out into a pillow-plump bow.
She issued a seductive invitation to finish what they’d started. Later.
His black eyes burned in response.
She smiled again, but cold reality quickly replaced her mirth.
He’d ended their session of sex under the stars with an all-out ban on coitus. So why in the hell did he break his own rule? Either pleasure had brainwashed the both of them or something outside their control manipulated them. Again.
Unable to fight back the logical killjoy of her conscience, her mind turned to sobering thoughts.
I have to find out the connection. What does the enchantment have to do with me? What does Perez want, and why is he pushing Logan and I together?
Logan straightened his cravat, and tried to bring his tousled hair under control.
She smothered a giggle.
His erection began its descent into a more respectable place within his trousers, and he called out, “Come.”
The door opened, and a maid entered carrying the tea tray. After she left, the tension in the room returned.
He cleared his throat.
“Tea?” His voice came out on a squeak.
She shook her head, again squelching a laugh. The uptight duke wouldn’t appreciate her humor. “Is there anything else in the book that can shed some light on...well...everything?”
He bent over his desk to scan the pages. After a minute of reading, he let out a frustrated sigh. “This author is scatterbrained as a nitwit. While the information seems authoritative, his writing is jumbled and—wait, this might be something.” After reading the page a moment longer, he paraphrased, “This says there is a way to free the soul of the bound unbeliever. His enslavement can be lifted after he’s fulfilled three penitent tasks, one for each goddess: inflame passion between two opposing spirits, bring justice to a spirit broken by evil, and bring balance to a life fraught with impossible odds.”
Inflame passion between two opposing spirits?Hell. She shoved that bit of information into the back of her brain, not willing to dissect and inspect it yet.
“That sounds like a lot of work for a trapped soul in a pocket watch. How is he supposed to do it all?”
Poor hocus-pocus bastard.
“The bound soul is imbued with enough power to carry out his tasks. Perez must fulfill each task—gaining more power with each. If he progresses favorably, the goddesses can choose to lend him more power. Apparently, his wealth of power dependson whether he’s getting the job done. Once all three of his tasks are complete, he will be released from his bindings, and allowed to live a normal life.”
“Inflame passion, bring justice, bring balance—are there any step-by-step instructions on how he’s supposed to complete these tasks? A magic-pocket-watch operator’s manual? Something?”
Desperation pushed deep, seeking to rob her of her remaining peace. She fought the urge to slam her hand against the desktop, and instead paced, her dress making swishing sounds in the heavy silence of the room.
He flipped through the pages again. Long moments passed. He shook his head.
“That’s it. There’s nothing else here other than the words to the incantation in Latin, and something referring to the onus required to make the incantation work.”
