Her Secret Read Free

of scented candles and essential oils
where the smell was coming from. Part of that was my instinct to
first try scents I considered sexy, like musk, sandalwood, leather,
and even Danial’s particular scent, which was like spicy nutmeg and
cedar. It wasn’t until I’d given up on the candles and reached the
more unlikely named oils that I found what I was looking for:
Myrtlewood.
    I’d held the vial in my hands, knowing it was
a mistake to buy it. I wanted to so badly, desperately. So I had
taken one last smell, then reluctantly put it back. Later that day,
as we were leaving, my mother had surprised me with the vial as a
present.
    “I could see you liked it,” she said with a
smile, handing me the package. “I know they’re overpriced, but it’s
only money.”
    “Thanks,” I said, grabbing the bag in my
eagerness. “You shouldn’t have.”
    The clock chimed in the other room.
Reluctantly, I conceded it was past time for bed. I put the vial
back, pulled the bathtub’s plug, and put on pajamas. Then I stoked
the fire, loading on enough logs to last until morning. The nights
were cold now, with winter almost here.
    When I let out Darkness, my large black cat,
Cavity, was waiting on the stoop.
    “What are you doing out there?” I asked him.
“Theo must have let you out by accident. Get in here.”
    Cavity didn’t need a second invitation. He
dashed inside and curled up near the wood stove next to a sprawled
out and sleeping Jess, my black and white cat of the same age.
    I let in Darkness and then turned off the
lights, leaving one on for Theo out of affection rather than need.
He had an animal’s night vision, and could see in the dark as well
as our pets could. I smiled, thinking of the evening we’d first
met, when he’d been wearing sunglasses at night. Sure, he was
impulsive, and quick to anger. Yet he was also very easy to
love.
    As I lay in bed waiting to sleep, I thought
back over how we’d first been drawn together years ago. A shared,
magically-induced dream had started it, the catalyst a kiss. Still,
we’d remained apart, not knowing we’d each shared the dream. After
Danial and I had split months later, and he’d moved on to an old
rival of mine, Terian had admitted dosing me with a spell that made
a shared dream possible. When I’d called Theo to tell him what had
happened to us, he’d come to me. It was that same, shared dream
Terian had recreated last Spring that had called Theo back to me,
causing him to split up with Aspen. We’d married that same
morning.
    I smiled again, thinking of those few days
I’d spent with him out West. They had been uncomplicated, just him
and me, sun and sex with the mountains all around us. I wanted to
be back there now. But perhaps the reason those days had been so
good was that they hadn’t lasted long. They had taken on a golden
quality for me, as the dreams we’d shared did.
    I looked over at the dresser. The cougar Theo
had carved for me was there, in front of it the carving he had done
of me naked, my hair falling down around my body to cover me.
Though they’d been carved years apart, I always thought of them as
a two-piece sculpture, The Woman and The Cougar. Strange, I never
remembered to tell him that...
    As I eased into sleep, Theo came in. But he
didn’t speak and neither did I.
    * * * *
    The next morning passed quickly. I slept
late, then spent much of the remaining time making chili. As soon
as I began chopping up the meat, Theo appeared.
    “Chili?” he said, scenting the air. “Texas
Red?”
    “Of course,” I said, giving him a smile. “I
wanted to make you something for dinner later. Do you want
breakfast?” Glancing at the clock, I amended, “or lunch?”
    “I’ll wait for dinner,” he replied. “I’m not
that hungry.”
    This was a first. I looked at him
questioningly.
    “I had a few pounds of meat last night,” he
said, looking guilty.
    I knew what that meant. I took a slow burn,
but tried to control my anger. “Theo,