(MSRP: 1.5000)
After five years of seclusion on Earth, Lucas Black, a warlock of living legendary status, realizes he can no longer deny his daughter her heritage, and agrees to return to Leto Island for the annual Halloween Festival. What he didn’t count on, was coming face to face with Ashley Stevens, the enchanting witch who began haunting his dreams a year ago. Will Lucas accept his fate with grace this time around? Or will he return to Earth and close the door forever?
Miniature
(24 pages) Sweet
Excerpt:
Lucas frowned. He hadn’t expected this. The beautiful witch who’d haunted his dreams for the last year stood right in front of him, staring at him with clear green eyes as though she recognized him too, but it couldn’t be.
Right here? In the conscious world?
“Hello. Have we met?” He thought he was going to melt right there on the street when the lilt of her voice slid over his senses.
I’ll be…
She extended a delicate hand. Long slender fingers opened in front of him in greeting. A lock of deep auburn hair fell across her forehead as she smiled.
His heart dropped to his stomach. It was she. She was real, and she was here, in flesh and witch’s blood. But how?
His jaw tightened. “No. We haven’t met.”
“But I thought for sure…” Recognition flashed over her stunning features. Her cheekbones were strong and high, her nose was straight and small, her lips were provocatively full and luscious, and her eyes were beyond stunning. Eyes that twinkled like emeralds captivated him to the point of speechlessness. He’d thought witches with the bright green eyes of a cat were made up for mythical stories—until now.
“I…” He cleared his throat. “I said we’ve not met. Now if you will excuse me.”
He sidestepped her and prayed he could escape, but she stopped him in mid step with a voice every bit as magical as the beautiful witch who visited his dreams.
“How can you lie to me like this?” Her incredulous tone did nothing to mar her magic. “I’d know you anywhere.”
He nearly tripped, hesitated, and then kept walking. His heart rose to his throat. He wasn’t ready for this yet. He thought of Kaitra, his wife who had passed on to the afterworld five years ago, but as it had been doing so often over the last year, the image vanished into thin air and left him grasping at the shadows. He clung to the memory that remained like a drowning person would cling to a life preserver. It was time to let go, but he couldn’t. Not yet.
“Can you look in my eyes and deny you know who I am?”
Her presence alone stirred his male instincts. He felt like a traitor. It was bad enough that his unconscious thoughts were beyond his control, but the spirits of destiny added insult to injury when they hijacked his conscious thoughts as well. His jaw clenched in determination, but the woman’s charismatic demeanor was like an anchor on his emotions, plunging his control through the darkness of deep unknown waters. He was powerless to stop it.
He paused with his back to her, struggling to compose himself. How could he have known she would be present here at Leto Island for the Halloween Fest? Had he known it was probable? He cringed thinking that some part of him had wanted to meet this woman in person. No. The Festival drew witches and warlocks from many nations. He couldn’t control who came and went from the activities any more than he could have looked into the future to foresee this complication. Well, he could have. But he hadn’t, and it was his own fault.
He, a warlock of living legend status, had turned his back on his talents, every single one of them, including his ability to see the future. And now, when he could have benefited from his gifts, he was paying the price for it. If he had only known, he’d have stayed away. Or would he? His brows drew together and he cursed his weakness.
He swallowed the lump in his throat and turned to face his unwanted fate.
“I can honestly tell you, Miss, that I am unable to connect with you.”
She studied him through narrowed eyes before responding. “I think it would be more accurate to say that you are unwilling to connect with me.”
“You have no right to speak to me this way. We have nothing further to discuss.”
“Why do you feel guilty for enjoying my company in our dreams? You’ve done nothing wrong.”
He let out a small gasp. He’d been away too long. He’d forgotten to guard his thoughts, and she’d had the audacity to help herself by reading him.
“I’m not reading you deliberately,” she defended. “I don’t do that sort of thing. It’s against my morals. It’s simply fate. We’re connecting on a spiritual level that neither of us can control. You can’t fight it and neither can I.”
