Witchful Thinking (Elemental Love Book 1)

by Celestine Martin

She didn’t jump into bodies of water without looking, and she, as TLC warned years ago, didn’t go chasing waterfalls.

She’d be remembered generations from now. Who’d remember Lucy?

He studied her full curves the way the first mapmakers did a map—with a sense of awe at the knowledge of a new world.

Eleven years, eight months, three weeks, and twenty-seven days. That was how long it had been since he’d touched Lucy. And he’d sworn then that it would be the last time ever.

Honor the past. Protect your own. Use your power. This was the Caraway way.

What do you want? Late-night calls. Kisses sweeter than honey. Someone that will stir my soul. Stupid inside jokes. Fun dates. Sharing hopes and fears. To feel safe and secure. A space of my own.

Too late, he thought. She is the temptation.

Lucy carved out enough space in her large bedroom, but she yearned for a true home. A place where she’d make her tea blends, have stacks of books and design magazines, and fall in love.

He lived under one rule: If you don’t keep anything, you can’t lose it.

distance between her and Alex seemed vast. It felt as if she and Alex were on opposite shores, separated by an invisible storm-tossed ocean; she couldn’t navigate the water alone, and he couldn’t cross over it to meet her.

There was an unspoken rule in the Dwyer family: Don’t keep anything that you don’t want to lose.

A silent wish whispered from her heart. Let me be the water on his skin.

Instead, he offered her a sudden, arresting smile that made her insides feel all glittery.

“You’re never an obligation. I should be lucky to be considered a candidate for your soul mate.”

The flirtatious glow in his eyes gave Lucy pause. Okay. Was he talking about erasing-your-search-history dirty or putting-your-headphones-on-because-of-the-NSFW-sounds dirty?

She might end up dragging him into her bed by the Fourth of July. There would be more than just fireworks going off if she had her way.

“You haven’t slept.” “I haven’t slept. I haven’t eaten. I don’t know if I have a bra on.” His eyes dipped down to her chest, then snapped up to her face. “I don’t know how to answer that.”

“Well, we watch baking shows and try to replicate what we see,” Poe clarified. “Even if we fail, we have a great time eating our mistakes.” “That sounds like the greatest club ever. Text me everything about it.”

“She worked so hard. She deserves to get a bid. It makes me upset to see her…upset.” He let those words linger.

Fate was rarely kind to those who loved each other in the space where the ocean met the land.

Even the happily-ever-after ending of the classic cartoon The Little Mermaid was problematic for Alex. What human was worth giving up the ocean for?

“Baby doll, ‘fine’ is just another way to say ‘feelings inside, not expressed.’”

Let me be the water on his scales.

“Lucinda.” Alex whispered her name reverently, the way you’d say a desperate spell or a heartfelt prayer. He said her name the way she whispered the wish spell. She shut her eyes and let his warmth touch a part of her that she hid away from the world. This wanting weaved within her soul and stayed there, nestled in her heart until the wish bloomed and came to life.

“I want you,” she said. “I want everything.” “You don’t have to tell me twice,” he responded.

I could stay here forever. He stilled at the observation. I want to stay here.

The promise of love brought the most powerful humans to their knees and made them willingly sacrifice their power.

You are what we’ve always wished for.

“I’ve known every ocean, lake, and river, but you’re deeper than any water I’ve leaped into—ever. It’s the waters within you that scare me.”

It was better for him to deal with the tides he knew rather than swim into the unknown.

“They’re going to think, ‘Look at this amazing woman giving everything she got. She didn’t walk away. She kept going. She gave it all she got because she has no quit in her.’”

He took her breath; she was dragged under the water, but she did not drown.

We accidentally hurt our lovers by taking them underwater for too long. We forget to let them go.

Her soul called out to him, I can’t keep you here. You have to want to stay here.

Open your heart to the possibilities of love. There are countless reasons to walk away. Find the reasons to stay.