The other woman rolled her eyes. “Shazam, really? Are you drunk, Matilda?”
Matilda giggled. “Maybe. Besides, I like shazam. Shazam is awesome. What’s wrong with shazam?”
“Nothing, I suppose.” Her friend pointed to a spot at the end of the refreshment table. “Let’s go over there to watch what happens.”
Matilda nodded. As if they’d forgotten all about Max, they freed his arms and started to walk away, stumbling together and laughing uproariously.
The taller witch practically sang, “I’m going to win. Just wait and see.”
Matilda responded quickly, “No, you aren’t. Love is always more powerful than truth. Everyone knows that.”
Max shook his head as they wove an unsteady path to the refreshment table and dipped up glasses of punch. He hoped it was the unalcoholic kind. It seemed they had imbibed more than enough of something quite potent. Drunken women pretending to cast spells on him at an over-the-top Halloween costume party was likely par for the course in this town. He had his own agenda. He needed to reach his employers, make some small talk and then he was out of here.
With an eye partly on the women watching him from afar and fighting the urge to visibly roll his eyes at the absurdity, Max spun on one heel—and ran smack into someone carrying a champagne flute. Several droplets from her glass showered his forearm and dribbled to the floor.
“I’m so sorry,” she said.
Max stared down, intending to utter a blithe apology for his clumsiness, and froze, suddenly unable to articulate the words. Her dark blue eyes were lovely, deep and mesmerizing. Better yet, she had a pouty mouth just made for kissing.What is wrong with me?
She lifted her lovely hand and swiped at the spatter of champagne on his arm with an already soaked cocktail napkin, her eyes darting away from his intense gaze. “It didn’t get on your shirt, did it?” she asked, pressing the sodden napkin against his forearm, likely leaving as much champagne as she wiped away.
Max wasn’t angry. Party mishaps like this one happened at every engagement he’d ever attended or planned. He inhaled, taking in her lovely scent. He opened his mouth to dismiss the incident as of no consequence.
“I love you,” he blurted. He felt his jaw sag in shock.
What in the space potato farm ever possessed him to say that? He had tried to say, “Don’t worry about it,” but instead three much more powerful words came out.
The beautiful creature stared at him in confusion. “I beg your pardon?”
“I meant to say…” He paused, unsure of what would come out of his mouth next.
He shook his head and rolled his eyes, chuckling in an attempt to pretend he’d only been joking. It wasn’t a joke. He’d been compelled to say it. He shot a glance at the two older women who’d triumphantly crowed, “Poof!” and “Shazam!” just seconds before. They stood at the end of the refreshment table, holding each other up, grinning like fools, watching every moment of this mishap like they’d planned it.
Luckily, the beautiful girl in the short red cape and black dress laughed. She brushed his arm again with the champagne-soaked napkin and looked pointedly at his hand. She seemed fixated on the wide band on the third finger of his right hand. He’d taken to using the ring to cover the mark, not wanting anyone to be able to readily identify him.
She frowned at his hand. Something in the way she stared made him wonder if she knew about the tattoo. No. Impossible. How could she? She wasn’t an alien, was she?
Even though the ring was on his right hand, not his left, she asked, “Are you married?”
“No.” His unruly tongue wouldn’t let him stop there. “Truthfully, I’d love to marry you.”
“What?”
Those thought-provoking dark blue eyes fixed on his with surprise. Her gaze, while spellbinding, shouldn’t make him say foolish things.
Trying to say something different, he opened his mouth. The word, “I,” came out and he clamped his lips shut to keep from repeating that he loved her.
The two witches at the refreshment table kept their gazes riveted in his direction. The moment he locked eyes with them, they stumbled and scurried away into the crowd, laughing with seeming glee, obviously happy with themselves.
Had they truly put a spell on him? Surely not.
Chapter Three
Ruby didn’t know what was with this guy. Sure, he was gorgeous, but after five seconds of acquaintance he’d already told her he loved her and wanted to marry her.
“You want to marry me? Really? And you love me? Convenient, but I don’t know you, dude.”
