Page 29 of Bewitched By the Djinn (The Bewitching Hour #8)

Chapter

Twenty-One

When I wake up, Bennet’s side of the bed is empty and the sun is just beginning to rise, casting pale light through the window.

I stretch, muscles deliciously sore, and the memories come flooding back—his mouth against mine, the brush of his breath, the heat of his palms on my bare skin.

Yummy.

But also complicated.

I draw the blanket tighter around me, staring at the ceiling as the weight of it settles in. What happened between us last night... it was real. And I don’t know what to do with that.

I can’t pretend it meant nothing, no matter how badly I want to keep things simple. But I’m also not ready to deal with what it might mean. Not when the world is on fire, and everything we’re walking into could tear us apart.

We come from different worlds. He’s light and power and magic, and I’m just trying to hold the pieces of my life together with duct tape and late-night panic attacks.

And maybe that wouldn’t matter if I weren’t already cracked open by too much heartache.

I’ve given up most of my hopes and dreams. College. Travel. Friendships. Sleep. I traded the future I once imagined for an endless parade of school plays, little league practice, and doctor’s visits.

My choices haven’t been my own since the day my parents disappeared. Until Kevin and Jackie are grown, I don’t get to be selfish. I don’t get to want things just for myself.

Bennet is amazing. But he’s also a prince. A man raised on duty and sacrifice. He didn’t hesitate to chase after his sister the second he thought his realm was in trouble. He belongs to his people and his very different world .

I can’t live in Aetheria. I can’t disappear and leave my siblings behind. No matter how much I want to fall into his arms and never come back up for air, I won’t be the reason they lose another parent.

Now, with Bennet, I’m terrified.

Terrified that even if he wants to stay now, something will change or take him from me later. That love, no matter how fierce, isn’t enough to make people stay.

Maybe when all this is over, we’ll go back to our worlds like nothing happened. Maybe we’re just a moment. A beautiful, bright thing that burned fast and hot in the dark.

If that’s all this is, I’ll take this time and lock it away, and when the fear creeps in, when everything else gets too big, I’ll remember the stolen moments we had.

I’ll take what we have, and leave the rest.

I shake myself. No time to think sexy—or emotionally destabilizing—thoughts. Time to get moving. Today I take a portal into another world.

Wild times. I’m terrified and yet thrilled. I’ve always wanted to see more of the world, and now I get to see an entirely new one.

I pad to the bathroom. Voices travel up the stairs along with the intoxicating scent of brewing coffee. After taking care of bodily functions, I head down the stairs.

Bennet is alone in the kitchen when I enter the room, the others probably packing.

He’s leaning against the counter, completely edible in jeans and a tee, his feet bare, his hair still damp from a shower. There’s a mug in his hands, and when our eyes meet, his expression softens.

My heart flips.

“Morning.”

His voice does weird things to my body, my flesh trembling with memories of hands on me, his gasps in my ear, his mouth devouring mine.

“Morning,” I manage.

He crosses the room in a few strides and hands me the second mug. Our fingers brush and then linger. “I didn’t mean to wake you.”

“You didn’t.” I wrap my hands around the warmth of the mug, unsure what to say. Last night still clings to my skin, like the imprint of his hands is tattooed onto me.

There’s a long beat of silence, but it’s not uncomfortable. It’s full of all the things we aren’t quite ready to say.

“I don’t regret it.” His eyes are steady on mine.

My heart does a backflip in my chest. I take a sip of coffee. “Me either.”

He nods once, then reaches up and tucks a piece of hair behind my ear. “Whatever happens on the other side of that portal, we go together. That’s what matters.”

I nod and sip more coffee, afraid to open my mouth and let out all the jumbled emotions boiling inside me. I let his hand linger on my cheek for a second longer. And I let myself believe, for now, that this thing between us doesn’t have to have a label or a future to be real. It can be what it is.

We finish our coffee and then head upstairs.

Packing is quick since we can only bring what we can carry.

The portal may or may not open up close to the castle, since the magic here is weak.

Even with the tools we gathered, Helen isn’t sure exactly where we will end up.

It’s like throwing an arrow at a map with your eyes closed.

Pin the tail on the donkey. Coming here, it was much easier for her to find her destination since the magic in Aetheria is so strong, it was like having a telescope. Now she is going back blind.

Before we leave, I call home. It’s still early, but Mimi picks up on the second ring.

“Cassie? Everything okay? How did it go last night?”

I rub a hand over my face and tell her everything that happened. The doppelgangers, the dungeon, all of it—minus the R-rated content.

A sharp breath on the other end. “So what happens now?”

I lean against the dresser, gripping the phone tighter. “We are going to Aetheria.”

Mimi is silent for a long minute. “I don’t like it.”

“I can’t be apart from Bennet. It’s not like he can go and leave me here. Delores will come stay with you and the kids. Her and Helen are linked. She’ll be able to keep you updated as to what’s happening.”

“Cassie . . .”

I bite my lip. “You’re the one who’s always telling me I need to live a little.”

She chuckles. “I meant travel to New York or date or something, not cross into another realm and get between some maniac and the throne.” She releases a gusty sigh. “All right. I’ll hold things down here. And Cassie, be careful. I mean it.”

Warmth spreads through my chest. “I will.”

“Good. Then go kick some djinn ass.”

I laugh. “I’ll definitely offer moral support while Bennet and Helen do the ass kicking. Love you, Mimi.”

“Love you too, kiddo.”

By the time we step out into the crisp early morning air, the city is still quiet, just a few early risers moving about.

I tug my black cotton jacket tighter around me, the layered weight of my clothes a small comfort—sturdy pants, boots I can run in, and enough layers to handle whatever Aetheria throws at us.

We move quickly, keeping our heads down as we make our way through the streets.

The portal location is in an alley tucked behind an old wrought-iron gate. To anyone else, it’s merely an abandoned courtyard, overgrown with ivy and half hidden behind the remains of a crumbling archway. But the air hums with magical energy.

This is where Helen and Bennet both came through from Aetheria.

Helen and Delores linger near the entrance.

Bennet and I walk into the center of the courtyard to give them the illusion of privacy, but in the quiet morning air, their conversation is audible.

Delores speaks first. “I don’t like this.”

“I know.”

“Don’t you dare die, or I’m coming after you.”

Helen laughs, though there’s a watery edge to it. “Understood.”

When they finally break apart, Delores’s gaze flicks to Bennet and me. “Take care of her.”

Bennet nods. “We will.”

Helen joins us in the center of the courtyard. She kneels, drawing a small vial from her pouch and pouring a shimmering blue powder onto the ground. Then she whispers under her breath, tracing a sigil into the dirt with the tip of her finger.

The air shivers.

A thin sliver of golden light appears in the empty space before us, stretching and widening until it forms a glowing archway.

Through it, towering trees with glossy emerald leaves appear through the mist, their trunks wide and spiraled with vines that glisten in the dim light.

The scents of blooming flowers and damp earth brushes over me.

Holy shit, magic land.

Helen straightens, shoulders squaring. “It’s time.”

Bennet steps forward first, glancing back at me. “Ready?”

I take a breath. “As I’ll ever be.”

And together, we step through the tear in the world, leaving the mortal realm behind.

The second we land on Aetherian soil, the portal snaps shut, the strength of it making me stumble forward.

Bennet reaches for me, grabbing my arm. “Okay?”

I nod. We’re surrounded by dense jungle, abundant leaves above blocking the light, dark soil below our feet. The air is thick with moisture and touched with magic, like it’s holding an electric charge.

“Where are we? Are we close to the castle?” My pulse is unsteady from the journey through the portal.

Helen shakes out her hands, her face pale, the usual glow of her magic dimmed from the strain of the spell. “We’re in the land of the marids. Thalassara.”

I blink, my mind rummaging through the information Bennet told me the other night about Aetheria as I was falling asleep. “Giants? We’re in the giant part of djinn land?”

“You can tell by the humidity and the trees. They are bound by water magic. They once ruled vast territories, before the current kingdoms formed.” Bennet squeezes my shoulder.

“It will be fine. We’ll stay quiet and out of sight.

The odds of us running into a giant are slim. They sleep during the day.”

“And if one of them decides to wake up?”

Helen winces. “It won’t be good. They don’t like visitors. They think the other kingdoms betrayed them and stole their lands. They see all outsiders as invaders, no matter who they are.”

“So they might want to crush us for historical reasons?”