The Witch Is Back (25 page)

He shrugged. “We sit down, like civilized people, and you listen to what I have to say.”

“So, after I listen to you, you’ll leave?”

He took a deep breath and there was something in his eyes that looked hurt, painfully so. Or maybe I was just imagining it. “Yes.”

I glanced at the clock and realized it was now seven thirty. It was also completely dark outside. Sinjin should be arriving any minute … “I … I have plans tonight but how about tomorrow?”

“Plans?” Rand’s eyes narrowed, as he seemed to consider my offer. “And how can I be sure you’ll actually show up tomorrow? You haven’t exactly been accommodating thus far.”

“Well, you know where I live so it’s not like you won’t be able to hunt me down.” I frowned. “Something you’ve already proven you can do.”

He seemed okay with a rain check and stood up, extending his hand to me as he did so, but I ignored it, pushing myself up and off the floor, dusting my jeans. I wasn’t sure why, but for some reason I no longer felt afraid of him. It was almost as if his consenting to come back tomorrow negated all of my dread. It was weird and probably stupid, to say the least.

“What is this?” he demanded. Before I could stop him, he brushed my hair away from my neck, and his features contorted with anger when he saw Sinjin’s teeth marks.

“That fucking bastard!” Rand yelled, his hands fisting at his sides. He turned around and I could see the rage in the tightness of his shoulders. Before I could even blink, he smashed his fist into my door.

“What is wrong with you?” I yelled, taking a few steps back, suddenly afraid again. Nothing like a pissed-off man unable to control his temper to jar me back to my senses. I mean, I knew he was a dangerous warlock. It shouldn’t have taken an act of what appeared to be jealousy, strangely enough, to assure me of that.

He turned to face me and there was fury in his dark brown eyes, as well as a certain hollowness and pain. “I should never have let it progress this far,” he said, mostly to himself. Then, before I could guess what would happen next, he lunged for me and grabbed my arm, pulling me toward the door.

“Let go of me!” I screamed, pulling against him.

“You’re coming with me, Jolie,” he said in a voice that brooked no argument. “It’s for your own good.”

I tried to extricate myself from him, but fighting him was useless. He was built like a mountain lion—sleek, yes, but also incredibly strong. “I’m not going anywhere with you!”

He instantly stopped dragging me and, instead, turned to face me. His expression was completely unreadable,
but he didn’t let go of my arm. “You will never forgive Sinjin for what he’s done to you.”

“What are you talking about?” I yelled as I struggled against him again, trying to pull my arm from his viselike grip. He simply held me tighter. “You’re hurting me!”

He let go of me then, as if I’d bitten him. I lost my balance as I tripped over my ridiculous wedge sandals and crumbled into a clumsy heap on the floor.

“This was never meant to happen, Jolie,” Rand said as he approached me again, standing above me. I knew I wouldn’t get far if I tried to bolt, so I stayed put.

“What was never meant to happen?”

He looked around himself and waved his hands as if to include everything—us, my house, my neighborhood, the whole world. “It was always you and me.”

“Sinjin—”

“Sinjin never had a claim on you!” he interrupted. Then he shook his head as if this whole thing were a big misunderstanding and a damn shame at that.

“You aren’t making any sense,” I said, my voice softer as I realized I was dealing with someone who wasn’t playing with a full deck. “There’s nothing between you and me and there never was. I don’t even know you!”

He shook his head and laughed but it was not a happy sound. “That’s where you’re wrong, Jolie. You and I have known each other for years. I taught you everything you know.”

“But—” I started, shaking my head as I tried to comprehend his statement.

“The life you’re leading now is a farce—it’s all because that bastard Sinjin wanted you for himself and he knew the only way he’d have a chance in hell of wooing you away from me was to make contact with you first.”

“That doesn’t even make any sense!” I yelled at him again and stood up, wrapping my arms around myself
protectively. “Look, I don’t know who the hell you are …”

Then he was in front of me, grabbing my shoulders and holding me still. I could feel his breath fanning the naked skin of my chest and I closed my eyes. “Yes, you do, Jolie,” he said softly, whispering as my breathing lengthened. There was just something so familiar about him, something that made me want to yield to him.

Resist the feelings, Jolie!
I yelled at myself.
It’s nothing but his warlock magic trying to charm you, making you feel like you’ve known him forever!

It can’t be. We’re close—I can feel it in my blood, in the center of my being
.

You haven’t even known him two weeks!

Then why do I feel like this?
I argued.
I know this man. I’ve known him for a long time. I can feel it. And you can’t deny it either
.

“It’s impossible,” I said out loud and shook my head, opening my eyes and focusing on the dark chocolate pools of his.

“What’s impossible?” Rand asked, his eyes searching, pleading.

“I. Don’t. Know. You.”

He took a deep breath and shook his head, even as I fought the need to believe everything he said. “You know me—deep down, I know you do.”

But I refused to give into the part of me that wanted to believe him. Instead, I forced myself to consider how absurd the whole thing was. I had only just met him when he walked into my store. He and I meant nothing to each other; we weren’t even acquaintances. “You must have me confused with someone else.”

“No,” he said, anger and frustration returning to his voice. He shook his head adamantly. “I have known you intimately, Jolie, I’ve known you like no other man ever could.”

I swallowed hard. I knew he meant in more ways than just sexually, but it was the sexual connotation that made me blush right down to my feet. I dropped my gaze to my shaking hands, trying to figure out my next course of action, inventing a plan of escape.

“Look at me,” he said, and I wasn’t sure why, but I acquiesced. When I did, I felt the urge to believe him grow stronger. I felt that same sense of familiarity welling up inside me all over again.

“Stop doing that,” I whispered, afraid because I could feel myself succumbing to the power he wielded over me. As strange as it sounded and as much as I didn’t want to admit it, there was still something in me that needed to believe him, and to accept him.

“Doing what?”

“Making me feel things that aren’t real.”

He chuckled then, heartily. “It is real, Jolie. Whatever you’re feeling for me is real.”

“No, it isn’t.” I paused, taking a deep breath. “It’s your magic.”

He pulled me closer to him, and I was surprised at my lack of resistance. It was the same as it had been when he came to my store—as if I dissolved into mush in his hands. “No it’s not my magic—it’s the connection between us.”

I closed my eyes and shook my head, feeling as if everything I knew, my entire world, was now under siege again. “I met you only a week or two ago,” I started, reminding myself more than him.

“Jolie, I walked into your store two years ago and I’ve loved you ever since.”

I felt my eyes open wide as I tried to make sense of his words. “Loved me?” I repeated, shocked.

He nodded and smiled almost shyly. My entire body began to quake from the inside out, to shake with the need to touch him, kiss him. I forced the feelings down,
straining to recognize them for what they were—the spell of a master magician and nothing more.

“You have been the only woman in my life and you will continue to be the only woman I could ever love.”

And that was all it took—just a brief reminder of a similar sentiment from Sinjin—to remind me that Rand was not the one I was meant to be with, that everything he was telling me was a lie. I loved Sinjin, that’s all there was to it. “You need to leave,” I said frigidly.

“Don’t fight this, Jolie.” He looked into my eyes, and I couldn’t pull my gaze away. “God, you are so beautiful,” he said and I felt my heart flutter at his words. “You have no idea how worried I’ve been about you, how much I’ve missed you.”

Then his lips were on mine and I was shocked and disgusted with myself when I did nothing to fight him. In fact, I welcomed his lips and encouraged his tongue to find entrance into my mouth. He ran his hands through my hair and I felt myself melt against him.

“My, my! Such a happy little couple.”

I heard Sinjin’s voice. I pulled away from Rand and turned to Sinjin in the doorway, but he didn’t seem upset in the least. Rather, he appeared merely entertained. He was wearing that smirky smile, but when I looked at his eyes I realized he was livid.

“Sinjin. I … I don’t know what happened,” I started, realizing how completely horrible this situation looked. He’d basically just walked in on me kissing another man.

He faced me, shaking his head. “Do not apologize, little poppet. The warlock’s coercive powers were too much for you to fend off.”

I glanced at Rand and didn’t know what to think. Had it been his magic all along that caused me to feel and act this way? Maybe, but there was definitely something inside
me that felt as if I were right where I needed to be—in his arms. I almost felt as if I’d come home.

“Come,” Sinjin said to me. Still in a fog of confused emotions, I pulled away from Rand and walked closer to Sinjin, all the while fighting the need to return to Rand’s arms. Sinjin grabbed me and pulled me close to his chest, never dropping his eyes from Rand’s. “She is mine, Balfour. The sooner you realize that, the better.” Then he smiled, his eyes narrow. “You have been spurned.”

Rand was fuming—I could see it in the red of his cheeks, his shallow breathing, his chest rising and falling. “You’ve gone too far this time, Sinjin,” he managed to spit out. Then he faced me. “Step away from him, Jolie.”

I glanced at Sinjin as though I were seeking his permission, or at the least, to get a clue of what was happening. He merely smiled down at me and nodded, pushing me slightly from him. “Randall …”

But he never finished his sentence. Instead, I watched, horrified, as Rand lunged for him and threw him to the ground. Rand pulled his arm back and pummeled Sinjin’s face as the vampire held up his arms to protect himself. In a split second, Sinjin disappeared from below Rand and reappeared behind him. But Rand was prepared, seeming to fly off his feet, pivoting around. He ducked in time to miss Sinjin’s blow and delivered his own series of jabs into Sinjin’s stomach. All in all, it seemed as if they were pretty evenly matched.

“Stop!” I screamed and, not even thinking, rushed over to the two of them. I threw myself onto Rand’s back, toppling over a table just beside the door in the process. But I wasn’t concerned. Instead, all my distress was reserved for the fight that was in the process of blowing up between the two men. Grabbing Rand’s forearms, I screamed again. “Stop it!”

Rand merely shook me off and dived for Sinjin. “You will pay for what you’ve done, bastard!” Rand yelled. The vampire chuckled and sidestepped him, giving me the opportunity to wedge myself between the two of them.

“I love him!” I screamed at Rand, not even realizing what I was saying or what I was admitting in front of Sinjin. I’d promised myself I wouldn’t (well, not until he admitted it to me first). But the time for regrets was over. “Whatever you think we share isn’t real!” I continued, tears flooding my eyes.

Rand stood stock-still, his shallow breathing betraying his exhaustion. But I couldn’t look away from his face. He was devastated. He continued staring at me, pain and betrayal in his eyes. But I didn’t care. If his relentless hunt for me was based on unrequited love, I needed to nip it in the bud … now.

“If you truly care about me, then you’ll leave us alone!” I screamed again, tears streaming down my face. “Because I love Sinjin.”

“Jolie,” he started, taking a step toward me.

I held him back with my hand. “No,” I said, my voice cracking with the effort. “Whatever you think we have, it’s nothing more than a delusion.”

“Just listen to me,” he said.

I shook my head. “I have nothing more to say to you.”

He took a deep breath and ran his fingers through his hair as he shook his head but said nothing more. He walked past me and hesitated only momentarily. Once he approached Sinjin, though, he stopped and faced him with hatred flashing from his eyes.

“This isn’t over, Sinclair,” he said. “I will never stop until she understands what you did to her.”

Smiling, Sinjin threw his arm around my shoulder and pulled me close to him, kissing the top of my head. Rand’s lips were tight as he turned around and disappeared
out my front door. For some strange reason, and I wasn’t sure why, there was something within me that felt numb, something hollow and sad, that I hadn’t felt before.

I pulled away from Sinjin, my head ready to explode, there were so many thoughts and questions running through it. I immediately noticed that any damage Rand might have inflicted on him had already healed.

“What was he talking about?” I demanded.

Sinjin shook his head. “The nonsensical ravings of a madman.”

I didn’t say anything right away but, somehow, I knew he was lying to me.

Sinjin has no reason to lie to you, Jolie
, part of me argued.
Rand has just completely lost his mind and must think you’re someone else. Or he’s just trying to manipulate you into believing there’s something between you
.

That may be
, my other half replied,
but I also think Sinjin’s holding out—that he knows more than he’s letting on. He just makes everything seem so simple and I know well enough that that is never the case
.

“Did I meet Rand … before? Like, a long time ago?”

Sinjin faced me with a smile. “Poppet, that is a question only you can answer. I know of no affiliation between you and the warlock.”