“Ew. Gram.” Tess had forgotten how difficult it had been to talk with Gram. A headache pulsed in her brain. “We need to discuss the beasts.”
“It’ll do you no good to let your emotions get the better of you.” Gram waved her dirt-stained hand over the crop. “Help me weed these plants?”
Although the patch was in good shape, in Gram’s eyes every weed, no matter how small, had to go. Tess swept aside the ginseng leaves and searched the ground for invaders. “I need you, Gram,” she whispered. “Tell me what to do.”
Gram weeded next to her. Her knobby hands were efficient and spry. “You need to trust in yourself.”
Tess sat on her heels. “That’s it?”
“That’s it.”
“Some advice. I could have gotten that tidbit from a Hallmark card.”
Gram sat up, her eyes twinkling. “I’ll let you in on a little secret . . . I don’t have all the answers. No one does.”
Tess yanked out another weed. “Then why am I here?”
“You tell me. This is your dream.” Gram set her hand on Tess’s knee. The look on her face was compassionate and kind.
She didn’t exactly feel the pressure of Gram’s hand, only the love she knew Gram felt for her. “Can people in dreams give hugs?”
“I don’t know why not.” Gram opened her arms wide, and Tess leaned in. When Gram’s arms encircled her, comfort and hope seeped into her pores. The subtle scent of mint that always clung to Gram soothed her.
Gram rocked her like she had when Tess was little. “Ginseng is a symbol of life on earth.” She stroked Tess’s hair, her words distant. “But it can be a difficult plant to grow. Too damp and the roots rot. Too much sun, and the leaves burn. Perhaps these beasts are the same way.”
“What do you mean?” Tess muttered into Gram’s shoulder.
“Maybe the key to their defeat is finding what they need to survive and taking it away.”
Tess considered that thought but couldn’t wrap her brain around its meaning, not now. “Can you tell me the future? Maybe it doesn’t matter what I do.”
Gram leaned back. “I wish I could. There are too many variables. The future isn’t static. It changes with every decision we make, every decision others make. Whatever I tell you now could change in a matter of moments. It’s best not to focus on what could be and instead . . . Wake up.”
“What?”
“Wake up, Tess. Before it’s too late.”
Tess’s eyes fluttered open as Ethan’s glowing hand descended. The bedding had been pulled off, and Tess lay on her back, naked, while Ethan’s palm hovered inches over her abdomen. “Shit.” Her heart in her throat, Tess scooted off the side of the bed, and Ethan grabbed her arm. Her gaze darted to his.
His eyes glittered green, and a streak of fear seared through her.
“Ethan, stop!” She smacked his hand. When that didn’t work, she slapped his face. “Ethan!”
He lowered his head and sucked in several deep breaths, releasing her. She raced across the room. The wind chimes tinkled above.
“Wait,” Ethan moaned, his eyes fading to blue.
Tess kept her distance. “What was that?”
“Good question.” He rubbed his forehead. “I dreamed about . . .”
“What?”
Ethan grimaced. “A baby. Our baby.”
A wave of panic crashed over her, and she clutched her stomach. “You don’t think I’m . . .” Her feet started moving in no particular direction. “There is no way I’m pregnant.”
“No one is saying you are.”
“Right. It’s not possible. No way.” Tess paced the room. “We’ve used protection.”
Ethan’s brows rose, and Tess’s pulse raced.
“You’re right. We didn’t use a condom last night, or the first time at the club.” Her voice rose in pitch with every word. “No. No. No.” She couldn’t have a baby, not with Ethan. Not after what happened to Matt.
“Tess, we don’t know you’re pregnant.” Somehow the way he said those words didn’t ring true.
“Your hand was right above my abdomen, Ethan. If The Beast wasn’t trying to change our baby into one of them, then what the hell was he doing, giving me a tan?”
He ran a hand over his eyes.
“Tell me what you know.”
His face fell, and his shoulders slumped. “I heard The Beast’s thoughts.”
“And?”
“He believes you’re pregnant and have been since the night at the club.”
She dropped her face into her hands. “Oh shit. I’m pregnant.” Then a worse thought took hold. “What if he was successful? What if he’s changed our baby? I’m not sure I’m ready to be a mom, and I know I’m not ready to give birth to a monster.”
“Tess, calm down.” Ethan rose from the bed in all his glory. Not that she had an interest at the moment—something about the prospect of having a demon baby.
He stepped toward her, but she backed away.
A look of resignation crossed his face. “Did my palm ever touch your abdomen?”
Despite her panic, her gaze swept his body. Now that Ethan was Ethan again, her nerves calmed a bit. “No, I didn’t feel you actually touch me.”
“Then I think we’re okay.”
“Yeah. Gram said I needed to wake up before it was too late. So, it must not have been too late, right?”
“Gram?”
“I dreamed about her.” Tess sank onto the bed. “I wish she was here.”
“Maybe we should go to your mother.”
“No, she stays out of this.”
Ethan frowned. “Tess, this is serious. We need help.”
“I kind of gathered this was serious when we were both thrown against walls like spaghetti. But Mom’s in a back brace for God’s sake.”
Gram’s words echoed inside her head. Trust in yourself. Tess grabbed up her suitcase and reached inside. She pulled out Gram’s Book of Shadows and started scanning its pages. No time to waste. She would find a way to defeat these beasts if it killed her. And it just might.
Chapter 21
Tess slowly pounded her head against the desktop, her hand cramped from strangling words out of the cheap hotel pen. She sat up and read her latest attempt. “Draw out what the beast needs most. Take away his power but spare his host.” Uck. She ripped the sheet from the notepad and crumpled it into a ball, tossing it over her shoulder. Hopeless. She scanned another page of Gram’s book. The spells blurred as her thoughts wandered to the same place they had all morning. A baby. She couldn’t get it out of her mind. She was going to be a mother. Deep down, she was sure. Tess leaned back in the desk chair and slid her hand across her abdomen. Poor kid. She had no idea what it meant to be a mother, and the guy in the bathroom drying his jeans with a blow dryer was turning into a beast. Not exactly dad material.
She leaned forward and turned another page. Think. There had to be a spell in here to save dear old Dad. Then again, even if she succeeded in destroying The Beast, could she form a lasting relationship with Ethan? He’d been the catalyst to Matt’s death. Matt. Grief radiated throughout her body in waves. The Beast may have taken Matt’s aura, but every time she looked at Ethan, right or wrong, betrayal lanced through her.
The whine of the blow dryer stopped. She dropped her chin into her hand and raked the Zen garden. Such fine sand. Holly’s cat would love this little box.
Tess gnawed her lower lip. If she didn’t do something fast, their baby would end up a beast too. She flipped another page in Gram’s book. Nothing. Not one spell to drive away beasts. Gah!
“How’s it going?” The question was simple enough, but when she glanced back, the brooding look in his eyes suggested more.
Ethan stood in the bathroom doorway,
his shirt unbuttoned and his jeans clinging to his narrow hips. Her gaze roamed over his bare chest with his toned muscles sculpted in bold relief. Great abs, for a beast-man. Inside, she cringed. Where did her loyalties lie? Before her stood the man whose touch had condemned Matt to death. And she couldn’t forget it, no matter how much she wanted to.
She rubbed her face, pushing aside the emotions she couldn’t explore right now. She had too much on her plate already. “What was the point of Gram giving me all these spells if none of them do what I need them to do?”
He stepped farther into the room. “What do you need them to do?”
Tess turned away from the sight of male perfection to stare at the uninspiring desk. “In my dream, Gram told me that to defeat the beasts, I have to figure out what they need to survive and take it away.”
“And . . .”
“To live in this world, the beasts need two things—a host and spiritual energy.” She peeked over her shoulder again. “So, my options are to kill you or find a way to get rid of The Beast’s energy.”
Ethan cocked his head to the side. “I’m not sure I like one of those options.”
Neither did she. “The good news is I’ve decided not to kill you.”
“What a relief,” he said, his voice flat. “The bad news?”
“This whole situation is bad news.” She picked up the pen and doodled on a fresh sheet of paper. “I’ve been thinking about the amulet. At the Museum of Natural History, I saw a description of the Hope Diamond. Supposedly, there’s a curse on the gem that brings bad luck to anyone who possesses it. If I can cast a similar curse to draw out energy, maybe we can use our amulet the same way.”
“Your grandmother doesn’t have a spell like that?”
Tess shook her head. “Gram always believed in karma. A witch who casts spells to harm others can expect to receive payback three times worse than what she’s doled out. Which means none of her spells were created to harm. This is new territory.”
“Then you’ll have to create your own spell.”
“Yeah, no problem.” Her doodles turned into a vortex, a black hole sucking everything around it into the darkness. Her life in a nutshell. “Gram told me to trust myself. Silly me, I was hoping she was being theoretical. Not figure it out for yourself, Tess.”
Ethan walked over, scooping up balls of discarded paper and tossing them onto the overflowing trash can. “What do you have so far?”
“A whole lot of nothing.”
He picked up another rumpled paper and smoothed it out. “Whoever wears this amulet,” he read, “let my power affect.” He brought the page to the desk and set it in front of her. “What’s wrong with that?”
“It’s not right. Creating spells is like writing poetry, counting out beats, finding words to rhyme. It’s complicated.”
“Does it have to be?” He stood over her, the heat of his bare skin warming her side. This close, she could smell the faint floral scent from their bubble bath.
“I would think it’s more important to let the words come from . . .”
“From where?” she griped.
He stiffened. “I don’t know. Your soul, your heart.”
“My soul and heart are apparently busy right now. I’m getting nothing.”
His gaze roamed the desk. He lifted the edge of an open-faced book, and he rolled his eyes. “The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Wicca and Witchcraft?”
“I took it from your apartment. So what?” she groused. “I’m desperate.”
He nodded. “Okay. You want to use the amulet to draw out energy. Let’s start there.”
Let’s start there? Instead of offering suggestions, he looked at her expectantly. Some help. She held the pen over the paper, her mind searching for the right words, magical words. A minute passed, then two. Nothing. Nada. This was high school geometry all over again. She’d had no idea what she was doing then, and ditto now. “There’s got to be an easier way. Isn’t there a hotline I could call? 1-800-4SPELLS or something.”
Ethan bent over the desk, hovering too close. “Don’t worry about getting it perfect. Just get something down we can work with.”
“Right.” Like she could concentrate with Ethan practically on top of her. Her leg bounced under the desk. “I cast a spell upon this gem,” she began, her writing the usual messy scrawl. “Them, condemn, M&M, phlegm . . .”
“What are you doing?”
“Coming up with words that rhyme with gem.”
“You don’t have to rhyme.”
What did he know about witchcraft? “All of Gram’s spells do.”
“Doesn’t mean yours has to.”
She glowered at him. “I want to do this right. And button your shirt already.”
He drew his shirt closed and worked the buttons, his movements frustrated. “Fine. You do whatever you need to.”
Playing with the order of the words written on the pad, she composed a new line. “How about . . . Upon this gem I cast my spell. To the beasts I now bid farewell.” Tess scrunched her face.
“What?”
“The second line is nothing but cheese.”
“Cheese?”
“You know, cheesy.” She stood and crossed the room, away from Ethan, and his help. “It sounds like I’m wishing them a safe trip. ‘Goodbye. Have a nice flight.’” The chimes tinkled as she passed by. Each tinny note pricked her frazzled nerves.
“You could always tell them to go straight to hell,” he muttered with a sardonic smile. “It rhymes.”
“Ha. Ha.” Tess scowled. “Let me start over.” She passed a hand through her hair, her fingers catching on several tangles. “Once the amulet is on the beast . . .”
“Not bad. Keep going.” Ethan took her seat and wrote down the words.
She squeezed her eyes shut and raked her fingers through her hair again. Come on. Anything. Shit. “I don’t know. I can’t.”
“No, dammit. Say something,” he ordered. His dark gaze dropped to her stomach, to their baby. “You don’t have a choice.”
She crossed her arms. “I know that.”
“Then don’t stop. Once the amulet is on the beast . . .”
She reached for her suitcase, grasping for words. “All his energy will be released.”
“Good. Now what happens if he takes it off?”
“Takes it off?”
“He’s going to feel his power drain. As soon as he does, he’ll try to rip off the amulet.”
She dug inside her suitcase for her hair brush and dragged it through her hair, the bristles raking her scalp. “Their attempts to remove the chain . . . will be in vain.” Hideous.
Ethan’s frown bordered on a scowl.
“Don’t look at me like that.” Who was he to be a critic? He’d forced the words out of her mouth.
Pacing the room, she yanked the brush through her messy mop, ripping out the strands that wouldn’t cooperate. As she passed by, the chimes let loose their little impromptu performance, and she took a swipe at them with her brush. “I hate these stupid things.” She only succeeded in making their racket louder. Despite the noise, going after the damn things felt so good she jumped up and knocked them again with the brush. Tinny notes rained down on her like hailstones pinging off her head.
“Hold on.” Ethan unhooked the devil tubes from the ceiling and lowered them onto the floor. “You’re doing well. Just trust yourself, and you’ll be fine.” His voice washed over her like warm chocolate, and his hand slid down her spine.
She jerked away from his touch with a swallow, her mouth as dry as the sand in the Zen garden. “What are you doing?”
“Trying to give you confidence in yourself. Something you seem to be lacking.”
Each time he touched her, the memory of Matt faded a little
bit more. She couldn’t let that happen. Every fiber of her being told her to hold on tight to Matt. Her heart would be safe as long as she didn’t let go. She backed away.
Ethan let out a long breath. “Look, after what happened this morning with The Beast, and the baby, we don’t have a lot of time.”
“No kidding. I think I’ve already figured that out. So lay off.”
“Lay off?” Ethan scoffed. “Lay off?” He took a step toward her and stopped. “You’re not the only one going through shit here. Every day, I feel myself losing more control.”
“Yeah, well, I’m pregnant, my mother has a broken back, and my fiancé is dead.” And it’s all because of you. She didn’t have to say the words. They swirled about her and Ethan like a swarm of hornets.
Guilt prickled her conscience. She brushed it away. “Quit pushing me.”
“Tess, I’m sorry. We’re both under a lot of stress.” He stared hard into her eyes. “We’ll try out whatever spell you come up with. If it doesn’t work, we’ll try again.”
She headed to her suitcase and tossed her brush inside the bag. “Oh yeah, I’m sure Kade will hang out until I get it right.”
“He won’t have to. You can practice on me.”
Her throat tight, Tess looked at Ethan—so strong, but not invincible. Despite everything, a part of her couldn’t stand the thought of losing him. “We don’t know what will happen if the spell works.”
“Yes, we do.”
She rubbed her temples. “If I succeed and your energy is drained, you’ll start having bad luck, possibly really bad. You could be killed.”
“I’ll take the risk.” Not a flicker of doubt crossed his face.
Her heart clenched. “I don’t want to risk it.”
He came to stand before her and reached out, but dropped his hand before he touched her. “The longer I stay as I am, the more danger I put you in. I don’t want to be the bad guy anymore.”
Nodding, Tess vowed to push aside her pain and resentment, no matter what it took. She had no choice. Somehow, she would come up with a kick-ass spell, and she’d do it all on her own.
Bewitching the Beast Page 27