Legacy of Magic

by Denise Carbo

  Sam laughed and stepped forward to slap Finn on the shoulder. “Good to see you, son. Bout time you decided to visit.”

  Cory approached slowly, giving the two men a minute to greet one another in privacy. Finn held out his hand to her and smiled. “This is Cory. Cory, this is Sam Barnes. He fancies himself a mechanic.”

  Sam grinned and grasped Cory’s hand. “It’s an absolute pleasure to meet you, Cory.”

  “You too.”

  Finn suddenly disappeared, and Cory swung around to see him pick up a petite woman with dark hair streaked with silver and spin her around. A startled shriek escaped the woman. “Finnegan D’Orsey, you put me down this instant. You’re going to give me a heart attack.”

  Sam laughed. The woman smacked Finn on the arm, and he put her down with a laugh. She then hugged him close and lightly smacked him again. “Where are your manners. Introduce me to your lovely woman.”

  Finn took her arm and escorted her over to Cory. “Cory, this is Sally.”

  Sally grasped Cory’s hand with both of hers. “When Finn said he was bringing you to meet us, I was so happy I danced a jig around the kitchen. He’s never introduced us to a woman he was dating before.”

  Cory peeked at Finn waiting for him to correct Sally’s interpretation, but he ignored the description and addressed Sam.

  “Show me what you’ve done to her.”

  Finn looked at Cory. “Sam owns a ‘69 ZL1 Camaro.”

  “Oh, that’s nice.”

  Sally laughed and looped her arm around Cory’s. “Come dear. While the boys go make goo goo eyes at an overpriced piece of machinery, you and I can have some ice tea and get to know one another.”

  “All right, Sally, I’d really love to look at your gardens. I was admiring them as we arrived. They’re wonderful.”

  “Oh, thank you. We can go make goo goo eyes at my gardens then.”

  A few hours later they were all sitting in the sunroom after having a delicious and filling lunch. Finn twined their fingers together as he listened to Sam and Sally reminiscing about the time Sam and Finn had found the Camaro at an auction. Sam had purchased it and Finn had helped him refurbish it.

  Cory relaxed back against the couch cushion. Her mind drifted, and their voices faded as the sleepless night of the night before caught up with her.

  Her eyes drifted shut, and her head slipped down to rest on Finn’s shoulder. The tension radiating from her this morning was gone. As the day had progressed, she had relaxed and smiled often, as he had hoped. He glanced over to Sam and Sally. They watched him with smiles on their faces.

  The conclusions they were drawing were clearly etched in their expressions. It didn’t surprise him. What did surprise him was, he didn’t seem to mind at all.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  “Again.”

  Cory’s body ached, her mind was mush, but she took a deep breath and gathered her power. It built like a ball of energy in her core. She sent it blasting outward toward Sebastian who stood about twenty feet away.

  With a wave of his hand, he deflected it easily and sent a shot back at her.

  Throwing up her hands she tried to deflect it, but it barreled past her attempt and slammed into her, knocking her to the ground.

  She lay there, gasping for breath.

  “Again.”

  Screw You!

  The words screamed in her mind, but she didn’t have the breath or the energy to utter them out loud.

  Swift steps approached. She slanted open her eyes. Sebastian loomed over her. Not a single blond hair was out of place. His polo shirt and pants weren’t askewed in the least. Damn him. He looked like he was out for a casual stroll, rather than having taken part in a magic battle for the past few hours.

  Meanwhile, her shorts and shirt were irrevocably grass and dirt stained. She was sure bruises were forming all over her body. She felt like she had gone head to head with a heavy weight boxer and lost.

  “If it’s your intention to blast me into unconsciousness, you’re just about there.”

  “My intention, Coralea, is to prepare you for the coming battle. This is nothing compared to what you will face. Now either get up and try again, or give up, and I’ll escort you to my father. Your choice.”

  He sauntered away. She clenched her fists into the grass beneath her and squeezed her eyes shut. She was sick and tired of him threatening her with that option.

  A thump and a curse shot her eyes open.

  Sebastian lay face down on the ground. Blades of grass wrapped around his ankles. More shot up over his arms and legs trying to keep him down.

  He yanked his arms free and tore the shackles of grass from his ankles.

  Cory scrambled to stand and prepared for his retaliation.

  He slowly stood and glanced at her as he brushed the remaining blades of grass from his body. “Better, but you need to follow through. Don’t stand there waiting for a response. If you manage to get your opponent down, keep them down.”

  Yeah, I would if I had any idea how I did that in the first place.

  ****

  “What the fuck?” Finn watched Cory exit Sebastian’s Mercedes. She stiffly walked up the stairs and into the house without a backward glance. He supposed he should be thankful she didn’t give the wanker a kiss goodnight. The urge to walk over and punch him in the face rose inside him, but he was already backing out of the driveway.

  A tug on the leash diverted his attention away from the disappearing tail lights. Bat had rolled over on his back, wrapping the leash around himself and was busy chewing on it. Finn squatted down and extricated the puppy, rubbing his belly in the process.

  “Silly pup.”

  He scooped up the puppy and headed into the house. He set Bat down on the floor and watched him attack one of his chew toys for a moment. He’d guessed Sebastian was more her type from the beginning. He shouldn’t be surprised to be proven right.

  A swipe of his hand knocked the plastic thermos from the counter and sent it flying across the kitchen bouncing off the wall and onto the floor.

  Bat barreled out of the room disappearing around the corner and down the hallway.

  Finn rubbed both his hands over his face, and then stooped to pick up the thermos and put it in the sink. He rested his hands on the edge of the sink and hung his head.

  Why the hell was he so pissed off?

  It’s not like they had any promises between them. They were both free to see other people. In fact, that blonde little number from the diner had been after him for a while. She’d written her number on his receipt the other day and told him to give her a call.

  He walked down the hall to his bedroom to look through the receipts he’d tossed on his dresser when he emptied his jean pockets. The small stack of crumbled papers was interspersed with loose change. After finding the receipt in the pile, he yanked out his cell to dial the number.

  Tossing his cell phone on the dresser, he walked over to the window and stared up at Cory’s window. His interest didn’t lie with the blonde, or anyone else but a certain blue-eyed siren.

  He dropped down on his bed and folded his arms beneath his head, staring up at the ceiling. What the hell was he going to do about it?

  Things had been progressing nicely, maybe a tad slower than he’d like. He really wanted to get her back in his bed. One spectacular night was not enough to cure this craving he had for her.

  Screw this!

  Finn stood up and stalked down the hall and out his front door. Bat barreled around the corner as he was shutting the door, so he bent and scooped him up into his arms.

  Leaving him home and unattended was never a good idea. He jogged up the front steps and onto the porch of Addy’s house. Bat started squirming as Finn knocked on the door.

  He glanced down at the wriggling black ball of fur. “Sorry buddy, but we left your leash at home, and you’ve proven you can’t be trusted.” The puppy stopped moving and guilelessly stared up at him.

  The door opened, and bot
h Finn and Bat turned to look.

  Cory stood in the doorway with a soft smile on her face. She’d obviously just come from the shower. Her wet hair was fashioned into a braid, her face scrubbed clean.

  “We need to talk, princess.”

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Cory focused on Bat, petting and cooing at him, giving herself a moment to think about Finn’s words. They sounded a bit ominous. She couldn’t handle any more doom and gloom today. She needed a little positivity.

  “What about?”

  Finn peered past her into the house. “Where’s Addy?”

  Cory frowned. “Uh, she’s playing bridge at a friends’ house. Why?” Was something wrong with her aunt?

  “Good, that means you’re free for dinner. Come on.” Finn grabbed her hand and started tugging her out the door.

  She dug in her heels and yanked back after stepping down to the porch. “Finn, wait.”

  Finn looked at her over his shoulder. “What’s the problem, princess?”

  “Well for one, I don’t have any shoes on.”

  “Here, hold Bat.” He dumped the puppy into her arms, and she had no choice but to wrap both arms around him as he started squirming all about and licking her cheek. The click of the front door sounded behind her as he closed it.

  The world tilted as Finn lifted her into his arms.

  “Finn! Put me down! What are you doing?”

  “You were worried about no shoes, problem solved.” He stalked down the stairs and started across the lawn.

  “This is ridiculous. I could’ve simply gotten my shoes. And, what makes you think I want to have dinner with you? You didn’t even ask. I could have plans.”

  He carried her up his front steps and set her down to open the door. He gazed back at her. “Will you have dinner with me, princess?”

  Cory sighed and resisted the urge to stamp her foot. She had planned to have a quiet night going over the research Mel had sent her and her own notes while wallowing in self-pity over today’s failure in training with Sebastian.

  She glanced back at her aunt’s house and then at Finn staring at her, waiting for her decision. Bat yipped, and she looked down at him in her arms. His little black body wiggled in delight, and he stared back at her as if he too were waiting for her decision.

  Marching past Finn into the house, she mumbled, “You better be able to cook.”

  “I can cook well enough.”

  His presence loomed behind her as she walked into his living room. Although she’d been here once before, she hadn’t paid attention to any details beyond the general layout of the house that night.

  Bat squirmed to get down, and she lowered him to the floor while scanning her surroundings. Black leather sectional, huge flat screen television, recliner, magazines on the coffee table, along with an empty beer bottle. A bachelor’s pad to be sure.

  The hallway to the right led to his bedroom she recalled, and she had vague impressions of a couple other doorways. An archway opened off the living room. She wandered over to it and peeked into the kitchen. Oak cabinets, stainless steel appliances, and granite countertops. It looked like it had been renovated recently.

  “Inspection meet your standards, princess?”

  He stood a few feet away with his hands on his hips. Bat played at his feet.

  “My only real requirement, if you’re going to cook me a meal in it, is that it’s clean. But, I do like your cabinets. Did you redo the kitchen when you purchased the house, or was it already done?”

  Finn walked past her into the kitchen and opened the refrigerator. “I redid it when I bought the place. I don’t think anything had been touched since it was built in the sixties. Renovated the bathrooms too. Refinished the floors, added central air, and I had to have the wiring updated.”

  Cold air drifted from the ceiling vent above her. “I highly approve of the air conditioning.”

  He gave her a half smile while he set a couple of steaks on the counter. “Want something to drink?”

  “Actually, I’d love one of those beers, if you have another?” Her chin jerked in the direction of the empty bottle in the living room.

  Finn grabbed a couple of bottles from the fridge and opened one before handing it to her.

  “Thanks.”

  “We’re having steak and potatoes.”

  “Okay, anything I can do to help?”

  “Naw. I’m going to throw them all on the grill. Feel free to check out the rest of the house, or take a seat, whichever you want.”

  She watched him seasoning the meat for a moment as she took a sip of the ice-cold beer. At first, when he had said they needed to talk she had anticipated unpleasantness. But then when he had invited or rather demanded she come to dinner, she thought dinner was what he had meant. Watching his stiff back as he wrapped the potatoes in aluminum foil, however, she began to think the talk was still to come.

  Turning around, she walked down the short hallway and peeked in the open doorways. First on the right, was a standard three-piece bathroom with white fixtures and black and white floor tile. Next, was the spare bedroom, sparsely decorated with a full-size bed and dresser with a desk overflowing with papers and a computer. The master bedroom took up the left side of the house. She stepped into the room. An open door on the left led to a master bathroom with a large marble tiled walk in shower.

  “It used to be a three-bedroom house with just the one bathroom. I combined the two bedrooms on this side into the master suite.”

  She glanced around at the sound of his voice to find him leaning against the door jam.

  “Dinner will be awhile. Steaks won’t take long once I put them on the grill, but the potatoes need more time.”

  “Okay. You did a really impressive job with the house.”

  His gaze remained on her as he took a drink from his bottle of beer. She watched his dark throat move as he swallowed and followed the tan skin down the V-neck of his black shirt with her gaze.

  He set the bottle down on his dresser and sauntered over to her. Taking the bottle from her hand, he set that one down as well, before cupping her face in his hands and staring into her eyes.

  “Do you know how beautiful you are?”

  Cory swallowed and blinked back the sudden wetness in her eyes. She placed her hands on his chest and stretched up on her toes to reach his full lips.

  As soon as their lips met, Finn dropped his hands from her face and grasped her waist dragging her body toward him. His tongue sought entrance, and she opened to him. The desire between them exploded.

  The silkiness of his black hair caressed her fingers as she slid her hands up to delve into the strands at the back of his neck.

  His warm hands slipped beneath her top to explore and massage her back.

  Heat and need spread through her body.

  Clasping the back of his head, she arched her body into the hard planes of his. Finn’s hands slid down to squeeze the cheeks of her ass and fit her against him.

  Cory gasped as his mouth left hers to make a hot trail down her neck.

  His hands skimmed along her abdomen, and grasped her shirt raising it up and over head. His mouth instantly returned to explore the exposed skin.

  The clasp on her bra gave way as he unhooked it and tugged the straps down her arms to dispose of the garment in his way.

  He wasted no time. His hands shaped and lifted her breast to the eager warmth of his mouth.

  Cory clutched his head to her, as her eyes closed in bliss.

  His hands dropped away briefly before sliding beneath her knees and shoulders to pick her up and carry her to the bed. He captured her mouth once again as he lowered her to the cool, soft sheets of the unmade bed.

  Goosebumps rose on her flesh when he trailed the backs of his fingers down her torso. Then Finn unbuttoned her shorts and slowly lowered them and her panties down her legs. His mouth followed the path down and back up the opposite leg.

  Cory sat up and grabbed hold of his shirt yanking it up his
back. He sat up to take it off, and then stood and removed the remainder of his clothing.

  Her gaze trailed from top to bottom, admiring his entire length.

  He grabbed a condom from his nightstand drawer and tossed it on the bed before lying on his side next to her. Finn kissed her deeply while letting his hands incite pleasure along all her nerve endings.

  Her hands roamed over his back and down to trail along his hardness. His pleasure filled groan encouraged her, as she stroked and cupped him, learning what pleased him.

  “Slow down, princess, or this will be over before it begins.” He held her hand still between them as he panted softly.

  “Can’t,” Cory whispered back as she captured his mouth with hers.

  A short pleasure filled groan escaped him when his fingers discovered just how ready she was.

  She panted against his shoulder as he delved deep before ripping open the package and donning the condom. Opening for him as he rose above her, she stared up into his eyes.

  He entered her slowly, completely. His gaze never left hers. Cory’s eyes slid closed in surrender, and her head arched back into the bed.

  Finn lowered over her, and his movements increased in depth and speed. His lips burned a path across her shoulder and up her neck before possessing her lips in a drugging kiss.

  A hot ball of pleasure burst inside her, radiating out from her core. Her body clenched in ecstasy. Finding his release, Finn clutched her against him.

  Their racing hearts beat in rhythm. Sweat dampened skin started to cool while they lay in silence in each other’s arms.

  Finn slowly rose up and gave her a soft, deep kiss.

  “How hungry are you?”

  Cory slowly blinked.

  “For food.”

  “Oh, well.” Her stomach chose that moment to let out a protesting growl.

  Finn chuckled. “I guess I have my answer. I better go check the potatoes and put on the steaks.” He gave her another quick kiss before standing up and disappearing into the bathroom.

  Cory’s limbs refused to function. She remained still, blinking up at the ceiling.