Taking a deep breath, Cassia crushed more of the lovage she’d bought from a shop in Astraeus. The words in the old spell book she’d found in the library were barely visible in the candlelight of her room. Squinting, she muttered one of the Latin phrases aloud and then blew the tiny particles of the lovage into the candle closest to her. For a split-second, the flame roared brighter before returning to its flickering state. Cassia closed her eyes and mentally searched every part of her body for a sign that her magic had worked. Air had always been the easiest element for her to draw upon, and it was a simple strengthening spell. Peaking an eye open, she looked down at her hands. Did they feel firmer? Or was her mind playing tricks on her?
The light from the hallway suddenly illuminated her flexing fingers. Heart stuttering, she whirled around. It calmed, but only slightly, when she discovered Castor in her doorway. Grinding her teeth together, she muttered, “You can’t come in here without knocking anymore.”
His dark eyes, full of bewilderment, gazed around at the numerous candles littered across every surface in her dim room. “What are you doing?”
“What does it look like?” she snapped, pointing at the spell book on her bed. Cassia crossed her arms and hoped she wasn’t as red as she felt at being caught doing the one thing she’d told him she wouldn’t. Castor raised a brow and moved to stand beside her bed. Silently, he thumbed through the stiff, dusty pages of the grimoire.
Cassia swallowed hard as she watched him. Gold reflected off his dark skin in the candlelight and seeing him so close to her bed reminded her of the last time he’d been on it. When he’d slowly undone the straps of her thin, blue ballgown and moved his mouth all the way down her body until…
Clearing her throat, she backed into the corner by the closet. The heat rushing to her core was about to make her do something very stupid. The more space between them, the better. “I’m sorry I shoved you the other day,” she said, hoping the mention of one of her transgressions would make him keep his distance, as well.
Instead, Castor tilted his head and studied her. She trembled when he took a step toward her. “Is that why you avoided me outside the throne room yesterday?”
Cassia breathed a sigh of relief when he stopped in front of her sapphire metal table to inspect the herbs she’d placed there. He picked up a few petals of echinacea and rolled them between his fingers.
“Are you going to let me help you?” he asked, keeping his gaze on the herbs.
She wanted to say no. Wanted to remind him about the last time he’d tried to teach her. She’d failed so spectacularly, she’d almost burned off all his hair. And then their sessions had turned into a different sort of teaching entirely. She’d learned all about beds, dark corners, and which clothes she didn’t mind being ripped.
But when Castor locked eyes with her, she knew this time would be different. Cassia couldn’t ignore the urgency in his eyes. Last time, there’d been no revival of blood magic or mysterious creatures threatening Elyria.Last time, she’d hadtwobrothers, and a sister not yet corrupted by her father. Everything was different now. She could no longer hide away in her room and hope life would work itself out. Time had already proven that lie to be false.
“What if I never get any better?” Cassia croaked, heart pounding as she admitted her greatest fear. “What if I’m always the dud Witch that can’t defend anyone, let alone herself?”
Her confession softened his eyes. Inches from her now, Castor searched her face. His gaze brought a flush to her skin she’d forgotten could be so intoxicating. With his breath on her face, she could see the scar above his full lips from when he’d defended Cade in a bar fight on his seventeenth birthday, and count every thick, dark eyelash that breathtakingly lined the penetrating orbs she dreamed about at night. Cassia dug her fingers into the seams of her pants to keep herself from touching him.
“You will get better,” he promised, “I’ve thought about this a lot, actually.”
When he placed his hands on her biceps, she shivered. She wished she hadn’t left her jacket on. It’d been so long since she’d felt his skin. The heat building in Castor’s eyes made her wonder if he was thinking the same. She hoped she wasn’t imagining it.
“As a Warlock, there’s magic in my blood, but I still need to use elements to enhance my abilities and sustain it for larger spells,” he murmured. “A Fae’s power is in their blood, too. They draw inward. It’s why magic physically weakens them faster than the other species. Even if your magic manifested as a Witch, you’re still part Fae. I think that might make you different. I think that maybe… you haven’t been pulling from the right thing.”
Cassia briefly registered his words. His logic made sense. In a way. She wasn’t as knowledgeable about magic as he was. But all she could think about was the way his hands moved to her hips and brushed across her lower back. Electricity rushed through her body. Instead of fighting it,she pressed herself against him. She knew she would regret letting the fire between them consume her tomorrow, but now, all she wanted was him beneath her on the bed. Cassia grabbed the lapels of his coat and gazed up at him. She whispered, “Teach me then.”
Castor’s fingers dug harder into her hips. Breath left her lungs as he pressed her against the wall and opened her legs with his thigh. Cassia pressed against him and moaned. She’d hoped for this exact reaction from him. It wasn’t the first time she’d asked him to teach her. She’d said it to him before, with much less clothes, in the very same room. Replaying the memory in her head made her hips buck forward. Castor inhaled sharply and began to unzip her jacket. His mouth moved to her throat.
Chest heaving, he said, “Tell me to stop.”
Cassia shook her head. She couldn’t. Not when every inch of her was ready for him, like three years hadn’t passed since the last time she’d kissed him. Not when she was already reviewing in her head all the ways she knew how to make him moan. Unlike…
Ice suddenly filled Cassia’s veins. She froze, but kept her grip on his halfway open shirt. Hadn’t she just seen Delphine blushing and flirting with him yesterday? She was just about to ask him if something was going on between them when a knock at her door pulled Castor’s lips away from her collarbone.
Seconds later, the knock sounded again.
“That sounds important,” Castor sighed, pulling away from her. Even though her legs shook, Cassia managed to zip up her jacket and stumble to the doorway. She flung open the door, ready to snarl at whoever wouldn’t stop their incessant knocking.
“Have you seen…”
Delphine’s mouth dropped slightly when she took in Cassia’s twisted jacket, and then the figure standing behind her. Cassia hadn’t realized Castor had followed her to the door. Her throat tightened when she felt Castor stiffen.
Face red, Delphine lowered her eyes and said, “Castor, I need your help. Cade thinks he’s found some way to communicate through the gate. He’s on his way there now. I couldn’t stop him…”
Cassia’s stomach dropped. She’d been right. She should’ve just gone to Cade herself and forced him to listen to her. Instead, she’d let herself be distracted and overwhelmed by the man she’d convinced herself to let go of. Now, who knew what consequences were in store for her brother if no one stopped him. Face paling, Cassia grabbed Castor and pulled him out to the hallway. Delphine nodded, and sped up her steps as they rushed toward the southern courtyard.
“Do you know what she’s talking about?” Castor asked.
“I saw the idea in his head the other day,” Cassia said. “That Andarrian girl, Alexia, she mentioned how Quinn used some sort of blood spell on the gate to communicate with the Sanguis.”
The color drained from Castor’s face. “If he uses blood magic, there will be serious consequences. More than his ability to cross the gate.”
