Page 23 of Witch Please

Date, oh goddess, what am I even doing right now?The memory of the kiss washed over her, leaving her whole body flushed and glowing. Somehow she got herself together enough to respond to his joke.

“I hope I’m worth the teasing.”

“No question. Let’s get our shoes. Sorry about that in advance,” he added, leading the way to the counter, where a bored teen was looking at her phone.

“The idea of renting shoes is tremendously gross. You know that, right?”

“Trust me, I’m aware.”

After putting on the invisible socks she’d packed and the ugliest footwear known to man, she followed Titus to their assigned lane. Danica had never imagined that bowling could be dorky, entertaining,andsexually frustrating, but with Titus, it achieved the trifecta. As promised, she was terrible, but she improved under his tutelage, which involved a lot of his arms around her, showing her exactly the right way to hold the ball. Admittedly, she paid way more attention to the heat of his body pressed against her back than the positioning. Consequently, she shorted out the electronic scoreboard with magical fluctuations. The power flickered when it sparked, and she willed her abilities to settle down.

Calm, you’re calm.With effort, she steadied her racing heart and tried to quell other urges. In time, the lights came back on, but their scoreboard wouldn’t work, no matter what buttons Titus hit.I can fix it, but not with him standing here.

“Maybe you should ask for a paper one?” she suggested.

“Good idea.”

As soon as he walked off, she closed her eyes, focusing on the electronics she’d fried. Fortunately, this was her wheelhouse. The circuit was completely blown, but she used her magic to restore it, repairing all the damage she’d caused. Being a technomancer was convenient at times like this; it allowed her to mitigate unintentional harm before anyone got suspicious.

Damn. Why do mundanes screw with our powers like this?

By the time Titus got back, the scoreboard was online and functioning properly. Danica sat at the table with her hands folded like she’d had nothing to do with that. He eyed the scoreboard and sighed, setting down the paper copies.

“Just my luck,” he muttered. “Shall we get started?”

“You can go first.”

Since he’d given instruction at the start, she admired his form as he bowled. It was pure pleasure to drink him in, the arch of his arm, the way his body bent and dipped when he released.And I’m thinking of filthy stuff again. Truly, their sexual chemistry was off the charts; in English there wasn’t even a word for the intensity, though German likely had a polysyllabic choice that fit the bill. On a whim, she searched and came up with “leidenschaft”—uncommonly strong passion or fervor.

Yep, I knew it.

“What are you doing?” Suddenly, Titus stood at her shoulder, peering at her phone in curiosity.

“Looking up a word in German that encompasses how much I want you.”

He stared for a few seconds like he didn’t know how to respond. “You just…said that. Right here. In the middle of Star Lanes.”

She bit her lip. “Yeah, maybe I shouldn’t have.”

“The candor is fine. Fantastic even. The timing…” His look smoldered, lingering on Danica’s mouth, and she felt it like a kiss.

“They do say you shouldn’t ask if you’re not ready for the answer,” she teased.

After Darryl’s indifference, it felt so good to bask in Titus’s desire. His eyes practically ate her up as she slid out of the scorekeeping seat and sashayed toward the ball return unit. He’d chosen a purple eight-pound ball for her, and she had to admit it was easy to handle. She tried to emulate his fancy stance, but she didn’t quite nail it. He was still watching her with a heated, hungry stare when she only knocked down two pins, despite trying twice.

“Have you always wanted to be a baker?” she asked as he took his next shot.

He shook his head. “No, but my mom loved to bake, and I guess…it makes me feel close to her, even though she’s gone.”

That made her want to hug him…so she did. There was no reason not to. Danica wrapped her arms around him and gave him a squeeze. The move seemed to surprise him, but he didn’t pull away as she said, “I get that. I’ve always been closer to my grandmother. Oddly, she’s more into tech than my mom.” There were witch reasons for that, but Titus didn’t need to know as much.

“That’s interesting. Did your grandmother teach you how to fix things?” He returned the embrace, delaying his turn for long moments.

“Everything she knew,” Danica confirmed.

“You must have taken supplementary courses to keep up with current technology?”

She nodded, not wanting to pursue that avenue of discussion. “Do you think you’ll stay in St. Claire?”

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