“Me, too.” My voice came out huskier than it should have, but who could blame me? Her scent was wrapping around me again, and the warmth of her bare skin beneath my hands made me burn. There was just something about her that stole every rational thought from my mind. She was intoxicating, and the tension that bound us together was delicious.
“Rafe?” she whispered, putting a hand to my chest. It burned into me. Her gaze was even worse—luminous and all-seeing, piercing my soul in a way that left me laid bare.
“Yeah?” I looked down at her lips, full and soft, and something tightened within me. I desperately wanted to kiss her. From the way she tilted her mouth up toward mine and licked her bottom lip, I was fairly sure she wanted me to. Comingled regret and relief tugged at me as I said, “You’ve had some drinks. We shouldn’t.”
She smiled. “You’re worried about my consent?”
“You don’t exactly like me.”
“Oh, I like you just fine. It’s you who doesn’t like me.”
Right now, that was patently untrue.
“I took a sober-up potion,” she said, stepping closer. “But considering how much you dislike me, I should be worried about your consent.”
Dislike her? I could never.
I liked her far too much. Wanted her far too much. She looked delicious in the moonlight, all creamy skin and luscious pink lips. The sight, the scent, the closeness of her made me want to taste every inch of her.
It was more than I could bear.
Unable to stop myself, I leaned down and pressed my lips to hers. She was impossibly soft, tasting of wine and strawberries. She wrapped her arms around my neck, and I pulled her closer, pressing the full length of her body against mine.
The feel of her was enough to make my head spin, and she kissed me with a passion that stunned me. One second, she was sweeping her tongue over my lips, and the next, she was pulling away and gasping.
“I don’t even like you,” she said.
“I don’t like you, either.” Lie. But I shouldn’t like her. And kissing her like this was a terrible idea. “Sorry. I shouldn’t have.” I stepped away from her and turned to open this door.
This time, after a bit of a push, it opened. It hadn’t been locked at all—which would have made no sense, since I hadn’t locked it—but rather had just been stuck.
Before she could say anything, I disappeared into my room like the coward I was.
Chapter
Thirteen
Isobel
I dreamed of the kiss. How could I not? It was the single most incredible physical experience of my life. Nothing with Tommy could have ever compared. Rafe was just so overwhelmingly physical, with his strength and height and beauty.
And he was an incredible kisser. I’d felt like the center of his world, and the pleasure that had rushed through me had been like nothing I’d ever experienced before. He’d swept me away, making me lose all rational thought as I’d disappeared into the kiss. I’d forgot where I was—hell, I’d almost forgot who I was. Every part of me had been focused on him and the feeling of his mouth on mine, of his strong hands around my waist. As soon as I’d realized how far I’d lost myself, I’d panicked.
I don’t even like you.
My words echoed in my head. They had been a lie. It didn’t matter how grumpy and moody he was—I still liked him. But I didn’t want to. I couldn’t afford to fall for another guy, not when I was finally finding myself.
Ugh. Enough of that.
I forced myself out of bed. There was no time to lie here daydreaming, and no point. He’d made it perfectly clear that he regretted the kiss just as much as I did. Anyway, I would be living with Rafe until I heard from the solicitor, who reported that he was having a hard time getting solid answers, so I needed to keep things nice and casual between us.
I started the day with a quick trip to the hardware store to pick up supplies for the work ahead of me. Of course, I had to swing by Margot’s for a pastry and coffee, and I spent a lovely few minutes chatting with her while she made the latte. It was amazing how quickly I was starting to feel at home in Charming Cove.
By the time I made it back to Lavender House, it was nearly nine. I had a long day ahead of me and would only manage it with the help of a bit of magic.
Poa was nowhere to be seen as I collected my supplies from the boot and headed into the house. Immediately, that familiar stink rose in the air, and one of the remaining blinds went up and down as if discontented.
“Oh, chill out,” I said. “I’m here to help.”
Air seemed to rush out of the door, as if the house were giving an irritated sigh. I smiled. My life was full of grumps lately—the house, the wolf I lived with, and even Poa if she didn’t get her snackies right when she wanted them—but I knew they were lovely on the inside. They just needed a little care.
Not that I cared about the wolf. That would be beyond foolish. I did my best to shove him from my mind and turned my attention to the job at hand.
First things first. I drew in a deep breath and recited the spell that would give me enhanced strength and speed. Every time I used my magic, I felt a little more confident in it. There was no doubt that ignoring my power for so long had been bad for it. The magic inside me had been left to go rusty, but I was changing that.
Once I finished reciting the spell, I felt the faint buzz of power through my whole body. Energized, I got to work.
I spent the next two days cleaning out the house, removing all the horrible kitchen cabinets and bathroom fixtures. It was a lot of hard labor, but my magic made it easier. Every night, I returned to the boathouse exhausted and dirty. Rafe was never anywhere to be seen, as if he knew I was coming and wanted to avoid me.
He probably did. He’d even managed to fix my shower without me seeing him. I thought I heard him downstairs occasionally, but he was always gone when I left to go to Lavender House.
I hardly saw Poa, either, and the days were a blur of work and sleep. The house didn’t make it any easier, of course. Every time I entered, it complained. And every now and again, it made its dislike for me known. Blinds fell on my head while I was removing them, and water shot me in the face while I tried to fix a toilet using instructions from the internet.
Things were moving forward, but not as quickly as I wanted. I really needed help. Unfortunately, my second visit to Judith hadn’t revealed any new information about how the house had come to be enchanted, but she’d promised to look in one other place. I was less hopeful she’d find anything, but there was always a chance.
It was my seventh day in Charming Cove when I started to remove the wallpaper. By midafternoon, I’d stripped all of it and bundled it into the garden, where I’d been putting all the rubbish. As I looked at the pile amid the weeds, the autumn breeze blew my hair off my face.
“You might need to hire a skip for that.” A woman’s voice carried from the far side of the garden fence, and I turned to see who it was.
Judith stood there, a smile on her faintly lined face and a picnic basket propped on top of the fence railing.