The Witching Moon: The Witches of Redwood Falls - Book 1 (6 page)

Fifteen minutes later, a cheer rang out when
news spread that Molly had been found alive and well.

“You did it,” Drake pressed a kiss to her
forehead. “You saved her.”

A blush crested her cheeks. “I didn’t do
much.”

He cradled her face. “You did it all. I’m so
proud of you. Come on, let’s head home.”

She nodded, emotionally drained from the
experience.

He was quiet on the short drive home,
allowing her to think about Molly. For a brief moment, her heart
eased, a feeling she’d gone without for too long. She’d made a
difference, and right now, with Drake by her side, she reveled in
who and what she was.

Moonlight lit the street when Drake parked
in front of Poppy’s house. She’d left a light on inside the living
room, a beacon in the dark.

Drake exited the car, rounding the vehicle
to open her door. He held it open, waiting, watching. She shivered
under his gaze, his eyes caressing her, possessive, intense. She
wasn’t afraid of it. It was… delicious.

Taking her hand, he slowly drew her out of
the car and into his arms. “Thank you for letting me stay with you
today. I’ll never forget it.”

Her heart raced at his touch. With Molly’s
disappearance, she hadn’t thought about what had almost happened in
her kitchen earlier. What was happening now.

Awareness prickled her skin as he rubbed his
cheek against her hair, breathing deeply. Her belly flipped and
energy hummed along her skin. This was power. Pure, raw, power. It
surged through her during spells, filling her until it left her
bereft. Feeling Drake around her, holding her, it was the same
heady sensation. Greedy for more, she pressed into him, relishing
the hiss that escaped his lips.

“I needed you there,” she said. In magic,
she’d never needed anything. Had never leaned on anyone. She’d
always been enough. But Drake had given her something that she’d
lacked. She’d felt confident, secure. The tendrils of doubt that
normally bound her were absent.

She tilted her head back so he’d see the
truth in her eyes. “I needed you.”

Fire lit his eyes as he pushed her against
his car, capturing her lips the moment her back hit metal. Breath
whooshed from her as her senses reeled. Too much, too quickly, the
world swirled away, leaving only Drake.

His lips molded hers, pinning her to the car
with both his body and her need. She felt treasured, secure. Desire
rushed over her, stripping her of any hesitations.

His mouth teased her, coaxing her, taking
until she opened for him. He moaned against her mouth at his first
taste, his hands diving into her hair, anchoring her.

Shivers skated along her skin. He didn’t
tempt her with his kisses, didn’t beckon. He consumed her.

This is Drake! Not the man from the
prophecy.

But she didn’t care. He was her best friend.
A man she’d loved and respected for longer than she could remember.
She didn’t want to think about someone else. Drake was here, with
her. And she wanted to be with him. Not because the prophecy
dictated that it should be so, but because it felt right, because
after all these years, she wanted a part of him that no one, not
even fate, could take from her.

Her arms snaked around him, gripping his
hard body to hers. She relished the bunched muscles in his
shoulders. He was hard, sturdy, and she’d never felt more
feminine.

One of his hands trailed down her body,
fisting at her hip before he ripped his mouth away from hers,
trailing hot kisses down her neck.

Her eyes rolled back, her head rolling to
the side, offering him full access, silently begging him to take
more. To take everything.

She’d been kissed before. This wasn’t a
kiss. This was a full-bodied experience. He awakened parts of her
that she’d never felt, all from tiny scrapes of his teeth. Her
hands clenched his shoulders, needing to get closer. Needing
more.

He groaned, burying his face in her neck,
holding her as they shook in each other’s arms. “If I don’t stop
now, I don’t think I’ll be able to.”

She swallowed nodding. She couldn’t think,
didn’t want to. She only felt. He didn’t step away, didn’t release
her. He held her in his arms as if he could absorb her.

She felt cherished, needed for something
other than what she could give. For the first time, she was enough.
Just Poppy. Not the witch, but the woman.

He leaned back, smoothing hair back from her
face. “Can I see you tomorrow?” His voice was hoarse, but his eyes
never left hers.

Her body ached, pleaded for more of his
gentle assault. But it was more than how he made her feel. She
wanted all of him. “Yes.” She shook her head, remembering. “No,
wait. I have to work. A client needs more stock.”

“What do you need to do?”

“I need to make more bath products. Lotions,
soaps, shampoo.”

“Well, can I help you?”

A smile curved her lips. “I’d like
that.”

He nuzzled a soft kiss against her lips.
“I’ll be here.” Setting her away in degrees, he released her.

Walking to the door, the hairs on the back
of her neck stood on end. She turned, catching his eyes devouring
her in greedy gulps. It helped soothe the ache in her heart now
that he’d let her go, but just barely.

“Keep walking, sweetheart. If you stop, I
might not let you go again.”

Her heart thrilled at his words, at the
truth she saw echoed in his eyes. She crossed into her house,
closing the door quietly behind her and listened as he drove
away.

All she could think about were his words,
his praise, his kiss. They were drugs to her, and she flew high off
of him.

Waking with the sun, Poppy still glowed from
Drake’s kiss. Sleep had come easily, and she’d savored the wicked
dreams she’d envisioned during the night. But with morning came
unpleasant thoughts as well. As wonderful as last night was, as
much as she’d enjoyed being with Drake in that way, he wasn’t her
mate. No matter how much she cared for him, longed for him, nothing
could change that fact.

Drake’s proposal was sound. She didn’t know
who her mate was, how to find him, not even what he looked like.
Until she did, she’d enjoy her time with Drake, because for once,
she’d do what she wanted. Something selfish. Something that wasn’t
dictated by a cosmic force. After years of fighting it, this was
her chance to be with Drake.

Not wanting to think of it any more, she set
a kettle on the stove for tea and organized all the ingredients
she’d need to make lavender lotion. She’d been gifted in herbs, and
she’d worked to hone their uses, not only in magic but in therapy
as well, since she was a girl. If she happened to add a
regenerative spell, or a touch of something for relaxation to aid
the herbs, well, so much the better. She financially supported
herself with her concoctions and was grateful she’d been able
to.

By the time Drake arrived, the ingredients
lined her counter as neat as any surgeon’s tools. His muscled body
leaned against the door frame, a brow raised at her supplies. She
tried not to drool.

“I thought you were going to wait for
me.”

She shrugged playfully, lightening her mood.
It was either that or jump him. “That’s what happens when you sleep
in.”

He snorted. “I hardly think 8:30 in the
morning is sleeping in since I’m here and dressed.”

“Have you eaten?”

“I was hoping you’d feed me.” He grinned
wolfishly, stalking toward her. “I can tell you exactly what I’m in
the mood for.”

She gasped when he lunged for her, wrapping
her in thick arms. His kiss was hot, possessive. Everything she’d
dreamed. Everything that had tormented her during the night.

She arched against him, relishing his touch,
his taste.

He came up for air, tucking her head under
his chin. She grinned at his racing heart. “Now that’s the way I
prefer to say good morning.”

“Good morning,” she breathed out.

He released her, even if he did so
reluctantly. “Come on. Let’s get started or else we’ll never get it
done.”

A grin cracked her face. He was adorable. He
valued her for who she was, not just for how she made him feel
physically. After being friends for so many years, she’d known
this, but loved that nothing had changed in the last few days.

“Where do you want me to start?”

She tossed her head to the counter. “Slip
around to the other side by the pestle. I’ll have you start on the
lavender sprigs. I’m running low on lavender oil, and I’ll need to
replace what we’re about to use.”

“You make your own oils?” He ground the
herbs she placed in the stone. “How did I not know this about
you?”

“Guess you don’t know everything.”

“Guess not. Anything else I should know?” He
wiggled his eyebrows at her.

Snorting a laugh, she shook her head. “Just
keep grinding.”

“I take it that’s a yes?”

“Who knows? I’m a mystery, apparently.”

He eyed her slowly from her head to her
toes, awakening each inch of skin his eyes caressed. He finally
nodded. “You are. But I look forward to learning all your
secrets.”

Color flushed her cheeks, only making him
grin. “I don’t think I’ve made you blush since we were
teenagers.”

She turned away, clearing her throat,
blindly reaching for an herb to crush. “It still happens
sometimes.”

“You’re beautiful.”

Her mouth dropped open as her eyes darted to
his.

He set the pestle aside. “You’re beautiful,
Poppy.”

She shifted.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. I just… nothing.” She squirmed
under his knowing gaze. She felt raw, exposed. Like he could see
all the way to the depth of her soul. Maybe he could. Could he be
her mate? This connection between them was too strong, too
meaningful. There had to be a reason.

As she watched him, she started to believe
that he might be hers.

“Has no one ever told you how gorgeous you
are?” He whispered. “How incredibly graceful, strong, and sexy you
are?”

She shuttered a breath, shaking her head.
“No. Well, yes, I’m sure my parents and few others have mentioned I
was pretty. But, it didn’t feel like this.”

Her words lit up his eyes. “You’re mine,
Poppy. Mine. You just don’t know it yet.”

She didn’t know what to say. She wasn’t
ready to agree with him, to concede. Still, her heart recognized
his words as truth. The realization shook her.

As if sensing her struggle, he turned a back
to grinding. “Do you need the powder finer than this?” He angled
the stone toward her.

“No.” She cleared the lump in her throat.
“No, that’s perfect.” She poured the powder into a cloth, tightly
securing the material before setting it in boiling water.

“That’s all you need?”

“Yes. It’ll boil for several hours and then
dry out before I can finish the process.” She threw on a stained
red apron, the ruffled pockets holding oils she’d need. “Let’s
start with the first batch of lotions. They’ve ordered ten more
eight-ounce bottles of lavender lotion, a variety of soaps, and
more rose shampoo.”

“Like the one you use?”

“Yes. It’s quite popular.”

“I didn’t know you sold that.”

She sent him a wry smile. “I told you, I’m a
woman of mystery.”

“You did.” He grinned, leaning over the
counter to watch her mix the ingredients. Occasionally she needed
something from his side and he’d hand it over to her. It was easy,
right, being here with him.

It’d always been comfortable to be around
him. They understood each other on so many levels, but this was
new. This awareness of him.

As she stirred the mixture over the stove,
she studied him from the corner of her eye. The sunlight that
filtered in through the kitchen window teased red highlights from
his hair that she’d never noticed. His fingers were smooth, long.
Manly. She could imagine them on her body.

“Poppy?”

“Hmm? What?” She tore her eyes from his
hands to his face.

“You were staring at my hands. Is everything
all right?”

“Oh.” She rubbed her cheek, hoping her blush
didn’t give her thoughts away. Her attempt at discretion had
failed. “Yes. I’m fine. Just lost in thought for a moment.”

“Anything you want to share?”

She sighed at the glimmer in his eye, at how
it affected her. Did he have any idea what was going on inside her
body at that moment? She hoped not. “I was just thinking that you
had nice hands. They’d be good for casting.”

“Casting… spells?”

She bit her cheek. “Yes.”

“Yeah… I don’t think so.” He shifted
uneasily now. “I’d have no clue what to do. I think I’ll just sit
and watch you if that’s all right.”

“Come on.” She set her bowl aside, the
contents mixed together. “We’ll do this together. Can you grab
those empty lotion bottles over there and line them up here? It’s
easy to pour them assembly line style.”