Escape from Magic

by Emily Bybee

  “This is where we’ll stop for today,” Mr. Goldblum called and waved off the scene change. “We need to make sure this choreography is perfect for the finale, so we’ll spend the rest of the week on the finale scene alone.”

  I stared at the director, unable to comprehend for a moment. Then it sank in. I wouldn’t have to kiss Sam until tomorrow. But we’d be doing the scene for the rest of the week. Over and over. Kissing Sam at the end.

  Sam’s face leaned into my scope of vision. “Hey, since you aren’t feeling good are you sure you don’t want a ride home?”

  I cleared my throat and met his blue eyes. A worried frown creased his face. The truth was I did want to go with him. I wanted to talk to him. Laugh with him. Do so many other things with him.

  And what was stopping me? The witch council, my parents, and my sister—none of whom had to know.

  He waited for me to answer.

  “Thank you, that’d be great,” the words came out of my mouth before I realized I was even speaking.

  A huge smile spread over his lips. The green glints in his eyes sparkled when he was happy.

  I couldn’t help but grin in return.

  He swept a hand through his hair and leaned down to pick up my backpack then threw his and mine over his shoulder. I may have noticed the delicious way his arm muscles moved under his skin. I couldn’t ignore the urge to feel them when it swept over me, and I reached out a hand to touch his forearm. His smooth skin covered muscles resembling iron bands. Pausing, he glanced from my hand to my face.

  “Um, thank you,” I stammered. “For your help, I mean.”

  He tucked my hand under the crook of his arm and held it. What a gentleman. His warmth sent sparks along the nerves of my hand and up my torso. We walked through the doorway and he led me to his truck. It sat high up off the ground.

  Sam opened the door and held it while I climbed in. In the seconds it took him to walk around to his own door I did my best to collect my scattered nerves. I pushed my hair behind my ears and grabbed my lip balm out of my jeans pocket, slapping some across my lips, then straightened my shirt. I leaned back and went for a natural pose as the driver’s door opened.

  Sam set our backpacks in the backseat, a clinking sound accompanying the movement, then he climbed into his seat. “Nerves getting to you?”

  “Maybe a little,” I said with a glance around the nearly empty student parking lot. My gaze settled on Sam. Though I’d only met him a little over a month before, the connection I felt when I was with him could no longer be written off to us playing leading roles in the musical. I didn’t like Danny. But I really liked Sam.

  He reached for the keys, but I held out a hand to stop him. “Can I ask you a favor?”

  “Sure, anything,” he answered.

  “I want to kiss you,” I blurted, then wished I could grab the words out of the air and stuff them back in my mouth.

  Sam’s brow shot to his hairline, and he leaned back in his seat. “Well, I usually demand at least dinner before girls get handsy.” He rested his chin on his hand and chuckled. “But I suppose I could make an exception for you since you aren’t feeling good.”

  I closed my eyes and shook my head, heat blossoming over my entire body. “What I mean is. We have to kiss at the end of the scene tomorrow.”

  He nodded, still grinning.

  “I just thought it might be a good idea to practice in private before we try to do it on stage in front of the entire cast.”

  “So.” He held up a finger. “You don’t want to kiss me just once. You want to practice, which implies multiple times.” His lips pursed as if he was deep in thought. “I’m going to have to ask specifics. Are we talking open mouth? Or chaste pecks?”

  I glared as he listed increasingly more embarrassing questions.

  “And the biggest question, do you brush your teeth regularly?” His serious expression broke.

  I smacked the side of his arm. “You are so mean. I was trying to make our performance better,” I lied.

  “Oh, so it’s all about the performance, is it?” He put a hand over his heart. “I feel so used, like a piece of meat.”

  “Maybe I should drive myself home.” I reached for the handle. If I got any warmer, I would probably pass out from embarrassment.

  His hand caught mine. “I don’t care about the performance.”

  I paused and looked back at him.

  “But I’ve wanted to kiss you since the first time I saw you.”

  I opened my mouth to say something, but no words came out.

  Slowly, Sam guided me toward him. My breath caught as our faces hovered only inches apart, gazes locked on each other. His hand swept through my hair and caressed my cheek in the lightest of touches. All the heat from my skin pooled in my belly.

  I closed my eyes and let him guide my lips to his. Soft warmth covered my mouth, gentle and exploring. I leaned in closer, wanting more, and rested my hand against the muscle of his chest.

  His lips pressed more firmly against mine. The slight roughness of his tongue teased along my bottom lip.

  It was as if a bottle of shaken soda opened. Feelings I’d denied and pushed from my mind rushed to the surface. Gripping his shirt, I pulled him closer. He responded in kind and cradled me in the circle of his arms, pressing my torso against his. The restricted cab of a truck wasn’t where I wanted to be kissing him.

  Warmth and peace washed over me as something snapped into place inside my heart. A piece it felt like I’d been looking for all my life.

  Sam broke the contact and pulled in a ragged breath. “Wow.”

  Opening my eyes, I came out of the haze of the kiss. A stupidly large smile creased my lips, and I moved to lean back into my own seat instead of halfway into Sam’s.

  “Oh no,” he said and chuckled. “I think we still need more practice.”

  With that, he pulled me back to his chest. It was almost a dance, the give and take. I grew bolder and sucked his lower lip into my mouth. He groaned.

  To think I’d been dreading this. His hands moved over my back and sides in a hypnotizing pattern. I could kiss Sam forever.

  After I didn’t know how long, he nibbled on my neck, sending all new tingles to some extremely interesting places. With a sigh he wrapped his arms around me and rested his head against mine.

  “Do you feel better about our performance now?”

  I giggled. “That wasn’t really why I wanted to kiss you.”

  “Well, that’s a relief because I plan on kissing you for a long time after this musical is over.”

  His words, while what I wanted to hear, doused the heat in my belly like a bucket of cold water. I didn’t have much time after the musical. A few months. Now that I’d had a taste, a real taste of him, not a stage kiss, how could I stop?

  I pushed myself up to hide the sadness drowning me. “My mom will be worried if I don’t get home soon.”

  “Everything okay?” he asked, a frown tugging his tasty lips down.

  “Oh, yeah,” I lied and tried for chipper. “I just don’t need the lecture if I’m late.”

  He nodded and started the truck. As we drove, he reached over to hold my hand. His was so big and sturdy compared to mine. Relishing in the moment, I stroked his palm with my thumb. The drive ended way too soon, and we pulled into the circular driveway in front of my house.

  The muscles of my hand fought letting go. Before I could open the door, he leaned across the seat and pulled me in close. What started out as a peck bloomed into more, much more. I had to resist the urge to plaster myself against him. I couldn’t get enough of his sweet taste and fresh smell.

  The thought of my mom looking out the window forced me to pull away.

  “Wow,” he said again.

  “Wow, what?”

  “You’re amazing, Clara Stark.”

  My lip pulled between my teeth. “You’re not so bad yourself Sam McEwen.”

  I hopped out of the truck and opened the back of the crew cab. A pile
of neon green Mountain Dew cans met me.

  Chapter 6

  Sam reached back to stop the cans from tumbling out all over my driveway. “Oh, sorry. I figured out it helps with the stage fright.”

  One can escaped his grasp and fell to the driveway with a metallic clink. I stared at the tin at my feet while my brain caught up. Bending to pick up the empty Mountain Dew, the can from the hallway flashed in my mind. My gaze shot to Sam’s face.

  He grinned sheepishly down at me. “I know it’s a pigsty. I was meaning to clean it.” He grabbed my backpack and held it out to me.

  I took it and slung the pack over my shoulder, my gaze still on his face, searching for any clue as to if he’d seen—if he knew I’d used a spell on Katie. Nothing. He was the same sweet guy I’d been falling for for weeks.

  “You can just throw that one back in,” he said.

  Swallowing, I shook my head. “I’ll recycle it for you.”

  “Want me to pick you up in the morning?”

  I blinked.

  “Since your car is at the school?”

  “Oh, yeah, right.” I forced a laugh. “That’d be good.”

  “Great. See you in the morning.”

  I closed the door and watched him drive away. After his taillights rounded the corner, I turned to face my house. My mom stood in the doorway, a hand on one hip and Maddie on the other.

  I strode past my mom into the wide entryway. “I don’t want to talk about it, Mom.”

  “I thought we agreed you wouldn’t date.” Mom closed the door and kept her tone light.

  I knew better than to think that was what she was really feeling. She didn’t want to upset Maddie. “Look, I have less than three months left. Just let me have some space.”

  “It will only make it harder, Clara.”

  I didn’t see anger in her eyes, only sadness. She’d told Abby and I from the time we could understand what a betrothal meant that dating was only asking for heartache. For the first time I wondered if she knew from experience.

  “Did you ever date?” I swore tears shimmered in her eyes.

  After a quick glance at Maddie she set the girl down. “Go pick out a few books to read with Grandma. And not Grandpa’s Biology book again.”

  I chuckled. Maddie always loved to hear stories out of my dad’s old college book.

  Once she’d scampered to the living room, Mom walked over and took both my hands in hers. “I loved a boy once,” she almost whispered, her voice choked. “He was so sweet and handsome. I never meant to fall in love. But it happens when you least expect it to.”

  My mouth dropped open. I’d never have thought my mom loved anyone before my father. I stared for a moment at the gray strands, sprinkled liberally through her once brown hair and tried to imagine her as a teenager. It took a while for Mom and Dad to get pregnant. She hadn’t had me until she was forty-three. “Does Dad know?”

  She nodded. “You father is wonderful, and I love him dearly. We’ve always been honest with each other. We’ve built a life together and I wouldn’t it give up for the world.” She paused and her gaze settled over my shoulder on thin air as she got lost in her memories. “But sometimes I miss Charlie and I wonder what our lives would have been like together.”

  The pain in her voice pinched my heart. I wrapped my arms around her and rested my head on her shoulder. “I’m so sorry, Mom.”

  “Don’t make the same mistake I did, Clara,” she said into my hair. “I don’t want to watch you go through so much pain.”

  “You won’t have to.” I couldn’t tell her it was already too late. I loved Sam. But I also needed to find out if he’d seen me perform magic.

  “Grandma, I found some books. And I picked out one story from Grandpa’s book,” Maddie called from the living room.

  Mom sighed and lifted her head. “If I have to read the story of cell division one more time, I’m burning that damn book.”

  I bit back a laugh.

  She paused at the doorway and turned to me. “We made you a good match. I’ve been keeping tabs on him.”

  I opened my mouth to ask who he was, but she held up a hand as she went to read Maddie her stories. “You’ll meet him soon enough.”

  My turn to sigh. Being a witch sucked sometimes. Nervous energy filled my body. I glanced around the empty room, looking for anything to occupy my mind. Nothing. My fists clenched until a crackling sound drew my attention to the can still in my grasp. Resisting the urge to throw the damn thing across the room, I walked to the kitchen and smashed it into the table.

  With nothing to occupy my brain I rubbed my hand over my face and contemplated the ceiling. I knew what I needed. Chocolate, lots of chocolate. With my hand extended, I sent out tendrils of energy. Each searched for a necessary ingredient. One tendril traveled to South America to find the Porcelana cocoa, which some considered to be the finest in the world. Another went to Madagascar for the finest vanilla, while yet another traveled to France. On and on they went seeking out the best ingredients. At this point I didn’t care about the wasteful expenditure of my energy.

  As the lines caught, I tugged them back then swirled the energy though the air. On the table in front of me an audible pop sounded. Taking center stage, sat a double chocolate cake with mascarpone filling and mousse frosting dribbled with chocolate ganache. The cake was identical to one at an exclusive New York bakery, we’d stopped in on vacation for a treat. It was called Death by Chocolate, but I called it paradise.

  Grabbing a spoon, I sat at the table and scooped a bite off the side. Maybe being a witch had its perks. Savoring the chocolaty heaven in my mouth, I flipped open my phone and texted Nora.

  Fifteen minutes later she walked through my front door. “Hi, Mrs. Stark.”

  “Hi, Nora,” Mom answered from the living room. “You wouldn’t happen to be in the mood to read stories, would you?”

  Nora laughed. “I get enough Biology in school, but thanks.”

  I grabbed another spoon and handed it to her as she came in the kitchen.

  “Holy chocolate.” Her gaze rested on the cake. “Come to mama.”

  I’d plowed through a quarter of it already. “No judging.”

  She held up her hands and shook her head. “Hey, no judgment here. I conjured at least twenty cannolis when I broke up with Zander last month. She patted her washboard abs. “Took me a week to work those off.”

  “Why do you do it then?” I set my spoon down. “Dating, I mean. Why put yourself through the pain?”

  Nora shoveled a bite of cake in her mouth and groaned. “Oh, my, God. It’s like a chocogasm in my mouth.”

  I wrinkled my nose. “That just sounds so wrong.”

  She wiggled her eyebrows and grabbed a glass of milk. “The first part is fun—with dating, I mean. The butterflies in your stomach, the excitement, nothing else compares.” She shrugged. “But the ends are hard sometimes. And the making out is fun.”

  “Do you think you’ve been in love?”

  “I really liked Zander. But I don’t think I, like, totally loved him.”

  I stared at my spoon. “What if you knew you loved someone?”

  Her spoon paused on its journey to her mouth. “No. You can’t be in love with Sam. Already?”

  I waved at her to lower her voice. “I don’t need another lecture from my mom.”

  “You texted you thought he might have seen us using magic in the hallway,” she hissed. “Not that you loved him.”

  “Well, it’s kind of both.” I motioned to the crumpled Mountain Dew can on the table. “I found a whole pile of these in his truck, and he was drinking one at rehearsal.”

  Nora contemplated the crushed can. Her gaze darted from me to the green evidence. “Oh my God, you’re right,” she exclaimed. “He’s the only person in the world who drinks Mountain Dew, so the obvious conclusion is he saw you perform magic.” She took another bite of cake and spoke around the fabulous morsel, “You’re really stretching here.”

  I deflated
like a balloon with a slow leak. “But what if he knows?”

  “Has he acted weird? Said anything?”

  “No, but—”

  “Then don’t assume. It’s asking for problems that don’t exist.” She licked mousse off her spoon. “Now back to the love part.”

  Not able to hold my head up any longer, I rested it on the table. “Why did he have to transfer here?” But if I’d never met Sam, then my life would be half of what it is with him in it.

  “I still say you can’t fall in love that quick.” Nora folded her arms. “I mean, I dated a couple dozen guys and I’m fine.”

  “What if they just weren’t the right guy,” I asked, lifting my head. “It’s like he fills the empty places in my heart. Romeo and Juliet fell in love without even talking to each other.”

  “Romeo and Juliet were fictional characters. And I hate to spoil it for you but they both die in the end.”

  “The minute our lips touched it was like I’d found a piece of myself I didn’t even know was missing.”

  Instead of responding Nora picked up her spoon and began eating again, her eyes darting over my shoulder. Dammit. I didn’t have to turn around.

  “You kissed him?” Abby asked, coming farther into the room with Mom close behind. “We’ve talked about this, Clara.”

  I wanted to bolt to my feet and scream, but Maddie’s wide eyes kept my voice calm. “We have to kiss for the play if you’ll remember.” No need to tell her the real reason.

  Mom sat at the table with a clean spoon and took a bite of the cake. “Sounds like you’re in over your head already.” She sighed. “I felt the same way with—my friend—you’d be best off not seeing this boy again. We can get you graduated early.”

  Maddie climbed up on my lap and dug into the cake with her fingers. “Yummy, Auntie Clara.”

  My brain barely registered her words. The thought of never seeing Sam again froze my heart to a solid ball of ice, unable to move my sludge-like blood. “No,” I gasped. “I mean, I can’t stop the musical now. I’ve worked so hard.”