Page 11 of Charmed

Tristan set his silverware aside. "What happened today?"

Sighing, Riley gave up on the pretense of eating. "Which part? The one where Fi forgot to mention she sent the shop manager home sick and left herself alone, the one where she pounded on the boxing bag so hard she split her skin open, or the one where our destiny kicked in via a tattoo?"

Brady paused mid-chew. "Yes."

"Hold it." Tristan frowned. "She was alone at the store? All day?"

"Yep. Mara called me late this afternoon from the mainland when she heard. I hauled ass over there. And," Riley added, "I already chewed her out. No need to do it again."

Kaida took a sip of wine. "Bet that went over well."

"I'm still breathing, so there's that." Barely. He pressed his palms to his eyes. "I almost killed her. Uncle Greg can get in line."

"Fine, we'll let that part go." Tristan stared holes through him. "What led up to the trinity knot? It's been months. Why now?"

"Ask Brady. He's the expert."

Kaida hummed in her throat. "New moon tonight. We were all born under one, plus Brady and my branding started during one, as well. Aunt Mara says it's significant."

"Again, why now?" Tristan did more dissecting of Riley's expression. "What led up to it? What were you doing when it happened?"

"Fighting." It's what they did best. "We were having one of our typical bickering sessions while sparring and..." Riley straightened as a thought clicked. "She used her magick on me. I called her on it, too. Pointed out how she didn't do that with you guys and challenged her to come at me without using her powers. I goaded her, saying she was afraid to touch me so we wouldn't be paired next."

Kaida laughed. "You are lucky to be breathing."

"Word." He rubbed the scruff on his jaw. "Anyway, she brought me down through no magick, and I countered, doing the same. That's when the mark showed up." He looked at Brady. "Just like with you, it burned into my skin and a light blasted. You guys arrived a few minutes later."

Tristan rubbed his lips like he often did in thought. "Perhaps because a truth was revealed, Fate saw it was a sign you were ready. Look at it this way. Brady and Kaida's happened when they touched the first time, but that was also a revealing moment. They'd just discovered one another were real and not just a dream."

"Maybe." There was some merit to that theory. The two of them had been having reoccurring dreams since they'd been kids, long before they'd ever met. Riley couldn't figure how an insignificant thing like him noticing Fiona's hesitation could be a defining factor, though. "She never admitted I was right."

"She didn't have to." Kaida shrugged. "You noticed and brought it to her attention. She accepted the challenge and sparred. If you were wrong, I don't think the mark would've appeared."

Hurray. That almost evened the score in his favor.

Fiona = 3,467,009

Riley = 1

Either way, this meant he and Fiona had one lunar cycle to figure out their task. That was the timeframe they'd determined months ago. If they succeeded, a box Celeste Galloway hid in another plane would appear, holding the second part of the spell to break the curse. If they failed, sayonara HEA for any future Meaths or Galloways.

Alcoholism was sounding better by the second.

"I'm calling it a night." Riley rose and walked his dishes to the sink. He wanted a hot shower and ten hours of uninterrupted sleep. The latter was a pipe dream, but a man could hope. "What's the schedule for tomorrow?"

Kaida chewed her lip. "I'm with Brady on a historical society project. Tristan's going to ride with us since his office is close. Ceara and Aunt Mara will be at the shop. Fiona's staying home to work on restocking her potions and stuff."

He strummed his fingers on the island. Driving to and from his office wasn't a big deal. The lot was public and the building was always busy. The rest of the group was accounted for and had a buddy. Fiona would be safe in the Galloway house. Still, his gut knotted.

"I'll work from home tomorrow." His itinerary was mostly distributing the budget between upcoming venues and locking in dates. He could have his calls forwarded to his cell. "I'll check on her throughout the day." Someone had to, and they really needed to have a talk about this mythical pairing, anyhow.

Fun times.

"Oh, she'll totally go for that. Not." Brady's brows shot skyward. "You're playing with fire. Don't get burned."

"Nah. Fire is Ceara's bag." Tempting his luck with Fi was more like a game of chance. With a tornado. And a hurricane on his heels. "Goodnight, guys."

A wave over his shoulder, and he retreated upstairs.

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