Page 74 of The Warlock's Kiss

“As safe as anywhere else, though I’m sure that means little these days. And you’ll have to see for yourself if you want to know what’s up there.”

A moment later, Danny’s voice echoed over to them. “Woooooo!” It was cut off by a large splash.

Her brows rose. “Water? Is there a pond?”

“A pond, Adalynn? You should know by now I don’t do things small on my estate.”

She quirked a brow, grinning. “A lake?”

When she quickened her pace, Merrick matched it. Her grin widened as the first hints of the lake became visible through the trees to their left. Within a short while, they had reached the open area along the shore, which had long ago been cleared as a private beach for the estate’s previous owners. Merrick had maintained it with a bit of magic only because he found it pleasant to sit beside the water from time to time.

Adalynn stopped when the lake was in full view. “This is beautiful!”

The blue sky was reflected on the lake’s mirror-like surface, albeit darkly; the scene was made only more beautiful by the tall reeds and thick trees along much of the shore. The water was disturbed only by a gentle breeze, a flock of waterfowl a couple hundred yards away, and Danny, who’d stripped out of his suit and leapt into the lake without any sign of hesitation.

Merrick set the basket down and spread the blanket over the sand. “This spot will do, yes?”

Adalynn turned back toward him, smiled, and moved to the basket, placing the gun on the ground nearby. “It’s perfect.”

He collected Danny’s basket and the pile of discarded clothes and brought them back to the blanket as Adalynn set out the food, all of which had been collected from the garden save for the peanut butter and the cold turkey; the meat he and Danny had brought home two days before had given Merrick a reason to power the ice box with a some magic.

Once everything was arranged, Adalynn sat down, and Merrick seated himself across from her. Danny, seemingly oblivious to the food, continued to splash, swim, and hoot in delight.

“So, you were saying about Danny?” Merrick asked.

Adalynn smoothed her hands over the satin skirt of her dress. Merrick’s attention caught on her low bodice and the delectable way the tops of her breasts rose and fell above it with every breath. His fingers itched to tug the dress down, to bare her breasts to his gaze, to his mouth and tongue; more than that, he wanted to bury his face elsewhere—somewhere warm and sweet.

She chuckled, calling his eyes back to hers; the same heat he felt was evident in her gaze. Leaning forward on hands and knees, Adalynn brushed her lips lightly across his, and, surprisingly, scraped her nails along the hard length of his shaft through his pants. Merrick jolted as fire blazed inside him; he was sure he’d seeped from the tip of his cock.

“Later,” she promised as she pulled away and sat back down.

“You are a tease, Adalynn. You’ve no idea the amount of restraint I’m exercising to keep from throwing up those skirts and taking you right here. To keep myself from shoving my tongue between your thighs and licking—”

“Merrick!” Her cheeks burned red as she glanced toward her brother.

He loved it when she blushed, loved the shy, yet aroused gleam in her eyes.

“Anyway,” she said, glancing at him from behind her thick lashes, “my parents had trouble conceiving after me. They tried for years, but it just never happened. I guess they even consulted a few fertility specialists, but after her first miscarriage, my mom couldn’t go through it anymore. They stopped trying. Then, years later, out of the blue, there was Danny, a complete and utter surprise.”

“Their accidental miracle,” Merrick said.

A soft smile touched her lips, and she glanced toward Danny again. “Yeah.”

“And how did young Adalynn handle his arrival?”

“I was ecstatic. I always wanted a little sister to play with growing up, but by then, I didn’t care. A brother was just as good. He was the cutest little thing ever, all squishy cheeks and pudgy thighs. I bragged about him all the time at school and showed him off to my friends.”

Merrick turned his head to glance at the boy playing in the water—a boy with a good, brave heart. He didn’t doubt that Adalynn had a hand in shaping Danny into the person he was now. “That must feel as though it was so long ago now.”

“It does and doesn’t at the same time, you know? I look at him, see how tall he’s gotten, see how much he’s changed, but I can still see the little boy he was as if it were yesterday.”

“My perspective is different than yours, but I believe I understand. For me…time seems to go by faster and faster with each passing year. These days with you have been the first time I find myself wishing it would slow down, wishing I could stretch out every moment.”

She smiled up at him. “Me too.”

Adalynn picked up a piece of turkey and took a bite, turning her face toward the lake with a wistful light in her eyes. He knew she was thinking about her future—herlackof a future—but this didn’t seem the time or place to discuss the spell he’d found with her. She’d already said she didn’t want Merrick to harm himself to help her, and he couldn’t guarantee the soul binding was without risks.

He plucked up a strawberry and bit into it, relishing the sweet juice as it ran over his tongue. It was enough, for a little while, to simply sit here and enjoy the food, to sit here and enjoy the mana song radiating from Adalynn’s core.

---