Love Like a Curse

by Mira Lyn Kelly

  Words she’d never spoken, words that didn’t make sense in the context of this near stranger began to well up in her chest, pushing at her throat to get free before they ran out of time. Something was off, none of this made sense. But she didn’t want to fight it. Her lips parted, ready to spill another deep truth.

  Rafe’s eyes cut over to the clock, his chin pulling back. “It’s midnight.”

  The bubble popped.

  Chapter Three

  Music and noise from the bar ripped through her eardrums like a blast. Her senses sharpened. The dank back hall of her workplace and home came into focus, and the man buried inside her… it still felt so right being in his arms, but suddenly her mind was spinning with all the practicalities that should have prevented her from ever getting there.

  What if Aaron found them?

  Or someone from the bar? Mostly Kayla and Opal were the only ones who used this hall, but the door wasn’t locked.

  “Careful baby.” Rafe set her gently to her feet and dropped a kiss against her temple before taking a step back.

  Catching sight of the condom, she silently thanked God Rafe had been in enough control of his faculties to wear protection. It didn’t make sense now, but she’d been so desperate to have him inside her, she hadn’t even thought about it. Which wasn’t like her.

  Sure she’d been caught up in seeing him after all this time. This was the man she’d spent damn near a year fantasizing about. Missing. Wishing that if things were different, she might have the chance to know.

  So maybe…maybe she just needed to get out more so she didn’t practically jump the first guy to ping her make-out-o-meter.

  Rafe shook his head and took an unsteady step.

  “You okay?” she asked, shocked by how weary he suddenly looked.

  Bracing an arm against the wall, he let out a low laugh. “I drove a thousand miles so I could get to you. Guess it’s catching up to me.”

  “You drove a thousand miles…and came straight here? To find me?” Her heart was starting to hammer, a sick feeling sliding through her.

  There was no way.

  It couldn’t be.

  Rafe slid his thick fingers through the curls at her neck, pulling her in closer. “I know this is going to sound like a line, but it’s like I was under a spell or something. I had to get to you today—well, yesterday now. But, fuck, I’ve never been so glad I did in all my life.”

  Kayla froze, her defenses slamming into place. If this were any other time, any other day, and if she’d had any other sister…then yes, it might have sounded like a line. But today it did not.

  “I get it,” she forced out in a ragged whisper. “It was exactly like a spell.”

  * * * * *

  Kayla pressed her palms flat on the polished wood and eyed Opal. “I know what were you doing with my brush.”

  “What are you talking about?” Unwilling to meet her eyes, her sister stepped away from the bar. The corner of her mouth was twitching, involuntarily kicking up, even as she tried to force it down.

  She was the worst liar.

  Opal wiped her hands on her apron, then wrung them together. “I didn’t do anything.”

  Right.

  “No? Is that so? Then how do you explain this?” She stretched out her arm and pointed at the employee’s door just as Rafe walked through.

  His dark brown eyes immediately found hers, his smile going wide. He took a few steps in their direction before a couple of guys from the end of the bar recognized him and were out of their seats clapping him on the back in greeting. He sent her an apologetic look, but she waved it off with a tight smile.

  She needed to talk to her sister anyway.

  Opal’s eyes were wide; that tattle-tale smile, wiped clean. “Oh, shit. Did you get some kissy-kissy?” Then her brows furrowed as she cocked her head to one side and wrinkled her pert nose. “Wait, isn’t that the guy—”

  “Yes, yes,” Kayla replied impatiently. “The guy from last year.”

  Opal sucked in her breath, before letting it out in a low whistle. “Oh, how weird.”

  “Yeah, I thought so, too. Is there something you want to tell me about last Halloween?”

  “No.” Opal answered too fast, her head shaking for extra emphasis. “Earlier today, I just cooked up a little spell so you could have a good time. So you’d be honest with yourself about what you actually wanted, instead of always trying to convince yourself you don’t want anything.” Then leaning into Kayla, her eyes bright, she whispered, “I can’t believe it worked!”

  Kayla gasped, somehow the confirmation of what, deep down, she already knew, hitting her like a shock.

  “And crazy you found the guy from a year ago. But you should totally go for it. He’s freaking hot.”

  “I did go for it!” she hissed. “That’s the problem, Opal. I went for it. In the hallway behind the bar, without a single thought or concern about what Aaron would do if he found out. You saw the rash he slapped on the wine guy’s face this afternoon. Can you even imagine where he’d put one if he’d actually found Rafe doing me in the stairwell?”

  “O.M.G.” Opal gaped at her. “You had sex? That…is…awesome! He’s so hot!”

  “Yeah, he is, Opal. But I don’t even know him. My fantasies were based on a guy I spent six hours with a year ago.”

  Opal kept her gaze on Rafe as she opened her mouth to speak, then simply closed it again. It was some consolation that he had that same effect on the free-willed as well.

  She squeezed her sister’s wrist. Opal needed to understand something.

  “You can’t screw around with other people’s lives like this. What were you thinking?”

  Jerking the offended limb back, Opal snapped, “That you might appreciate me stepping in and taking your self-defeating tendencies out of the mix. I was thinking I might actually get a thank you.”

  “A thank you?” Kayla leaned forward and whispered intensely, “I could have just screwed a lunatic or a junkie.”

  Opal rolled her eyes. “No. It was an attraction spell that only took what was already there and intensified it. I wanted you to have a good time, not worry about tomorrow or what Aaron would think.” When Kayla just stared at her, she added a grudging, “I’m sorry.”

  Kayla nodded, because she was too.

  She’d thought maybe it was fate bringing them back together. Had even entertained the idea of a force that strong, maybe being enough to overcome the kind of obstacles that came standard with her life. But now…now she knew that pull wasn’t anything more than some misplaced, albeit well intentioned, manipulation.

  She sighed, hating the feeling of loss seeping into her bones.

  A light touch, brought her back to where Opal stood beside her. “I’m really sorry, Kayla.”

  “I know you were trying to do something nice for me. And I did have fun. But from now on, how about you save your spells for yourself.”

  “Promise.”

  Well, that was something. Opal was good for her word.

  Taking a deep breath, she straightened her shoulders. “Okay, so something happened at midnight. I mean we both felt a change. Does that mean the magic is over now?”

  “Midnight?” Her sister absently shook her head. “That was just the time you needed to come together by.”

  Kayla blinked, her head cranking around. “Then how long does the spell last?”

  Her sister flinched, looked away, and fidgeted with a dishcloth behind the bar.

  “Opal!” The blood rushed to Kayla’s head. She felt sick.

  “I didn’t think about it,” she whispered between clenched teeth. “I was trying to do something nice, but I’m still new at this. Don’t worry though. I’m not that strong, so it probably won’t last for more than…a few hours. I guess.”

  Kayla stared at her sister, half ready to throttle her. But what good would that do. It wouldn’t change anything.

  A moment later Rafe slid into a seat beside Kayla, and brushed his thigh against
hers, sending a hot flush creeping up her neck. Obviously, the spell was still at work, the magic drawing them together.

  Which meant she couldn't get too caught up in anything that happened. It wouldn’t be real.

  “Kayla, do you think maybe we could go for a walk or something?” Rafe asked, his deep voice going down smooth and easy.

  She stiffened. Such a simple question, it should have had a simple answer. She should have hopped down off her stool, taken his hand and tugged him out into the night. After what they’d just shared, how could she respond any differently.

  Only now she knew what was behind that undeniable pull… every touch, every look…even their words were subject to scrutiny. Nothing could be taken at face value. But only one of them new that.

  Tossing Opal a pleading glance, she found her lifeline.

  “Kay, you said you’d only be on break for a few minutes and my shift is up. Can you save your walk for another time?”

  It was a decent save. Glancing over at Rafe, she smiled nervously and shrugged. “Sorry, but duty calls. Why don’t you go get your key, and we can catch up later?”

  “Okay.” Rafe agreed, a crooked smile on his lips. His deep voice stroked over her. “You close at two right?”

  He thought she was talking about coming over later that night. For more of what they’d just shared. It was tempting, but then she thought of Aaron and the spell. None of this was real. And something that wasn’t real wasn’t worth the risk of enduring Aaron’s wrath over. She and Rafe had been lucky enough to get away with their little back hall tryst, but that kind of luck didn’t last.

  Shaking her head, she clarified. “Actually, er…I just meant…whenever. We’ll catch up sometime. But no, not tonight.”

  Her words weren’t exactly cruel, but something deep inside hurt as she dismissed him and watched that sweet curve slip off his lips.

  * * * * *

  She was brushing him off. Rafe slanted his eyes at her. He’d spent the last year wondering about this woman, and regardless of whether he’d given her the ride of her life or a sub-par screw in the back stairwell, right now there was only one thing happening in that gorgeous head of hers: she was wishing him the hell out of here.

  Yeah, definitely not the way he’d seen things going. But then again, it wasn’t like he’d seen that stellar greeting coming either. Shit. Obviously she’d been caught up in the moment and let it go too far between them. Maybe he should have put on the brakes.

  Maybe he ought to just go. Play it cool and then come back in a couple days.

  But damn it, he didn’t want to.

  Screw the games. He wanted her, and he wasn’t willing to leave any room for doubt. “Look, I know the physical stuff happened fast, but I didn’t come here for that. I came for you,” he said, laying it all out there.

  She bit her lip, her eyes were guarded, distant. “You don’t even know me. Rafe, maybe we did go just a little crazy tonight. I remembered you and that intense kiss, and got carried away when I saw you. Everyone’s so charged up from Halloween, all that candy and sugar, and the restless energy in the air. Neither of us is going to be feeling like this tomorrow.”

  What he was feeling didn’t have anything to do with the candy bar he’d eaten six hours ago, and he didn’t like her dismissing it. “This isn’t a just tonight kind of thing for me. It’s been a year since I’ve seen you, but that night we talked for hours. I remember every word of our conversation. So I know something about you.”

  She stroked her thumb across his cheek, then ran her palm down his chest. The movement would have been provocative, except for the fact that it felt very much like she was saying goodbye.

  She let out a sigh and looked away. “You don’t know enough about me.”

  “Yeah, you’re right—I don’t know you well enough. But that’s going to change.”

  When she looked back at him there was something desolate in her eyes. “That’s nice, Rafe but—”

  “But nothing, Kayla. Look, I don’t know you…you don’t know me. But here’s your first lesson…I go after what I want and I don’t give up without a fight.”

  A slow smile crept across her lips, but Christ, something about it broke his heart.

  “Rafe, that’s really nice to hear. I just want you to know that tomorrow, if you wake up and don’t feel that way…it’s okay.”

  Didn’t she get it? He’d driven across the country for her. Yeah it sounded nuts, but after everything that happened tonight, why deny it.

  “Letting me off easy?” he asked, closing the distance between them until his lips were a breath from hers.

  Her eyes closed and she swayed just that much closer. “I’m trying.”

  “Don’t. I’m not going anywhere.” He brushed his mouth against hers, felt her sigh into the contact and—a crash sounded above them.

  Kayla jerked back, her eyes frantic. “Shoot! You’ve got to go.”

  He stared up at the ceiling. “Kayla, what was that?”

  “Nothing,” she snapped, pushing him toward the door.

  The hell it was. “Didn’t sound like nothing. What’s going on?”

  She shook her head, and gave him a pleading look. “I left a stack of stuff by the window… it probably just fell over. Silly.” She looked back at Opal, who was already heading toward the back. Her sister didn’t look too concerned at all, so maybe it really was nothing. Still, he’d feel better checking it out.

  “Seriously, Rafe, I’m not letting you into my apartment tonight.”

  Okay, and that had his attention. Because when a woman said that, a guy didn’t have much choice but to listen.

  A second later Opal was walking back into the bar, waving Kayla off like everything was fine. Kayla sighed, and shot him another pleading look.

  “Okay, I’ll go. If you promise you’ll see me tomorrow.”

  She nodded reluctantly, turning to go, but before she could take more than a step away, he caught her hand and reeled her back into him, taking the kiss he couldn’t leave without. When they finally broke apart, Kayla was breathless, her eyes soft and her lips sweetly curved.

  “Tomorrow, baby,” he promised. She peered up at him through lowered lashes and smiled.

  “Tomorrow.”

  * * * * *

  “I’m telling you, he’s coming,” Opal stated, skewering an olive, orange slice, and cherry on to a small pink sword and pointing them at Kayla for emphasis.

  It was already a quarter to five and Kayla was beyond edgy.

  She hadn’t heard anything from Rafe all morning and while she knew she ought to be relieved… it was disappointment she was feeling more than anything.

  Stupid.

  It was only a matter of time before the spell wore off, better to have it over and done with sooner rather than later. Why delay the inevitable… except, she didn’t entirely feel like she’d been released. She kept thinking about Rafe, the taste of his kiss, and heat of his hold. She kept looking at the door, her heart skipping a beat each time it opened…then sitting heavy in her chest when it wasn’t him.

  “I told him last night, I didn’t have any expectations. It must have sunk in after he left. It’s a good thing.”

  “Thinking I don’t really believe you,” Opal stated, munching on the cherry. “But it doesn’t really matter. Your boyfriend is back and, damn, he cleans up nice.”

  Chapter Four

  Blood rushed to Kayla’s head, and she slowly turned toward the front of the bar.

  Walking over to her with a small bouquet of flowers, Rafe wore an easy smile on his chiseled face. He was clean-shaven and his hair looked like it had seen a shower and a comb, too. It was a good look for him, almost as good as that sort of unkempt wild thing from the night before. The way his brown eyes fixed on her had her heart beating faster and her temperature rising. Damn, that spell was a curse.

  He closed the distance between them and stopped closer than the average guy would. Then resting a hand on her hip, he leaned down to drop
a quick kiss onto her temple—which was possessive and sweet all at once, and exactly the sort of tender showing Kayla didn’t need when she was trying to keep a level head.

  “Hey, beautiful,” he murmured close to her ear. “Been thinking about you all day. Finally decided I’d gotten enough of my stuff moved in, and figured it was time for a break. How about dinner? I hear that little Italian place down the street is pretty good.”

  Her gaze tracked from the warm spot where his hand rested on her hip, up his muscle-roped forearm, to where his olive skin was covered by a white Oxford shirt cuffed loosely below his elbow. She swallowed hard, her mind suddenly inundated with images of her licking that tantalizing stretch of skin, her body heating as she imagined unbuttoning his shirt and letting her mouth at more of him.

  Peering up to his gorgeous face, she was about to tell him she’d go anywhere with him when she noticed Opal still standing across the bar from them. Opal who’d cast the spell, she was most definitely still susceptible to.

  Biting her lip, she glanced away. This wasn’t right. It wasn’t real.

  She forced herself to meet his eyes, licked her lips. “Rafe, it’s really nice of you to ask, but I can’t.”

  “You working already?” he asked, undaunted, catching her fingers in a loose hold. “Need a hand tonight? I promise not to break any glasses.”

  Sweet. She drew a breath, picking up the clean scent of him and felt a dizzying rush come over her. She was already leaning into him, Rafe’s smile widening as she did.

  Dang it, when was that spell going to wear off? She inched back, trying to clear her head.

  “Actually, I’m not working tonight. But I still don’t think it’s a good idea for us to go out. Things are complicated.”

  His sexy smile didn’t falter, like he’d been expecting exactly this. Drawing her hands into the hollow of his chest, he shook his head. “Still not going anywhere, Kayla.”

  God, that didn’t help at all, because not only was he showing her he wasn’t giving up, but now she was touching his chest. Thinking about how much she wanted to flatten her hands against it. Ball them in the fabric and pull him close. No!