Page 32

Chapter Thirty-Two

I spun in a circle, not sure where I was supposed to go. Eva was growling, her teeth bared as she faced Jacobson, but my eyes were on Banks. However much I needed to work out what the hell was wrong with the old man, Banks had been hurt because of me. He had to be my priority.

With my decision made, I moved. A collective gasp rang out from the customers. Simultaneously, Eva’s growling stopped.

Old Jacobson had disappeared. His low-magic witch act had now been officially rumbled.

Knowing that I needed to focus on Banks made it far easier as I raced across the room and dropped to the ground next to him.

‘Wow, what a punch,’ he said, sitting up and rubbing his head.

‘Are you okay?’

‘I’ve felt better,’ he admitted then a smile tipped his lips. ‘Hey, you called me Fraser.’

I blinked. Had I? ‘Sorry. Banks,’ I said gruffly.

‘Oh no, I liked it.’

‘Don’t tell me – Banks was your father’s name?’ I said drily.

‘My mum’s actually,’ he said mildly. ‘But no, it reminds me of Mary Poppins . I hadn’t watched the film when I made the name change, but now … Mary Poppins . Everyone calls me Fraser and I’d prefer it if you did too.’

I stared at him. This man had been thrown across a room and was now having a crisis over a fictional nanny? Still, given that he’d been thrown across a room for me , it seemed churlish to refuse. ‘Sure. I can do that.’

He grinned like I’d agreed to go on a date, which I absolutely hadn’t. Next to him, Eva wrangled her way in and started licking his hand. He turned to her, his eyes soft. ‘I’m okay, little lady,’ he murmured. ‘Thanks for asking.’

Her tail wagged with such fierceness she nearly wagged it right off. I eyed her. Traitor.

I looked at Banks again – Fraser. ‘I’m really sorry about the whole—’ I gestured aimlessly. ‘I don’t know what happened. I wanted to talk to Jacobson but he totally flipped out.’

‘Yeah. I’m going out on a limb here, but I’d say he’s not the type of guy who’s big on conversation.’ Despite the light- hearted comment, Fraser frowned at where the old man had been.

‘Shame, that was why I liked him,’ Sonny grumbled as he moved past us and started picking up the tables and chairs that had toppled over in the drama.

Fraser offered me a smile to show he was alright, but it didn’t ease my guilt. Seeing someone get hurt like that – hit with magic – brought back memories I had no desire to relive. ‘Any chance you can give me a hand up?’ he asked, reaching for me.

I had absolutely no doubt he could get himself up quite easily, but considering it was my fault he was lying on the floor it was the least I could do. As I took his outstretched hand, a warm shock wave ran through me. From the way his eyes widened as he looked at me, he’d felt it, too.

Oh boy. This wasn’t good. Obviously I’d been physically attracted to guys before, and I’d felt the release of finally giving in to that attraction. The first kiss that led to a late-night fumble was like setting off a wind-up toy.

There was no way that could happen with Fraser, and yet each time I saw him I was conscious of that spring inside me winding tighter and tighter. Maybe that was why I could sense it burning from him because we were both feeling the same. Even when he was on his feet, our hands remained clasped, our eyes locked on each other .

My throat was dry. I needed to say something or at least move away from him, to do anything that would break this moment between us because it felt wild. Dangerous.

Sonny cleared his throat and I stepped back, my cheeks flushing. I assumed his interruption was intended to stop us from doing anything ridiculous, like ripping off each other’s clothes in broad daylight in his café. That was when I became fully aware of my surroundings, like I taught my students in my classes to be.

Every single person in the café had abandoned their drinks and was looking straight at me. Not at Fraser and me, just me. Ah yes, my favourite pastime, being stared at like the main act in a magical freak show.

Near silence had replaced the normal hubbub of the eatery. A beat later, hands came up to mouths and the whispering started.

‘Beatrix Stonehaven,’ someone murmured.

‘Stonehaven. Do you think…? It has to be her,’ came another voice.

‘Are we safe if she’s here? You know what her grandmother did!’ That voice had an edge of hysteria. Charming.

As I scanned the faces, a mother pulled her daughter closer as if I might throw the child across the room the same way Jacobson had done with Fraser. I didn’t need to lower my shields to feel the fear in the room.

‘Are you okay?’ Fraser’s voice was laced with concern.

‘Fine,’ I spat. The next moment I’d spun on my heels and stalked out, putting the lie to the word I’d spoken. ‘Eva!’ I snarled. ‘Come!’ She sprang to my side and, bless her heart, she bared her teeth at the customers and swung her head in a general warning. She let out a menacing growl at the people who had upset me. It was throwing gas on the fire but she didn’t know that.

Hot tears were stinging my eyes but I blinked rapidly and refused to let them fall. I didn’t know where I was going, only that I needed to get away from the coffee shop and as far from those stares as possible. I didn’t care that Yanni had asked me to be back within half an hour, or that I’d forgotten the coffees for a second time and Sonny would hate me even more now. None of that mattered.

I didn’t have to check that Eva was still beside me because I knew she was. I kept walking, my eyes forward and my pulse drumming. Only when I reached the waterfront did I stop. As I gazed at the white-crested waves, I felt the pressure of her body pressing against my side.

A moment later, a gentle hand grabbed my arm. ‘Beatrix.’ Fraser coaxed me around to face him. ‘Hey, what happened back there? ’

Damn him for following me. I’d held the tears back for as long as I could and now they were tumbling down my cheeks. The last thing I wanted to do was cry, especially not in front of Fraser. I’d spent the last decade closing off my heart, training myself not to feel, but now I was back in Witchlight Cove and it was as though the last ten years had meant nothing.

I struggled to bottle up the tears back to where they damned well belonged: inside me.

Fraser ran his tongue over his lips then bit down slightly before he spoke. ‘I don’t know why people reacted to you like that, but I saw the whole thing. You didn’t do anything wrong. You know that you didn’t do anything wrong.’

He thought the reaction in the café was due to Old Jacobson because he didn’t know my sordid history. Was that better or worse? If he knew my history – and possibly my future – the attraction between us would fizzle and die. Which wouldn’t be a bad thing, I told myself firmly.

‘I shouldn’t have come back.’ The words spilled from my lips before I could stop them.

‘Okay,’ he said slowly. ‘We’re not talking about Old Jacobson, are we?’

I shook my head .

‘I won’t pretend to know what happened, but whatever it was is in your past. No doubt it took a lot of guts for you to come back here, and I admire that.’

‘You don’t know anything about me. You don’t know what happened.’

‘I know a little,’ he admitted. ‘I know your parents died, and you were only seventeen when you were appointed guardian of the Eternal Flame.’

There was no pretence in his voice, just sympathy, and I could feel the warmth and compassion radiating from him. It was tempting to lower my shields and wrap myself up in it, let myself feel that everything would be okay.

I met his eyes and my heart skipped a beat. I knew that if I leaned forward, he’d wrap me in his arms and I could lose myself in his scent and his presence.

Just as I considered succumbing to my desire and letting myself fall into Fraser’s arms, my phone buzzed in my pocket. The moment broke our eye contact. I stepped back and pulled out the phone, expecting to see Yanni’s name flash up but it was Donovan’s.

‘I’m sorry, I have to take this,’ I said, my tone back to being businesslike.

‘Of course. If you need me, I live down there.’ Fraser pointed towards a house perched over the water. Glass, wood and sleek modern beauty: it looked like something out of a luxury magazine.

‘You live there?’ I asked, raising an eyebrow.

He smiled. ‘Yes. Just turn up if you need me. The spare key’s under the doormat.’

I shook my head. ‘A water shifter has been murdered so maybe don’t tell that to all and sundry.’

His smile widened. ‘You’re not all and sundry, Beatrix Stonehaven. You’re something else, and you have a standing invitation.’

He turned and walked towards his house and I’m damned if I didn’t watch the way his jeans hugged his backside.

Irritated with myself, I swiped up to answer the call.