Chapter 9
Jake sat in the car, the sound of traffic groaning behind him. He kept his gaze on the house, waiting for her to come out, to come and sit beside him. He wanted to be with Elena but knew it wasn’t the right time. He didn’t know the whole story, or even the reason why they were there. However, it was obvious she hadn’t expected to find out that the old man was her father.
All that mattered was that he wanted her, and that the physical distance between them was painful. He wanted to touch, and feel, and be with her, inside of her, feeling her move with him. It was an ache, a long drawn-out pain that could only be eased when she was near, when their skin was touching.
The old man had talked about a spell. Elena seemed to believe it. Talk about weird Saturdays. He usually spent Saturdays working, but today he’d given it up to be with Elena. It went against the grain that, for the first time in his life he really wanted someone, and they didn’t believe he was sincere. He hated that she doubted him, doubted his honesty and the depth of this feeling. He thought back to that time in the restaurant. It had been rather sudden, but his mind had already been on how much he wanted to be with her.
He’d had women before, of course: the sexy, the attractive, the vivacious, the shy, the rich, the famous. He’d sampled them all. Yet there was something about Elena that crept under his skin and crawled into his heart so fast that he really couldn’t explain it.
He thought it was weird that Elena hadn’t known about her father. He didn’t even realise she was looking for him, but then, she hadn’t talked that much about herself, not the past; only the present, the moment.
He lay back against the car seat, slid on his sunglasses and stared at the sky. He thought about the chin-up bar and how succulent she had been when he had his mouth on her. The sounds that she had made were joy to his ears. He liked pleasuring women, but he definitely loved pleasuring Elena. Recalling the moment when she had slid down his body and he had slipped inside her made him harden. She had been tight and hot and liquid. He wanted to be there again, moving inside her, enjoying the taste of her lips, her skin, her sighs.
He adjusted himself, glad the steering wheel hid his burgeoning erection. It was sweet pain to think about her.
Finally the door opened, and his gaze was riveted to her as she walked down the steps and headed back to the car. Her pink sundress and white sandals looked so fresh and young on her petite figure. Her long legs were shown to advantage by the mid-thigh length dress. His eyes lingered on her breasts, such sweet mounds, not too big or too small, perfect. How he had loved suckling on them, feeling her arch her back and surrender herself. He shook himself; he had to get a grip. He really did have it bad.
Elena opened the car door and slid into the passenger seat. He turned toward her, a smile lingering on his lips. She looked delicious. ‘Where to now?’
Elena put her head back on the headrest and expelled a loud breath. She twisted her hair into a bun and slid a clip in to hold it. ‘I don’t know.’ She turned her face toward him, her green eyes sad. ‘At this moment, I don’t care.’
Jake turned the key, enlivening the engine. He half-turned to reverse down the driveway. ‘Okay. We’ll go for a drive until you can think about what you want to do next.’
Elena nodded and did up her seatbelt. Jake couldn’t think of anywhere else he would rather be than driving Elena around Sydney. Yes, he had business to do, and that was important. But Pen was holding his clients off, giving him time to come to terms with his new relationship. God, relationship, he thought. It was a term he’d never thought he would associate with himself. But a relationship with Elena was what he wanted.
He headed for Watsons Bay. It had a view of the harbour he wanted to share with her. From Homebush it was a long drive, but he didn’t mind. He had Elena beside him.
Once on the motorway, when he no longer needed to change gears, he reached out and tucked her hand in his. The feel of her, the warmth, spread right into his heart.
He couldn’t think of anywhere else to take her, not at that moment. Her Balmain semi was a great little spot and he’d love to take her home to his house in Cremorne, but he didn’t think she was quite ready for that. She was already flighty and sometimes standoffish. She needed space to get accustomed to him, and the knowledge that she had a father.
That brought him to think of his own father. They had never been really close. They had an okay relationship, particularly if they stayed out of each other’s way. He was the son of the second wife, and that hadn’t been a good marriage. Jake had escaped to boarding school at a fairly young age, which helped minimise his mother’s excesses and his father’s neglect. It was how he’d learned to armour himself against love. Love had ruined his childhood, and made his parents miserable. Now, he was in love. How did that happen? How did he throw away all that caution, all that steel plating around his heart?
Yet, he had seen it happen to a number of his friends: one minute hard-hearted businessmen, and the next, smitten. He never thought it would happen to him. But in those first few minutes, as he watched her, his defences had crumbled.
After he negotiated Sydney’s infernal traffic, he made it onto New South Head Road, passing beautiful Rose Bay and heading up to Vaucluse. Sunlight glittered across the surface of the harbour. A smattering of yachts with bright sails raced with the wind. Soon they lost sight of the water as the road wound through a series of large, expensive houses, until he reached Watsons Bay. The place was parked out as usual. He was about to turn around, when a lucky departure enabled him to secure a spot.
Elena climbed out of the car and tried to repair her bun. With the top down, the wind had almost undone it completely. Giving up, she finger combed her hair, letting it fall in gentle waves around her shoulders, before dropping her clip into her purse.
He wanted to grab a handful and inhale her scent; he wanted to devour her mouth. Instead, he controlled the urge and led her across the road to the wharf so they could look out across the harbour.
What a breathtaking view it was. The harbour was deep aquamarine, and the cluster of Sydney’s skyscrapers and the Harbour Bridge stood tall on the horizon. The harbour never failed to disappoint him, despite its moods and his.
He stood behind her. ‘Lovely,’ she said breathily, in a way he liked. It was as if she was finger walking up his spine. He moved closer and then gently eased her against him so that his chin could nestle on the crown of her head, and his arms swooped around to cross over on her waist.
‘I could hold you all day,’ he whispered in her ear. He noticed her trembling, and liked that he had that effect on her.
‘I wish you could, but life will intrude eventually.’
He lowered his head and nuzzled her neck. She groaned and then stiffened before moving out of his embrace. There was an empty space where she had been.
‘We shouldn’t. It’s only a spell.’
He chuckled at her stern look. ‘I don’t care.’
‘You will. You’ll be angry and hate me. Blame me.’
He slapped his chest. ‘I swear I won’t, even though I don’t believe this nonsense about a spell. I’ll write it down on a piece of paper. Look I’ll sign it.’
Her arms were folded, her head cocked at an angle, with her chin lifted in an attitude of defiance. He wanted to kiss the frown from her brow and plunder her pouting lips.
She shook her head, sending waves of glorious hair around her shoulders. ‘It’s not funny. Besides, it doesn’t matter, nothing you decide now would be legal. You aren’t in your right mind.’
That shook him. ‘Are you saying you think I’m nuts?’ The smile left his face as he examined every nuance of her face. He was pleased to see surprise written there.
‘No. No! Not nuts. The spell tampers with you in a subtle way. It makes you more pliant, more able to give in. That’s how the spell works, it breaks down your barriers.’
‘So because of the spell I want you?’ He tried to keep the sarcasm from his voice, k
nowing she believed what she was saying.
‘Actually, I think the attraction was there from the beginning. The spell made it more, much more.’
‘More what? I liked the look of you, hell, I love the feel of you. I can’t see that being a spell. Except for the fact that you’re bewitching me.’
Elena began to back away. ‘I understand you don’t believe me. That’s fine. We probably shouldn’t be talking about spells, anyhow.’
He lunged after her. ‘Why?’
‘Because it’s best not to.’
‘Why do you believe it’s a spell? What other things have I done that you think I wouldn’t normally do?’
‘You grabbed my hand after meeting me all of five minutes and asked me to marry you. Does that sound like something you would normally do? You sound like a regular playboy. You sleep with women all the time, but your heart is never touched. That’s right, isn’t it?’
Jake rocked back on his heels. It was true. He’d never propose to a woman — well, he didn’t think he would. Unless he was delusional, or he’d met the ‘one’. But the ‘one’ didn’t exist, did she?
He was ashamed about the truth in her words. He did sleep around and didn’t care. He enjoyed women’s bodies, enjoyed the conquest…yet something about Elena was different.
He shook his head. What was different? Her body called to him, and everything about her warmed him, sunk into him, like she was part of his fabric. Was that a spell?
‘Relax, Elena. We’ll see this through, okay?’
She stopped backing away from him. ‘Yes, you’re right. I’m getting too upset about something I can’t change. It will be different from now on. I will control myself.’ She nodded, and looked at him sideways. ‘I’m fine now, let’s go.’
He lifted his elbow away from his body so she could slide her hand there. He drew it through and patted her wrist. They headed back to the road, watching the seagulls pick up old potato chips in the grass, squawking and flapping their wings as three converged on one small morsel of food.
He leaned his head toward her catching the scent of her hair, a rosemary and herbal fragrance that made him want to sigh. ‘Don’t worry. It will work out. Why don’t we enjoy this time? You like me, don’t you?’
He caught her fleeting smile, and saw the sparkle light her eyes. ‘Yes, I do. But I know it’s going to end badly.’
He wanted to kiss her frown away, wanted to promise her that it wouldn’t end at all, but he didn’t think she wanted to hear that at present. Maybe when she got used to the idea, when she saw it was no passing fancy. ‘Don’t think about tomorrow. Live in the now with me, okay?’
She nodded, a smile shining in her eyes. Then she laughed.
‘What?’ He was enchanted by her, by the shape of her smile, and the emerald vibrancy of her eyes.
‘The thought crossed my mind that it could be worse.’
He furrowed his eyebrows. ‘Worse?’
‘At least it’s you. You’re special. I like you.’
They walked on, but he couldn’t help but swell with pride when she had said he was special. That sounded lovely.
‘As we aren’t in a hurry, shall we have some lunch at Doyle’s? We can do fish and chips here on the wharf or walk further down to their other restaurant.’
As they looked on, a busload of tourists poured into the wharf takeaway, making the place noisy, crowded and busy. She glanced back at him, worrying at her bottom lip. ‘Perhaps the restaurant.’
‘Sure, let’s go. My shout.’ He couldn’t help the smile that spread over his face. It was one of his favourite restaurants, and they would have the opportunity to have a quiet meal together. He paused when he saw her mouth draw into a thin line.
‘What?’
‘I’m not sure.’ She wouldn’t look at him, and her cheeks flushed.
‘I can afford it,’ he said, before she refused outright. ‘And you paid for brunch.’
She nodded and looked up with a shy smile. ‘Okay then. I’d love to. I haven’t been to Doyle’s in ages.’
Lunch was excellent, a first course of fresh tiger prawns, followed by grilled snapper, salad and chips. They talked of inconsequential things — his love of boats, her love of craft.
‘So, you don’t work a real job?’ he asked.
She sat back, her eyes widening at his comment. ‘A real job? Isn’t a real job where you earn money, enough to keep you out of debt and fed?’
He squared his shoulders. ‘I didn’t mean to insult you. You’re bright and intelligent. I thought something professional would be more your line.’
Sitting forward, she relaxed and leaned her chin on her hand. ‘Mm. I’ve never thought an office was my thing. I like working the markets, meeting people and having new experiences. And I have my family. Grace is expecting, you know. I’ll be an aunty soon, so I’ll have other things to keep me busy.’
‘So you have no ambition to get rich or travel?’
Her green eyes lit up. ‘Travel? Oh yes, I want to see places, but not quite yet. Money? I need what I need to survive, and, other than that, the pursuit of money is more trouble than it’s worth.’
Jake narrowed his eyes. Her lack of ambition surprised him. All the women he’d met wanted money or power, or at least to marry it. Elena wanted nothing. A gaping hole opened up inside him. What if she didn’t want or need him? What if all he was, and all he had worked for meant nothing to her? How could he bear it?
She sat up and tilted her head to the side. ‘What is it? Have I said something wrong?’
He shook his head, unable to articulate the desolate feeling inside him. It wasn’t rational, but he couldn’t fight it.
‘This spell,’ he asked, after taking a sip of mineral water, ‘does it have any downsides?’
‘Not too many that I know of, besides affecting the judgement. Euphoria, I suppose.’
‘And depression?’
‘I don’t know firsthand, only what I learned from others.’
‘So, do young witches and warlocks go to Saturday school and learn magic?’ He was joking, remembering some friends who were Greek and Italian having to go to school to learn their language and culture. It always puzzled him. He never did extra classes on being Australian.
She nodded. ‘They do, but I didn’t. I was brought up by humans.’
‘Humans?’ This is good, he thought. She’s going to tell me she’s not human.
‘Well, humans who don’t have the talent, what you call magic. The folk are different from humans, and within the folk we have different species. What we have in common is talent, immunity to diseases that plague humans, and we live longer.’
‘That’s a relief.’
‘What is?’
‘Never mind.’ He didn’t want to take the piss out of her, accusing her of being all ‘Twilight Zoney’. Next, she’d be telling him the tooth fairy was real. He changed the topic.
‘So, today with Penderton. You didn’t suspect he was your father?’ He was walking a fine line here, and knew that the conversation could go badly. But he wanted in, wanted her to let him past her barriers. He cared about her emotional state.
Her expression changed and lost some of its joy. ‘No. I’m still trying to digest it. I was told my father was human. No one knows what happened to my mother. My aunt says she ran off and left me with a human family. It was only luck that she found me when I was thirteen.’
‘Then you went to live with her?’
‘Yes, and Grace. I had a good life with them. They completed me in many ways. I didn’t realise I had such a big hole there where my parents were meant to be until today, until now.’
He reached across the table and squeezed her hands. ‘Parents can shape us in ways we don’t understand. Not all of it’s good.’
Her green eyes brightened. ‘I know.’
Jake felt the air grow colder and the sunlight lessen. ‘It’s clouding over. Shall I take you back to your place?’
‘Yes, that would be good. Th
ank you for your company, Jake, and the drive. It’s been great spending time with you.’
He grinned for all he was worth.
Chapter 10
A strange woman stood by the door when they pulled up in front of Elena’s house, a small overnight bag by her feet. Jake waved to the woman as he and Elena climbed out of the car.
‘That’s Pen. I asked her to bring me some gear from my house.’
Jake’s assistant’s scrutinised Elena after she had carefully taken in Jake from head to toe, and gave a nearly imperceptible nod.
‘Pen. Thanks for going to all the trouble of doing this, I appreciate it.’ Jake hoisted the bag and grinned.
His assistant looked askance at him. ‘Sure, no problem. Hello, are you Elena? We spoke on the phone.’ She held out her hand.
Elena shook the girl’s cool hand and sensed that Pen was practical and careful. There was no intense emotion from her, no signs of jealousy. ‘Yes, pleased to meet you in person.’ Again that look assessed her, then the woman’s eyes darted back to Jake. ‘I’m glad the restaurant venue worked out for you both.’
Elena recalled that Pen had suggested the venue for their meeting; so how did someone else know where they’d be? She suspected Pen had set them up for an instant, but didn’t pick up signs of subterfuge in the other woman. Those bright blue eyes of hers hid nothing. She wasn’t the one.
‘See you another time, then.’ Pen waved farewell and headed to her black Mini with a red racing stripe. She opened the door and turned back to them. ‘Take good care of him, Elena. He’s standing on rocky ground.’
Elena lost her smile and glanced nervously at Jake. What did she mean? Could she tell he was under a spell?
Pen covered her mouth, seeing her reaction. ‘Oh, I meant no offense, really. You see he never puts pleasure before business. Well done.’
Jake’s expression turned stormy. ‘Pen, can you keep your psychoanalysis for the office?’
Her smile was wide and knowing. Obviously, she was used to the gruff side of Jake. Her ponytail swung as she shook her head with a laugh.
Bespelled Page 7