Page 46 of A Touch Enchanted

The earth rumbled and I pulled Violet against me, curling over her to protect her head from the possibility of falling rocks. The golden gate made a horrible screeching sound, like a wounded animal caught in a trap, and sank an inch lower toward the rushing water. Upon closer inspection, I could see that it had lowered a foot from its topmost position. I didn’t want to know what would happen if it lowered all the way.

“Let’s go. I think we’ve seen everything this place has to offer.”

Violet nodded her agreement and took my hand. Together, we carefully climbed our way out of the cave. Once we got through the forest and back to where I could get a decent cell signal, I’d be googling Ceti and hoping I could discover just who had been buried with the curse.

Chapter fifteen

Violet

AccordingtoGoogle,Cetiwas a star in the constellation Cetus.

Known to some astrologists as the fourteenth zodiac sign.

We hadn’t been able to confirm anything beyond that. There was no mention of Cetus or Ceti in the legend, but it’s not like we expected there to be. The legend was all but useless to us when it came to providing any information about the past.

If I had to guess, based on my dream and the few facts we had about the other descendants, Ceti was the daughter of Cetus. There had been fourteen original descendants and she had been the magical match to Nirah. The two of them had controlled the black and gold gates we discovered in the cave. The purpose of those gates, how they functioned, and what exactly happened when they closed, we didn’t know.

One thing was clear though: Ceti and Nirah had been given a very different gift than the other twelve. Their magic wasn’t elemental in nature.

There were few things in this world more terrifying than the unknown.

As soon as we got back to Donovan’s house, he called Wes to let him know what we’d discovered. Then we had to get ready for the town hall meeting, where we’d be facing a threat of a different kind. One that could be, in some ways, more vicious than the curse.

“It’ll be fine.” Donovan squeezed my arms. “I think we’ll see that most of the island is on our side. Hateful people are smaller in number, but loud, so they feel bigger.”

I gave him a smile that didn’t sit quite right on my face. “Kind of like me.”

“Exactly.” He kissed my forehead. “My neighbors got the shock of their lives to find out a woman who looks as innocent as you has a mouth that would make a sailor blush.”

“All part of my charm.” I dug around in the overnight bag I’d packed, since Donovan had made it clear he wanted me to spend the next few days at his house. “Is it okay if I bring some of my craft supplies over here? I know we’re trying to save the world in between bouts of amazing sex, but somewhere in there I have to find time to make a living, too.”

A hazy, dream-spun smile gave him a sleepy, zoning-out-in-class look. Like he’d gone somewhere else for a second. I snapped my fingers in front of his eyes.

“Is that okay?” I asked.

“Yeah.” He cleared his throat. “Yes. That would be fine. Bring whatever you want, I have plenty of space.” He cupped my face and kissed me gently. “Stay forever if you want.”

I let out a strangled laugh because it didn’t sound like he was joking, but it was too soon to start going down that road. We weren’t Wes and Audrey. “Be careful what you ask for. I could get comfortable here, terrorizing your neighbors.”

Sensing my discomfort, he took my hand and led me out the front door and into the crisp night air. We walked up the sidewalk to the hall, letting our blue palms glow. Zodiac Cove was bustling with human activity during the day, but at night, the soft buzz of crickets and owls filled the air. There wouldn’t even be bonfires on the beach now that the eels had taken over.

“What did you do after I left this morning?” I asked.

“Went for a run on one of the trails. Someone helpfully left a box of condoms on my doorstep. My money is on Betty Sue. She’s got a mean sense of humor for an eighty-year-old.”

I snorted gracefully, as one does. “The neighbors are going to TP your house next.”

“I’d like to think they were paying me a compliment. The condoms were extra large.”

“Oh my God.” I elbowed him in the ribs. “Stick with me and you’ll have a more notorious reputation in this town than Finn.”

“Sounds like you’re onto my master plan.”

He was messing around, I knew that, but the thought of him acting anything like Finn before Thora came back to town made a hot ball of jealousy roll through my stomach. We hadn’t talked about exclusivity, other than him claiming my pussy belonged to him during sex. But that was just foreplay. Wasn’t it?

“Hey. Just to clear the air …” God, this was uncomfortable. I never liked having this talk, even when I hadn’t been on the initiating end of things. It set capital E Expectations that the other person might not be ready for. “We’re exclusive, yes?”

He stopped short. “You did not just fucking ask me that.”

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