Illicit Magic (Book 1, Stella Mayweather Series)

by Camilla Chafer

CHAPTER EIGHT

  Kitty unlinked her hands and turned me around so that she could take me by the shoulders and look at me with her beautiful almond eyes. “Are you okay?” she asked.

  I nodded, mute.

  “Marc can be an idiot. Rash and foolish and sometimes he really doesn’t know what he wants. It’s not a reflection on you.” Kitty kept her hands on my shoulders but without pressure. “I’m going to tell you some things that you might not want to hear and some things that you don’t know yet. You’ll probably wonder why, but I have to tell you these things because I want to be your friend and I want you to be mine. If I don’t tell you these things and we talk about Marc, and you find these things out later, you’ll wonder if I’ve been malicious. I want you to know that I’m not like that and I don’t want to interfere where I’m not wanted.”

  “Okay,” I agreed, curious. She had been friendly to me since my arrival and I wondered what it was that was important enough to make her look so solemn.

  Kitty smiled, nodded, and took her hands off my shoulders. She slipped her arm through mine, patted my hand and led me off down the beach, away from the party. The first thing she said should have shocked me.

  “I know I said Marc and I grew up together, but what I didn’t say was that we were once together-together too. It seems like a long time ago now. We were quite young and it lasted for several years. We were getting to grips with the things we, well, I could do and we naturally drifted towards each other. He was very handsome and charming even then.” Kitty smiled to herself but didn’t look at me. “I loved him very, very much and thought he loved me too. We broke up two, no, three years ago.”

  “Why did you break up?”

  “He had a roving eye,” Kitty said simply. “We both had to follow different paths. I had to learn to get my talents under control and Marc needed to learn other things, like how to defend our kind. I think he also had some problems dealing with his lack of magic. I thought faithfulness was implicit, even though we were so young. Perhaps we were too young. I don’t think his parents ever thought I was quite good enough either. Anyway, regardless of the reasons, Marc slept with other women and I found out the hard way.”

  “I’m sorry. Did he break up with you?”

  Kitty laughed and I was startled. “No. No. I broke it off with him. He was very upset and said he would change, but I’d had enough. I think he genuinely meant to change, but the damage was already done. I loved him for a long time and he tried to prove himself to me for a long time afterwards. I’ll grant him that. It was very hard and so awful and, to be perfectly honest, we’re still not too happy with each other.”

  I absorbed this information. It made sense. They were civil to each other but never alone together. “Why are you telling me?”

  “So that you understand why Marc is how he is. So you can make your decisions wisely.”

  I nodded and understood that Kitty was implying that she didn’t want me to get hurt as she had. I would have my eyes wide open if I wanted to pursue Marc. Thing is, I wasn’t sure I wanted to in a romantic way. I wanted him to be my friend. As far as trees went, Kitty was barking up the wrong one. Clarity hit me like a ten tonne truck and I embraced it like an old friend.

  “After we split up, and Marc gave up trying to win me back, he started seeing other people but never really dated. You’re the first girl he’s been interested in for a very long time and he told me that he cares for you a lot. Don’t be startled, we don’t discuss you. That would be too weird, but he mentioned one night how much he cares for you.” Kitty squeezed my hand. “However, Marc is still Marc and can still be a dumbass. A jealous one, too. You get that, right?”

  I nodded, feeling more confused than ever. “I think so.”

  “Marc isn’t the easiest person when it comes to relationships. I don’t know what he wants. I’m not entirely sure he knows what he wants.” Kitty shrugged her shoulders. “But if you’re hanging around wishing and waiting for him to sort himself out, and I’m not saying you are, well, that isn’t right or fair to you or him. I don’t want him to mess you about since you’re a bright and beautiful girl who deserves honesty and love and faithfulness.”

  “We’re not together,” I blurted out. “I knew Marc liked me, I guess, and I like him too, but nothing’s happened. Just now, he was acting like an ass and then he warned me off Evan.”

  We stopped walking and Kitty gave me a sympathetic look. We altered our course slightly and headed down to the water edge. Kitty tiptoed in the water and waited for me, the waves lapping over her feet. “It’s warm,” she said, and after a moment added, “sort of.”

  I slipped off my sandals one at a time and followed her in. The lukewarm sea felt delicious against my skin. We stood there for a while looking out at the horizon and I let the peacefulness of the scenery wash over me and calm my insides until I got to the point where I no longer harboured vaguely violent thoughts towards Marc anymore.

  Kitty held my hand as we walked back towards our beach and I felt relaxed, strolling through the shallows with the girl that I knew was honestly my friend.

  “That’s Marc for you,” she said. “He doesn’t know what he wants, but he wants to make sure you’ll still be around when he makes up his mind. I’m sorry if you’re hurting.”

  “I’m confused. I thought we were friends and maybe there might have been something.” It felt weird to be spilling about Marc to his ex; I just had to remind myself that Kitty was my friend too. “But he just snapped. He asked me why I was flirting with Evan and got all cross; then told me I could do whatever I wanted and he would soon be gone for a while. I don’t quite know what to make of it.”

  “Were you flirting with Evan?”

  “No. I don’t know. Maybe.” I sighed. Of course, I was flirting with him, but there was no way I was going to tell Kitty that Evan made my heart flutter like a million butterflies awakening every time I saw him. “We’ve been spending a lot of time together. Well, we have to, he’s my teacher, but I do like him. What did he mean about Evan not being like us? I keep getting hints and I don’t know what it means. And if Marc is so interested, why doesn’t he just make a move?”

  “You could go ask Marc,” Kitty suggested. “Go up to the house. Everyone else is down here.”

  Ahead of us, our patch of beach was back in view. Someone had strung up a volleyball net and a game was starting up. The ball sailed through the air and I saw Seren leap up to smack it back over the net. She hadn’t struck me as the athletic type but I revised my opinion when I saw her long, lean limbs.

  Kitty was right. I probably should talk to him. I didn’t want Marc to leave with any bad blood between us but I wasn’t sure what I was going to say.

  “I think I’ll do that.” I paused to give Kitty a hug, which was part of the new making-friends me, and she reciprocated warmly before giving me a push towards the steps. It took me a few minutes to climb the steps and cross the garden.

  I entered the house through the screened back door and called for Marc. He didn’t answer so I went up to my room. In the weeks before he left, we’d spent quite a few evenings talking in here, curled up on the window seat, as it was a bit more quiet than in his room downstairs. He’d taken to leaving some things too; a sweater, a book or two. Everything was gone. I sat on the bed and looked around. Not one scrap of Marc was left, he may well have never been in my room.

  I went back out to the hallway and walked down the stairs to Marc’s room. He wasn’t there either, but the things he had left in my room had been recklessly tossed onto the dresser, so I backtracked to the hall.

  Opening the front door, I ducked around the side of the building where the cars were kept – Marc’s Prius was gone. To have vanished so fast, he must have already been packed, ready to go, when he caught up with me on the beach. At least, that solved the problem of what I would say to him. Apparently, it would be nothing at all. It was probably a good thing considering the way I was feeling. At least, I wouldn’t say something tha
t I might regret later.

  Back in the house, I shut the front door with a thud and rested against it for a moment. I took the stairs two at a time and went into my room to pick up a shawl. I’d probably need it if the night turned cold later. Then it occurred to me that the other girls might need something too so I gathered up an armful and tossed them into a straw bag that was lounging empty on the landing. At least, I had an excuse for coming back to the house, I thought as I left via the back door.

  I puzzled the whole scenario over in my head again. Sure, Marc and I had been getting close but neither one of us had made any move and he had no right to think that he had some kind of say over whom I spoke to. I felt myself getting angrier as I ran down the steps.

  “Hey!” Seren called as I stepped onto the beach. “Where’d ya go?”

  I held up the bag. “I thought we might get cold later, so I went to fetch some shawls from the house.”

  “You are sweetness, personified,” grinned Seren, making room for me on the big towel on which she lay spread-eagled. Kitty waved to me from the makeshift pitch and Étoile tossed the volleyball towards me. I dropped the bag and caught the ball without hesitation, to Étoile’s delight.

  Seren laughed, “I think you’ve just been conscripted which is a good thing because the girls are losing.” She waved her scorecard at me.

  I slipped out of my sandals again and tossed the ball back. “I’m in!”

  The game went on for a couple of hours. Kitty, Étoile and I versus Evan, Jared and Clara – we were the stay hards. From time to time, David or Seren joined in and dropped out – mostly they seemed happy to stick with each other’s company and I wondered if there weren’t some budding romance there. I watched Kitty’s lithe body leap through the air to smash the ball back and we hugged and high fived as she scored another point for the team.

  When it came to Evan’s turn to serve, he stretched his long, muscular body to whack the ball over to our side. I was sure I wasn’t the only one admiring his thick biceps, broad shoulders, bare chest and strong legs. The ball had gone to Kitty’s side so she hit it back to Evan. They parried until the ball fell on our side and Evan stretched again. As he caught my eye and held my gaze, I realised I hadn’t looked at anyone else and wondered if his stretching was for my benefit. Yum.

  “Close your mouth,” whispered Étoile, bumping me gently and I laughed as I looked away. When I turned back, Evan grinned at me, then I had to race to bash the ball that was hurtling towards me and him and he laughed as he smashed it back with ease.

  While we played, the sun started going down and the sky faded to dusky blue. David and Seren had been gathering driftwood for a little firepit Jared had dug where a newly ignited fire burned. He and David were poking it with sticks to the amusement of Seren who was singing “me man, make fire” until she was scooped up by Jared, who ran her around as though she were a victory prize. After a couple of rounds, she was tossed unceremoniously onto the pitch still clutching her scorecard. She scrambled to her feet and called time, waving her hands for us all to stop whilst we clamoured for the result.

  “Much as it pains me to say this,” she gasped, brushing the sand from her body. “The boys are the winners.”

  A whoop went up from the boys with “false” cries from the girls.

  “I propose a swim, because I’m hot and sticky and the sea will cool us down before we eat.” This was met with unanimous approval but Seren didn’t wait to hear it as she grabbed Kitty’s hand and they ran into the sea before you could say “go.” Again, I admired Kitty’s lithe, unselfconscious body in the red two-piece.

  I was still wearing my sundress, so I carefully unbuttoned it from the top to the skirt and slipped it off. Fortunately, I’d already put on the white bikini and the straps had stayed taut. I went to hang it over the net so I would find it after the swim and discovered Evan still standing there.

  I mistakenly thought he’d headed to the shoreline already but he had, quite obviously, watched me as I slowly unbuttoned my dress in front of him.

  “I didn’t know you were there,” I mumbled. I fought to keep my cool as I saw his chest heave while he scanned my almost naked body. He didn’t say anything. “I’ve never swum in the sea before,” I admitted to fill the silence and Evan held out his hand.

  “I’ll take care of you.”

  I hesitated, then laid my hand in his as he pulled me into the sea after him until we were up to our hips. It wasn’t warm but not unbearably cold so far out so I pushed off and swam tentative strokes. Ahead of me, Evan swung his arms into more powerful strokes then his legs flipped into the air and he disappeared. I treaded water for a moment, moving myself in a circle to see where he was, then, as suddenly as he disappeared, he surfaced, just inches in front of me.

  Sea water trickled down his face and he brushed it away with a hand. I was close enough that everyone else seemed to disappear, and it was just the two of us, treading water. I was glad he couldn’t hear my heart quickening its pace. He reached out and brushed my damp hair behind my ears, his fingers grazing my cheeks and not moving. I was close enough to lean in and kiss him. In the mere second the idea crossed my mind, my lips parted in anticipation; he splashed me with water and I laughed before he slid back under the water.

  He reappeared next to Jared and they jostled, trying to dunk each other and splashing water at Kitty, making her laugh, before racing each other through the waves.

  Étoile had swum over and was treading water next to me, mouthing, “hot, hot, hot” which made me laugh and we swam together before heading to shore. Kitty was waiting for us with towels. Étoile grabbed one and another for Seren.

  “Did you find him?” Kitty asked quietly, when the two of us were alone.

  I shook my head and droplets of water shook out. “No, he’s gone. He’s just gone. No note. It seemed a very...” I struggled for the right word. “Final. It seemed a very final thing to do.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t be. It’s okay. Besides, I’m really pissed off with him for acting like such a jerk when he’s supposed to be my friend and I would have said that if he’d been there.” I towelled off and stood by the raging bonfire, still in my two-piece.

  Skewers of meat had been produced from a cool bag and were being threaded over a rack. The scent of barbecue pulled in the stragglers from the sea who patted their stomachs and busied themselves handing out drinks.

  Jared pulled out a guitar (clearly a hidden talent) and started strumming it as the sun set in streaks of orange and pink over the ocean until the only light that was left was the bonfire. Stakes with torches had been set out and lit so that there was light around the blankets too. Our little crowd stretched out on towels and dozed while the meat cooked. The atmosphere was altogether relaxing and joyful. I couldn’t have wished to be anywhere else and for the first time, I knew what it felt like to really be part of something. I didn’t feel at all awkward in their company anymore.

  My bikini had dried off so I walked over to the remains of the volleyball pitch, my feet sinking in the cool sand. My dress was where I’d left it, still hanging over the pole so I shrugged it on and redid the buttons, leaving the last few of the skirt semi undone. As I turned back towards the bonfire, I scanned the people for the pair of eyes I could feel were watching me and smiled when I saw Evan. He raised his glass to me.

  “What shall we do for entertainment?” Seren asked to a resounding “whoop”. “I already know the decision, of course, but I’m sure you would rather come up with it by yourselves than for me to just tell you.”

  “Dancing,” came a shout from the back. I thought it was Jared.

  “Gentleman, please. This is not a beach of ill repute,” snorted Kitty.

  “Dance with us then?” came a low voice. David did a low bow in front of Seren and offered her his hand which she took with coy smile. Yep, something definitely going on there. His suggestion was met with approval from all sides, a CD player was produced from somewher
e and music blared out across our enclave. There were some more “whoops” as Kitty and Clara immediately started jumping around, arms in the air. No one could fail to admire their enthusiastic dancing whilst still clad in bikinis. I laughed and turned as I felt a body close to mine.

  Evan took my hand and pulled me to him. I had to stretch to put my hands around his neck as he slipped his hands about my waist. A single one of his hands almost covered the base of my back. We danced slowly, no more than a shuffle and every so often he spun me out and twirled me around before pulling me to him again. He had only pulled on jeans so I found myself – happily – very close to his bare chest. Dancing with Evan was pure pleasure but eventually I shivered as we drifted away from the gathering, confessed I felt a little cold, and we went back to the bonfire.

  Evan gathered up one of the discarded shawls and wrapped it around my shoulders before swooping up his t-shirt and sweat jacket and pulling them over his head. He fell backwards onto a blanket and pulled me down with him, so that I was nestled between his legs, my back to his chest, using his powerful body to shield me from the breeze that had whipped up. It was strangely intimate, though at no time was he inappropriate and I felt comfortable snuggled into him. But even I had to admit that I wouldn’t be snuggled quite so close if there weren’t some serious attraction going on.

  Whether it was because of his intense body heat, or because, frankly, just being near him was a turn-on, I didn’t want to move away from Evan so we stayed there for the rest of the night. Food was passed round and people came and went, sitting and chatting and then moving on again. By the time the moon was hanging full and bright over the ocean, my eyelids were giving sleepy tugs down and I feared I might dose off right there in Evan’s arms if I didn’t move soon.

  I stretched my arms and felt Evan shift behind me as he tightened his arms around me. He seemed to be half asleep himself. A glance at my watch’s glowing hands told me it was past eleven.

  “I think it’s time I went to bed,” I muttered and, in an instant, Evan was on his feet and helping me to mine.

  “Seren looks like she’s heading up to the house, why don’t you walk up with her?” he suggested.

  I looked over. Seren had gathered up her things and, I noticed gratefully, mine too. She had probably already known that I would walk up with her. “Yes, I think I will.”

  Evan bent his head towards mine and I felt his hands brush my lower back. I tilted my head and wondered if he might kiss me under the moonlit sky; I certainly wanted him to. Instead, he dipped and I felt his warm lips brush across my cheek. I took a step back and his hands released me as I stumbled a step away. I paused for breath but couldn’t say anything. Evan nodded once, and smiled.

  What was with the guys around here? I thought as I caught up with Seren and offered to carry her surplus bag. Was I misinterpreting everything? God! I was going to be so embarrassed in the morning. We walked up the steps together, calling goodnight to the straggling partiers. “What a lovely day,” she said happily, David just a step behind her.

  “The best,” I muttered, glowing hotly with the embarrassment of misinterpreting Evan’s intentions. In the next moment, I wondered how it was that so much of the world’s awfulness could have been pushed from our thoughts for this single day. It was a sobering thought that I could do without.

  Seren kissed me on the cheek when we got to the house and wandered off to her room while I was saying goodnight to Christy and Clara who were looking a little worse for wear. David nodded to me as he passed and followed Seren upstairs. It was fortunate that this sprawling house could accommodate us all so well, I thought. It was nice to have a room of my own, instead of bunking down with several other girls like I had to do in one of my foster homes. Still, I did allow myself a second of speculation about which room David was heading to and I couldn’t help but smile to myself.

  I took the stairs two at a time and dumped my bag on the chair. My discarded clothing went into the hamper and I went into the en suite bathroom, reaching into the shower to turn on the taps. I held my hand under the water until it turned warm, though, really, a cold shower would have probably been more appropriate given the way I was feeling right then.

  I sluiced the sea water and sand from my body and hair, shampooed and conditioned, covering myself in the vanilla-scented body wash that I loved. I assumed Seren’s abilities came in handy here too what with the coordinated basket of toiletries that appealed perfectly to me. I wondered how often people had arrived here with absolutely nothing, like I did.

  Standing under the water as a reminisced about the day, I thought how nice it was that we had laughed and played like normal people. Playing volleyball and swimming in the sea, telling stilly stories, eating until our bellies were full and dancing on the sand.

  It occurred to me that not once had magic been used, not that I noticed anyway. No one had thought to click their fingers to light the fire, the volleyball had been hit by hands rather than minds manipulating its path, the sky had gone inky and studded with stars all by itself. Not once could I think of an occasion where magic had been used. It had been as normal as normal could be. We were just regular people enjoying ourselves.

  We had managed without magic, and magic had managed without us. Everything we did was real. Everything we felt was real. And it dawned on me that the attraction I was feeling towards Evan was all of my own making. “Crap,” I said to the tiles.

  I wondered if the others had come to the same conclusion as I and what they made of it, if they even thought about it at all. Probably not, I decided, they’d all been on the magic bus long before me.

  I rinsed and turned off the taps, wrapping myself up in a towel. I dried off, lotioned and put on a mauve silk dressing gown that contrasted prettily with my hair and pale skin. Before I could really think what I was doing, my hand was on the handle of my bedroom door and pulling the door open. I stepped outside at the very instant I heard another door open and froze.

  Evan stood framed in the doorway of his room down the hall. He had changed from his jeans, tee and zip-up top into loose, linen, dark navy pants that hung the long, sumptuous length of his legs.

  My heart thudded in my chest and I took one step forward, then another. Evan waited for me silently until I stood before him. He looked at me for a mere second before taking my hand and pulling me inside without a word, closing the door with a soft thud.

  By now, I’d been inside most of the rooms in the house but not this one. Being the corner room, it was a little bigger than mine. Curtains on both walls were drawn already. His bed sat beneath the one that I guessed looked out over the ocean. It was made up in soft grey jersey sheets, masculine but not off-putting and the comforter was folded back like he’d just been about to climb in. On the bedside table, a lamp was switched on and a book lay open, face down.

  A desk occupied one side of the long set of curtains; a small pile of books and a writing pad the only clutter. The walls were a much paler grey and everything was tidy. Two doors led off to what I assumed were his en suite and a closet. He smelled fresh and clean and I guessed he had showered as soon as he came in too.

  “There was no magic today,” I said, not sure if I was stating the obvious or asking a question.

  Evan shook his head. “None.”

  “Everything was real.” Again, not a statement or a question.

  Evan nodded his head.

  “Huh.” I nodded, glad that he agreed.

  “Kitty might have warmed the temperature up a little.”

  “Figures.”

  “Why are you here?” Evan asked softly. With a snap, I realised that I was standing in Evan’s room with barely a robe covering entirely nothing underneath and he was barely inches from me, fairly close to nakedness himself. What was I doing here?

  “I just got out of the shower and I was thinking about you, then ... I don’t know, I went to the door and you were standing at yours.” That seemed to surprise Evan. I wonder if I’d stayed sti
ll, would he have come to me and would we be in my room now having the same soft conversation, but perhaps he would be doing the explaining?

  “You were thinking about me while you were in the shower?”

  “Um, yeah.” And why was I admitting to that?

  “Stella, I think you know that I want you – I’ve tried not to, but I do – and now you are in my room, wearing very, very little.” He stroked my neck above the collar of my gown, running my hair through his fingers. “Well, that suggests that you want me too, but I want to be sure that I’m not treading on any toes.”

  I nearly looked at my toes before I realised he was being metaphorical. I gulped. “If you’re asking if Marc and I are together, then no, we are not. I’m a free woman and I can do as I please.” I used the same words Marc had thrown at me, but not for revenge, because it was true. I wanted Evan very, very much. “Am I treading on any toes?”

  “No. There isn’t anyone,” said Evan, his voice still gentle but his fingers caressing my skin, just barely under the gown now. “I don’t want to be a rebound fuck.” I was a little taken aback as he swore.

  “I’m not entirely sure what a rebound fuck is, but I can assure you that that is not why I am here. Besides, I’ve never slept with Marc. Actually, I’ve never slept with anyone.”

  “And you are here because...?”

  He seemed to really want me to spell it out. I looked up at him and held his eyes steady in my own, before I answered, “Because I want you.”

  He smiled at last, a broad, happy smile, and his hand circled the back my neck, keeping my head tilted up as he bent to kiss me at last, his lips warm and sensual against my own.

  A gasp of joy escaped me as his tongue entered my mouth and found mine. As I responded, the kiss intensified and I pressed my body against his, my arms wrapping around him as far as I could reach. I could feel his mounting excitement push against me through my thin gown.

  It was Evan who broke off. “I’ve been wondering what it would be like to kiss you since the day I met you,” he said, his breathing ragged. His hands were tugging at the little knot of my robe and he slid it open, his touch light on my skin. Then his hands slid beneath the silk and travelled from my stomach, running across my breasts until he reached my shoulders. I stood there almost naked in the half light of his room. His gaze was admiring.

  “I am much too tall for you.” He grinned suddenly as he swooped me up and lay me across his bed. “You would get an awful pain in your neck if we stayed like that.”

  I laughed and forgot about being even slightly embarrassed at appearing at his room and being almost entirely unclothed in minutes. Evan lay down next to me and propped his head up on one arm. He used his other hand to trail across my body and I shivered at the pleasure of his touch. We kissed again and I wriggled so that I was on my side too, pressing against him once more. My hands caressed him and I could barely contain my glee at touching his muscular torso. I stayed the temptation to let my hands travel lower. I could feel how much he wanted me but... oh hell. I let my hands drift and slid my palm along his erection.

  Evan groaned and kissed me harder and rolled so that he was on top of me, resting on his elbows either side of me. He was supporting his weight but not so much that I couldn’t feel him press his whole body against me as I pulled him ever closer. We stayed like this for a long time as my legs wrapped around him, the desperation to be part of him taking over, my baser instincts eager to take control.

  “You’ve really never done this before?” he asked, breaking off.

  I locked eyes with him. “Yes, really. Not for lack of wanting to, but for lack of wanting anyone who offered. Not that there was a queue.”

  “I doubt there was any lack of offers,” he groaned, nibbling my ear lobe. “I’m honoured, of course, but I don’t want to do anything you’re not ready for and I’m not a one-night-stand kind of guy. I’m more date-and-take-it-slow. Are you sure you want me? Right here? Right now?”

  “Yes, I want you.” My voice was raspy as he peeled himself from me and reached over to the side cabinet to pull open the top drawer, palming a small packet. I may not know the mechanics of sex but I was familiar with good practice in theory.

  He kicked his pants off into a heap on the floor and well, being pressed against me, I had some indication of his size, but now I was truly impressed. I pushed myself up with my elbows and surveyed him in admiration. Clothed, he was every bit impressive and I wasn’t the only girl in the house who had appreciated his strong torso and muscular arms. Unclothed, Evan was quite a revelation. It wasn’t just that part of his anatomy but he was probably the most beautiful man I had ever seen.

  He pulled me up and slid the gown from my shoulders so it pooled at my feet then dipped his head to kiss me, long and deep. Lowering me onto the bed, he slid on top of me and held my eyes steady. He kissed me again and again and the flare inside me reignited hot and urgent. I pushed upwards to him and his hand cupped my breast. He bent to kiss it, landing feather kisses on the way across my neck and collarbone, while his hand moved south, caressing and parting my legs and pushing his finger inside as his thumb rubbed me quite the right way.

  I groaned and kissed him harder until he moved his finger in a determined pulsing rhythm that had me biting my lip in excitement. Evan murmured, “Ready?” not quite waiting for my answer before he slid inside me, not too deeply at first but rocking until the initial piercing pain had gone and I had enveloped him completely. His voice was as ragged as mine when a wave of pleasure rippled through me and I rocked against Evan. Finding our rhythm and letting myself be swept away by the joy of being so intensely entwined with him, I luxuriated in being so close to him, part of him, as his body rippled above me.

  Heat spiralled from my centre and I cried out as I came, my mouth fixed on Evan’s shoulder, not quite biting, not yet, so that I wouldn’t yell out loud. My hands ran across his back and I barely registered the ridges and edges of his vertebrae and the working muscles, taught and hard, under my fingertips. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I wondered at his strange topography as his back flexed and undulated under my hands; then his mouth sought mine. He kissed me deeply as he came to his own shuddering conclusion, thrusting ever deeper until at last we untangled our limbs and lay side by side, panting, and my thoughts were all stars and fireworks.

  We lay quietly for a while, alongside each other, until I turned and kissed him. Evan responded enthusiastically and pulled me closer to him, until our bodies were fully pressed against each other, his hands exploring mine in long, smooth strokes.

  “I don’t normally make a habit of this, you know,” I said, wondering what Evan thought of me now. Part of me wanted to shriek “he really likes me!” but I stuffed that away. I traced my fingers across his cheek, cupping his chin in the palm of my hand. His irises had darkened to purple-black, so vibrant as they shone against the whites of his eyes.

  “Habit of what? Turning up at men’s rooms practically naked?” Evan was amused.

  “Hmm, yes, most definitely not in the habit of doing that.”

  “I could get used to it.” Evan kissed me again and when I opened my eyes, his were back to their normal deep brown.

  “I don’t want you to think I’m something that I’m not. I want you to know that I don’t wander around the halls, looking for...” I didn’t want Evan to think my purpose was to offer up sex to men here, there and everywhere as the fancy took me. Well, obviously, even if I had, I’d never been taken up on it. Until now...

  “I never thought you did, but should you get into the habit, I will happily leave my door open so you don’t have to go far.”

  I laughed and laid my head on his chest. I could feel his heart beating and it was reassuring. His hand rested on my hip. We couldn’t have been more familiar and easy in each other’s company than right now.

  “I’m not massively experienced in these sort of things. I don’t think I’d be the type to sleep around. I’ve never wanted to.” That pro
bably sounded strange after what had just happened.

  “I wouldn’t have assumed that you did.”

  I don’t know why I felt compelled to tell him, but I did. “I’ve never even had a boyfriend before.”

  “Me neither,” Evan replied, but curious all the same.

  “Um, no,” I admitted and he shifted next to me. I could tell the truth had dawned on him. It wasn’t just a roll in the sheets for me; he was the only person I had ever wanted so strongly and I had given him part of myself that I could never offer out again. Sure, I could have had a fumble with a spotty youth during school but I didn’t want to cast away something so important on someone so insignificant. This was a memory I wanted to keep.

  “I’m the first person you’ve slept with and I am absolutely touched that you would want me that much,” Evan said softly but without ego.

  I shrugged. I was still a little surprised that I had found someone I wanted enough. I found myself kissing his chest, my finger massaging his nipple until it was hard. Evan groaned and pulled me up to kiss him again. When he released me, he kept me pulled to his side.

  “I don’t understand though, I thought you and Marc were having some kind of thing?”

  “I thought we might,” I admitted. “But it never felt right. We kissed once a few weeks ago when I first got here, and it was nice but there was never any,” I struggled for the right word while I thought about what I wanted to say and settled on “‘progression.’ The one time we kissed, it was nice, but it was a bit like snogging a friend. There was nothing there.”

  Evan was a quiet for a bit then he repeated softly, “I’m honoured.”

  I hadn’t expected that so I rolled onto my front and looked at him quizzically.

  “Well,” he said, choosing his words carefully. ‘You’re twenty-four and you’re hot. Seriously hot. You could have been with who knows how many guys. I’m honoured, however, that you didn’t and that you chose me, and, well, that feels special.”

  I smiled at his carefulness not to insult me, or my lack of experience, and that he viewed our intimacy as an honour. He kissed me and I responded with a great deal of enthusiasm which led to a very nice repeat of other things.

  “I can’t lie though, I’ve wanted you from the moment I laid eyes on you.” Evan kissed me again, long and lingering, his hands caressing my torso with reverence. He stretched an arm to draw up the covers and pulled me close. “Stay here tonight?” It seemed more of a question than a suggestion so I nodded and said I’d like to, but I didn’t add that it was because I couldn’t bear to leave him now. Evan snuggled up next to me and we were still before I grinned and sat up, pulling the covers up to my chest, suddenly bashful. “Watch this.”

  I focused carefully, emptying my mind of everything but the task at hand. I ignored Evan watching me and after a moment, he followed the direction of my eyes. I concentrated and visualised what I would do. Slowly, the key turned in the lock with a little snap.

  I turned to look at Evan and realised I’d been holding my breath. He grinned at me and I could tell he was at once impressed and amused that when I’d finally gotten my telekinesis under control to use at will, I used it to lock us into his bedroom. While I could admit that was funny, privately, it gave me hope that I’d learn to shimmer as I pleased, just like Étoile, or summon an object like Evan could.

  Evan pulled me back under the covers, laughter rippling from him, and kissed me deeply, his arms wrapped around me as I sank into him.

  I fell asleep in his arms, his body curled around mine as though this was the way it was meant to be. I wished with all my strength that nothing would change. If only wishing had the power to make it so.