Page 21 of Enslaved By Magic

She sat up, closed her eyes, and concentrated hard on what he’d asked for. She sealed the bargain with one sharp crack of her hands saying, “Wish granted!” Neither was necessary for the magic to work. In fact, it had already begun to work, but she’d learned early on that people liked a bit of a show, and it did make the wishing seem more momentous somehow.

It was the concentrating on what he’d asked for that put the magic to work, and as she slapped her hands together, she felt the power begin to build, making her palms itch as the bottle worked through her. There was an echoing crack, like thunder, that filled the room and told her the wish was one that could be granted. She smiled as she opened her eyes. “It worked,” she assured him, bouncing in her seat.

“Just like that? That’s it?” he asked. His face was filled with awe. He’d heard the thunder roll through the room the second her palms came together. There’d been a feeling of electricity sliding across his skin, and all the hairs on his arms were standing straight up. Something had clearly happened.

“Yes, you are now a very wealthy man. Or you will be on Friday anyway. And then you’ll know for sure I’m able to grant wishes, and you’ll make your other two and free me,” she said. She meant to sound confident but winced when she heard just the slightest hint of a threat underscoring the final words. Luckily, he hadn’t noticed as he was too wrapped up in the moment.

He looked like a child who’d been given a gift. His eyes sparkled with excitement and, even though she didn’t plan to do it, she found herself throwing her arms around his neck and pressing her lips to his. He answered her kiss with hunger. His mouth opened to hers and she was lost in the passion. Their tongues danced, twining together until she lost track of where she stopped, and he began—it was like they were one person. Bound.

The magic did that sometimes, though she’d never understood why. The feel of the energy surging through her body could be a hardcore aphrodisiac, and when she felt the effects this strongly, the owner of the bottle usually did too, with both of them succumbing to the pure animal urges that crashed over them.

But she couldn’t remember it ever hitting her this hard, or ever wanting a man so much. Her panties soaked instantly, and her body ached for more than just a kiss. She wanted his hands all over her. She wanted him to fuck her so hard that she forgot the long empty years and thought of nothing but him. She—

Suddenly he was pushing her back, shaking his head. “No. This isn’t right. I’m sorry, Amari. We can’t do this. I can’t take advantage of you like this,” he said firmly as he moved away from her.

Her bottom lip wobbled, and she tried to compose herself. The disappointment was entirely unexpected. He wanted her; she could tell. She’d felt it so clearly, but he was rejecting her, and she didn’t understand why. “But it’s not taking advantage of me if I want it too, Luke,” she said. Her tone was as close to begging as she was going to get, but he shook his head again.

“No, you’re not able to consent. Either you’re a slave who has to do what I want or you’re…” He stopped there and she mentally filled in what he’d planned to say.

One eyebrow went up. “I’m not crazy. I know you felt the magic when I granted your wish,” she said, reminding him of the wave of power that had rushed through them both.

“I—I don’t know what I felt. There was something, but—we’ll see on Friday. And anyway, that doesn’t make it better. If this is true, if it’s all true, then you’re a slave, and I won’t take advantage of you as long as you can’t refuse me. It would be rape,” he said firmly.

Rape? Tell that to her aching body and the throbbing in her core that was demanding he fill her with his lust. She didn’t understand how he could fail to see that she wanted him as much as he wanted her. “But Luke, I need—”

He interrupted her with a sharp gesture of his hand. “No, we’re not discussing this, Amari. I won’t touch you as long as you have no choice in the matter, and that’s final,” he said with steel outlining each word.

She stared at him, a sulky feeling was making her pout, but she could see he wouldn’t be moved. “Fine, Mas-ter,” she said. The effort to force out the forbidden word was worth the annoyed look on his face and just to irritate him further she turned into smoke and poured herself back into her bottle right in front of him. She knew it made him feel uncomfortable because he couldn’t explain how she did it, but, at the moment, she was too mad to care.

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