Bewitching Fire

by Sheritta Bitikofer

  Now that she was close, sitting in the seat next to him and her wonderful perfume filling the inside of his car, he felt all the stress from the previous week melt away to the floorboard beneath his feet. Being with her was so easy, so natural. Nothing on earth could possibly replicate the effect she had on him. He hoped it would last.

  Chapter Eight

  Krystal kept her eyes fixed on the planks of the dock ahead of her, being careful to walk right over the parts that were nailed into the framing below. The irrational fear that any one of these sturdy boards would splinter and cave in beneath her was too convincing to push aside. She also hated the way the platform seemed to tilt to one side, rather than remain perfectly level.

  The only thing that kept her moving forward was Devin’s hand in hers as he guided them toward the boat moored to one of the pylons. The salty breeze teased her long black hair that she had let down after she had gotten home, and her bangs were tossed to one side or the other as they ventured further out on the dock.

  Everything in her screamed that this was a terrible idea. Twilight would settle in soon and she saw that Devin had overstated the amount of lights on the boat. That one light would have to guide their steps across the deck and somehow get them back to shore well after the sun had set. The moon was just barely in its waxing gibbous phase, which was preferred over a crescent or even a first quarter phase, but Krystal couldn’t help but wish that it were full. So many wonderful things could happen on a full moon and it would have given them more light to see by.

  She could hear the waves slapping against the side of the boat as it bobbed and swayed with the tide. All across the harbor, she could hear the fishermen and other mariners tie up their vessels for the night, yet she and Devin were going out anyway. What was Devin thinking when he set up this little arrangement? He had already told her that he had planned to come out long before he met her, but why go out on the open water at such an hour?

  Maybe the two fishing poles and tackle box in his free hand had something to do with that.

  “Here we are,” he said, presenting the boat to her as if she were supposed to be impressed. The railings were practically nonexistent, but it was better than she had envisioned. Somehow, she thought he would take her out on a huge sailboat and she would have to learn something. With this, at least he could drive and operate the boat while she hung on for dear life. She could just barely see the bright orange lifejacket peeking out from behind the driver’s seat near the helm. There were two seats to the front of the helm on the bow, but Krystal knew for a fact that she wouldn’t be climbing up there this evening.

  She nodded and hoped that her apprehension wasn’t too evident. She desperately wanted this to go well. Not just because she needed to get over this pesky fear of drowning, but because it was unlikely that they would get another chance for a date until her next day off, which seemed like a lifetime away.

  “Nice,” she said with a weak nod.

  Then, without even asking, Devin led her onto the deck behind the helm. With her feet straddling the edge of the dock, she watched the boat sway and she hardly knew where to step first. Seeing her hesitation, Devin set down his fishing gear and leaned up to slip his hands around her waist.

  “I’ve got you.”

  In one fluid, graceful move, Devin lifted her up and over the gap between dock and boat, then lowered her to her feet just beside him. His hands lingered there and Krystal grinned, despite the unease she felt as the boat seemed to oscillate beneath her. That tight, fluttering feeling sparked low in her belly and she gripped his forearms for stability.

  “So far so good, right?” he said.

  Though her eyes were roaming for something to hang onto as soon as he let go, she nodded.

  “Yep. So far so good.”

  Devin released her to snatch up one of the lifejackets and offered it to her. Krystal shuffled slowly toward the helm and held onto the little barrier between the steering wheel and the rest of the deck. The fiberglass was cold beneath her skin and a little damp from a previous trip out onto the water.

  Was the rest of the boat that way? Was it just as slippery under her feet?

  She wordlessly took the lifejacket from Devin as he began to explain his plan to take them out to the mouth of the bay and float there.

  “If we’re lucky, we’ll be able to catch our dinner.”

  “Dinner?” Krystal questioned as she alternately braced herself against the barrier and tried to strap the lifejacket over her chest and torso. It was bulky, awkward, and definitely unattractive, but Krystal was taking no chances. Devin could just make love to her wearing this and he’d have to like it, but she couldn’t see herself taking it off anytime soon.

  “Yep,” he proclaimed. “That’s the plan. We’ll catch at least three, maybe four fish, go back to my place and cook them up.”

  Krystal shot him a sassy look. “Do you have a well-equipped kitchen for something like that?”

  Devin saw her struggle and came forward help her get the nylon straps straight. “Well, would you prefer to cook at your place?”

  His fingertips grazed across the middle of her back as he fixed the one waist cinch and buckled it in the front. In one swift jerk, he tightened the strap and pulled her close to him. A breath escaped between Krystal’s lips and she let herself fall against him. Her hands flattened against the soft fabric of his long-sleeved shirt and she could feel his taut muscles beneath. If the damned lifejacket wasn’t in the way, their chests would have been flush together. It was totally killing the romantic mood and might as well have been the best cock-blocker in the world.

  “I think cooking at my place might be easier,” she replied after she regained her balance and pushed herself off of him.

  Devin seemed amused. “Are you sure you want to wear that all evening?”

  Krystal adjusted the lifejacket. “It’s either that or you tether me to the helm. Take your pick.”

  “Having you tied up might prove interesting,” he offered with a shrug of his brows that suggested so much.

  She giggled. “Well, I don’t know. What if we hit something and the ship sinks, but you can’t untie me fast enough?”

  Devin gave her a look, as if to say that she was being silly, but slipped out a sheathed pocket knife from his jean pocket. “That’s where these come in handy.”

  “And if you’re knocked unconscious?”

  Instead of telling her that she was over thinking everything, which was all completely true, Devin leaned down and kissed her lips. The first kiss in two days and it still felt as electrifying as the first. Would it always be that way? Would he always get her panties a little wet when he demonstrated his claim on her so sensuously? It was such an easy, simple thing to do, but it made the world stop spinning for a few seconds.

  He pulled away, leaving her wanting more, as usual. “Nothing like that will happen.” And for one crazy, clarifying moment, Krystal believed him.

  Before she knew it, Devin had revved up the engine and they were making their way out into the bay, the dock just a tiny speck on the water. Krystal refused to sit. She kept hanging onto that safe spot right next to the helm where Devin skillfully navigated them to a spot so far from the shore. One where Krystal could only see the twinkling lights of Goldcrest Cove as twilight set in.

  Tiny sprinkles of seawater chilled her warm cheeks and all she could hear was the roar of the motor that sped them farther into the middle of nowhere. Once they reached that indeterminate spot that Devin must have had in mind, he slowed the boat down to a stop and they drifted a bit. Once again, the boat resumed its gentle rocking and Krystal gripped tighter as she felt the little nauseous tickle in her stomach.

  The winter clouds had rolled in, casting the sky in an ethereal light blue with darker blotches. To the west, the last streaks of ochre and gold stretched out across the horizon, framing the strip of mainland against the dark water. The ocean acted as a mirror to reflect back the beauty of the waning light, yet not completely dup
licating the sunset as the ever-moving waves fractured the image.

  All at once, her parents’ teachings came back to her. The water, receptive and healing, represented so much to witches. Just like Alexa said, it had the power to destroy through floods, storms, and typhoons. Yet, it was the life force of all living things. Plants needed water to survive, as did all of the creatures that inhabited the earth. The water was eternally tied to the moon, something else that they couldn’t live without. The moon’s sway over the water was just another bit of proof that all life was connected. Linked and woven together in a magical, yet completely natural way.

  Through the splotches of clouds above, she could see bits of twinkling stars and the glowing moon. She tilted back her head, ignoring the way her body bobbed with the ebb and flow of the waves, and tried to see if she could spot the constellations she and her sister had to discern when they were little girls.

  “What’s on your mind?” Devin asked from the stern of the boat, seated upon one of the benches. His hands were occupied as he baited a hook with a wriggling worm that he had dug out of a Styrofoam box full of soil.

  Krystal watched him and sweetly smiled, finally feeling what Alexa had said the day before at the festival. She was one with nature, part of it and yet a completely separate entity from it. It had been a long time since she had felt so attuned with that magical essence within her that bound all witches to the earth.

  “Just how pretty it is out here,” she replied. “You can see for miles around.”

  Devin smiled up at her. “See, it’s not so bad.”

  Krystal took one step, then another and gradually let go of the ship. It took a moment for her to get into a steady rhythm with her arms extended out from her body to balance herself. But she managed to make it over to Devin and sat beside him.

  “No, it’s not bad at all,” she said, feeling completely silly for how she had behaved earlier. Not only was it insensible, but also completely un-witch. If Krystal’s mother had seen her like that, the old witch would have thrown a fit and scolded her. She still wouldn’t dare look over the edge of the boat into the dark, shadowy water they floated on.

  “So, why were you so nervous in the first place?” he asked as he passed her the fishing rod.

  Krystal took it and watched how the now skewered worm and hook spun around the pole. She took a deep breath. “When I was little,” she began, “I used to love coming out onto the docks with my family on the weekends. One day, I leaned too far over, because I thought I saw a fish and I fell in. I must have been two or three years old and I didn’t know how to swim. My dad dove in and got me, but I almost drowned that day.”

  She looked to Devin, whose hands had stilled over the hook, a thoughtful and considerate look in his eyes as he listened.

  “I was afraid to even take a bath for months. My mom had to sponge bathe me until I figured out how to take showers instead. I’ve avoided big bodies of water ever since. No pool parties, no fishing… I wouldn’t even go near Jackson Creek where all the kids at school hung out.”

  Devin nodded. “I can see how that would be traumatizing for a kid.”

  Krystal lifted one of her shoulders in a half-shrug and she realized, once more, how clunky the life jacket was. In a daring, slightly frustrated decision, Krystal unbuckled the one thing that would keep her from drowning and tossed it to the deck. She still didn’t know how to swim, but Devin definitely would.

  She met Devin’s proud gaze and he continued to bait the hook. “So, I guess I won’t regret bringing you all the way out here after all?”

  Krystal felt slightly naked now without the lifejacket, but it was for the best. She needed to conquer this fear. If things got serious with Devin, she wanted to be with him when he came out here to fish. If she was constantly terrified of the water, she never would and then where would they be? If she couldn’t compromise even a little, they might never spend time together unless it was on her terms. After seeing the kind of model her parents presented to her at a young age, she knew that wasn’t the way a healthy relationship worked.

  Then again, honesty and open communication played a vital role too. Baby steps.

  “No, you won’t regret it,” she replied as he slipped the last of the slippery worm securely on his hook and looked to her as if he were ready to take on the world instead of a few fish.

  “So, I’ll take it that you never fished before, right?”

  “Unless the little toy rods with magnets for hooks counts.”

  Devin laughed. “No, that doesn’t count.”

  Taking a firm hold on her hand, he led her toward the very stern of the boat where the motor sat silent. Krystal widened her stance a bit as she swayed and rolled with the motion of the boat beneath her. Devin set his own reel down and stood behind her. If she looked down, she’d see the water rolling against the hull, so she kept her eyes level with the horizon.

  “All right, you’ll want to reel up the slack a bit.”

  Krystal looked up to the tip of her pole and saw the hook and worm had gotten tangled with the rest of the line that fed through the hoops. “Might have a problem with that,” she giggled.

  He took the pole from her and with nimble hands, untangled the line and spun the reel handle until the hook tapped against the top hoop. Then, he briefly tapped the release button to give it the slack she needed.

  He handed the pole back to her, but he repositioned his hand over hers as she gripped the handle.

  “All right, you’re going to ease the rod back to cast it. Are you left or right handed?”

  “Right,” she said, but had a hard time focusing on her lesson while Devin stood so near behind her, the front of his pants just barely grazing against her bottom and his strong arms blocking out the cool sea breeze around her.

  “Okay, so you’re going to pull it back to your left at an angle. Not directly over your head like you’ve seen in the movies.”

  Devin’s hand guided her to pull the rod back to her left, her right arm crossing over her midline just enough that when she threw the line, it would have the right momentum to travel pretty far. Krystal could feel that warmth spiral through her as she realized that so much of their bodies were touching.

  Now, she was so glad she had ditched the lifejacket.

  “Just when you’re ready to cast, press the release button and fling it out. Don’t let go of the rod though.”

  Krystal laughed. “Oh? Why not? That would make things more interesting, wouldn’t it?”

  Devin chuckled and the vibrations rumbled across her shoulder blades. “These rods aren’t cheap, that’s why. If you throw one of them out, I’ll have to throw you in to get it.”

  She cast him a challenging, but playful glare, just like she had at the festival when he threatened to arrest her. “Don’t you dare.”

  “I wouldn’t throw you in,” he said. “But I would be very upset. Ready?”

  Krystal nodded and did exactly like he said. Together, they cast the line and she felt the reel whirl just above her hand as the poor worm flew through the air, still attached to the hook. Then, she heard the light plop.

  “Not bad,” he said with a nod. “Now, you’ll let it sink for a bit. Then, you’ll want to reel it in, nice and slow.”

  Devin bent his head a little and his hot breath splashed against her neck. She wasn’t cold by any means, but she felt her whole body erupt in goosebumps as he angled his other arm around to guide her hand to the reel handle.

  Krystal pinched one of the knobs and Devin’s hand laid on top of hers again. He set the pace for her as she gently pulled the worm back in.

  “This isn’t so hard,” she remarked. Though, she could feel something else that was getting pretty hard and he wasn’t afraid to let her know it. They might have had layers of clothes between them, but his hard on pressed against her with boldness.

  “One thing about fishing,” he whispered in her ear, “you have to be very quiet or you’ll scare the fish away.”

  He cou
ld whisper all he wanted as long as it was to her. Krystal stifled the sigh and closed her eyes as the heat descended from her core to straight between her legs. She kept reeling in the line, but her brain was entirely focused on Devin and the way his body felt against hers, solid, sturdy, and one hundred percent enticing.

  There was a certain element of complete and utter safety in his arms, like she had been cocooned from the rest of the world, untouchable, unreachable. Here, there was only Krystal and Devin. They weren’t on the water or even fishing. To her, they were floating in an ethereal bubble of absolute, tantalizing pleasure. It continued to mount as each breath he breathed on her neck opened up a world of feeling for her. She could have stayed like that forever, basking in his presence and calming energy that set her soul on fire.

  A slight tug on her line made her heartbeat quicken even more. She jolted out of her erotic daze. Devin must have felt it too, because he quickly jerked the reel backward and then let it go slack, feeling for any change. Nothing.

  “What was that?” she asked.

  “Might have been something nibbling on the line.”

  They reeled it in quickly and saw the worm was completely gone. Krystal let out a tiny sound of disbelief, still mindful to keep her voice to a minimum.

  Devin let out a sigh. “It happens. Take the other line while I rebait this one.” He leaned down to take the other rod and handed it to her. “I trust you remember how to cast it?”

  Though she so wanted Devin to show her again, she nodded and checked him out as he walked back toward the tackle box and set to work. He could be totally and unerringly sexy without even trying.

  She cleared her throat and did exactly as Devin had showed her before.

  “You’re a natural,” he commented from the seat behind her.

  She began slowly twirling the reel handle, mimicking his pace as before. “I have a good teacher.”