He looked so incredibly handsome in black pants, a white shirt, and a jacket made from the same material as my dress. His sandy was cut short, allowing me full access to his gorgeously rugged face. Soon, he would be king. I had a crown made for him, but he refused to wear it. At least not until after he proposed, and we were married. "Or I could help you out of it?" His strange eyes that exactly resembled mine danced with mischief.At his words, my heart melted, and my fangs pressed against my mouth. "Do you think?" I wanted him. His lips, his blood. He already gave me his heart. He let out a joyous laugh. "My dad and your mom would never forgive us.""I guess." I held up the front of the dress so it wouldn't fall off my shoulders. "Allow me," he said, pretending to be hoity-toity and coming to stand behind me, pulling on the laces. I stuck out my tongue but quickly drew it back in my mouth. Dorian's playfulness was gone, his eyes trained on my naked back. He caressed me tenderly, o
Happily ever after was never something I believed would be possible - not for me. Yet I was given exactly that. As I lay in my bed, listening to Dorian's deep breathing, I admired our bedroom in the castle. It was large and decorated in the most beautiful linens in shades of gold, white, and cream. Thick, soft drapes hung from the windows, keeping out the morning light surely blazing against them, and a sparkling chandelier hung in the middle of the ceiling. There was a fireplace to the left where a loveseat, chairs, and a coffee table were situated. To the right was the entrance to our walk-in closet and beside that, our bathroom. It was beyond comfortable. Royal, in fact. But also homey. Jasmine's bedroom was next to ours. How I loved her. She was the most amazing child. A year ago, she grew out of her crib, and we moved her into a toddler bed. But as I gazed on the man lying next to me - the man of my dreams - I was awed by my good luck. Dorian. My gorgeous husband and my best fr
After Jasmine, Dorian, and I had breakfast, I headed down to the conference area. There was a big meeting with all of the supernaturals, where we discussed whose realm would be created next. Once that was finished, Coco came by my office. As the headmistress of the Academy, she was in charge of everything, but she asked that I speak with one of my vampires, a young worker vampire who changed just before I defeated Sharra. The council, which included Professor Pops, Heathcliff, Cindy, Coco, and I, agreed to let Valencia attend the Seven Magics Academy. I thought it was going well, but apparently, the girl enjoyed starting fights.She was a beautiful young woman with dark hair, light brown skin, and brown eyes. Her navy jacket was unbuttoned, revealing her white shirt underneath. There was blood on the collar, and I sighed. At the moment, she was seated in the chair opposite my desk, her head down, and her hands in her lap. "Am I to understand you picked a fight with a witch and an el
We made our way out of the castle. Once we were outside the gates, we walked through the apple orchard. I plucked an apple off a tree and brought it to my nose. It still surprised me that its fragrance was blood. I knew it would taste like blood as well. I bit into it, enjoying the flavor.Dorian also picked an apple. He took a few bites."What does yours taste like?" I asked, curious.He lifted an eyebrow. "Like an apple, of course." He winked."It does?""Yes, my love, it tastes like a sweet and juicy apple.""If you say so." But I knew that was the magic of Sharra. All foods tasted like what you desired most.He leaned in and kissed me. As we strolled through the grove, I admired the blossoms floating along with the breeze. Dorian caught one, clutched it between his thumb and first finger, spun it, and then turned and stuck it behind my ear."Beautiful." He stroked my cheek.I loved that he could make me forget I was the vampire queen. With him, I was a woman in love with a totally
There were two other crewmembers on the twinkling flat-bottomed vessel. They went to work, pushing us away from the dock until a circular paddle smacked the water at the rear, pushing us forward.It was nearly dark. Insects came out and played us their songs. Night pixies, their iridescent wings changing colors in the moonlight, fluttered along the water's edge. When they saw us, they flitted forward. I could hear their giggling and whispering. But before they reached us, they stopped and turned back. They no longer giggled. In fact, I sensed apprehension. Something spooked them.I tried to remind myself I was the scariest thing in Sharra. None could hurt or defeat me. Plus, I had Dorian. He seemed to sense my trepidation and pulled me against his chest, wrapping his arms around my waist. "Isn't it beautiful?"I swallowed, forcing down the strange feeling in my gut. "Yes, it's exqui - "The boat smacked against something hard. My body tried to lurch forward, but Dorian held me fast."
"Cindy Croswell, will you - " Gabe, the angelic chayot leader and my boyfriend studied me, his glorious features a painting of perfection."What?" I asked, glancing at Pops nervously before focusing on Gabe. My heart picked up speed. Was he going to ask me to marry him right here? Right now? In an alley full of smelly trash and debris.His hands circled my arms, and he pulled me to the side. "Will you move out of the way? You're blocking my view of the street." He gave me a grim smile. "Oh." My heart sank. How had my thoughts gone to marriage? I clucked my tongue and clenched my fists together. "Sure." The town of Salem, Massachusetts, was quiet, which was unusual for a Saturday morning. Typically people were shopping in the market or children played in the park. It could be that it was before seven in the morning, and none of the shops were open. Plus, Pops, Gabe, and I were in the alleyway behind several stores. The backs of the tall, brick buildings lined one side. Green trash
If the world was created with a bang, then magic began in a whisper. The utterance of one word: Bloomous, that single declaration, articulated softly, started it all. Bloomous.I thought about that as I considered the lesson I was preparing for next week's classes. The ideas brought back memories, some recent, others happened years ago. While many weren't good, I was grateful for them anyway because they made me step up and become the witch I was today. And in my opinion, I was pretty damn awesome. The lights flickered, and I searched the room. It was large with reformatory cells along the far wall. Desks covered in various magical items were placed in the middle of the room. The door resided on the other side. Wide and arched at the top, it was made of wood with a black wrought iron handle. Shelves lined either side of the entrance and were filled with dusty old books interspersed with old boxes and ancient-looking artifacts. On the two short walls stood an enchanted sentry.
I ignored Sera and went back to my lessons. Monday would be the first day of the new year at the academy. Even with Sera yelling like a crazy person, I couldn't stifle my excitement. I always looked forward to the opening ceremony. Abernathy presented me with an orb, which allowed me to see which house the new students belonged in. Sometimes I wondered whether I should use the orb on myself to discover which house I belonged to, but I was too chicken. In A Study on Charms, I would teach the class how to select an object suitable for a magical charm. It was a serious process choosing and preparing a charm before it was altered with magic. Charms worked best when paired with the person's magic, and that's why we had the opening ceremony. A student with fairy ancestry would have better luck creating emotional charms, like love, while a witch with troll magic would excel at offensive or defensive charms. Witches with elven magic could produce amazing luck charms. Of course, my st