by Linda Mooney
“You haven’t explained what a being a tempus witch means,” he reminded her.
“Like I said, all of us were born at specific times of the year. We…uhh…our powers are strongest at those times. It’s also when we’re most likely to find our one true love.”
Jonathan raised an eyebrow but didn’t comment. Tamberly nodded slowly and continued. “I’m the eldest. Every year at this time I’ve been watching and waiting, hoping to find the man who will become the love of my life.” Adding a small smile, she said, “So far I haven’t been lucky. But I guess you already figured that out.”
“How will you know when you’ve found the right man?”
“Somehow I’ll know. There are signs. Portents I have to recognize.”
“What kind of portents?”
To his surprise, she wrinkled her nose at him and grinned. “Why do you want to know? Thinking of applying for the job?”
“You never know,” he grinned, and they laughed softly again. Clearing his throat, Jonathan got to his feet, still holding her hand. The laughter had help to soothe the growing fire in his belly, as well as soften his erection enough to make him presentable. “Listen, it’s obvious now that I can’t get you anything for your birthday or Christmas that you can already get for yourself,” he started to tell her as she also stood.
“You don’t have to get me anything,” Tamberly objected, only to have a finger pressed to her lips for silence.
For a moment Jonathan stared at the tip of his forefinger touching the velvet softness. He could feel her moist breath across his fingers. Before she could make another remark, he leaned over and kissed her.
It took a few heady seconds for the feel of her lips on his to penetrate the fog in his brain. She smelled of warmed peppermint and cinnamon, and she tasted…
Her tongue tentatively licked him. Instinctively he reached for her and pulled her tightly against him, tucking her against his chest. Her firm breasts jiggled upon contact when her arms came up to encircle his neck.
His cock tried to dig into her belly. Her lips parted, and Jonathan probed her mouth with his tongue where he could taste apple pie and milk. If there was anything more delicious, his fogged brain couldn’t think of it.
There was a sound. In the background something clinked. He couldn’t identify the source, but thankfully it reminded him of where he was. And what he didn’t need was for another one of her sisters, or worse, her father, to come in and discover them in a clutch. Reluctantly, he moved away from her and her delectable mouth, dropping one last kiss on the tip of her nose.
He started to speak, but the taste of her was still on his tongue. Clearing his throat, he swallowed and tried again. “Listen, I think I have the perfect gift for you,” he whispered. He nuzzled her temple when she sighed. “Tomorrow night, I’m going to fix you the best damn meal you’ve ever tasted. That’ll be my birthday and Christmas present for you. How does that sound?” Jonathan looked down to see her smiling up at him.
“It sounds perfect,” she replied.
“Great! Umm, given the fact that I’ll be slaving over a hot stove, I won’t be able to come pick you up. Can you make it over to the market by seven?”
“I’ll be there,” she promised.
They stepped apart, and Jonathan checked himself to make sure he was presentable, in case Mr. Blakeney decided to see him off at the front door.
Tamberly threaded her fingers through his, and they walked out of the kitchen and into the foyer. The father remained ensconced in the den, giving them the opportunity to sneak one final kiss before he left her on the porch.
Jonathan practically skipped to the truck. As he pulled out of the driveway, he glanced at the rearview mirror. In the rainbow glow of the Christmas lights, he saw Tamberly standing at the door, watching his departure until he was out of sight.
Chapter Eight
Manderly Blakeney stared at the television screen, but he wasn’t watching it. Instead, his sight was turned toward the couple kissing in the kitchen.
Something about Jonathan Mauk bothered him. It wasn’t a feeling he often felt these days, but in the past he had been keenly aware of the same warning signal whenever he was around a certain kind of person. A person who was known as a disbeliever. A person who didn’t and wouldn’t accept the possibility that witches truly existed.
A person who went out of their way to discredit any claims made by a person of the craft.
Getting to his feet, he padded in his socks over to the front window and stared out at the falling snow. Already little piles were gathered on the lights threaded around the picket fence surrounding the front yard. The result was a line of little glowing balls of ice. It made for a very pretty effect. One Emily would have loved to see.
Tight pain twisted in his heart, and Manderly grimaced. No matter how long ago she had died, he would never stop loving her. It was part of the curse of being a tempus witch. Once that lifelong mate was found, there would never be another. Emily was gone from him, and not even his great powers could raise her. Even if he could, he wouldn’t. Death was not to be toyed with because it always won out in the end.
The faint sound of giggling caught his ear. The girls were gathered in Amy’s room, no doubt talking about Tam’s great fortune. Once Mauk left, his firstborn had come back into the den to let him know she would be going over to Jonathan’s trailer tomorrow night where he promised to fix her a sumptuous meal in honor of her birthday. Manderly knew that afterwards Tam would introduce the young man to the sex hex test. He already knew Jonathan would pass. It was predestined. Yet that uneasy feeling simply would not go away. Nor could it be ignored.
However, if there was a glimmer of hope to be felt, it was the knowledge that Jonathan wasn’t a naysayer. That much Manderly could guarantee, because if he was, there would be no way the man would want to be around his daughter, much less lust for her the way he did tonight.
“So why am I getting these little tingly alarms?” Manderly murmured. “Emily, how I wish you were here. How I wish you could share with me in the wonder and beauty of what is happening to our family. Our Tam has found her heart‘s call. Our Kim is carrying our first grandchild. Em… Em…”
With the advent of Kimberly and Rick becoming a couple, Manderly knew the drought had been broken. It would only be a short matter of time before all of the girls would eventually find their prospective mates. Altogether, their search for a lifelong partner would end before next October rolled around. The close spacing was part of being tempus witches, even half witches.
A door slammed. The girls regrouped in Penny’s room. The celebration would continue throughout the holiday. Again, the time perspective would be initiated. The wedding would take place in January. It had to, before Sandy’s birthday arrived in February.
First Kim, then Tam. Next would be Sandy, followed by Penny, and finally Amy. Not quite following the oldest-to-youngest, but he hadn’t expected it to. After all, luck and happenstance rarely ran a straight, predictable path. It was time that guided their lives and abilities. Time and only time.
A commercial blared in the background. Manderly frowned, and the television automatically shut itself off.
Somehow he knew he had to find out why Jonathan Mauk disturbed him, and he had to find out soon. The test was tomorrow night, and by Christmas day, Tamberly would introduce her new fiancé to the family. If Mauk’s secret wasn’t known by then, the chances were great that Manderly would never discover it, and that was a possibility that both frightened and angered him.
If there was no other purpose to his life, now that Emily was gone, it was seeing to the safety and happiness of his precious daughters. They would remain his utmost priority. Following them, his grandchildren.
He walked into the kitchen, lighting the two single candles sitting on the sideboard with a nod in their direction. Pulling down the large copper bowl from its resting place on the upper shelf of the open cupboard, he took it to the sink to fill it three-quarters of the way w
ith water. From there he took the bowl to the table and sat it where the light of the moon could shine on it.
The water sloshed inside the bowl. Manderly waited for it to settle. When he could finally see the moon’s reflection on the surface, he waved his hands over the image and murmured a few words. The water’s surface remained unblemished. The moon never wavered. Manderly stared in surprise at the calm.
Jonathan Mauk was clean. There was nothing in the young man’s personal past that was disturbing or worrisome, but it was faint relief.
Why did this persistent feeling of unease continue to bother him?
“I’ll find out your secret, Mr. Mauk,” Manderly swore softly. “I just pray I will be able to accept it once I do.”
He dumped the water into the sink and set the bowl back onto the shelf. With a simple wave of his hand, the lights inside the kitchen went dark, and Manderly Blakeney retired to his cold and lonely bed.
Chapter Nine
His cock was killing him.
It wasn’t bad enough that he’d spent all night tossing and turning in anticipation. But the anticipation that had kept him burning like a roaring furnace had nothing to do with what he planned on cooking, and everything to do with what he planned for Tamberly Blakeney.
Coming up with a menu had been surprisingly easy. Same for shopping at the local supermarket. Because his forte was taking old-fashioned, home-tested comfort food and putting a spin on it, he didn’t need any fancy spices or supplies. Everything he would ever require could easily be found at any food store.
No, the menu had been easy. It was “dessert” that had kept him from getting any decent rest.
Tamberly upside-down cake. Tamberly a la nude.
Jacking off hadn’t helped. Neither did a cold shower. He was finally forced to admit around two in the morning that he would have to suffer with this unrelenting wood until that evening. Twice now he had inadvertently jabbed it into the counter while he was cooking.
Jonathan glanced over at the timer. The meat loaf had another twenty minutes to go. If Tamberly was on time, and he was certain she would be, dinner would be ready the moment she stepped into the trailer.
“Hey, man, it smells like heaven in here,” Lyle complimented him. The man walked out of the bedroom area and reached for his jacket on the wall hook by the door. “I don’t suppose I could hope for leftovers?”
Jonathan grinned. “I doubt Tam and I will be able to eat all of this by ourselves. Hey, Lyle.” He turned and faced his cousin, spoon still in his hand. “Thanks again for understanding.”
Lyle waved off the thanks. “I would have asked you to do the same thing if the shoe had been on the other foot,” the man replied. Zipping up, he gave another wave. “Good luck tonight, Jon. Hope it works out for you.”
Nodding, Jonathan watched the man leave the trailer. Moments later, he heard a vehicle pull up, a door slammed, and Lyle left the market area to go spend Christmas Eve with friends. At Jonathan’s request, his cousin wouldn’t return until tomorrow.
Turning back to the stove, he ran a quick check over his mental To Do list. So far everything was percolating steadily. His only regret was that he had just the one small oven and four burners to work with, but he had managed in the past to construct more elaborate meals with less. Tamberly was going to get an ideal example of what kind of menu he wanted to serve at his restaurant when it opened. When it opened. Although the where aspect was still a bit fuzzy, the fact that he would have his own place one day was beyond questioning. He knew it was as definite as the fact that tonight he would seal his fate with Tamberly Blakeney.
He paused, realizing his gaze was on the scene outside the small window over the sink. It had snowed last night, and more was predicted for late that evening, but at the moment the weather was holding. The sky was dark, but the market kept a security light on in the parking lot. As a result, the powder covering the area glistened like granulated sugar.
A knock interrupted his thoughts. He glanced again at the clock. The meat loaf had another ten minutes. Tamberly was early.
Snagging a paper towel to wipe his hands, he went to the door. Tamberly stood at the foot of the short flight of steps. She was dressed in a bright red coat with a fur-lined hood, and looked good enough to eat.
Good enough to eat. The mental image of her lying on top of the table, legs spread, and him diving head-first between her thighs only increased his agony. Jonathan groaned as the burning in his balls became a hard, throbbing pain. It was a miracle her eyes didn’t drop to his crotch when he opened the door, considering it was nearly level with her face. He smiled and stepped aside.
“Come in. Dinner’s about ready.”
“Thanks. Mmm, it smells heavenly.”
Her remark made him chuckle. “That’s exactly what Lyle said.”
Tamberly stopped while he closed and locked the door, then took her coat to hang it on the empty hook on the wall. “Is he joining us?”
“No. He got an invitation to spend Christmas Eve with some friends of his. He’s taking them up on their offer, but in exchange I’m supposed to save him some leftovers.”
“If the meal tastes as great as it smells, he might have to learn to live with disappointment,” she joked, and they both laughed.
This is why I’m falling for her. Jonathan watched as Tamberly carefully lifted the lids on the two pots to check their contents. I’ve never felt so comfortable around a woman. I’ve never shared an easy laugh like I do with her.
And laughter only made her sexier. Not to mention the tight little red dress with the red hood that was also lined with a thin strip of white fur. He moved to one side and surreptitiously glanced over at her to see how far down the front of the dress dipped. She wasn’t wearing a bra, and his cock saluted a little bit higher at the discovery. Her breasts were beautiful. Full, and without a hint of a droop or sag. He hoped that was a cherry-red nipple peeking at him, and not a bit of fabric.
“What’s for dessert?”
“Hmm?” He blinked, still somewhat sidetracked by her lovely cleavage.
Tamberly giggled and gave him a backhanded swat to the arm. “Dessert? Oh! Speaking of…” She went over to the sofa where she had tossed her handbag and pulled out the plastic container. “I brought this back.” Now her eyes focused on the tent in his pants, probably because he was standing in profile to her. Jonathan tried to redirect her attention.
“Thanks. You can leave it on the counter. And to answer your question, we’re having Christmas tarts.”
“Oh?” Her lips curled into an impish smile as she lowered the hood. Her russet hair glowed like burnished cherries. “I’ve never heard of such a thing. One of your own creations?”
“Yep.”
“I’m anxious to try it.”
At the words “try it”, his eyes fell to the shadow between her breasts, eliciting another giggle. This time the sound of it was deeper, sexier, and his whole body started to sweat, as if he’d just been caught in a burst of heat. Jonathan wiped the beads from his upper lip, and turned back to the stove and the meal before it burned.
“Mind if I look around? I’ve never been inside one of these things before,” Tamberly commented.
“Sure. Take the self-guided tour.”
While she entertained herself, he quickly finished the final preparations, setting the dishes on the small table. Personally, he was satisfied with the way the dinner turned out. It was exactly the type of food he wanted to serve at his own establishment—recognizable and filling, but with a twist. Jonathan smiled to himself and wondered if she would catch the subtle differences.
He was setting out the last dish when Tamberly re-entered the kitchen area. “Wow, these things are like miniature houses on wheels! But I noticed it only has one bedroom. Where do you sleep?”
Jonathan nodded toward the sofa bench behind the table. “It pulls out into a sleeper. Hope you’re hungry.” He started to say more when Tamberly gasped in surprise.
“Oh, that has t
o be the most adorable little tree I’ve ever seen!”
Tree?
He glanced up to see where she was heading. Over in the far corner, behind the driver’s seat, was a tiny Douglas fir. Actually, it looked more like a branch that had been trimmed from a larger tree. A single strand of miniature lights illuminated it, and Lyle had placed a plastic angel on the top. The tree was devoid of ornaments excerpt for a dozen or so…
“How unusual,” Tamberly continued, reaching out to it. “I’ve never seen a tree decorated with just candy canes.”
“Lyle must have set it up. To be honest, I never noticed it there.”
She brought one of the canes over to the table. It was then he realized that the treat wasn’t enclosed in cellophane. In fact… A quick glance verified it. None of the candy canes were wrapped.
“Lyle must have gotten into your stash,” she quipped with a grin.
“Huh? What? What stash?”
“Your candy cane stash. This one’s exactly like the one you gave me yesterday when you brought over the piece of pie.”
Jonathan stared in shock at the unusual filigree pattern swirling around the peppermint stick. He blinked, and the red stripes twirled.
“Uhh…”
His mind was playing tricks on him. That was the only explanation he could think of at the moment to explain the movement. His eyes were seeing things, or maybe these candy canes were some sort of optical illusion-type candies. He wouldn’t put it past some company coming up with such a gimmick.
“Jonathan?”
She had moved closer to him until barely a foot of distance separated them. His eyes jerked away from the candy she was holding up, and landed on the tantalizing cleavage behind it. More cold sweat broke out on his body, and Jonathan forced his eyes to drag up to her face.
“Jonathan, you’re not seeing things.”
“Huh?” God, I sound like an idiot!
“The candy cane’s pattern is moving, and that’s our answer,” she murmured, moving a step closer until their bodies almost touched.