Authors: Maralee Lowder
But Cassie wasn’t just any woman.
Cassie had that crazy special gift of hers.
Cassie knew things - things that no one
else knew.
Why hadn’t she been able to read into his heart this time when she had done it so easily before?
Bitterness began to eat at him, gnawing away
at him
until he felt raw inside.
She could have at least given him a chance to explain instead of being so damned willing to believe he had used her.
She should have known he would never betray her.
Bitterness turned into anger, anger into indignation.
There was a lot that needed to be straightene
d out between Cassie and him
, damn it, and he wasn’t in much o
f a mood to wait around
until tomorrow to do it.
In less than five minutes he was dressed and out of the house.
He started to take his car,
then
decided against it.
His instincts told him that the time it took to walk to her house would help him to harness his anger.
Even though he was furious
with her, what he really wanted was to win her back.
Given his present mood, if he wasn’t careful he stood a good chance of losing her forever.
That thought was one he simply could not live with.
It was nearly midnight and the moon was at its fullest.
Under normal circumstances, the coven would be gathering
in their favorite meadow, preparing for a ceremony of worship to the Goddess.
Cassie stood on her front porch gazing at the brilliant moon, wondering if she and her Wiccan sisters would ever gather together like that again.
She lamented that their beautiful, secluded meadow had been ruined forever.
The horrible manner in which it had been desecrated sickened her.
How could they ever return to it now?
Her spirit grew restless.
She missed her spiritual sisters.
She missed the ceremony of worship that should be happening at this very moment.
And yes, more than anything else she missed Mac.
She had been wrong to accuse him so rashly, without giving him a chance to defend himself.
In her shock she had allowed herself to see him as others did, as a cold, calculating journalist, so ruthless in his drive to get the story that he would do anything to break down her resistance.
Some would say he would even go so far as to make her fall in love with him.
But she knew him better than that.
She knew him like no one had ever known him.
She had seen into his soul, and what she had seen convinced her he would not have written
that article.
She had let her faith in him falter and for that she must make amends.
Just how she was to do this was a mystery.
She needed guidance.
Her mind was in such turmoil.
Oh, how she longed for the support of her Wiccan sisters.
More than anything, she needed the peace and understanding that came with their worship.
Well, that was something she could do something about, she realized.
She turned back to her house to retrieve everything she would need to cast a circle.
She could worship right here in the clearing that surrounded her home.
Tall redwoods formed a protective crescent.
At the base of the cliff the vast Pacific Ocean glittered with dancing lights from
the full moon, creating an ever-
moving panorama.
She stood still for a moment, gazing at the sight before her, consciously letting go of the negativity that threatened to crush her.
Sighing softly, she felt herself begin to embrace the Goddess’ gifts as she invited nature’s pure energy to enter her, to cleanse her.
Re-entering the house, she prepared the pre-ritual bath.
As she cleansed herself in the salted water, she reached out
for the tranquil state she wished to bring to the ceremony.
Sponging herself with the purifying water, she concentrated on the ritual she was about to perform.
Stepping from the tub, she dried herself.
She ignored the chill of the night air as she once again stepped outside.
She did not cover her body.
She needed to feel the comforting rays of the moon on her skin.
She needed to bare herself entirely to the Goddess.
Placing candles at the four compass points, she stepped gracefully in a clockwise pattern, lighting them as she uttered a petition to the Goddess to witness and protect her ritual.
Using her
athame
, a silver ceremonial dagger, she traced a pentagram in the air, invoking the guidance and assistance of the Goddess.
As she proceeded, uttering the lilting words of her ritual, she felt a special peace enter her.
She became one with the ritual
until all else slipped from her consciousness.
All that was left was herself and the Goddess.
She felt the blessing flow over her, purifying her.
She opened herself, glorifying in the pure love and goodness of the Goddess.
Nothing else existed but this moment.
Mac stood at the edge of the woods, shadowed by the huge trees.
He knew he should leave.
Watching Cassie moving gracefully within the confines of the circle that only she could see, dressed in only the shimmering rays of moon glow, made him feel like a voyeur.
It was wrong of him to invade the most private aspect of her life like this.
Yes, he should leave b
ut he couldn’t.
He was thoroughly entrapped by her beauty and the mystical actions she performed.
His eyes drank in the beauty of her moonlit body.
His feelings went far beyond merely wanting to hold that remarkable body next to his, beyond even the desire to make love to her until they were both satiated, body and soul.
The emotions that flowed th
rough him were more profound tha
n any he had ever experienced.
Something in Cassie’s actions told Mac that her ritual was ending.
He stepped back further into the shadows.
For the first time in his life he felt shame at having invaded someone’s privacy.
He feared that if she knew he had been there she would hate him even more.
And yet he could not bring himself to leave.
Not until she had returned to her home, shutting herself away from him
once again.
It was as if a magical spell had been cast upon him, holding him firmly in its mystical grip.
And then Cassie turned toward him.
Something in her manner suggested that she had known he had been there from the beginning.
With slow, deliberate steps, she walked to him.
Her eyes were leveled directly at him.
Was it possible she could see in the dark?
Step by step, she drew nearer, until she was close enough for him to reach out and touch her.
Holding his gaze with her mesmerizing eyes, she stopped before him, not speaking yet communicating her pure love so forcefully it threatened to overwhelm him.
“Cassie, I ...
“
Reaching out her hand, she placed her fingers tips lightly on his lips.
Whatever words he had been about to speak slipped from his mind as Cassie took him by both hands and, backing slowly, deliberately, her golden gaze never leaving his eyes, led him to the soft grass of the meadow.
Once again the rays of the full moon bathed her body.
Mac’s breath caught at the sight of her opalescent skin, the glints of diamonds as they glittered on the dew in her hair.
He felt his soul being drawn into the very depths of her through glowing, smoldering topaz eyes.
If she had cast a spell over him, so
be
it, he thought as she began to unbutton his shirt.
It dropped to the earth unnoticed as she reached down to unfasten his belt.
After freeing him of his clothes, she reached up both arms, encircling his neck.
Her gentle pull brought his mouth down to her waiting lips.
They parted under the heat of his desire.
And suddenly nothing else existed.
They were two souls sharing the most profound intimacies possible.
Together they sank to the soft grass, their bodies glorifying in the sensuous feel of its cool dampness next to their heated skin.
The moon bathed their bodies in its glorious light as they lost themselves in each other.
If this was what witchcraft was all about, so be it, was Mac’s last conscious thought as he sank deep into the warmth of her inviting body.
Chapter 7
Mac buried himself deeper into the warm blankets.
Had he ever felt so absolutely perfect?
A sense of total contentment filled his body, drenching each thirsty cell until they nearly overflowed with its subtle warmth.
Keeping his eyes shut tightly, he savored the moment.
This must be what heaven feels like
, he thought with a lazy smile.
The early morning silence was broken by the sound of
Sarge’s
soft snoring as he slept on the floor beside the bed.
Soon an enterprisingly early bird began twittering outside the window.
Although he would
have
prefer
red
to stay right where he was, Mac realized that was not an option.
Resigned to the fact that real life could be put off only so long, he rolled onto his side and opened his eyes, p
repared to face another problem-
filled day.
The vision that greeted him, illuminated by the weak early morning light, was quite possibly the most gorgeous sight this side of heaven.
Propping himself up on one elbow, he gazed at the luscious creature who lay beside him.
With a sigh of pure
contentment, he allowed his eyes to feast upon the gorgeous woman who slept so peacefully there.
An extraordinary mixture of love and desired swept over him.
His eyes could not capture enough of her.
He wanted to take her into his arms and hold her so near she would become a part of him.
He wanted all of her.
He wanted her soul to enter him, mingling with his, making them one entity.
Everything about her was magic.
She completely enchanted him.
She was his only heaven.
Cassie lay on her back, one arm resting
on the pillow behind her head. H
er fingers were slightly curled in a curiously vulnerable pose.
Her other arm lay across her abdomen, partially covered by the rumpled sheet that had slipped down revealing one perfectly formed breast.
Its sweet peak tempted Mac’s hungry lips.
Though he longed to lean over and take its sweetness into his mouth, he resisted.
When he took her it would only be wi
th her full consent
.
But there was nothing to stop him from taking pleasure in the sight of her.
His gaze lingered on her slender neck as he watched the rhythmic pulse beat at her throat.
He examined the tiny dimple in her chin, the apricot blush of her cheeks.
The delicate fan of lashes, barely visible through tumbled coppery curls, intrigued him.
Impulsively, he reached out his hand to brush the hair that covered her brow.
He couldn’t stop himself.
The need to gaze at the splendor of her face was too great.
He would have be
en happy worshipping at the alta
r of her beauty for the rest of his life.
Cassie lay there, still more asleep than awake.
She knew if she opened her eyes it would be time to begin the new day.
She resisted.
The bed felt too wonderful.
Well, no, it wasn’t just the warmth and softness of the bed.
What she felt went far beyond that sensation you experience when you first wake from a good night’s sleep.
This went deeper, much deeper.
And then the memories of the past night’s delights flooded into her consciousness.
A slow smile crept across her face as she recalled the delicious lovemaking she had shared with Mac on the cool, moonlit grass the night before.
Stretching languidly, she allowed herself to relive each sensual caress, each passionate kiss.
And later they had come here, to her bed.
He had been her gift from the Goddess as he once again made her body
come alive.
She recalled the heat of his touch, her body responding with a sudden need both primal and urgent.
Her breath caught as a shiver of sexual desire rippled through her like the cascade of a mountain waterfall.
Opening her eyes, she found herself gazing directly into Mac’s chocolate brown eyes.
She would have willingly drowned in their liquid depths.
Slipping her arms around his neck, she drew his body close to hers as he covered her mouth with his.
She snuggled closer still, fusing their bodies until his warmth was hers.
Oh, if only they could stay here
,
in this bed, making love forever.