Always Practice Safe Hex (Stay a Spell, #4)

by Juliette Cross

I’d gotten my sister Clara to give me one of her super-spells to block his powerful aura that was basically a concoction of sex-clenching, mind-buzzing lust. So far, so good.

Then, he laughed. Goddess have mercy!

I couldn’t help teasing him. Something about him made me want to poke and pull and fucking misbehave.

“During sex,” he said in that low, deep baritone of his, leaning close and giving me a whiff of his clean, masculine scent, “being in control is the only way I get off.”

Ope

I knew that I’d annoyed the fuck out of her on more than one occasion. But I also knew that when I’d slipped up and let her see my little fantasy of her tied up in my bedroom, she had a very different reaction than I’d expected. Arousal.

“Let me help.” Richard reached across the table and flipped her to the right page then patted her hand. “Right there.” He was lucky he withdrew and sat back down, because I was about to break off that fucking hand. I could do it with little effort. But then there would be an inquiry.

I love jealousy in books. 🤭

“Did you see what a misogynistic asshole he is?” When she turned to me with raised brows, I added, “He used mine and Willard’s last names properly but called you Miss Livvy. Like you’re a little girl or something.”

💜👏👏👏

“If I got angry every time a man was condescending to me with sweetie, honey, baby, or any number of belittling names to knock a woman down a peg, I’d be nothing but a ball of rage. Now let’s get back to business.” The fact that she could brush his behavior off and return to our task so easily told me two things. First, men who treated women this way were pigs and should be taken to slaughter. And second, she was more bewitching than I ever realized.

This was a bad decision, but I couldn’t fucking help myself. After I’d seen Lavinia’s text from her sister, I knew exactly where I’d be eating dinner tonight.

Without looking back at me, he rumbled low, “She makes it all better.”

🥹🥹

“We may be rivals, Lavinia. But it doesn’t make me want to fuck your brains out any less.”

“Speaking of services, are you going to let Gareth service you?” Everyone thought Clara was this sweet and innocent little thing, but underneath all the soft prettiness was a wildcat.

Even when Willard walked in with our lunch, my senses were ensnared only by her ripe arousal filling my nostrils and my lungs. I blinked slowly, savoring her scent, then thanked my ancestors for giving me heightened senses.

“Oh, Lavinia,” he purred, smoothing the lapels of my collar after finishing the last button, dark eyes glinting. Then with a lascivious smile, he opened an intimate link and messaged me mind to mind. There will most definitely be a next time.

“Are you the spiderman?” I asked, our breaths mingling, mouths inches apart. “No, Lavinia.” He shook his head then dipped closer to me. I was sure he would kiss me, but he skimmed his nose along my jaw until his lips brushed my ear. “You are,” he grated, biting my lobe. “And I’m so fucking caught in your web.”

“Mark me well, Gareth Michael,” she said, aiming one of her hard expressions at me. The one that told me she meant business. “You are worthy of love, dear boy. And you have so much of your own to give.”

That's right auntie! You tell him.

Sean moved behind the counter and leaned on both forearms. “You guys want to, uh, use the supply closet?” I snapped a wide-eyed gaze at the deviant to find him snickering at his own joke.

Hahaha. Love the reference from book 3!

Richard passed Gareth, murder in my grim’s eyes.

My grim, you say? 🤭

I could hardly handle having her so close—the woman of my dreams—imagining all the ways I wanted her in my house. Sitting at the kitchen bar while I cooked us dinner, stretching out on the sofa together watching television, playing with Queenie out in the backyard, spending night after night in my bed while I pleasured her.

“You look like a naughty waiter,” I remarked with a smile. “You look like my delicious dinner.” His dark gaze was in fact eating me up with relish.

His voice didn’t tremble or resonate with fear or shame. Steady as always, my grim.

“Actually, if I recall correctly,” Violet emphasized with dramatic flair and my stomach dipped. “She called you a cockwaffle. Or was it a twatwaffle?” she asked Charlie. My cheeks flamed. “You’re dead to me, Violet.”

“I know. I’m weird,” I admitted with a huff. He clasped my neck and drew me close. “You’re wonderful,” he breathed against my lips before placing a soft kiss there.

Handing Queenie over, I rose up and kissed him on the cheek. And goddess above, the man blushed! A swath of perfect pink crossed his cheekbones. It was lovely.

He still remained quite still, watching me with tenderness. “You are my heart, Lavinia. Without you, there is no life worth living.”

“So you’re basically breaking the grim code or laws or whatever to be with me?” “Lavinia. I’d break the whole world to be with you.”

“No, seriously. People use the word pussy to insult someone for being weak. But pussies are strong, man. They can take a pounding all night. They can squeeze out a baby the size of a watermelon. But you just graze a nut sac and a man is down. We should be saying, ‘Dude, you’re such a ball sac,’ when we want to call somebody out for being weak.”