Spells Trouble, Kristin Cast [books to read in a lifetime .TXT] 📗

Mercy’s head found his shoulder. He pulled her closer to him while she stared up at the ceiling and tried to slow her breathing and sift through her tumultuous thoughts.

Kirk kissed her damp forehead. “You were amazing.”

“Um, thanks.” Mercy spoke softly. Her body was still humming with the aftermath of pleasure, but as passion faded the real world rushed in to take its place. Freya, what did I just do?

“Seriously. A-maz-ing.” Kirk laughed joyously. “Like, you blew my mind!” His fingers traced up and down the side of her neck.

Mercy had no idea why, but she had a sudden urge to pull away from him. Instead, she forced herself to be calm and turned her head to stare at Kirk’s handsome profile. His face was still flushed. His full lips were lifted at the corners in a satisfied smile. He obviously didn’t have a worry in the world. But Mercy’s world, full of sadness and worry and loss, had come flooding back. Reality washed away the last of her pleasure and she felt utterly empty, numb—like she hadn’t just given Kirk a blowjob and had several earth-shattering orgasms herself. Someone else had done that—someone who had tried to hide from reality, to exchange grief for lust.

It hadn’t worked.

Mercy lifted herself up on her elbow. She needed to talk to Kirk—to explain to him how confused she felt—that what had just happened between them had more to do with loneliness and confusion than sex. But before she could speak she heard through her open bedroom window a car’s tires on their gravel driveway and then voices floated up with the breeze. “Oh, bloody, buggering hell!!” Mercy rushed to the window. “Sodding wanker! It’s Jax and Hunter!”

When she turned back to Kirk he was still lying on the bed smiling at her. She hurried back to him, throwing his shirt at him before she yanked on her dress.

“Hey, what’s the big deal? Hunter’s not your mom.”

Mercy just stared at him until he wiped a hand across his face as he realized what he’d just said. “Oh, shit. I’m sorry. That was stupid of me.”

Mercy grabbed a brush from her vanity and attacked her hair. “It’s okay. I know what you meant. Kirk, I don’t want Hunter to know about this. Not right now.”

Kirk looked up at her as he tucked in his shirt and zipped his jeans. “Are you sorry about what we just did?”

Mercy went to him and touched his shoulder as she avoided the honest answer there wasn’t time for her to give. “Now isn’t a good time. Mom died. Things are not normal. I—I don’t know how Hunter would take this. I don’t want her to think that I’ve forgotten about Mom—that I don’t really care she’s gone.”

“Okay, yeah, I get it. Hey, she already doesn’t like me much and this isn’t gonna help that.”

“H appreciates that you’ve been here for me—for us. The more you’re around the more she’ll like you.” She draped her arms over his shoulders and attempted to sound normal. “I mean, how could she not like you?”

He waggled his eyebrows. “Seriously.” He cupped her butt cheek and squeezed. “Hey, if your sister and Jax are back that means I gotta get to practice. Crap! I didn’t realize it was that late. Being with a goddess definitely messed with my sense of time. Good thing Jax is here. Mom dropped me off, and I can bum a ride from him.” But Kirk didn’t move except to bend and kiss her passionately.

Mercy let herself relax into his arms. Kirk loves me, she reminded herself.

Hand in hand they hurried down the stairs. Mercy stepped into his arms one more time as they kissed slowly again. She did feel closer to him than she’d ever felt to any guy. And I love that closeness—that specialness that only the two of us share, Mercy told herself sternly. Then why do I feel so empty? The question hovered in her mind and Mercy shoved it aside.

Kirk was still kissing her when the sound of a car door slamming made her break the embrace and push him playfully out the door.

He backed onto the porch and mouthed I love you, goddess! before he turned to leap down the stairs.

Mercy closed the door and sighed as she leaned against it. What is wrong with me? If Abigail were here she’d understand. Mom would help me figure this out. If Abigail were here it wouldn’t have happened, Mercy thought, though she didn’t speak the words. She felt strange, like a rubber band that had been stretched too far. Mercy shook herself and spoke the rest of her thoughts to the quiet house. “I need to eat something to ground myself. That’s all. And I have to believe it’s all going to be okay. Hunter and I can save the trees, Emily is going to be herself again, and Kirk Whitfield finally said he loves me.” Resolutely, Mercy headed to the kitchen as she repeated, “That’s right. My Kirk loves me!”

Seventeen

At this time of year, when the sun camped out in the sky and gentle rains spilled from the clouds, it was easy for World of Blooms, Champaign’s largest nursery, to live up to its name. The candied scents of honeysuckle and lavender reached Hunter before she and Jax had even made it to the entrance. She inhaled and let the summertime smells pull her from the nearly empty parking lot, through the nursery’s sliding double doors, past the array of pots and seed packs, garden sculptures and indoor plants to the information booth set up outside the main building’s back entrance. The QS INTO AS hut looked like it belonged on the beach, complete with thatched straw roof, colorful orchid-shaped lights tacked up around the bar, and sun-streaked blond attendant.

Jax ran his hand through his earth brown hair, turning his textured fringe into a messy pompadour before he smoothed down the front of his T-shirt and flicked