Chasing the Witch (Boston Witches)

by Jessica Gibson

  By

  Jessica Gibson

  Amazon Edition

  * * * *

  Chasing the Witch

  Book Two of

  The Boston Witches Series

  Copyright © 2012 by Jessica Gibson

  Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the above author of this book.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.

  Discover other titles by Jessica Gibson at Amazon.

  Table of Contents

  Dedication

  One

  Two

  Three

  Four

  Five

  Six

  Seven

  Eight

  Nine

  Ten

  Eleven

  Twelve

  Thirteen

  Fourteen

  Fifteen

  Sixteen

  Seventeen

  Eighteen

  Nineteen

  Twenty

  Twenty-One

  Twenty-Two

  Twenty-Three

  Twenty-Four

  Twenty-Five

  Twenty-Six

  Epilogue

  Acknowledgments

  About the Author

  DEDICATION

  For my mother,

  Your support and love mean the world to me…

  And for my amazing husband,

  Thank you for letting me chase my dreams…

  William sat in an uncomfortable orange chair in a hospital waiting room. He had just checked his watch for the fifth time in ten minutes. With a resigned sigh, he went back to reading his magazine. He wondered why hospitals never had any good ones as he continued the article about the ten best places to visit in Vancouver. Fifteen minutes later, Jilly ran through the double doors at the end of the hall.

  “She’s here! She’s so beautiful, too. Em did great, she’s getting cleaned up, and then you can go back to see the baby” Her eyes were shining bright with excitement.

  He smiled and pulled her in for a quick kiss.

  “Will, it was incredible, I’ve never seen anything like it. One second she was still inside Em, and the next she’s out and screaming her head off.”

  “I have heard that childbirth is an amazing thing to see. I’m glad that you were able to share in that experience. What are they going to call her?”

  “I know, I’m so glad I was there, too. I think they’ve decided on Camille, after Adam’s grandmother.”

  Just then, Adam emerged through the doors with a huge smile on his face. His brown hair was disheveled from a night spent running his hands through it with worry. William hugged him. “Congratulations, man! How does it feel to be a dad?”

  “Thanks, Will. I can’t even begin to describe how I feel, it’s just so amazing. Em says she’s ready for you guys to come back.” He led them through the doors. Emily’s room was the third one on the left. They opened the door and found her seated in bed with Camille in her arms. She beamed at them. Her blonde hair was matted to her forehead, but her blue eyes were shining with joy and she had the glow of a new mother.

  “Will, I’m so glad you came. This is Camille,” Emily said as she tilted the baby toward him. She was tiny and pink and sleeping happily in her mother’s arms.

  He smiled at her. “She’s beautiful. You guys make cute kids.” The smile on William’s face as he looked at the new baby melted Jilly’s heart. Made her think of what it would be like if she were the one in the bed with a tiny pink bundle cradled in her arms.

  They stayed with the new parents for an hour, oohing and ahhing over the tiny and perfect Camille, before leaving.

  They pulled into Jilly’s driveway fifteen minutes later and climbed the stairs to the house. Caroline was just coming out when they reached the door.

  “Hey guys, I’m just on my way over to see Em. How is she? How’s the baby?” Caroline gave her sister a hug

  “They’re both wonderful; I can’t wait for you to see her. She’s so beautiful”

  “I know! I can’t wait to hold her and kiss her little cheeks. I’ll be home in a few hours. Will you two be here for dinner?”

  Jilly raised her eyebrows in question to William and he nodded. “Yeah, we’ll be home. It’s been a long day and I don’t have the energy to go out.” With a wave, Caroline bounced down the stairs to her car.

  “I don’t know about you, but I could use a nap,” Jilly said, stifling a yawn.

  “Yeah, I’m beat; I don’t think I slept at all at the hospital last night. Did you get any sleep?”

  She shook her head. “No, it was all go last night. There was no sleeping for any of us.” They headed up the stairs to Jilly’s room and collapsed on her bed. They were out as soon as their heads hit their respective pillows. The months had flown by since the showdown with Sabine and Mary. William and Jilly had put their relationship on the fast track and now he stayed at her house more than his own.

  Jilly woke up first and rolled over to watch William sleep for a while, enjoying the peaceful look he had on his face. His dark curls were mussed from sleeping. After a few minutes she stretched, rolled over and scooted to the side of the bed, thinking of a hot shower. Before she could get up, William’s hand snaked out and grabbed her, pulling her in close.

  “Where do you think you’re going?” he asked while planting a kiss on her neck.

  “I didn’t want to wake you. I was going to go take a shower and then read until you got up.” He looked at her and smiled. She looked so beautiful. Her creamy skin was flushed from sleep and her hair was a mess of curls. He flipped her over and showered her face and neck with kisses.

  She giggled. “Stop, that tickles! Your chin is all scratchy. Now if you will excuse me, I need a shower.” She hopped out of bed before he could grab her, again. He arched an eyebrow in question as he tugged off his shirt. She felt the heat rising in her stomach as she enjoyed the sight of his bare chest.

  “As much fun as it looks, I actually need to get clean—not dirty myself up.” With a wink, she locked herself in the bathroom and turned on the shower. He laid back on the bed thinking. They’d been dating for a little over four months now, and he was more in love with her than ever. A sudden thought came to him and he grabbed his phone off the floor. He punched in Caroline’s number. She answered quickly.

  “Hey, Will, what’s up?”

  “Do you think you can meet me downtown tomorrow around one?”

  “I think I can swing that, I don’t have to work until four. Will that give us enough time for whatever it is you have planned?” she asked, intrigued.

  “Yeah, that’s perfect. Don’t tell Jill. I’ll text you the address in the morning.”

  “Ok, sounds good. I’m almost home; I’ll see you in a few.”

  He hung up the phone and went across the hall to the guest room so he could shower and change.

  Thirty minutes later, they were both downstairs helping Caroline with dinner. “So I talked to my lawyer today, Jack’s still contesting the divorce. I don’t know why he won’t just let me go already. He’s the one who gave up on our marriage over a year
ago when he starting seeing that woman. I think I’m going to fly out to New York and talk to him face to face.” She turned to Jilly. “Can I have a few days off next week so I can get this crap figured out?” Jilly had hired Caroline as the salon manager a few months ago. She took care of the day-to-day stuff and the ordering so Jilly could concentrate on her clients and the rest of the girls.

  “Of course, Car, take as much time as you need. I know how frustrating this has been for you. Do you think you’ll get through to him this time? He didn’t seem to take you seriously when you packed up your stuff.”

  “I don’t know. I hope so; I’m so ready to just be done with all of this.” They all headed to the table and dug into the pasta and salad.

  “How was the happy family when you left?” William asked.

  Caroline smiled. “They were great. Em looks so happy, motherhood definitely suits her. Camille is too cute; I couldn’t get enough of her.”

  “I know, Emily really is over the moon,” Jilly said. They finished dinner and she and William cleaned up so Caroline could arrange her travel plans for next week. Once they were finished, they curled up on the couch and watched TV. Jilly turned to him an hour later. “I want ice cream, would you like some?”

  “If you get a big bowl I’ll have some of yours.”

  “No thank you, you know I don’t share my ice cream,” Jilly said with a laugh.

  “In that case yes, I’ll take some.”

  She sat forward and said a quick spell and two bowls of ice cream appeared in front of them, chocolate for her and mint chip for William.

  “So what do you want to do this weekend?” William asked as they ate their ice cream. He was so proud of her. Jilly had really grown into her power in the past few months. The simplest spells were conjured with only a thought. It was funny to think it had taken William’s psycho ex-girlfriend, Sabine, to help unleash the magic within her.

  “I have to work Saturday morning until about eleven, but after that I’m free for anything you want to do. Did you have something specific in mind?” She licked the ice cream from her spoon.

  “I was thinking we could maybe take my boat out for a while. What do you think?”

  “Sure, that sounds nice; maybe we can do a picnic or something.”

  He stood up, “I think I’m going to head out now. I’ll call you tomorrow sometime. I’ve got some stuff to do around town for most of the day. Are you working tomorrow?”

  “Yeah, I’m off at five. I’m taking some of Em’s clients while she’s on maternity leave; so I’m going to be slammed all day. I’m so ready for the weekend, it’s been such a long few days.”

  “Well you only have like a day and a half and then we can relax on the boat.” He kissed her goodbye and left.

  The next afternoon William sat in his car waiting for Caroline to show up. A few minutes later, she pulled in next to him with a knowing expression on her face as she eyed the sign for the store.

  “Sorry I’m late, I couldn’t find my keys,” she said as they walked into the store.

  “It’s ok. I only just got here, too.” They walked around for a few minutes looking at all of the display cases. Caroline got googly-eyed over all the sparkling diamonds.

  A salesperson came up behind them as they looked. “What can I help you find today?”

  “I’m looking for a ring,” William said. Caroline squeezed his arm, squealing with delight. They perused the rings for a while and William narrowed it down to two choices. The first was a two-carat cushion cut solitaire on a narrow platinum band covered with pave diamond. The second was a three stone round cut on a thick white gold band totaling a little over two and a half carats.

  “Which one do you think she’d like best? I’m leaning towards the solitaire, but I’m not sure.”

  “I honestly think she’d like the solitaire best. It looks more her style,” Caroline said. William nodded, happy that she reaffirmed what he’d been thinking.

  “Ok, I’m going to take this one,” he said to the salesperson. “How long will it take to be sized?” The gravity of the purchase he was making began to sink in. The rest of his life with Jilly could not come soon enough. He was ready for all of it.

  “We have a jeweler on site, so I can actually have it done in a few hours and you can pick it up before closing.”

  William turned to Caroline. “What size is she?”

  “I’m a seven. But her hands are smaller than mine, so I would say a six.”

  He paid for his purchase and they walked back to the cars, together..

  “I’m so excited for you guys,” she gushed. “When are you going to pop the question?”

  “I’m taking her out on the boat, tomorrow; so I think I’ll do it then when we’re out on the water.”

  “Oh, that’s so romantic,” she said, putting a hand to her heart.

  He looked at his watch; it was only 2:30. “Do you want to grab some lunch before you head to work?”

  “Yeah, I was just going to ask if you were hungry. Plus, I can grab Jill something because I know she won’t have eaten.” They drove to a small deli down the street from the salon and grabbed a couple sandwiches, sitting outside in the sun to eat.

  “This place is so good, it’s almost like being back in New York,” Caroline said.

  “Do you miss it? This must be a big change for you. You lived there for six years, this must seem so quiet.”

  “I miss parts of it, like being able to get any kind of food I want at any hour of the day. But I grew up here, so it’s not that much of an adjustment.”

  “It’s probably nice to be with family again, too.” William said between bites.

  More than you know. I was so alone without Jilly. I couldn’t understand her closeness to our mom and I felt left out, so I closed myself off from her when we were teenagers. I know she needed me after our mom died, but I didn’t know how to bust through the wall I had put up. As much as I hate Jack right now, he gave me back my sister. With us working together at the salon and my weekly magic lessons, we’ve never been closer or more connected. I know now, what I gave up all those years ago when I left...” Her voice cracked with emotion and she quickly wiped a tear that had slid down her cheek.

  William reached across the table and squeezed her hand. “I wasn’t with her before, but I know how happy she is to have you back, too. She’s told me that she feels like she can really start living again, now that you’re back. As close as she is to Emily, it’s not the same as it is with you guys.”

  “It means a lot to hear that, thank you. I will say this to you, William, if you ever hurt her, you’ll have me and Emily to answer to and you don’t want to mess with us.” She said the last part lightly, but he could feel the seriousness in her voice.

  “I have no intention of hurting her, believe me. She’s the best thing to happen to me in hundreds of years.”

  William had just finished picking up the supplies for tomorrow’s outing when he got the call that the ring was ready. After picking it up, he drove to the harbor to drop off the food and speak to the captain. Ten minutes later, he was walking up the ramp to his boat. He always called it a boat, which made Jilly laugh. Calling it a boat was the same as referring a Rolls-Royce as simply a car. In reality, it was a one hundred and fifty foot luxury yacht, complete with every amenity known to man. William bought it shortly after meeting Jilly, thinking that they could make use of it together in the future.

  “Hey Rick, are you here?” William called as he walked through to the galley.

  “Will?” a voice called from the top of the stairs.

  “Yeah, it’s me. I have to drop some stuff off in the galley and I’ll be up in a minute.” Rick was an old friend of his who was a retired crab boat captain. He had hired Rick five years ago to take charge of his fleet of boats and hadn’t questioned that decision once. He had a gruff no-nonsense type of personality that suited him well. William thought he was around sixty, but he had never asked and Rick had never offered it up
.

  “What can I do for you, Will? I’m a busy man,” he said as William came through the door. William grinned at him.

  “I’m going to propose to Jill, tomorrow. I want to take the boat out and do it on the water.”

  “That’s wonderful, Will! It’s about time you settled down,” Rick said as he clapped him on the back. “I’ll tell the crew to make this place shine by tomorrow.”

  “Thanks, I knew I could count on you. Hey, there’s a bunch of extra steaks and stuff in the fridge for you guys. Have a nice dinner on me in thanks for tomorrow.”

  Rick smiled. “I’m sure the crew will appreciate that. Now get out of here so we can start getting ready.”

  “Ok, ok, I’m going. I’ll see you around one,” he said as he walked through the door.

  Jilly pulled her car into the driveway at 6:30 with a sore back and feeling exhausted. All she wanted to do was eat dinner and soak in a hot bath until her skin turned into a raisin. She heard the phone ringing as she climbed the steps to the door. She didn’t get to it in time and heard William’s voice on the machine.

  “Hey Jill, it 's me. I think I’m going to stay in tonight. We’ve had a long week and I figured you’d be tired after your day. You can call me later if you’d like. Love you.” Jilly smiled, he really did know her. She went into the kitchen, grabbed some leftover soup from the fridge and popped it in the microwave. Picking up the phone, she punched in his number while she kicked off her shoes.

  “Hey, love, I just got in. I’m so tired. Today felt like it went on, forever.”

  “I know I had a long day, too. I was running errands getting stuff for tomorrow.”

  “I think I’m just going to take a bath and go to bed. I can’t wait until tomorrow; I’m so ready to relax.”

  “Well, get a good night’s sleep. We can relax for the rest of the weekend after you get off. I love you.”