A Touch of Magick (11 page)

“Either way, we’re having dinner tonight. I asked him, so I’ll cook for him. It doesn’t mean I’m going to sleep with him.” Although, she admitted to herself, there was probably a good chance that would happen. If not tonight, then another night. The attraction between them was far too great to ignore. If they were in close proximity for any length of time, it was going to happen. Surprisingly, the idea of sleeping with Ryland on only their second date didn’t bother her as much as it should.

As she pushed away from the table and went toward the front door, she smiled to herself. Maybe it was fate. Maybe she shouldn’t look a gift horse in the mouth. Maybe having sex with him would unleash her magick. Maybe it would just be fabulous, mind-blowing sex. Either way, it worked for her.

Ignoring the voice of caution clamoring in the back of her brain, Rhiannon unlocked the door. Ada bustled in carrying several large plastic containers piled high in her arms. Her eyes widened when she saw the other two women. She nodded and said hello. Rhiannon could see that Ada longed to question them about why they were here but managed to restrain herself.

Esther paused on her way out the door. “Be careful, Rhiannon. You really like Ryland. I can tell by the look you get on your face when you say his name. This is more than just sex for you.”

“I’ll be careful,” she promised, although she feared she was far past the point of caution. And Esther was right. There was something about Ryland that drew her on an emotional level. He was virtually a stranger, yet she felt as though she’d known him all her life. And she trusted him. If she hadn’t, she’d never have been able to let herself go enough to have phone sex with him.

“Go for it,” Maggie encouraged as she reached out and offered Rhiannon a quick hug. “Take what you want and enjoy yourself.”

With a quick wave, both her friends were gone.

“I made blueberry cheesecake and strawberry pie for today’s specials.” Ada interrupted her thoughts, reminding her it was time to get her mind back on business.

Over her lunch hour, she’d run to the grocery store and pick up something to cook for dinner tonight. Something simple but delicious. She’d have to think about that. Whatever she cooked, there wouldn’t be any chocolate on the menu for dessert.

Chapter Seven

For the second day in a row, Rhiannon was running late. Usually she had no problem leaving Amy to handle the store on her own for the last hour or so of the day. She was confident her full-time employee was more than capable of handling just about anything.

But not today. Like yesterday, the store had been filled with people who wanted to talk about the vandalism. Small towns were wonderful, but there was no denying that gossip was rampant and everyone knew everyone else’s business.

She’d hoped to run out to the grocery store on her lunch break and pick up something for dinner. At the very least, she’d planned to leave work early to allow herself plenty of time to get dinner started and prepare for her date. But a bus tour had put an end to that idea. The large group of women had descended on A Touch of Magick late in the afternoon and run her and Amy ragged. Normally, she would have kept the store open an hour or so later to accommodate such a large shopping group. But today was not a normal day.

By the time she’d said goodbye to the last customers and shut the door behind them, she was exhausted yet strangely exhilarated. Her stomach clenched. Their second date. She and Ryland would be at her house tonight, all alone, with a bed only yards away from where they’d be eating. She had to stop. She’d driven herself crazy all day with possible scenarios of what could happen tonight.

With that in mind, she’d gone through her closing routine in record time, printing off register reports and readying the bank deposit. As soon as she was done, she slipped on her coat and purse and rushed to the grocery store. Once there, she grabbed a cart and proceeded to hurry up and down the aisles, throwing what she needed into the basket. That done, she raced to the checkout.

She almost groaned aloud when she saw who was manning the cash register. Mrs. Eaton was a wonderful lady, but she loved to chat. And tonight was no different. “I heard the outside of your store got spray painted. Nasty thing.”

“Yes, it was. The police are looking into it.” Trying not to encourage her, Rhiannon packed her own groceries and made as little eye contact as possible. It took all her control not to yell at the woman to hurry.

“Clancy’s Bakery was hit too.”

“That’s too bad.” And it was. For most small business owners there was a fine line between being in business and folding. Unnecessary expenses, like having to repaint your storefront, pushed you closer to that line.

“It is.” Mrs. Eaton continued to chat while she ran items over the electronic scanner.

Normally, Rhiannon enjoyed chatting to people while she shopped. Tonight, she just wanted to get home. She was already frazzled and running way behind. Finally, she had her groceries paid for and bagged and she hurried back to her car and then home.

Thankfully, traffic was fairly light as she drove home, which was a good thing since her mind was wandering to what she was going to wear tonight. She pulled into her driveway and, as always, the sight of the tiny house made her smile. She loved this place. Had from the moment she’d laid eyes on it.

Taking a deep breath, she grabbed the grocery bags from the seat beside her, gathered her purse and climbed out of the car. She hurried up the pathway and climbed the two stairs to the porch. Abigail was waiting for her as she stepped into the house and shut the door behind her.

“Hello, Abigail. What have you been up to today?” She hurried down the short hallway to the kitchen and dumped her purse and the grocery bags on the counter. She pulled a package of lean ground beef out of one bag and strode to the stove. Rummaging around in the drawer beneath the stove, she dug out a frying pan. She set it on the stovetop, drizzled some extra virgin olive oil in the pan and emptied the ground beef on top of it. Spaghetti sauce was always quick and easy to make.

She paused to organize her thoughts and realized she was still wearing her coat. She slid out of the garment and tossed it over the back of the nearest dining room chair. She had so much to do and hardly any time in which to do it.

What had possessed her to invite Ryland to her home?

“Sex,” she informed Abigail, who had followed her into the kitchen and taken up her usual seat on the window ledge in the dining area. “All this is because I wanted hot, sweaty sex.” The cat tilted her head to one side, listening intently.

“Is that so wrong?” she asked the cat as she continued to unpacked groceries. “Maybe it was the ceremony the night before last that got me thinking about sex so much. Or maybe it’s all Gwen’s fault with all her talk of releasing my magick with sex.” She paused. “You don’t think Gwen cast that spell, do you?”

Abigail meowed and Rhiannon agreed. “Of course she didn’t.” As she talked, she opened a large can of tomato sauce and dumped it into a pot. She opened the refrigerator door and pulled out several onions and some mushrooms. She bumped the door closed with her hip, dug her cutting board out of the cupboard and began to chop vegetables.

She’d purchased garlic and sweet peppers at the store, adding generous amounts of both to the pot. Spices were next, and she added basil and oregano to the mix, stirring and tasting as she went. The meat was browned by this time and she added it to the large pot, stirring all the ingredients together. When she was satisfied, she turned the pot on low and popped the lid on to allow it to cook slowly.

She set another pot of water to boil on the stove. That would cook the fresh pasta she’d bought. A loaf of garlic bread, already in a foil pouch was in the oven, ready to heat when the time came. Flying around the kitchen, she washed down the counter and stacked dirty dishes and utensils into the dishwasher. When she was done, she glanced at the clock. Fifteen minutes until Ryland was due to arrive.

Swearing under her breath, she turned back the heat under the pot of water and hurried off to her room. She needed a quick shower and a change of clothing.

“Keep an eye on things, Abigail.” The cat curled up on the wide windowsill and began to lick her front paws. Taking that as a yes, Rhiannon hurried off to her bedroom, pulling off her clothing as she went.

She jumped in the shower and washed as fast as possible, careful not to get her hair wet. She didn’t have time to fiddle with it. Within minutes, she was doing a replay of the night before—standing in front of her closet clad only in a towel, wondering what to wear.

“Casual. Keep it casual.” This was a simple dinner at her home with an interesting man she’d just met. “No pressure.”

She was lying to herself. Somewhere between having phone sex with Ryland last night, talking to her friends this morning and going to the grocery store this evening, she’d decided she was going to take the leap and sleep with Ryland. That is, if he was still interested. This might be a simple dinner, but she was hoping it would definitely lead somewhere. Straight to her bed if she had her way.

“Hussy,” she muttered under her breath. Opening her underwear drawer, she scanned her options and opted for panties and a bra in a vibrant red. The sexy color matched her mood. She grabbed a pair of jeans and pulled them on. Then socks and white canvas sneakers. She wanted to have sex with him, but she didn’t want to be too obvious.

The front bell chimed as she rifled through her tops. Rhiannon grabbed her favorite black sweater and yanked it over her head. It was made of cashmere and dipped into a vee, showing off her cleavage. It always made her feel sexy when she wore it.

Ignoring the chime, she took a second to stroke on some lipstick. The deep red color made her lips look plump and inviting. She looked good even if she did say so herself. The bell rang again. She dropped her lipstick onto the top of her dresser and hurried toward the front door.

Taking a deep breath, she pulled the door open.

Anticipation thrummed through Ryland as he pressed the bell again. While he waited for her to answer, he looked around her yard, admiring her home. The front was decked out with bales of hay stacked with pumpkins and gourds. Very festive. The front of his house was bare.

He shifted his weight from one leg to the other. He had it bad. He hadn’t been able to get Rhiannon out of his mind all day.

Every time he kissed her, he wanted her more. She tasted sweet and spicy at the same time, and he couldn’t get enough of unique flavor. He wanted to lick her skin and between her legs to find out if she was just as sweet everywhere else.

He licked his lips and groaned. His jeans grew uncomfortably tight as his erection grew harder. He reached down and adjusted himself as best he could. It helped some, but not much. Ryland figured the only thing that would ease the ache would be when he finally sank his shaft deep into Rhiannon’s welcoming heat. The thought of her inner muscles clutching at his cock was almost more than he could bear. His skin was hot and he was starting to sweat in spite of the cool air flowing around him.

He swore and raised his hand to rake his fingers through his hair and almost clunked himself in the head with the wine bottle he was carrying. He swore again and took a deep breath. “Get a grip,” he muttered to himself.

But it was getting harder to do with each passing second as he waited to see if Rhiannon was going to shut him out or let him in. Neither of them had admitted it last night, but they both knew if she let him into her home tonight, they’d end up in bed together.

The chemistry between them was too explosive for either of them to deny.

He felt connected to Rhiannon in a way that defied logical explanation. He’d only just met her, but he felt as though he’d known her forever. She was intelligent and quirky and sexy as hell. In short, she was special.

And last night’s date had been amazing, in spite of a few strange occurrences. They’d enjoyed the meal, lingering over dinner for several hours. He’d enjoyed talking to her, learning more about who she was.

Every time he thought about the mishap with the dessert cart and the spray of chocolate, he had to smile. Most women would have been screaming about having their outfits ruined or the fact their first date had ended so abruptly. Instead, she’d handled the situation with grace and humor, putting both the waiter and the manager of the restaurant at ease. Rhiannon was a classy lady. The more he learned about her, the more he found to like.

Then there was the phone sex. Ryland had never done anything like that in his life. Rhiannon’s breathy moans and sighs had driven him crazy. Being able to hear her but not see her had been pure torture. He’d almost hauled on some clothing and driven like a bat out of hell to her place. In the end, common sense had prevailed. But it had been close.

Instead, he’d wrapped his hand around his shaft and pumped hard as he imagined what Rhiannon looked like spread across her sheets, all wet and hot. His balls tightened and he sucked in a deep breath. He had to stop thinking about last night. The last thing he wanted to do was greet Rhiannon with a raging hard-on.

Ryland had a very healthy sex drive and had never lacked for female companionship. Not that he’d ever had a serious relationship. All the women he dated knew going in that he wasn’t a settling-down kind of guy. If that’s what they wanted, they needed to look elsewhere. Some women didn’t like it, and that was okay. He respected that. But just as many were fine with a casual sexual relationship, which was why he always used a condom and was cautious. Just because he didn’t want to get serious didn’t mean he was stupid.

He usually didn’t have any trouble controlling his dick. He was a grown man, not a teenager with raging hormones. Unfortunately, his body seemed to forget that fact every time he was within a few feet of Rhiannon. Hell, all he had to do was think about her and he was hard as a spike.

That worried him and almost had him calling her to cancel their dinner date. In the end, he hadn’t been able to stay away. Something about Rhiannon called to him on a deep, basic level. He knew he wanted her sexually. Of that there was no doubt. But he was afraid it went much deeper than that.