He rubbed his hand along the nape of her neck. “There was a woman once, Lilly. She lived in the village I grew up in. We fell in love, but it didn’t work out in the end. What about you?”
“No. I’ve kissed a lot of frogs in my day.” Her slender shoulders slumped forward. “But sadly, none of them turned out to be princes.”
“I find that hard to believe unless you’re simply meeting the wrong ones. You’re smart, caring, not to mention incredibly beautiful. I bet men would be lining up for you in droves if they thought they had a chance. What about what you do with your cards or one of Saje’s love potions for that matter? You’ve never put either to good use?”
She angled her body to face him and reached up to trace a finger over his lips. In the candlelight, her eyes glowed like topaz. “I know it might sound hypocritical considering what I do for a living, but no. Helping others find love is my destiny and makes me happy beyond words, but when it comes to falling in love, I suspect it will happen for me the old fashioned way, when I’m not looking.”
“Gillian,” he murmured and caressed her cheek. In a different time and place, if he let himself, he could fall hard for her. Hell, any male would be a fool not to.
“Hey, with everything going on, I wanted to remind you about the Halloween festival tomorrow afternoon. You haven’t forgotten about it, have you?”
He’d been wrong when he listed her attributes. By far, her heart was what made her so beautiful. “I need to do a debriefing with Dubrosky and the other agents before the op, but don’t worry. That’s one place you’ll be safe. The park will be teeming with cops for the event. I’ll drop you off and meet you there after I’m done. Sebastian Beam has a ball to get to.”
Unsure of what would happen when he faced off with his enemy, Garrett chose to stay present and enjoy the wonderful woman in his arms.
Chapter 25
“You’re sure this is going to work?” Gillian whispered to Saje, who stood next to her at a long, wooden table. They’d set it up with a big, black cauldron filled with candy. Brochures and business cards from the shop were scattered over a fringed, purple tapestry, along with donation cups for her charity in honor of the festival.
The other girls from the coven stayed behind to man the store. They needed all hands on deck. Halloween was their busiest day of the year. She should be there to help, but this event meant too much for her to miss. Gillian’s stomach tightened into knots as she glanced up at the sky. By this evening the moon would be full, which meant time was running out for Brooke. They had to give her the potion tonight.
“I added all the ingredients and went back and rechecked the spell at least a dozen times. You’ve got the hard part, forcing Brooke to drink this sludge,” Saje said, breaking into her thoughts. She held her nose as she handed over the small glass vile. “It smells like rotten eggs.”
“As long as it does what it’s supposed to, I don’t care what it smells like.” All she could think about was seeing Brooke again and bringing her home. Gillian placed the potion vile in her purse and set it on a metal chair at their table.
To best representEnchantments,and in the full spirit of Halloween, they both wore witch costumes. Clad in a layered, baby blue, taffeta dress with a crown and a sparkly wand, Gillian came as Glinda. Saje knocked it out of the park in a long, black dress, tall pointed hat, and a green face. She looked like the spitting image of Elphaba fromWicked.
Gillian turned her face up to the sky, basking in the warmth from the sun, a welcome reprieve from yesterday’s storm. But she wouldn’t dare complain. Last night was one of the best of her life.
An enormous pumpkin sat on a bed of hay off to the side of their table. Anyone who guessed the weight won the cash prize. All the proceeds went to her charity, Hope Club.
She turned to find Saje staring at her with a curious expression across her green face. “What?”
“You look different today. You're glowing.” Saje said with a smile. “My psychic sense tells me it has nothing to do with the glitter, and everything to do with the sex.”
Gillian’s whole face flushed. “Watch what you say, there could be children present.” She tried to play it off by straightening the brochures on the table. No use lying, Saje would find out eventually. She always did. Besides, they didn’t keep secrets from each other. “Okay fine, things might’ve taken a turn on the hot and steamy side. But let’s face it, where could this lead? I’ll grow old and wrinkled, while Garrett stays young and vibrant forever. I could never expect him to stick around.” Even if they found a way to be together, how long would their relationship last? His track record didn’t bode well for anything long term.
“Hey, all jokes aside, this isn’t just about sex,” Saje said in a softer tone and squeezed her arm. “I can tell by the way you say his name and the dreamy look in your eyes when you talk about Garrett that you’re in love.”
“What? Are you nuts?” Gillian’s heart began to pound in rhythm to Saje’s words. No, she couldn’t be in love. It was too soon. It was ridiculous. But when her mind drifted to Garrett, she got these warm tingles that pulsated throughout her whole body. Gillian could spend hours talking to him and never get bored. When he looked at her, she could see the tenderness in his eyes, and feel it in his touch.
And there was the sex—it was passionate and intense—simply out of this world. She knew deep down, no male could ever compare to him as a lover. Now after living with him, she could honestly say he was the first person she wanted to see in the morning and the last person before going to bed.
“How did this happen?” Gillian murmured, still in a daze from the sudden realization. The whole thing made no sense, but Goddess help her, it was true.
“I never thought I’d see the day, but oh, how the mighty have fallen. Head over peep-toe sandals it seems.”
“Yeah, well, it won’t last long.” Gillian shrugged and tried to play it off. She turned her head away, embarrassed.
“While I was making the potion for Brooke, I came across the spell to make a vampire human again using the water from Sybil’s Cave, along with a regimen of herbs. I can’t say whether or not it would work.” Saje tilted her head to the side. “The girls and I would have to do some more research first. The only way to know for sure would be to have Mulroney try it out.”
“I’m not sure he’d agree to be a guinea pig. He seemed pretty closeminded about the subject the last time I brought it up. He’s a total skeptic,” Gillian said, not able to keep the hurt from her voice.
“He's probably afraid because he has too much to lose if it doesn’t take. Talk to him, Gillian, what do you have to lose, except for a chance at happiness?”
The summation of the situation filled her with warmth. “I know it’s coming from a good place, but has anyone ever told that you’re a meddler?” Gillian asked with a smile.
Saje considered this and shrugged. “At least twenty times a day.”
