Seth flashed a comforting smile and through a simple touch, injected low doses of his magical charm under her skin. With the Connection made, he altered her emotions, soothing her tension and wiping any layers of suffering he sensed.
“Nothing. It wasn’t important anyway.”
His mother relaxed and glanced at the clock. “Oh! You only have a little while before you have to leave for school. I better make some breakfast.”
“Toast is fine.” A mischievous grin spread across his face while the beast living inside his heart craved another necessity. “I should be able to pick up some real breakfast before class, if my magic works out today.”
“Oh, I know that look of yours.” His mother smiled while she pulled out two slices from the breadbox. “Who is she?”
“Some new Brit-chick at school. Junior, I think.”
“Beautiful?”
“Gorgeous! A body that could rock my world if she’d only let me in.” He leaned back, his mind lost in thoughts of Natti’s beauty. “And her eyes . . . Her eyes are nothing like I’ve ever seen. And describing them wouldn’t do them justice.”
His mother chuckled at his response. “You think she’s ‘the one’?”
Seth choked on his coffee. “W-W-Wh-What?”
“The one you’ll take as your bride.” Her fingers played with the platinum ankh pendant his father had given her on their wedding day. An item so precious to her, she never took it off. “She sounds like good breeding stock after all.”
“Mom, I haven’t been indoctrinated into the Sons of Set, and I’m starting college next fall. I’m hardly thinking about a wife at this point.”
His mother nodded. “Your father chose me on his return from Yale; days after he found me lost in a hotel and brought me to temple. When one finds their match does not matter, my son. As your father told me, it is purely the will of Set.”
Seth eyed his mother, his smile fading a bit. “Are you happy? Being with him?”
Michelle straightened up and handed him a plate with plain toast. “I’m serving my hem-netjer and my god in the greatest respect. I am honored my husband chose me as his wife. That he took me in when I was lost and confused and taught me the teachings of our god. And as my reward for our union, Set blessed me with a wonderful son. A son I care for dearly. I couldn’t ask for more than that.”
“Yeah, but are you—?” Seth paused, shook his head, and grinned. “Never mind. Forget that I brought it up.”
His mother nodded and returned her focus to the dishes. The beast inside of Seth growled with hunger, needing a victim.
“I better head off.” Seth pictured what Natti looked like in the buff, which only made the predator roar even louder. “I have a girl to charm.”
Seth crept up behind Natti’s locker door and leaned against the wall while he waited. Swinging her backpack over her shoulder, she shut the door and jumped.
“Oh, bloody hell!” She placed a hand over her heart, startled. “And here I thought this might actually be a good day. Silly me.”
She began to walk away, and Seth stepped into her pace. Slipping his hand into hers, he called on Set’s blessing. An easy application of magic trickled from his fingertips into her skin. “Skip first period with me. I know a little, quiet place we can just talk.”
Natti pulled her hand away. “You’re lying again. And I already know what your intentions really are, so cut the bull.”
The predator inside him was growing hungrier. Seth stepped in front of her, increasing his power so it radiated from his body and enveloped his victim. “Okay then. Let me take you away from all this to a place where we can learn all about each other. In the physical sense.”
Natti gargled a chuckle and brushed her fingers over her forehead. “Wow. You are really laying it on thick today, aren’t you?”
“Come on, Natara!” Seth stared into her sparkling amethyst irises. They captured him immediately, drawing him in like a moth to a flickering flame. “Don’t you want to be with me? To let me set your blood on fire with pleasure?”
Using his charm, he mentally instructed her to touch him. He felt her mind give a bit, and Natti raised her hand. It hovered in mid-air for a moment; her fingers stretched out to brush his chest. Natti shook her head, regaining her focus, and quickly reached for the strap of her backpack instead. Seth’s heart sank into the pit of his stomach.
“Actually, no.” Natti shrugged and walked around him. “Not at all.”
Seth growled, “You’re going to fall under my spell one of these days, Natara Stone. I can promise you that.”
She smiled. “You must really thrive on rejection then. As I said before, it’s going to take a lot more than you can offer to get with me.”
“You’ll find in time that it’s just enough.” He laid his arm over her shoulders. His confidence building when she didn’t pull away. He amplified his spell, hoping the dose would finally let him slip in and take control.