Page 10 of A Snowed in Valentine's

She still didn’t understand what was happening, but it was becoming distressingly clear that it was all real, impossible as it seemed. Somehow, she’d arrived on Frost Mountain and returned to Earth—Vegas, to be precise. And through it all, she’d left chaos in her wake. Everything had gone wrong from the moment she’d performed that spell.

“Oh, Daphne,” she muttered, “what have you done?”

Chapter Three

“Witches Are Not to Be Spared”

Kill her.

The words filled his mind for the tenth time that evening. His gaze darted from the blade hanging from the wall to the witch sleeping in his bed. She lay on her back as though in some kind of trance, her arms folded across her chest. Her eyes were shut, her lips slightly parted as she gently snored.

The cabin was still dim. Outside, the wind howled as the storm continued to rage. Over the past few days, it had persisted, making it impossible to step out of the cabin. And the culprit was still unconscious.

Kill her.

The thought occurred to him again, but August barely registered it this time. The sight of her lying there, almost completely nude, was enough to start a fire in his loins. His arousal strained against his trousers in defiance of the simple order his mind had given him.

He knew exactly what he had to do. If he took her out now, there was less of a chance of things spiraling out of control.

You’ve seen what she can do,said a little voice in his head.She came out of an accident unscathed and created a storm moments after. She’s powerful. And dangerous.

At least she was bound now. His gaze fell to the Kane insignia on her hand. Branding her with the mark had been a smart decision. She wouldn’t be practicing any magic for a long time. Or until he killed her.

You could have done that since,said the voice.You’ve had multiple chances. If you hadn’t hesitated out there—

She was using a protection spell!

It wore off. You know that. You made her bleed.

I did.

You could have killed her where she stood. Youshouldhave. But you didn’t.

I didn’t.

Instead, you knocked her unconscious and brought her into your cabin. Your home. A witch.

I couldn’t stay outside. The storm was growing worse. I had to get back here as soon as possible.

But you brought her with you. You spared her. Have you forgotten what happened to your mother? To Alaina?

A memory flashed through his mind just then in a series of images and sounds. A look of horror on a woman’s face. A bellow of rage. An explosion of light. He shunted the memory aside, feeling as though he’d been punched in the gut.

That Valentine’s Day had been years ago, long enough that the memory of it shouldn’t hurt so much. Yet it did. Each memory of the day tragedy struck was like a wound being reopened.

And now salt was being poured into that wound, he thought, his gaze still riveted on the woman lying on the bed. Another witch had crossed his path.

He dropped to a crouch next to her sleeping form. She’d lowered her arms, affording him a better view of her torso. Her full breasts rose and fell with each breath in an almost mesmerizing rhythm. August found himself swallowing at the sight of her curvy hips. Dainty, long legs stretched toward the foot of the bed, twitching now and then.

Desire surged in his chest, and he felt his trousers tighten as his arousal grew. August bit his lip until it hurt. Maybe taking her clothes off hadn’t been such a great idea after all.

He’d stripped her almost completely nude to make sure she didn’t have anything dangerous on her person. He hadn’t found any runes or talismans, but her clothes were still somewhere else in the cabin. August could not pretend she wasn’t a tantalizing sight.

Don’t be stupid,he told himself.You only feel this way because you haven’t been with a woman in a long time.

So long. He swallowed, clenching his fists against the urge to pry off the remaining stitches of clothing she had on. One swift motion, one tug, and those delicious-looking breasts of hers would be bared completely to his eye. And if he slipped those panties down her legs…

No.His jaw clenched.

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