Page 84 of All's Fair in Love and Magic

I stared down at the dagger in shock.

There was no blood on it, but it had been in my heart a moment earlier. I knew it had.

I looked at my chest, and found my skin bare.

I had definitely been on fire.

Definitely.

And I’d been stabbed.

Unquestionably.

So why did I feel fine?

My gaze jerked to the man who had been in front of me. The one who stabbed me.

He was gone.

Dead, on the sidewalk. I looked away quickly rather than taking in the burns on his skin.

The wind picked up suddenly, and I looked up at the sky as Liam dove toward me in his phoenix form. He shifted just as he landed, and surged toward me, grabbing my face.

“What happened?” he demanded.

“Someone tried to kill me, and I think I burst into flames,” I said, a little dazed. “Is my mom okay? You’re steaming a lot.”

“I’m still burning, and she’s fine,” Liam growled. “The rest of the witches are dead.”

“Cool.”

His eyes were narrow as he watched me.

I swayed a little. “I think I might actually pass out this time.”

Liam’s magic flared on his hands, and the delicious warmth of his healing magic licked my skin.

I closed my eyes as a feeling of security and a burst of energy replaced the overwhelming fear and exhaustion.

“Better?” Liam asked me.

“Much.” My words were still quiet. “Even if you killed a few of the top witches, the coven isn’t going to back down. I need to start the new wards as soon as possible. I think I can make a passable bubble spell, with a couple of hours and a couple of plants. Adding runes to it would be the easiest way to protect the island.”

“Alright. Where do you want to put the spell?”

My eyes went to the bench.

It had seen a lot of magic… and history.

But if I was going to choose to spend a ton of time somewhere, I didn’t want it to be on a hard bench in the forest.

I wanted it to be in the comfort of my own home.

“In the bungalow,” I admitted.

Liam agreed.

His arm went around my waist, but I only leaned against him a little when we walked down the path and back toward our house.

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