Blood Witch_ Book Three - Cate Tiernan [55]
“No,” I admitted. “I hid them behind the HVAC vent. And then when I was leaving, Dad was fixing an electrical outlet in the hall and I couldn’t get to them.”
Cal gave me an amused, conspiratorial look. “Behind the HVAC vent,” he repeated, and I couldn’t help laughing with him. It was a pretty silly hiding place for a bunch of magickal tools, come to think of it.
“Oh, well, no big deal. You can show them to me tomorrow,” he said. I nodded.
“So—what do you think about my accident?” I asked.
“I don’t know,” he murmured. He shook his head. “It could have been just some jerk who was in a hurry. But if you were scared, I say you should trust your instincts—and we should start asking some questions.” His eyes seemed to harden, but then his face melted in a worried smile. “Why didn’t you tell me about this last night? And about Hunter and Sky being at your house?”
“I sent you a witch message,” I told him. “But you never came. I was wondering if Sky could have blocked it somehow.”
Cal frowned. Then he smacked his forehead. “No, that’s not it. I know exactly what it was. Mom and I did a powerful warding spell before our circle, just in case people like Sky or Hunter were trying to snoop on us. That would have blocked your message. Wow, I am so sorry, Morgan. It never occurred to me that you might try to reach me.”
“It’s okay,” I told him. “Nothing happened to me.” A shudder ran through me as I remembered my terror last night. “At least, nothing permanent.”
We got out of the car, shivering, and hurried up his front steps together.
We met Selene on her way out. She was wrapped in a black velvet cloak that swept to the ground and wore shining purple amethysts around her neck and on her ears. As always, she looked stunning.
“Good evening, my dears,” she said with a smile. A delicious scent wafted off her, giving me an impression of maturity, of richness. It made my own dab of patchouli oil seem naive and hippyish—girly, almost.
“You look beautiful,” I said sincerely.
“Thank you, Birthday Girl. So do you,” she said, pulling on black gloves. “I’m going to a party.” She shot Cal a meaningful look. “I won’t be back till quite late, so be on your best behavior.”
I felt embarrassed, but Cal laughed easily. As Selene left through the wide front door, we started to climb the stairs to his room on the third floor.
“Um, what does your mom think we might do?” I asked clumsily. My steps were muffled by the thick carpet on the stairs.
“I guess she thinks we might make love,” Cal said. Judging from his tone, it sounded like he was talking about spending the evening playing board games. He flashed a casual smile.
I nearly fell down the stairs. “Uh—would she . . . you know, be upset?” I stammered, struggling to sound calm but failing miserably. All of my friends’ parents would have a cow if they thought their kids were doing that under their own roof. Well, maybe not Jenna’s. But everyone else’s.
“No,” said Cal. “In Wicca, making love doesn’t have the same kind of stigma as it does in other religions. It’s seen as a celebration of love, of life—an acknowledgment of the God and Goddess. It’s beautiful. Something special.”
“Oh.” Blood pounded through me. I nodded, trying to look confident.
Cal closed the door behind him. Then he pulled me to him and kissed me. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there for you last night,” he breathed against my lips. “I know I’ve been really tied up with Mom’s business lately. But from now on I’m going to make sure I’m more available.”
I reached up and draped my arms around his neck. “Good,” I said.
He held me for a moment longer, then gently disengaged my arms and grabbed some matches from the nightstand by his bed. As I watched, he lit candles around his room, one by one, until there were tiny flames everywhere. The candles lined the mantel, the top of every bookcase, stood in holders on the floor; there was even an old-fashioned iron chandelier that held candles, hanging from the ceiling. When he turned off the overhead light, we found ourselves surrounded in a glowing fiery cocoon. It was dreamy, beautiful,