by Sandra Ross
Soul Mates Kiss
* * *
Witching Call Part 1
Soul Mates Kiss
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Related Books
Get a Free Book!
Author Bonus
Chapter One
“WILL YOU BE at home for dinner tonight, Lola?” Davis asked his daughter over breakfast.
Lola was looking over the morning newspaper as she ate her pink grapefruit and bagel with cream cheese. She and her father generally made it a habit to eat breakfast together as often as possible, considering their busy schedules and their workaholic lives.
Glancing up at him, she saw a very attractive man, even though he had crossed over into his fifties. Coupled with his innate grace, he looked very handsome. She did not get her looks from him, but she suspected she was more in character with him than her mother. She liked to think she would age as solid and as strong as her father in time.
Smiling, she shook her head. “I’m afraid not, Dad,” she said. “I’ve got a business dinner tonight and I’m not sure how late it will run.” Since taking over as senior editor of the publishing company she worked for, her schedule had become crammed quite often.
She was meeting a new writer tonight, someone her publisher had been trying to convince to come on board her company for a long time now. This wasn’t something she would normally do. But this writer had specifically asked for her. It puzzled her a little, but she did not really mind, since it was a work-related errand.
“They’re really keeping you busy lately,” her father observed as he ate his omelet. He was acting casually but she could see worry on his face. “You know you don’t have to work, Lola. Your trust fund is there any time you need to use it.”
“I know, Dad,” she replied with a sigh. “But I enjoy what I do. It’s not like work at all. Work is something I do because I have to. This is what I like doing regardless.”
“Well, I guess that just runs in the genes,” he reluctantly replied.
They both laughed. Davis also enjoyed his work. He was very dedicated to running his high profile law firm, even though he never needed to work another day in his life.
He was disappointed when she did not study law. He had been looking forward to welcoming her into his law firm and eventually making her a partner. But legal stuff bored Lola to death and she knew she did not have the motivation to make it through law school.
Eventually, her father accepted her decision and supported her career in the publishing business. It was only out of respect for his daughter's principles that he was not financing a publishing house for her. He knew she would eventually gravitate towards that in the future, and he would, of course, enthusiastically support her on that, too.
“Have you heard from your mother lately?” Davis asked in a carefully casual tone.
“Not for a little while,” Lola answered, trying to hide a smile. “Why do you ask?”
“Well, your birthday is coming up soon. I just thought Sable would call you. She usually likes to spend your birthday with you.”
That was true. Her mother would spend a part of the day with her, while her Dad would treat her to an expensive dinner or a memorable evening in a concert, a ballet, or theater play. When she was young it was the cinema, complete with hot popcorn with honey and the only occasional soda. But now it was usually the theater. “I haven’t heard from her yet, but she’ll probably call in a day or so.”
“That’s fine, sweetheart,” Davis said. “Just let me know what your plans are. You know I want to spend some time with my daughter on her birthday, too.”
He gave her a smile and was rewarded with a grin in return—a mischievous one at that, and it made him color a little.
He sighed.
Davis was floored when thirteen-year-old Lola chose to live with him after he and Sable separated. It was not that she did not like being with her mother. Lola loved Sable and had a very strong bond with her. But when the time came for her to decide whom she would live with, she spoke very intensely about her wish to live with her father. Sable was hurt but after a private talk with her daughter, she gave in graciously. How could she not, when she was given her freedom to go where her path would lead her? How could she take that same freedom away from her daughter?
Lola wanted her life spent in the human world, with human people. It was her choice. So Lola moved with her father to New York and was raised in a large penthouse apartment while Sable lived amongst the Magickals.
And Davis did not waste the opportunity to raise his daughter. He had her enrolled in some of the best private schools the city could offer. It was clear early on that Lola had a rather high IQ and could become anything she wanted. He wanted his daughter to be the best at whatever career she chose. But at the moment, he was happy that she was happy with her chosen career.
And for him, that was the most important thing in the world.
Lola was grown up now, and was as beautiful as her mother albeit a fiery one in character. Sable was elegant and cool outwardly, whereas Lola… well, his daughter was passionate and impulsive and he could see that straight-away, especially when she was fighting for something that she either believed in or wanted very much.
Lola had inherited her mother’s gorgeous ash-blonde hair and slanted cat-like green eyes. Her smile, beautiful and uninhibited, always lit up any room. Sable was reserved and cool with other people but was never one to hold back with her feelings, and their daughter held similar emotions.
Sometimes it was almost painful to look at Lola because she reminded him so much of his ex-wife. Even though they had been divorced for many years now, he had never met someone like Sable, or anyone else who could affect him so deeply. So he had never re-married.
Sable had ruined him, he would sometimes think.
But who was he to fool? Everyone knew it was true. After their time together, how could he settle for anyone less?
But Sable needed something more than what he could give. She needed her freedom from his world. He had to let her go because she was not happy with him anymore. A powerful witch, she had to find her place in the magical world, going on her magical missions.
Sable was always on flight, doing this and that for the Council for Magickal Beings. Nevertheless, he loved his ex-wife and their daughter more than anything else in the world.
Lola could feel her father watching her. He did that sometimes and she was used to it by now. She had figured out a long time ago why he was doing it, too.
“You’re thinking about how much I look like Mother again, aren’t you?” she teased him. “Well, Mother is very beautiful, so I’m going to take that as a supreme compliment.”
Davis' shoulders shook as he laughed. “As well you should, sweetheart.”
Glancing at her watch, she gulped down the last of her juice and got up from the table. She raced around to where her father sat and kissed him on the cheek.
“I’ve got to go, Dad, or I’m going to be late for my meeting. Don’t wait up for me tonight because I’m not sure when I’m going to get home. I love you.”
“I love you, too, sweetheart,” Davis responded as he picked the newspaper. “Have a wonderful day!”
Chapter Two
AT FIVE O'CLOCK that afternoon, Lola dashed to the elevator and then out through the lobby where her driver, William, was waiting with the car to take her to her meeting place with the mysterious writer.
As they made their way through traffic, Lola kept looking at her watch. She really di
d not want to be late and it seemed as if traffic was suddenly standing still.
Pushing a button that slid open the glass partition between herself and William, she inquired what was wrong. It seemed that there was a malfunctioning traffic light. People were backed up in all directions.
“Oh hell,” Lola said under her breath. Closing the glass again, she rolled down her side window to try to see how far the holdup extended. The sound of beeping cars and angry drivers were terrible. But amidst the chaos, she distinctively heard the crying of a distressed child.
Looking in that direction, she saw a flushed child, along with a woman who appeared to be his mother holding her in the back of a yellow cab, and the tense look on the face of the taxi driver. The child was obviously in pain and needed to be in the hospital immediately.
Lola did not hesitate. Her hand moved, her index finger flicking in the air.
Suddenly, the problem traffic light was functioning once more. Another flick and the child slumped, asleep. Her mother became further agitated, but it was okay. Her child would not feel the pain of an obviously dislocated shoulder if she was sound asleep. They would get to the hospital without her having to suffer.
She allowed herself a small smile before sliding the window back up.
Traffic resumed very quickly after that.
Now, she thought, I just might make it in time after all.
When they reached the restaurant, her driver pulled up directly in front of the doors and helped her out of the car.
“Thanks, William. I’ll let you know when I’m ready to leave.”
"You did well helping that child, ma'am," William said with his usual kind smile.
Lola felt herself blush. William was a Magickal. He was one of the stipulations in the "other" contract signed by her parents when they divorced — that servants who worked closely with taking care of her would be trusted Magickals. The nanny who took care of her as she grew up was one, too. Martha was now retired and living with her granddaughters in an island in Greece and she usually got tagged to the pictures of them swimming in the beach in Facebook.
"Err, that was just... we were going to be late. I mean we're already late..." She blushed more at his knowing look. William knew how hard she tried sometimes to curtail her use of magick. She chose to live the life of a human. It's the principle of the thing. But— "But she was hurting!"
"Ma'am, you're going to be more late. I will come back when you tell me." He tipped his hat to her in agreement and he was off.
She sighed as she turned toward the restaurant. She knew those Magickal who knew of her did not really believe she could stay living her life as a human. But that was the thing — she loved living like a human. She did not need all that Magickal politics. She did not need to learn magical calisthenics. She's doing fine on her own.
Sometimes, she could hear whispers that she was a better Magickal than ordinary Magickals over there, in islands and other places inhabited by them. That felt weird and it made her feel uneasy.
It must be because of her mother's genes. Like, in the real world, there were those who has higher I.Q. — which was her point. In the real world, those with lower I.Q. have skills and talents that made them better than the "intelligent" ones. To each his own. She could not believe she could be better than other Magickals. That would fall on closer observation.
And hell would freeze over before she let herself be observed.
Lola walked up to the entrance of the restaurant. She did not recall having eaten there previously. The outside was elegant and modern, the interiors looked intimate and homey, and the smells emanating from the place were delicious. She could see through the windows that almost all the tables were occupied.
So how come she had never heard of this restaurant until now?
It didn’t seem to be a family-oriented place though, since there were no children in sight. The patrons that were already seated and eating their dinner had their faces up and turned towards... her?
She was bemused. They all seem to be looking at her, watching her.
The hostess escorted her to where her table was located. They entered a hallway and they stopped in front of one of the private dining- room doors.
As soon as the hostess opened the door, Lola immediately recognized her dinner companion.
“Mom!” she exclaimed.
Her mother gave her a welcoming smile. “Hello, darling!”
Sable, as beautiful as a swan gathering herself up to fly, stood up from her seat. She smiled at her daughter as she kissed her. Then they hugged each other and Lola couldn’t help but close her eyes as she smelled her mother’s favorite perfume.
She always loved that smell. It reminded her of the time when she was a child, playing in the grass while her parents flirted with each other. She did not yet understand what they were doing and what it meant. However, she did understand a lot of things in the world as a five-year-old. She was not inclined to talk about it with the adults because they would not understand.
“What are you doing here? I thought this was a business dinner,” Lola asked when they were seated.
“Well, it is, of a sort,” Sable answered. “One moment, darling. I’ve already ordered you a glass of their amazing red wine.”
Almost immediately, a glass of wine appeared in front of her along with a menu. Lola gasped in surprise, then laughed in delight.
Sable was smiling as she watched her daughter. “I’ve just been looking at their menu. The food here is impeccable and you’re going to love it. Order whatever you want, darling. It’s my treat.”
Lola stared at her mother. “This is a restaurant for the Magickals?!” she exclaimed in a whisper. "So that's why they're staring at me. I... I don't belong."
Although she stood by her choices, and she would never admit it, but Lola would sometimes feel guilty about them. It was not like she rejected the Magickals when she chose to live a human life. But she felt she would serve a better purpose being with the humans; aside from the other reason. She thought about that again as she gazed at her mother. Sable, at least, had her magical world and a calling. Her father knew best to function as the head of the family. He could not be a husband anymore, and he had let go of that as honorably as he could. But he still needed family to take care of, and luckily she filled that position. Sometimes she wondered if her mother knew how much she'd lost to follow her heart.
Her mother reached out and took Lola’s hands in hers without knowing what she was thinking about. "Not that you don't belong, sweetheart, but you're not seen often and they were curious. You are my daughter, anyway, and I'm kind of famous with the Magickals for some reason," she said as she preened a little.
Lola laughed, knowing she only did it for show. Sable was always perky and joyful whenever they were together.
They started eating when the waiter arrived with their food. Her mother inquired about her work. She knew Lola loved talking about what she did for a living.
“You sound as if you’re really enjoying yourself, darling! I’m so proud of you! Now, I must ask. How’s your father doing?”
“He’s good,” Lola answered, smiling. “You know, you could always ask him yourself, since he’s always asked about you, too.”
“Oh dear,” her mother said. “Yes, I suppose I could always ask him. But it’s better that he and I don’t communicate unless it’s absolutely necessary.” Her mother blushed. “It doesn’t mean that I don’t care about your father. But we just can’t really talk like friends, you know? How could I tell him things I do without him getting bothered about my safety. You know how he is. Next thing I know I'll be thinking his way and not mine, and that's drastic to my work. I know better how to take care of myself." Sable sighed. "But of course that doesn't mean I don't love him. There are just truths that has more weight than... than emotions."
"And you had the divorce because you felt he deserved to find someone better?" she asked in a quiet voice. "Except he hasn't found anyone ever."
Sable was blushing, but she was not denying the fact by not speaking, and by just looking at her with eyes that carried the burden of past decisions . That's what's good about her. She was always strong enough to not complicate things with falsehoods, or her version of right and wrong. Truth was truth, no matter what.
“No, Mother. Father’s old enough to understand tough choices. You know he’s that kind of person. Even if it will hurt him, whatever will make him happy is when he knew he's done right for the person.” At the stricken look on her mother’s face, she backed out. “But it’s none of my business. And besides, I do know he's still so in love with you... there's hope in the future for a happily-ever-after." Before Sable could reprimand her about that, she quickly changed the subject. "So, what are you really doing here?” Lola asked.
Sable paused to sip her wine before replying. Lola knew what that meant. It was either she was recovering from the former topic, or she was stalling because she was going to tell her something that was going to irritate her. A lot.
Which meant that it was about the Council.
The Council for Magickal Beings had been after her since she turned eighteen. They wanted to acknowledge her birthright as a Magickal. But Lola knew what that would entail—service to the Council, and her life being literally run by other people. She did not begrudge her mother’s choice; Sable loved working for the Magickals and loved being sent on secret missions by the Council.
But she was different from her mother. She wanted total control of her own life.
And it was a really good thing that she could choose whether to live or not to live like a Magickal for having a human father who was a brilliant lawyer and knew about his own rights to his daughter.
“Of course, it’s almost time for your birthday and I wanted to spend some time with you. But there is another reason as well. There’s no way to say this except to just say it. So… the—”
“Council sent you,” Lola finished for her.