A Pinch of Kitchen Magic (8 page)

“
As if you and I getting
together would ever be possible.” Her happy expression faltered.
“It’s a good thing we’re not a couple. Your arrogance and attention
to detail really annoy me. I have a feeling you’d stifle
creativity.”

“
I see.” Even though he’d
initiated the spat, disappointment crashed through his chest,
robbing him of breath. “Well, then, I guess there’s nothing left to
do but finish your evaluation so we can each go about our separate
lives.” If she chose to ignore the emotions in the room like a big
gray elephant, he could do no less. It was for the best. Yet
apprehension skittered down his spine as he observed her pout. Why
did he get the feeling she wasn’t being entirely truthful with him?
When her expression didn’t give away any new information, he
schooled his features into a familiar mask of blandness.

“
That would be best.” The
tendons in her throat worked with a hard swallow. “You and I are
too different to coexist without snark or arguments. We’d claw each
other’s eyes out if we stay in the same room for too much longer.”
She snorted. “That or my emotions would command my magic and a
rolling pin would fly at you.”

In his head, he knew she
was right—he was right to keep her at arm’s length, but in his
heart, he died a little.
There might be a
chance… if she honed her skills, she’d be equipped to handle a life
with me…
No. He’d been a fool to think
that after years of meaningless relationships, he’d finally found a
woman who could be his match in every way. Except, she’d already
showed she couldn’t handle arousal and magic—albeit with shaky
success but it was a start she could practice with.
But could she learn fast enough? Would she be up
for the challenge? And, above all, did she have the fortitude to
not become distracted with arousal when using magic would matter
the most?

He sighed. No wonder the position of
skills assessor had such a high rate of turnover. Mixing with the
general public presented too many complications.

Chapter Five

Low and slow

I hate magic.

That wasn’t strictly true.
She wished her genetic propensity for the art would weaken. At the
very least, she wished her powers had become diluted from
generations of marrying into the mortal bloodstream. Of course,
that sort of luck didn’t visit her.
Maybe
I don’t want to know how to do magic anymore.

Aidan frowned at the
enameled, floral teapot resting on the tabletop before her. Thirty
seconds later, the liquid within was once again piping hot. Why
couldn’t cooking be as easy as re-heating tea? Why couldn’t real
magic be as simple as telling the tea pot to warm? A completely
wicked thought grabbed her attention.
Why
can’t I use magic to make Matteus interested in me beyond an
instructor?

Yeah right. He’s a pain in
my butt.

She yawned. Staring into
the amber depths of her teacup, she wondered what the few tea
leaves at the bottom would say about her.
That I’m boring and just too bizarre to find a guy who’ll
like me despite my flaws?
She turned a
page of a food magazine and let her fingers drift over the smooth,
glossy pages. Deep in her heart, she knew she would never grasp a
working knowledge of cooking no matter how much she loved
it.

Or magic for that
matter.
I guess I do want to keep my
magic.
Maybe it was possible she couldn’t
have both. If that were the case, which talent did she want
more?

The thought brought on a
new cloud of depression. Cooking was the only thing she really
enjoyed. Magic had been a burden, especially when Matteus was
involved or even nearby. She stirred a teaspoon of honey into her
tea, watching her imagined dreams collapse beneath the swirling
amber depths. If she were honest with herself, she
did
enjoy magic, she
just didn’t understand it.

What to choose, and why do
I need to?

“
Have you made peace with
the possession of your magic?”

Aidan rolled her eyes as Matteus
materialized into the empty space near the sink. She attempted to
ignore how her pulse galloped every time she looked at him. “Does
it matter?”

His shrug tightened his t-shirt over
his chest. “It does, unless you want to give up your
powers.”

She stared at him as his words tumbled
about in her mind. “I don’t know if I want to ditch them
altogether.” She took a sip of the apple-scented tea, refusing to
entertain thoughts of the embrace she shared with him a day ago.
That would only cause more confusion, and cause her magic to
destroy other things.

“
Then let’s work on your
acceptance.” He moved to the table, briefcase in hand, and dropped
into the chair next to her. “Turn your chair toward me.”

Aidan did as he asked, darting a
glance his way when he turned his toward hers. When her knee
accidentally brushed his, she straightened. “What do I need to
do?”

“
Patience.” He dug inside
the soft-sided black briefcase then drew out a clipboard. “I’ll
walk you through the Acceptance Exercise. If at the end you decide
you don’t want the powers, I’ll start the Draining Ritual. You’ll
sign off on the release form and we’ll be done here. You’ll go back
to your life of fumbling through cooking and I’ll return to my job
whenever the wind—and magic—take me.”

Anxiety sat like a rock in her
stomach. Would he forget about her while he popped in and out of
some other student’s life? “I’m ready.”

“
Give me your
hands.”

Aidan asked as she slipped her hands
into his upturned palms, swallowing hard when the familiar tingles
started upon contact. “Now what?”

He cocked an eyebrow. “Close your
eyes. Try to clear your mind of everything but your
magic.”

Taking a deep breath, she listened to
the pleasant timbre of his voice. Her eyes drifted closed. She felt
the gentle pressure of his fingers grasping hers, smelled the faint
scent of basil and thought of nothing in general.

“
Now, tell me about the
first time you realized you were different from other
people—different with your magic.”

“
I was twenty-five.” She
smiled. “Aunt Hettie gave me a bouquet of daisies for my birthday.
I’m allergic to daisies—which she knew—and I sneezed. Not only did
I blow off every single petal from the flower stems, I cracked the
plaster on one of the walls.” His chuckle reverberated with
something deep inside her. “Needless to say, Aunt Hettie never gave
me flowers again, but she sure did keep a sharp eye on me after
that. I have to wonder if she did that on purpose just to see what
would happen.”

“
Perhaps.” The pressure on
her fingers tightened. “No other incidents occurred between that
time and your thirtieth birthday?”

“
No, but I was very
careful. I did my best to make sure my emotions were under control
at all times.” She began to relax while a cloud of peace enveloped
her mind. “Which is why it’s so strange now.”

“
You limited your outside
relationships as well? No best friends, no boyfriends?”

She shifted on the chair, suddenly
uncomfortable. “I don’t have any friends. It’s easier than having
to explain away the weird quirky side of my personality. I’d much
rather limit friendships than try to always control my emotions
every second of the day.”

“
And the boyfriend?”
Matteus prompted.

The pressure on her fingers tightened
further. “I haven’t had a boyfriend for about a year, and after
that disastrous episode, I don’t know if I want to take on that
responsibility again.”

“
Was magic the reason for
your parting?” He removed his hands from hers.

Aidan didn’t answer immediately. She
squirmed in her chair. “Not at first.”

“
Would possession of your
magic come into play in the future and color further
decisions?”

She opened her eyes and nearly fell
into his intense silver gaze. “We dated for several months before I
got really angry with him one evening. I levitated a punch bowl
over his head. When he looked up, I dropped it.” She tried to see
what Matteus wrote on his clipboard but he leaned away from her.
“He deserved the dousing.”

“
Further explanation won’t
be necessary.” He arched an eyebrow. “What about future
relationships?”

“
I have no idea.” She
opened her mouth and closed it again with a snap, biting off her
unformed thought. “I haven’t tried.” Her muscles tensed and she
pushed halfway off her chair.

“
We’re not
finished.”

With an annoyed sigh, she sat and
closed her eyes, waiting.

“
If you needed to choose
between a man and your magic, what would you do?”

Cold fingers of apprehension marched
down her spine. “It would depend on the man.” She frowned.
“Although, my luck with men hasn’t been good, so I suppose I’d
choose magic.”

“
Let’s say the man in
question desired nothing more than to shower you with love and
affection, but his only request was that you give up your powers,
what would you choose?”

The apprehension vanished under a wash
of peace. “Magic. A man should love all of me, not love me in
pieces.”

Matteus grunted, the sound ambiguous.
“What if you loved a man with every particle of your being but he
couldn’t stand your magical tendencies? What then?”

What would I do and why
does he keep harping on this subject
?
Aidan’s mind reeled over the question. His knee jostled hers as he
shifted in his chair. Tingles shot through her leg and she tried to
ignore them. “I’d have to dump him. My magic is a defining part of
me, I suppose. That’s like asking me to remove my nose because it
turns up slightly at the end.” When would the assessment would be
over?

He scribbled a few notations on his
clipboard. “If your magic were taken away, would your life be
better or worse?”

She let the question soak into her
brain before answering. “Worse. I’d have no friends, no boyfriend
but neither would I have the added flair that makes me unique.” She
heard the scratch of his pen on the paper and wondered anew at what
he was writing. “Life would be pretty boring if I didn’t have
anything special.”

“
Would there be a point in
your life, years into the future, when you might be drawn into the
darker lure of your power?”

“
Absolutely not.” Aidan
shook her head. “If there’s a choice between controlling my magic
or letting it control me, I’d rather you just take it from me. I
don’t want that kind of stress.” When he cleared his throat, her
eyes flew open in surprise. “Are we finished?”

His gaze was unfathomable. “With the
questions, yes.” He abandoned the clipboard to the tabletop then
held out his hands. “Now for the Acceptance Seal.”

“
The what?” Lazy heat
flowed into her fingertips as she reached to accept his
hand.

Matteus lifted an eyebrow. “It’s the
verbal acceptance of your promise to keep your magic. From your
answers it’s obvious you consider the magic a part of you.” A tiny
smile curled his lips. “If you don’t do this, I’ll have no choice
but to drain your powers.”

She nodded. “All right.” The urge to
brush a fallen lock of chestnut hair from his forehead was strong
but she tamped it. She could barely handle being this close to him.
“I have stuff to do this afternoon, you know.”

“
Have you learned nothing
from the cooking process? Sometimes it’s best to leave a dish
simmering, low, and slow.” He gave her a full grin this time. “The
end result is the most wonderful meal you’ve ever known. Everything
melds together perfectly, no mistakes, and you’re left with a huge
dose of satisfaction.”

“
Oh.” Aidan shivered at
the double meaning in his statement. “Give me your left hand and
raise your right in the air.”

She did as he asked. “Now
what?”

“
Repeat after me: I
solemnly swear to uphold and abide by the laws of magic to the best
of my ability.”

She parroted back the
statement but touching him, being so close to him distracted her.
She pushed her attraction for him to the back of her mind.
I’m being silly. He’s not into me that
way.

“
I will respect the lives
around me and strive to leave the world a better place than I found
it.”

Her cheeks warmed as he squeezed her
fingers, prompting her to say the passage. When he didn’t respond
with a new sentence, she frowned. “What’s wrong? Did I jumble the
words?”

“
No.” He swallowed then
released her hand. “I just realized something and was trying to
commit it to memory.” He leaned over and scribbled on the
clipboard. “Last part. If I should fail in my mission to use my
energies for the betterment of the world around me, I hereby
authorize the Skills Assessor in charge to drain my power and
revoke my license. Thus I will return to humanity an ordinary
mortal with no knowledge of events pertaining to magic.”