Bound Read Free Page B

how kind he could be, small acts that revealed more about him than he liked to admit.
    “That’s the last thing I am.” There were circles under his eyes, worry lines etched into his forehead, and he turned away, tracing a rectangle in the air. A door of flame, open to nothingness, took shape. “If the magic acts up again, call for me. You remember how?”
    “Like I could forget?” Reflexively, I touched my wrist, felt the connection that bound me to Luc, a magical reminder that my life and his would always be intertwined. “There’s more, isn’t there? This wasn’t just a social visit.”
    “There’s always more. But tonight was about me missing you. Even if the feeling ain’t mutual.”
    As he stepped closer, our connection began to hum. I held perfectly still as he brushed a finger over the snarled mass of apron strings at my waist. The air quivered as the spell curled around the knot, and he caught the apron midfall.
    “Thanks,” I said, taking the fabric from him and crumpling it in my hands.
    “Pleasure’s all mine,” he murmured, and vanished through the door.

C HAPTER 3
    O utside, the air was clear and biting, the sky tinted with the orange glow of the city lights. I buried my nose in my scarf and ran for the truck.
    “Everything okay?” Colin asked as I climbed in. “You look rattled.”
    I took a deep breath, bracing myself. For an instant, I considered not telling him, but dismissed the idea. Bad enough there was already one huge secret between us. Two seemed like a habit.
    “Luc stopped by,” I said, and watched for his reaction.
    There. A quick curling of his fingers, a muscle tightening in his jaw. When he spoke, though, his voice was unchanged. “Problem?”
    “He knew about the party. I think he was offering moral support.”
    Colin made a skeptical noise. “What did he say about Anton?”
    “I didn’t mention it. Once I tell him, he’s got an excuse to come back whenever he wants.” I curled up against him, relaxing for the first time that night. His canvas coat was rough against my cheek. “We survived the party. That’s something.”
    “You’re going to have to talk to your dad eventually,” Colin said. “You’ve got six months before you leave for New York. That’s a long time to avoid someone who lives in the same house.”
    “He’s up to something,” I said, trying to shift his attention from my college plans. “Did you hear Billy? They have to talk business? The man’s been out of prison for less than a day, and he’s already back working for the Mob.”
    “Maybe it’s about reopening The Slice,” he said. I wanted to believe him, but he didn’t sound like he believed it himself.
    The yellow beams of the headlights illuminated the half-finished shell of my mom’s restaurant. The framing was in place, plywood covering where the windows would be installed soon. A tattered sheet of weatherproofing twisted like a wraith in the night air.
    “How much longer till it’s open again?”
    “Depends on the weather. Couple months, we hope.”
    “It means a lot to my mom that you’re helping with the rebuilding. She’s kind of crazy about you.”
    “Yeah?” His eyes crinkled with amusement.
    “It might be the only thing we agree on.”
    He dipped his head, his mouth finding mine. I curled my fingers around his shoulders, pulling him closer, crowding out thoughts of my family and unexpected faces.
    Eventually he eased back, voice husky. “Time to get you home.”
    As we drove, he said, “Do you think it was Anton?”
    “I barely saw him. But if he was there, he wasn’t using magic, and that’s not really his style.”
    Inside me, the magic had settled into a soothing, pleasant hum. Whatever had riled it earlier was gone. The magic wasn’t centered in me, but I was perfectly attuned to it—every cell in my body picked up on its movements and inclinations, the way it flowed to and from the lines. Sometimes it focused its attention elsewhere, and sometimes