Hot Magic (41 page)

Julie and Dorie looked at each other. “Giant squirrels?” Julie asked.

“Or whatever. The leaves in that old oak tree in Harrison’s yard are shaking like some really big squirrels are up there.”

Julie dropped her pillow and vaulted over the bed to the bedroom window. “Did you see any shoes? Wingtips?”

Tash looked at Dorie for help. Dorie just shrugged. “Mom. Squirrels don’t wear wingtips. Nobody wears wingtips any more.”
 

Julie sank back against the windowsill. “I don’t see anything.”

“Mom! Get a grip. Come on downstairs and I’ll get you a cup of tea. Or some anti-psychotic medication. Maybe both.”

Tash was right. She needed to go downstairs. Julie gave her a quick hug and ran down the steps, past her mother sitting in the living room and out the front door. She didn’t stop until she stood beneath the huge oak, looking up into the canopy of bright yellow leaves. “Harry?” she called breathlessly.

Silence.

“Bas?”

Nothing but the sound of rustling leaves. She squinted, and saw two squirrels, normal sized and shoeless, running along one of the upper branches.

 
Julie pivoted and ran for Harry’s side door. She knocked so hard her knuckles hurt. When no one answered, she peered through the glass window in the door, but the house looked dark and deserted. Her chest felt hollow, her whole body felt hollow as she turned and slowly walked home.

“Where were you off to in such a hurry?” Jean asked as she entered the living room.

“Mom’s looking for squirrels in wingtips,” Tash said as she and Dorie came down the stairs.

Jean gave Julie an interested look. “Really? I prefer my squirrels in running shoes.”

Julie sat down across from her mother. “I want to talk to Harry.”

Jean smiled. “It’s about time. If you want to talk to him, mind touch with him.”

“You’re right. That’s the easiest way. I will.”

Three pairs of eyes looked at her expectantly.

“When I’m alone.” For some reason, she felt nervous about communicating in such an intimate way with Harry while everyone watched.

“Do it soon, Julie. James and Robert are popping in from Chicago tonight to meet you. I don’t want you distracted.”

“Robert and James?”
 

“Two brothers from a very nice Dancer family. Their mom is in the Gay Grays with me. I told them to come in costume because I knew you’d be over at Cindy Lui’s party.”

Julie looked at Dorie.

“You’ll have fun.” Dorie grinned, unrepentant.

“Just remember,” Jean cautioned, “tonight is a blue moon. The very air seethes with power. Very strange things have been known to happen when a blue moon is in the sky.”

J
ulie stood under a maple tree in Cindy Lui’s backyard. Knights, monsters, aliens and ex-presidents bobbed in and out of the shadows caused by the full moon and a string of pumpkin lights attached to Cindy’s deck. Julie tried one more time to reach Harry via mind touch and sighed when she met with a blank wall. So much for the blood-bond giving her special access to Harry. Where the heck was he?
 

“You’re so gorgeous I could go ape over you.” The growled compliment came from behind her.

Julie swung around to see King Kong step from behind the tree.

“How many times have you used that line tonight?” Julie asked dryly. Impossible to tell if she knew the person under all that hair and plastic.

The man laughed and reached up to take off his ape head. Twinkling, brown eyes and damp, dark hair were revealed. “I’ve been reserving it for a true beauty. You must be Julie Dancer.”
 

Julie gave him a polite half-smile. “Do I know you?”

“No, but you will. Your mother showed me your picture. I’m James Morris.”

James, one of the Dancers her mother wanted to set her up with. She looked at the attractive man and stepped backward, almost tripping over her long, white skirt. This felt wrong, like cheating on Harry.
 

James’s friendly smile faltered, and she gave herself a mental shake. She and Harry had agreed to separate. She wasn’t doing anything wrong.
 

It took an effort of will to stretch her hand out to the man. “Hello. It’s nice to meet you.”

He reached for her hand and grimaced when he noticed his furry paw. He took off the ape mittens, dropped them to the ground and warmly grasped her hand. “And I’m very, very pleased to meet you.” His voice deepened. “Has anyone ever told you that you look like an angel?”

She wiggled one of her white-feathered wings at him, discreetly trying to pull her hand out of his. “As a matter of fact, yes.”

“I bet you could take me to Heaven.” His lips curved in a boyish grin.

The man had more lines than a Tolstoy novel. “I don’t know about that, but I can definitely take you to Hell.”

James frowned. Then his good-natured face beamed a smile, as if she were joking. He stepped closer, still holding her hand firmly. He jerked when a crack of thunder shook the air directly above them.

Julie quickly reclaimed her hand and looked up at the star-studded sky.
 

“That’s odd.” James shrugged and reached for her elbow. “Maybe we should head inside and find a drink.”

The moment he touched her, a bolt of lightning arced through the sky and struck the ground at his feet. Several people screamed. James jumped backwards and fell in a hairy heap. The back of Julie’s neck tingled at the electric power charging the air.

Cindy Lui, sleek in her Catwoman costume, appeared in front of them. She helped James to his paws. “Are you okay?”

He rubbed his head. “I think so. That was too close.”

“We all better go inside until this lightning storm passes.” Cindy raised her voice and began to direct the crowd toward her patio doors. She looked pale, shaken by James’s near miss.

James turned to Julie, and she waved him toward the house. “I’ll follow in a minute.”

“You shouldn’t stay out here,” he argued.

“Go,” she ordered. He walked toward the house without another word.
 

When she was alone in the yard, she turned back toward the tree. Harry leaned against the trunk, ankles crossed, his white shirt gleaming in the shadows, blond hair messed as if he’d been running his hand through it.

“He’s an ass,” Harry observed in a mild tone of voice.

“Actually, he’s supposed to be King Kong.” Her heart beat too quickly. “You could have hurt him.”

“Yes. I could have. I have excellent aim with lightning.” His lip curved in a decidedly unsettling way. “If he had touched you one more time, he would have been Queen Kong.”

“Ha-ha.” Her throat closed on her attempt to lighten the atmosphere. He regarded her silently. She took a step toward him, trying to see his face. He obliged her by turning his head slightly so the faint glow from a pumpkin light caught his cheek and brow. Deadly anger glittered from his eyes.
 

“Are you upset with me?” Her voice went an octave higher in surprise.

“No. Definitely not. Upset is too bland a term.”
 

She paused, waiting for him to elaborate. He didn’t seem in a big hurry to speak. She cleared her throat, more intimidated than she would have admitted. Power seemed to crackle around him. “I know this is an awkward situation, Harry, but how am I supposed to find someone else to bond with if you emasculate the possible candidates?”

He folded his arms across his chest. His eyelids lowered, partially shielding his expression. “That’s an excellent question.”

“Thank you. And the answer is?”

“Obvious. You don’t.”

“Harry.” Suddenly his behavior made sense. “You’re worried I might be the One from the prophecies, aren’t you? You’re determined to stay bonded with me to ensure I don’t cause chaos and tear the Triad apart.” He would do anything to preserve the balance, to preserve the Triad.

Harry’s arms dropped to his side, and he straightened. “You think I want to remain bonded with you because I’m a bloody hero?” He laughed, a short, bitter sound. “I’m not a hero. I’m a selfish bastard. I know you’re not the one in the prophecy.”
 

“How do you know I’m not?”

“Because I know who is,” he said, impatient. “Why did you leave the Council room so suddenly?”

“There was nothing to stay for.” And she didn’t want him to see her cry.

He stiffened. “My mistake then.”

She searched his face. “Why are you so upset? You want to break the bond. I forced it on you. I’m a liability.”

“You’re fucking blind.” He rubbed a hand across his eyes. “I told the Council I won’t break the bond. They removed me from my position as Balance.”

Her brain took several seconds to process his words. “You did what? No! The Triad needs you. You need the Triad.”

“I need you.” He took a step forward. “What I don’t know is if you want me.” He studied her, face impassive. “You called me family. You told me I was yours to cherish and protect. Then you left me.”

“I thought the best way to cherish and protect you was to leave.” She whispered the words, her throat tight.

He moved, framing her face with his hands. “Understand this. Marguerite’s curse was my blessing. It brought me to you. Before I met you, I was damned near empty. Aside from my friendship with Bas, being Balance was all I had, all I knew. Now I have you—and with you comes Tasha, your mother, Dorie, a whole host of demons and who knows what else. You fill me, Julie. You take away the empty spaces.” His jaw firmed. “Tell me what I need to do to make you stay with me.”
 

Her legs started shaking. “I don’t want to screw up your life.”

“Then don’t. Stay with me.”
 

She tried to say something but her tongue wouldn’t work. The flash of vulnerability in Harry’s eyes released her voice.

“Shhh.” She put a finger against his lips when he started to speak. “You had me at ‘you’re fucking blind.’”
 
She didn’t just say that, did she?

He gripped her hand and held it against his chest. “I probably should have just said hello.”

Wait a minute. “You’ve seen
Jerry Maguire
?”
 

 
“Tom Cruise, Renee Zellweger. I liked her better in
Bridget Jones’s Diary
.”

“You saw
Bridget Jones’s Diary
?” She couldn’t quite picture Harry at a chick flick.

 
“Tasha let me borrow your DVD collection while you were in custody awaiting the Council judgment.” He didn’t meet her eyes. “Watching your favorite movies made me feel connected to you, closer to you.”

He’d watched chick flicks to feel closer to her. Oh. My. God. “You love me.”

“Of course. That is not the issue under discussion.” He spoke calmly, but beneath her hand, his heart pounded.

“There
is
one thing that you need to do if you want me to stay with you.” She met his gaze, her face serious.

An eyebrow arched. He watched her intently.

She went up on tiptoe and spoke against his ear. “Just breathe.”

As she said the last word and brushed her mouth against his ear, his hand cupped the back of her head, positioning her with gentle force so that her lips covered his. His kiss effectively kept them both from breathing. Okay, so maybe he didn’t need to do anything to make her stay with him. Heat exploded inside her—tiny, internal fireworks. The taste of him loosened her muscles and pleasure spilled into every cell. Harry. Finally, the world felt right.

The next moment she was in her house. In her bedroom. On her bed. Flat on her back. Naked.

Harry, also naked, crouched over her, knees on either side of her hips. His hands began a slow, firm journey from her waist up her ribcage. She groaned as his fingers moved to cover her breasts. His palms brushed her nipples in an intoxicating rhythm. Her body arched into him.

A brief knock sounded on the door. “I’m coming in!”

“Mom!” Julie yelped, pulling Harry down on top of her. “Go away!”

“Dorie thought you’d be in here! Honey, the comforter on that bed wasn’t cheap.” The door cracked open and an arm appeared. Jean tossed a large, shiny silver blanket across the room to them. Harry managed to snag it and drape it over his back in one smooth motion, covering them both.

“Use that to sleep on,” Jean said, her head briefly appearing. “It’s made of a special fire-retardant material. Should keep the smoke detectors from going off all night.” She winked and ducked back out. “The Balance is almost as hot as Paul Newman,” she commented to someone, hopefully not Tasha, as she shut the door.
 

Julie groaned. “Welcome to the family.”
 

Harry lowered his forehead against hers. Laughter rumbled in his chest. “I’ll have to remember to lock the doors.”

 
She smiled, and then cupped his cheek. “Harry, about the Council, what will happen, who will take over?”

The laughter stilled and then he gave a small shrug and lowered his head to rest his cheek against her breasts. “There are several people who could serve as interim Balance. That will be decided by the Council in the next months. Regardless of who leads, the Triad needs to rebuild and remember its mission. I intend to be a part of the process, though I don’t know yet what my role will be.”