A Pinch of Kitchen Magic (6 page)

He followed the gentle sway of her
hips with his gaze as she moved across the kitchen to the sink.
“You can use your magic to do such a mundane task.” With an almost
imperceptible lift of his index finger, he sent the two wineglasses
through the air to hover above her right shoulder. Her tinkling
laughter rewarded his effort. What else could he do to coax another
such response? His pulse accelerated. Would she enjoy a veritable
symphony of dish washing, complete with bubbles? Perhaps a bottle
of champagne popping its own cork?

Settle, Matteus. She’s not
for you, remember.

“
That’s all right. I like
doing the dishes by hand. It’s relaxing.”

Stubborn in addition to
determined.
He rubbed the stubble along
his jaw as Aidan ran the water until a thick layer of bubbles rose
over the lip of the sink. “Is there a reason you’re avoiding your
powers?” He pulled a clipboard from his briefcase. He needed to
complete the assessment sheet in order to file the paperwork upon
his return. No time like the present to do it, yet the thought
depressed him. The sooner he finished his work, the sooner he’d
need to leave this house—and her.

“
No specific reason.” She
kept her back to him. “I’ll use them when I feel I can control them
a bit more.”

“
You won’t do that unless
you practice at every opportunity.”

“
This is true except I
don’t want a recurrence of the pizza dough incident.”

Matteus had the grace to
blush. His heightened emotional state had affected the dough,
causing it to explode. “That might have been my fault.” He would
have to be extremely careful in the future, especially if he
planned to spend any more time than necessary in her company—which
he didn’t. He glanced at the luscious curve of her backside. Oh,
hell, maybe he did plan on it. He would drag the assessment out for
as long as it took to convince her she needed a man in her
life.
She needed him
.

Before she could question him, he
rushed on. “There are schools of thought that say magical energy is
enhanced when the user becomes aroused sexually or emotionally
compromised.” Matteus felt the air charge between them as she
glanced at him. “This is what I believe happened with the
dough.”

“
I see.” She arched a
brow. “Why are you telling me this? Are you hitting on
me?”

Am I?
“Perceptive as well as intelligent.” He made no sound as he
slipped over the checked tiles to stand just at her shoulder. When
she jumped, a chuckle escaped him.
Yeah, I
am. I can’t stand it anymore.
“Have you
nothing to say in the matter?” Whether he referred to the powers or
him making a move, he couldn’t decide.

“
How can they be connected
when they’re two different energies?” Her hands remained in the
sudsy water. “When the dough exploded, I was the farthest thing
from aroused at that time. In fact, I was nowhere near the bowl it
rested in.”

“
Hmm, that’s true.”
Matteus leaned into her, close enough for his breath to stir the
tendrils of her hair at her temple. Her scent wafted around him and
he closed his eyes for a brief second to revel in the completely
feminine perfume. Time to confess the truth. “You weren’t aroused,
but perhaps I was.”

“
Why would you be…?” Aidan
turned her head to glance at him, her eyes wide and softly focused,
her lips parted. “Oh.” She focused her attention back to the sink,
her hands still, her cheeks stained by a blush.

“
I’m trying my best to
fight it, but I fear I’m not winning the battle.” He swept a finger
along her shoulder and lingered where it joined her neck. He felt
the shudder that coursed through her body and smiled. Placing his
lips to the shell of her ear, he said, “There are times when
attraction and magic can overlap and interlink. For those of us who
have already mastered magic that energy can develop into sexual
attraction much more quickly than for others.”

A tremble shook her shoulders. “If
that’s true then I should be able to control the attraction as well
as I can control the magic.” She rinsed a plate and set it in the
rack to drain. “So, you shouldn’t have to worry. I won’t allow
myself to become uninhibited, and since my inability to curb my
magic is slim, I won’t be compromised, no matter how hot I think
you are.”

Ah, but her words, as well as her
body’s reaction, belied her thoughts. “That’s a shame.” He frowned.
So far, she managed to maintain a masterful hold on her emotions.
It was a puzzle, since she did indeed have no control over her
magic. He needed to turn up the heat a bit, find out just how much
he could affect her, bring her to a place where she had no choice
but to enforce her will over her magical ability. “This will be a
great time for a new lesson.” He brushed his lips over the nape of
her neck. “I’m glad to see this doesn’t affect you.”

A wooden spoon slipped from her
fingers into the sink with a soft plop. “Actually, I didn’t notice
a difference between this and eating dinner with you.”

Matteus begged to differ. The bubbles
in the sink began to rise until they reached her elbows. He removed
the clip from her hair, and then he tossed it to the counter. “Is
that so?” He stared in fascination as the auburn waves tumbled down
her back in soft curls. A shudder of need rocketed down his spine
as he imagined those tresses tangled over his pillow in the
morning. “You do yourself a disservice when you bind your hair
up.”

“
It’s in my way if it
constantly hangs in my face. I’d love to have it cut short.” She
rinsed another plate, standing it in the dish rack next to the
three others.

Something akin to panic fluttered
through his chest at the thought of those curls ending up on a
salon floor. “Don’t make a decision in haste.” The jasmine scent of
her hair called out a siren song he was unable to resist. He buried
his hands into her thick mane and massaged her head. “Feel any
different now?” Energy built in his fingertips as he continued his
ministrations. If she didn’t confirm her reaction soon, he wouldn’t
be able to tamp his.

A soft “mmhmm” escaped her throat as
Aidan leaned her head back into his hands.

The suds in the sink
bubbled over the lip, cascading to the floor in large white fluffy
clouds.
Come on, Aidan. Tell me I affect
you.
His victory was short lived when she
turned and twined her wet arms about his neck.

He untangled his hands
from her hair and dropped them to her shoulders. “Your lesson is
over. I think we’ve proved that both energies are intimately
acquainted and that you’re feeling at least
something
.” A wave of old-fashioned
lust swept over him when she moistened her lips with the tip of her
tongue. “And what’s more, you can control them.” Except the energy
zipping through him merely from touching her nearly burned his
insides.

“
It’s good you think so
because now you’re officially off the clock.”

As she pressed her petal soft lips to
his, Matteus could do nothing but agree. With a groan, he wrapped
his arms around her waist as he deepened the kiss and took control.
Her scent intoxicated him, short-circuited his brain until he could
think of nothing else but making love to her on the kitchen floor
amidst the frothy mountains of soap bubbles. Her curves molded
themselves to his body in an exact match. The tentative way she
touched the tip of her tongue to his bottom lip blew all thought
from his head.

Yes, getting her soapy, wet and
willing was his only goal. Discovering if she would blow the roof
from the house when she found completion was his driving force,
except he couldn’t allow any of it to happen.

He broke away from their
embrace, his breathing ragged, and his heart racing. “Aidan, I
change my mind. You might just be
my
condemnation.” He wiped his brow
with a shaking hand as his gaze skittered away from her smiling,
knowing eyes. He strode to the table, took up the skills assessment
paper, and then ripped it into small squares. “We’ll have to start
over. My first observations were not entirely correct. I think I’ve
made a grave error in judgment.” His arousal strained against his
jeans. If he remained in her kitchen, he’d injure
himself.

If he remained in her kitchen, they
would both be in danger—not from passion but those that meant him
harm.

“
I have to leave.” With a
snap of his fingers, he faded into nothingness.

Chapter Four

Magic, like baking,
requires attention to detail

Aidan gazed around her kitchen with
conflicting emotions. Mouth-watering dishes covered every available
flat surface but she found no comfort in any of them. Yes, the
process of cooking pleased her. Baking helped her combat stress.
Unfortunately, neither of those things were enough to lift the
irritation and annoyance that battled within her.

With a carving knife in
hand, she moved to the first of three roasted chickens. If Matteus
thought he could toy with her, he could think again. That last kiss
of his came close to making her knees buckle, but just before
anything else could happen, he once again disappeared into the
void. Aidan knew men couldn’t commit but this was ridiculous! She
wasn’t asking for commitment from him, just a few steamy embraces
and a make-out session. Followed by
warm-your-toes-on-a-cold-winter’s- night sex—a few times.
Then
he could leave. She
needed something to soothe the ache that threatened to overwhelm
her every time he came near.

But stirring up all these
shivery feelings, making her crave his touch yet never following
through wasn’t acceptable.
Annoying
man.
Magic or no magic, men were all the
same.

She bit her bottom lip as
she sent the carving knife through the crispy, golden skin of the
chicken. Once the first piece fell away, she frowned. In typical
Aidan fashion, the food looked phenomenal on the outside but the
inside was pink and raw.
OMG, is it too
much to ask that I actually do something right?
She let the carving knife and fork clatter to the butcher
block then took up another set. Moving to the next chicken, she
made another exploratory slice. This time the bird was cooked
through—way too much. She chewed a piece of the white meat, her
palate confirming what her eyes already knew. It was so dry she
could use it to mop up kitchen spills.

Aidan sighed. She refused
to give up—in her cooking endeavors as well as with Matteus. The
taste of desire he started in her only served to fan the flames. If
he wanted to play games, she’d give him the game of his life.
Remembered snatches from a Broadway play floated through her mind.
“
Anything you can do, I can do
better
.”

A smile curved her lips as
her mind swirled over creative ways to seduce her flighty skills
assessor. She skipped the third and final chicken. She didn’t have
the heart to check it. Instead, she broke off a forkful of
meatloaf. A nice crusty brown shell gave way to a gray, mushy
middle. She chewed experimentally, and then decided the flavor was
good but the texture was off.
It’s just
not fair. How can something I love doing so much be such a
failure?

“
You’ve been busy
today.”

Aidan spun around, her heart beating
frantically against her ribcage at his abrupt appearance. “I’ve
been cooking since dawn.” He looked sexier than he had on previous
visits. The Dockers and navy blue polo shirt seemed tailor-made
exclusively for his body. Curls of longing snaked down from her
stomach. Heat pooled between her thighs.

“
I see that.” His eyes
roiled with desire. “Something on your mind?” He cocked an
eyebrow.

Her breathing swallowed, but she vowed
not to let him affect her. “I wanted to try my hand at several
different things on the off chance I’d be lucky and get something
right.”

“
And did you?” The
negligent way he leaned a shoulder against the doorjamb suggested
boredom but new lines of strain had appeared on his forehead and
around his mouth.

“
Did I what?” Her mind
blanked out as she contemplated what his lips would look like first
thing in the morning after a bout of pre-dawn kissing or how they’d
feel blazing trails all over her skin. At the last moment, she
stifled a sigh.

Matteus kept his eyes hooded. “Did you
manage to cook anything to perfection?”

“
I’ve only tasted half of
what you see here.” She swallowed hard. “If there’s a dish I’ve
done well, I haven’t found it yet.” Wiping her sweaty palms on her
jeans, she grabbed a spoon from the pocket of her apron. “No time
like the present, right?”

He remained silent, the only outward
sign he heard her was the slight dip of his chin. His gaze never
left her face.

“
I hate when you give me
the silent treatment.” To distract herself from looking at him
again, Aidan lifted a scant teaspoon of mashed potatoes to her
mouth. “Lumpy but with a nice buttery flavor.” A glance to Matteus
made shivers of excitement creep down her spine. She wished he
would do something other than stare at her! She plunged the spoon
into a creamy green bean casserole. This time, her shiver was one
of disgust. “Damn it. Stone cold and bland.”
Just once I’d like to be perfect in the kitchen.