Charmed & Ready (12 page)

"Oooh. Now this could get fun. But I think I better just give you the chocolates so no one gets their heart rate up too high."

That made us both laugh.

I watched him preparing our meal. Everything seemed right.

We love each other so much and we have to make this work.

Now, I have to figure out how I can get him into my bed.

He's staked out my couch in front of the television. Said he didn't think it was a good idea for us to share a bed right now.

Stubborn man. And of course he'd have to be a doctor who knows all that crap about taking my pulse and listening for rasps in my chest.

Oh, and he made me drink this nasty herbal concoction Garnout told him would restore my strength. It works like the blue juice, but tastes like the bottom of an old shoe. Not that I've eaten a shoe, but I have a very good imagination.

Ooooh. I know. A massage.

"Hey Sam, um, I'm kind of tense. Could you rub my shoulders?"

Wednesday, 11 am. Sweet, Texas

Sexually satisfied witches: 0 (Well, there are probably a few today but I'm not one of them)

My massage idea didn't work. Oh, Sam came up and rubbed my shoulders, right after he gave me some "special" tea. Friggin' tea knocked me out. The last thing I remember were his hands on my shoulders and me saying, "Oh, that feels…"

Argh!

You know, I happen to think being sexually frustrated isn't exactly healthy. And it's causing my blood pressure to raise a hell of lot more than if we actually did it.

There was an article on the Internet this morning about how a woman helped stop a gang from destroying a pub in London.

Of course, I heard the news firsthand when Callie called.

"Damn, what a rush." Callie had me on speaker while she soaked in the tub at Zane's country house. I could hear her sloshing around. It seemed kind of weird, but she called me, so there ya go.

"So, what happened? Did you get them all?" I sat on the couch with the television muted watching
The View
. I hate to admit it, but I'm kind of hooked on these morning talk shows. After
Good Morning America
there's Regis and Kelly, and then all of these women come on and talk about inane subjects and it's totally fascinating. And in the afternoon there's Ellen and Oprah. I'm now addicted to both shows. Well, not the Oprahs where murderers and rapists meet their victims. And ack the one where pedophiles talked about why they did what they did. It took everything I had not to mentally burn those idiots from the inside out. I may have to look them up someday.

But I love the celebrity interviews. It's silly, but after hanging out with Kira and Margie, I get into it now. Well, except when I'm the one hanging with the celebrity. But I like seeing how their homes are decorated and what kind of makeup they wear. There, I said it. Just please God don't tell Simone. She'll kick my ass. If the celebrity isn't fuckable, she's got no use for them.

"I didn't get them all," Callie grunted. "The old guy with the weird hands wasn't there. But cross-head was, along with four of his friends. Two were warlocks. I had to kill them all, so we didn't get much information."

Damn, she liked the violence part of the job way too much. Kind of like me. But we could have used some help getting to the source of the troubles.

"I have to tell you they were protected by some dark shit." Her husky voice sounded tired. "I haven't seen magic like that before. Hell, that one warlock, the one standing next to the guy in the booth, was a lot harder to kill than I expected. He threw this black sludge crap. Never seen anything like it."

I threw the remote on the coffee table. What the fuck? "Did you say black sludge?"

"God, Bronwyn, pay attention. Yes, why?"

I stood up and started pacing. "Did any of it get on you? Seep in anywhere?"

She laughed. "Hell, no. I'm fast on my feet. And that shit was nasty. I had a feeling it might take me down if it touched me, so I stayed clear."

I wish I had been so lucky. The last time I had a run-in with black sludge-spewing warlocks, they had been under Blackstock's control. I knew he wasn't the only one to use the stuff, but still.

"The spook squad did find some of the sludge on the wall behind the bar and took it in for testing. If they trace it anywhere I'll let you know."

We talked for a while longer about when I thought I could get back on the job. There's no way I'd have been able to fight like she did last night. I didn't have the strength, yet. And I honestly wasn't going to acquire it sitting around on my ass watching daytime television.

I still had a couple of days before it was safe to do magic, but I hadn't even so much as mixed a potion in almost two weeks.

I picked some herbs from the garden and got to work. I didn't do the magic over the charms, but did get them ready. After London, my supply was depleted. And I mixed energy, healing and protection potions, filling almost every available container I had.

I'm tired now and ready for lunch, but it's the good kind of tired. At least I accomplished something.

Kira's coming over to exercise with me. Oh, geez. She's bringing a yoga DVD. She swears it will help me regain my strength and energy.

"I've been doing it for months, Bron, and I feel so much better. It's the one thing that's kept me from going crazy about this whole dead people thing." She called from the library. "It's all about breathing and stretching. It won't get your pulse up too high like something cardio, and I swear on a stack of Bibles you'll feel better when we're done."

"I don't know, Kira, it's so Hollywood." And it didn't sound very fun, though exercise seldom is.

"No, Bron, it's passe in Hollywood. Now everyone there is doing Pilates and something called Centering. Oh, I have a Pilates DVD too. I'll bring it. I do it twice a week and it's totally reshaped my butt."

I laughed. Kira was the last person to worry about body parts. She had a supermodel body and looks, a lawyer's analytical mind, and was honestly one of the kindest people I'd ever met.

So now I'm searching for my stretchy Juicy Couture shorts and a loose T-shirt for our little yoga spree.

Sam's got late rounds tonight but he promised to stop by later this evening. I have to find a way to get that man back into bed.

Thursday, 10 A. M.

Sweet, Texas

Witches who are clever: 1

What's the one thing a man can't turn down? I'm such a wickedly smart girl.

Sam walked in on Kira and me finishing our yoga DVD.

She was right about feeling better. I didn't think it would work the first time I tried it, but it did. I also like the idea of being more limber and centered. Garnout's always telling me I need to focus my power more. Yoga might help with that.

So Sam comes in the front door and we have our butts in the air in some downward dog thing. I turned to see him and he had one eyebrow up.

I pointed to him. "You stop looking at Kira's ass and get in the kitchen. We're almost done."

"No offense, Kira, but it's not your ass I'm interested in." He waggled his eyebrows and took the bags into the kitchen. Pots and pans were banged, so I assumed dinner wouldn't be long.

I love the fact that he cooks for me.

Kira had to get home to Caleb, who was also fixing dinner. Man, do we have these guys trained or what? He and Kira actually trade off each night, and do the same with household chores. They've become quite cozy since they met months ago.

So, Sam and I were alone in the kitchen. He was all about getting some steaks ready for the grill and baking potatoes. I mixed some more herbal iced tea. Gave him a kiss on the cheek, then ran upstairs for a quick shower.

That's when it dawned on me. I knew exactly what I needed to do. I tied a white T-shirt in a knot at my waist and pulled on a pair of loose pa jama shorts. They have cute little pugs all over them and they are short.

Sam was bringing in the steaks.

They smelled heavenly.

We talked about his day at the hospital and then the nursing home. When we were done I grabbed the plates. I loaded the dishwasher and asked him to find a movie for us to watch.

"I'm kind of tired, Bron. I'm not sure I can make it through a whole movie tonight."

Oh, he was going to make it and then some.

"That's okay. We can always stop it and watch the rest tomorrow. "

Honestly, I don't even know what movie he chose. I was so focused on what I was about to do, I didn't even look. I brought in our tea, and set it on the coffee table.

He put his arm around me when I sat down. I nuzzled his neck and the smell of him gave me courage. I put my hand on his thigh and rubbed gently. Closed my eyes and sighed. That's when my hand accidentally moved upward. He instantly hardened under my palm. Oops.

"Bron?"

"Yes?"

"What are you doing?" He shifted on the couch, but he didn't stop me.

"I'm getting dessert ready." I got down on my knees and smiled up at him.

"Honey, you know we can't. It's just a few more days."

I pushed his legs apart and undid his jeans one button at a time. "Baby, you can wait all you want. I'm going down on you. Now."

I bent down and took him in my mouth. He grew even harder.

He groaned and put his hands in my hair. "We can't—oooh…"

I smiled around him and then sucked hard. He felt so good in my mouth, the taste of him.

He moaned again, and I licked and sucked and could hear his breath become a pant.

"Jesus, woman. You've got to stop. I can't hold out much longer."

Silly man, that was the point.

I did pause for a second and looked at him. Don't know what he saw in my eyes, but he whispered, "Okay."

His hips moved in motion, and just before I knew he was about to come, I slid back to his tip.

He grabbed my shoulders and pulled me up to him and kissed me. His hardness pressed between us.

Then he pushed me away. "Stand up, Bronwyn."

I did what he asked, afraid he was going to stop the game.

He tugged my shorts down my legs. Smiling when he saw I wore nothing underneath. Pulling me up on the couch so that I was standing over him. Then he plunged his tongue between my legs. I had to grab the back of the couch to keep from falling. His tongue slid in and out and my body shook with pleasure seconds later. I came so hard I thought I would pass out.

Sam slid out from underneath me and brought my feet back to the floor. Standing behind me, he bent me over the couch. My hands held on to the back, as he slid into me.

I moaned when he grabbed my tits and plunged deeper into me. Pounding me harder and harder.

I screamed, this time my whole body trembling.

"Saammm. Yesssss."

He didn't stop, just moved in and out to the point where I felt like my whole body would come to pieces. Not in a painful way, but in a glorious shiver of pleasure.

When he came he moaned, "Bron." And I collapsed back onto him, reaching for his head and pulling him to me. He kissed the back of my neck and then slid tiny kisses down my spine.

I turned to him and he kissed me again, this time, our tongues playing that timeless game.

Then he grabbed my wrist and, looking at his watch, he took my pulse.

I yanked at him. "Stop that. I'm fine. In fact I feel better than I have in weeks."

"You're doing okay. I just wanted to make sure."

I looked down at us. We both had our shirts on and no bottoms. I reached down and grabbed the clothes. He pulled me upstairs and we had a repeat performance in the shower, after a few minutes of playing hide the soap.

A blow job. It works every time.

Friday, 1 P. M.

Sweet, Texas Magic-ready witches: 1

The local coven is coming over tonight. It's the first time I'm going to try real magic after a couple of weeks off, so they'll be here as kind of a fail-safe.

It's Garnout's idea. He's fond of the local witches and warlocks in town. They keep Sweet running smoothly, and force trouble away with their protection spells. It's one of the safest places I've ever lived.