Page 93 of The Cursed Fae

She rolled her eyes. “They are the most popular spell.”

That made it sound like an impossible task to pinpoint which one was affecting Lena. It would take forever to get through the options in Astrid’s family tome, and I doubted she had an exhaustive collection. Plus, Mat was an ancient vampire. He probably knew many spells that modern fae didn’t have.

“Do you want to be the note-taker or the reader?” Astrid asked.

“I’ll take notes,” I said, whipping my phone out of the back pocket of my jeans and opening the app.

She flipped to the first spell and told me the Latin name, spelling it as I tapped it in. She scrolled down until she found English and listed the side effects.

“‘Extreme infatuation and devotion. May cause diarrhea, dry mouth, boils, and yellowing of the eyes,’” she read from the book. Her gaze shifted from the page to me. “That’s pretty gnarly.”

We made it through the most common love spells before the pizza arrived. We took a break while we ate to avoid grease stains on her family’s sacred book.

When we resumed our research, we started through the section of the uncommon hexes.

“This one causes bleeding from the ears and other orifices,” she told me.

“That’s new,” I giggled.

Astrid laughed. “And disturbing. I’d rather have the boils.”

I shook my head. “No way. I would risk trickling blood over weird bubbles on my skin any day.”

It was late by the time we finished going through the rare spells. Exhausted but pleased we’d taken action, I said goodnight and thanked her for everything.

“Oh, stop. That’s what friends do, right? Besides, it beats doing the reading for tomorrow’s lectures.” She hugged me tightly. “We’ll figure this out. I promise.”

I should’ve returned to my room and recharged with a good night’s sleep. Naturally, I chose to press on and look for a certain someone. I’d enlisted Missy and Astrid, but there was still one person I needed on my side. I headed to the astrology attic.

My heart nearly beat out of my chest when I found him lounging in his favorite hammock. It was kismet. For a split second, I thought we would put the fight behind us. Then Archer spoke.

“You’re alive.” His voice was icy, and he refused to look at me. The ceiling was suddenly enrapturing. “Congratulations.”

He swung his legs over the side of the hammock and jumped to the ground soundlessly. His shoulder brushed mine when he passed, bound for the doorway. The warmth emanating from him was like a siren’s song to me.

My hand darted out and grabbed his arm to stop him from leaving. Archer glared at my fingers wrapped around his sweater.

“Let me go, Winter,” he whispered, still not looking at me.

He could’ve broken free, but Archer remained motionless.

“No,” I snapped, my temper rising. “You have no right to be mad at me.”

“And you have no right to perform spells way above your ability level,” he growled. Archer’s thunderous gaze finally met mine. “You’re a novice who has no clue what she’s doing.”

Coming from him, the words stung like a sharp slap to my cheek.

Archer leaned closer so his face was only inches away. My heartbeat quickened.

“You aren’t just taking a chance with your own life.”

His breath fanned me as he spoke. He yanked his arm free and grabbed hold of my shoulders. I thought he might shake me. Instead, he brought his mouth to mine so our lips were almost touching.

“No more fucking around with stuff you don’t understand,” he murmured, somehow sounding both pissed and seductive.

I wanted him in that moment. I hated myself for it. This triangle between me, Laz, and Archer needed one less side.

And yet, my hands moved to his chest. I grabbed his sweater and tugged, pressing my hips against his.

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