White Trash Witch (5 page)

"Do you still feel up to it?" he asked, noticing her
silent mood.

"Oh, sure. I thought I'd take you window shopping,
and show you the town. Trenton, that is. Salem is just a blink
town."

"Blink town?"

"Yes, you blink and you miss it because it's so
small."

Chuckling, he said, "I think I'd like that."

"Great. Let's get this stuff to the car and we can
head to town."

Trenton was still a small town, compared to the city,
but it had shops that filled every need. There were three jewelers,
three grocery stores, three banks, and a ton of retail stores.

Hand-in-hand, Wiley and Ryder walked past stores and
enjoyed the sights.

"I got arrested when I was a teen."

"You what?" he said, his eyebrow rose.

"Yup. I stole a lipstick."

"You got arrested for stealing a lipstick?"

"My mom and I were at each other's throats that year.
Hormone overload. I was determined that I was going to do what I
wanted, when I wanted it. I had some money in my pocket but my
friend stole something, so I followed suit. Mom came to bail me
out. She even came to court with me. The judge rolled his eyes when
he found out what my crime was, and threw the case out of
court."

"How old were you?" he asked.

"Fifteen. You know, the age where you know
everything?"

"Wow, I'm walking with a felon. That's
intimidating."

Swatting him on his chest, she chuckled.

"I never stole another thing. Ever. I guess I learned
my lesson. The thing I realized the most years later was that no
matter how angry Mom got with me, she was always there for me. She
believes in family first over everything and everyone."

"Is that how you feel, too?"

"Yeah, I do. That's why it hurt so much when my ex
cheated on me. He was an ‘all for me' kind of guy. I think he
wanted me to catch him in the act."

"Not a nice man. Are you over him?"

"I think so, I just…oh, crap, speak of the devil!
There he is. See the hunky blonde with his arm around the
redhead?"

"Yeah."

"Crap! He's coming right for us. Can you pretend to
be my boyfriend?" she asked, gripping his hand tight.

"Sure." Ryder whispered a spell to make him look like
his normal self only to the couple and waited with Wiley for the
couple to approach.

"Well, hey. Look who it is. My ex!" Gerry Vaughan
flashed a movie star smile at Wiley. "How's my favorite little
witch?" he said, his tone sarcastic.

"She's about as perfect as you can get. You are one
foolish man. Thanks for freeing her up. I adore her." Disliking the
man instantly, Ryder leaned over and gave Wiley a gentle kiss. He
felt it right down to his toes.

Speechless, Wiley stared up at him, her lips slightly
parted, her eyes wide.

"Ah, well…sure. No problem. Right, kitten?" he said
and tried to kiss his date.

She pushed him away. "Gerry, I told you not to call
me that, and don't kiss me in public. That's just gross."

Appearing flustered, the man said, "So, you still
practicing your evil witchcraft?"

"As a matter of fact, she's working on a spell this
week to repel losers. Looks like it worked on you already."

As though stunned, the man stared at Ryder,
speechless for a moment.

"If you'll excuse us, we have things to do. Nice
meeting you, miss," he said, nodding, completely omitting
Gerry.

They began walking away, and heard the woman say,
"Why can't you be more like him. He's gorgeous, but he doesn't act
like it."

Once they'd walked out of hearing distance, Wiley
looked up at him. "Thank you. I always go dumb when he's around. I
can't seem to find the words. I appreciate what you did." Reaching
up, she kissed his cheek, and then walked on, holding his hand. Her
step was a little lighter then.

"Witch?" he asked.

Her eyes flew to his, and she stopped.

"Yes. I'm a witch—A white witch. I don't believe in
harming people, and my spells are all for good."

"That's interesting. Maybe I should take lessons as a
wizard." His spells worked where as hers didn't. He loved her
little turned up nose, wanting to kiss the tip of it. As a matter
of fact, he wanted to kiss her, all of her. Shaken by his thoughts,
Ryder cleared his throat, and tried to focus on keeping his pants
loose.

"You could, if you were really into it. You'd have to
be willing to believe the impossible, though."

"After meeting you, I'm willing to believe anything,"
he teased. "Would you like to get an ice cream?"

"Yes, I'd like that," she said, smiling. She let him
lead her into the store.

"There are a dozen flavors. Which one do you
like?"

"Peanut butter chocolate!" Her eyes widened with
interest.

Stunned, he said, "You talk about the impossible.
That's my favorite too."

"You don't have to pretend, to make me like you. I
already do."

"Who says I was pretending? It is my favorite," he
said, ordering two.

"Once they had their cones, Wiley walked him over to
a small marina. There only half-dozen boats, but the grounds were
well taken care of, and there were benches to sit on.

They chose one sitting close to the water, silent for
a while as they ate their cones.

"I've never seen Gerry speechless before. I can't
help but take pleasure in that. Does that make me a bad
person?"

Ryder watched as her tongue worked its way around the
cone, catching every drip. He swallowed hard and then answered,
"No. There isn't much that could make you a bad person, Wiley.
You're simply human like the rest of us."

"You're dripping," she said, grinning.

A glob of cold ice cream landed on his leg and he
quickly licked the cone to catch the drips.

Wiley laughed, using her napkin to wipe the ice cream
off his leg. It took a few swipes and by the time she was done, his
cone dripped again. He had been watching her, and felt himself
harden as she touched him.

"Ryder, you're so sloppy!" she giggled, ready to wipe
his leg again.

He stopped her, placing his hand over hers. "I…ah…I
think I'd better do that." Taking the napkin from her, he cleaned
up his leg and finished the cone without looking at her.

A few minutes went by, and then she took his hand.
"I'm sorry if I insulted you, Ryder. You aren't really sloppy."

Surprised that she thought he was upset, he gently
squeezed her fingers. "I'm not insulted, Wiley, but I am a man.
When you touched my leg like that…it makes it hard…ah…difficult to
think."

Looking down at his shorts, she gasped then burst
into giggles, looking away from him.

"Now it's my turn to apologize," he said.

When she turned back to him, he could see she was
embarrassed, a becoming flush on her cheeks.

"No, you don't need to," she said, her gaze falling
to his chin. Automatically, she raised the napkin and gently wiped
it, staring at his lips.

Sucking in a breath, he watched her lips part,
leaning closer until their lips nearly met.

"Am I interrupting something?"

Jumping with surprise, Wiley turned to look up at
Victor and rolled her eyes.

"Don't sneak up on me, super cop! You scared the
daylights out of me!" Wiley said, standing up.

Ryder slowly got to his feet too, facing Victor.

Wiley was fed up with Victor's possessiveness and
decided to try her spell. "Fidollo, racedacom, comalipus."

The two men stared at her. She prayed her spell would
work. When nothing happened, Victor turned to Ryder.

"Where's your car?"

"We took Wiley's car. Why?" he asked, suspicious.

"Just checking," Victor said. "Where do you
live?"

"Toronto. You?"

Smirking, Victor didn't answer.

Two dogs came tearing down the street, barking as
they headed straight for Wiley. Another one came from a different
direction.

"Oh, no! I goofed again," she cried and ran, heading
for the nearest sturdy tree.

Now there were six dogs chasing her. The men were
slow to react, watching Wiley as she climbed a tree.

"Get lost, you stupid dogs! The spell wasn't for
you!"

Below the tree were twelve dogs and more arrived by
the minute. Ryder thought about the spell she'd cast, and tried to
reverse it. 'Fidollo, racedacom, comalipus' should be 'Fidollo,
racedacom, gopus'. He murmured the chant and suddenly the dogs
stopped barking and jumping up at Wiley. She sighed as they began
wandering off.

Standing below the tree, Victor put his hands on his
hips. "You are such a nuisance. What is the matter with you?"

"There's not a thing the matter with her, Victor,"
Ryder said, reaching up to help her down. She slid down his body,
landing gently on the ground. He wanted to take her right there,
but he'd promised he'd only be friends with her.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome. Maybe we should get going?"

"Wait a minute. Going where?" Victor asked. He
apparently didn't like the way she was looking at him.

"Not that it's any of your business, but I'm taking
Ryder out. We're still on tour," she said, straightening her
shirt.

"How much is he paying you?" Victor asked.

"Not that it's any of your business, but nothing. I
wouldn't take his money if he offered it. I like him," she said,
standing up to Victor for once.

His eyes narrowed, and he turned his gaze on
Ryder.

"Fine. Watch your back, little man."

"I don't believe officers of the law are supposed to
utter threats. Especially with a witness present," Ryder said.

"She wouldn't testify against me," he said in a low
growl.

"Watch me!" she said, her chin tilted up a notch.

Victor shook his head and left them, his stride
filled with fury.

"I think I made an enemy. A dangerous one," Ryder
murmured.

"He's not so dangerous with me by your side,
Ryder."

Ryder's eyes met hers, and he fell into them. She'd
said, by her side and that was just where he wanted to be. For once
his protective instinct wasn't working.

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After a quiet dinner at a fast food restaurant, Wiley
took Ryder on a long drive. The countryside was a lush green, and
there were trees as far as the eyes could see. For once, Ryder felt
that he could breathe. The cement city was far behind him. Part of
him didn't want to go back.

"Aren't you going to tell me where we're going?"

Shaking her head, she offered a secretive smile.
"Nope. It's a surprise."

"I like your surprises. Especially the one with the
dogs. Now that was funny!"

Laughing, she kept her eyes on the road.

"I forgot to mention that even though I'm a witch,
I'm not the best at it. I learned on my own, and my spells tend to
backfire on me more often than not."

"I think you're the cutest witch I've ever met."

"I'm probably the only witch you've ever met."

"No, I met one years ago. Her name was Samantha, and
she had a husband named Darren. He turned into a whole new Darren
one year. Oh, and they had a daughter named Tabitha."

Bubbling with laughter, Wiley swatted him. "I'm not
talking about television shows, goofy! I mean real witches. I live
in Salem. It's important to be a good witch in Salem. Remember what
happened at that place in America?"

"Ah, the infamous witch trials. So, ever been burned
at stake?"

"No, but I've burned a steak, if that counts."

Ryder chuckled. "I'll let that one count."

"We're here," she said, grinning. She turned the car
down a long road that ended at a toll booth.

"A drive-in? I haven't been to a drive-in since I was
a teenager!"

"I hope you like comedy. I'm a big fan of Will
Farrell. He's such a hoot. For some reason in his movies he's
always running around buck naked screaming about something."

"I'm a big time Farrell fan," he said, pulling out
his wallet.

"No. This is on me," she said. "I may be a white
trash witch, but I can at least pay for a movie."

Ryder put up his hands in defeat. "Then I pay for
popcorn, candy, and drinks at the concession stand."

"Deal," she said, grinning.

Once they were parked, they got out of the car and
went inside to buy their snacks. In minutes they were back in the
car, watching kids play at the small park below the tall white
screen.

"It's about twenty minutes before dark. Gee. What
will we do until then?" They had placed their purchases in the back
seat to keep until the movie started. "I don't know about you, but
when we went to the drive-in, way back when, it wasn't to see the
movie!"

Giggling, she said, "Take me back in time. What did
you do?"

"Oh, well first of all, it would be the guy driving
and paying for everything."

"Lucky girls."

"And once I had her in the car, I'd somehow get my
arm around her shoulders."

"How would you do that, without her knowing?"

"Well, I'd stretch, like, this." He yawned and lifted
his arm up, sliding it around her shoulders.

"Hey, smooth move. Then what?"

"Then I'd talk to her. Hey, did you get a load of
those Blue Jays?"

"She was into baseball?"

"Nope. She'd think I meant the birds."

She laughed, gazing into his eyes. "What would happen
next?"

"Well, it would take a few minutes, but gradually I'd
reel her in and kiss her."

"Really?" she said, her breathy voice just above a
whisper as she watched his lips.

"Really," he murmured and moved closer still. His
lips hovered over hers briefly before he gently kissed her,
caressing her lips with his own.

Moaning, she moved nearer, placing her hand on his
chest. His heart pounded like a drum beneath her fingers when she
opened her mouth to him, allowing his tongue access. The world fell
away, leaving only her and him, filled with sensations.