Page 10 of Hooked on a Witch
“Why were you purchasing this glass from him?”
She folded her arms across her chest and remained silent.
He’d get the truth out of her eventually. “You’ll have to do something else to find whatever it is you’re after.”
“Your job involves finding a lot of magical things. Perhaps, I should hire you to find what I need.”
Not what he’d intended.
“No.” His denial was complicated. Years ago, he placed Shannon in the no-touching category. He feared the arrival of the day when what she was collided with what he must do. If she killed people to power magic, he’d be forced to destroy her. He wasn’t sure he could.
One glance her way and... nope. He wouldn’t do it. He’d never failed his duty as the Enforcer, but for Shannon, he’d neglect responsibility on purpose because he liked her.Oh, you more than like her. You want her.
Sex, relationships, and magic were an unhealthy mix. The witch hunter could not date the witch.
His answer was a firm “no.”Had to be.Shit, you’re wavering.If they worked together, he’d break his no-touch rule in a millisecond when she gave him an opening. Their one kiss still haunted him as one of the few bright moments of his life.
“I’ll pay you for your time.” Her instant buoyancy killed him. Ah, Christ, her eyes were filled with hope.
“It’s not about money.”
“What’s it about?”
“I don’t do small-time work.”You’re a shitty liar.
“Guarantee this isn’t small-time,” she muttered so low he almost missed it.
He pulled the passenger door wide. “Please, let me take you home.”
She worked her lower jaw while squinting at him until she finally nodded.
Once they were both buckled in, he cranked the SUV. It turned over several times before grumbling to life with lackluster enthusiasm.
He tried to appear totally relaxed and in control as he pulled onto the road, but he couldn’t ignore the roar of stress that’d taken up residence in his head.
In his peripheral vision, she sat with her spine stiff and shoulders up near her ears. Even so, she was just as beautiful as she’d been in high school with her golden hair and sloped nose dotted with freckles. Now she was tougher. Death had touched her, hurt her, and left her to deal with its disagreeable aftermath.
With arms crossed, gazing out the windshield, she said, “There’s got to be a way to make the glass work other than killing someone.”
“The last person to use this particular scrying glass killed three people to power it and then got possessed by a nasty demon. It wasn’t pretty.” He glanced over, but Shannon didn’t look dissuaded.
“Are you going to take me home or somewhere deserted and kill me?” No hint of fear tinged her tone. The woman could handle herself.
He liked that.
This was bad. Dear God, this was bad.
His sex life had been on hold for months. A year ago, he’d been a one-night-standaficionado, but the empty encounters bored him. The last thing he needed was for his sex drive to wake up, especially for a woman as off-limits as Shannon.
“If I wanted you dead, I would’ve let Harnish keep you. For the second or third time, I’m not going to hurt you. I’m driving you home, back to your people who might be able to keep you safe.”
“What exactly do you do in this job of yours, Merck?” She rolled Merck on her tongue as if familiarizing herself with use of his last name. He liked her saying it.
He shrugged.
“Who do you work for?” she pressed.
“I work alone.”
