Red Hot (9 page)

“Are you telling me I was nothing more
than a potential meal ticket to you? One that you are prepared to throw away
because I don’t do ‘society’ well?”

She looked down her nose at him and
sighed dramatically at the question. “Well, you might have been reasonable in
bed but honey, you aren't marriage material, at least not in my book.” She
looked over at him with her lips curled and shook her head. “Just look at you
now, you look ready to cry. Not the sort of man I want to grow old with.”

“You told me you loved me. Why would you
do that if you were only trying to make him jealous? That's cruel.” Red's voice
cracked.

She snorted her disgust while walking
away, leaving him broken hearted.

Red took the note and screwed it up before
throwing it in the bin and walking out of the office. He breathed deeply and
headed for his lab. He checked with his staff on their progress and quickly
lost himself in his own little world of microscopes and microbes.

Rhian walked her last patient out of the
surgery and sighed with relief. It had been a big day and she was exhausted. A
large glass of red wine and she would feel much better. Last night she had
researched the best time for her next spell and if she was right, that was
tomorrow just before sunrise. She had to check her Book of Shadows to make sure
she had all the ingredients. The essential one, Red's hair, was safely in the
bowl in her bedroom. It was against all she held close and a stab of guilt
pierced her chest. All of her beliefs screamed out she was doing the wrong
thing. It was not right to cast a spell on someone without their permission and
even Nero had given her the cold shoulder over it. If her family found out they
would be horrified. It was not the way she was brought up to use her magic
without giving consideration to others before her own wants and needs.

Nevertheless, she was adamant. When he
realized what she had done he would agree with her that it was for him and he
would appreciate her help. After all, it was one of the things that upset him
the most, people laughing at how he looked. Without his thick glasses, he was
incredibly handsome.

Rhian locked the surgery door, flicked off
the lights and breathed a sigh of relief. She walked into the kitchen, took a
wine glass from the cupboard, and a bottle of Merlot from the wine rack. She
walked outside to her veranda overlooking the bay. Boats were cruising around
the harbor and the bright colors of their sails lightened her mood. The harbor
lights were casting a glow in the falling dusk and she slowly relaxed.

Settling down on a comfortable chair, Rhian
poured her wine. The first sip ran over her tongue, the flavors bringing her
alive. She breathed deeply and swallowed feeling the deep red drink warm her
throat and all the way to her stomach. She leaned back in her chair, lifted her
legs up, and kicked her shoes off. It had taken all of her will to not call Red
and ask to see him again. It would be better to wait until after tomorrow's
dawn and then she could concentrate on the man, not the magic.

She sat admiring the view for an hour
before the animals demanded she come in and feed them. After a quiet dinner and
a soothing bath, she crawled into her soft bed with her magic book for company.
As she looked up past spells, she cross referenced them with her grandmother’s
books before she chose the one she would use for Red. This is the one I’ll use
.

Eyes of day

and eyes of night

give Red back

his rightful sight

let him see

the Mother’s light

give him back his true sight

see in sparkling clarity

this is my will, as I mote it shall be.”

Rhian placed a marker in the book and
closed it.

Nero jumped up on the bed and watched her
with baleful eyes.

“Stop looking at me like that Nero, for
goodness sake. I'm only improving his eyesight, something anyone could have
done years ago if they'd had a mind too. No harm in that at all in my mind.”
The cat turned away from her and curled up at the end of the bed, ignoring her.

“The Fates threw him at my feet. What do
you expect me to do, Nero. Ignore him? For the love of all things true and
good, his biggest hurdle in life is how other people see him.” She punched her
pillow and lay her head down on it while staring at the cat. “There is no harm
in making him feel good about himself. At least that way he might actually
realize he is worthy of a decent relationship. I want that, you know full well
I do. I deserve love as much as the next person and I'm going to do everything
I can to get it, no matter how much of a hissy fit you decide to throw.”

She crossed her arms over her chest and
stared at the ceiling. If Gram was here she would agree, Rhian knew she would.
At least she thought she would.

Damn, am I really doing the right thing? If
I don't give it a shot what will happen? He will still be the same guy with the
biggest chip on his shoulder about his looks. I will take him as he is, no
questions there but I don't think he's prepared to believe I can love him
looking like he does. I can't see why for the life of me.

He's just the handsomest thing, deep red
hair, green eyes and a body to die for. So he's a little bit socially inept, so
what? He spends too much time with his specimens and just needs to be convinced
he is what I want. He is, isn't he? I mean, he's terrific in bed, sweet as pie
out of it. I'm sure we can work on anything else that comes up. We have to at
least try.

Rhian rolled over on her side and clutched
her pillow to her chest, hugging it tight. She went to sleep unsure of herself
and willed the answer to come to her in her dreams but she woke the next
morning as unsure as she had been when she went to sleep.

* * * *

Red didn't give his old flame another
thought until his phone vibrated in his pocket as he pulled up in the driveway
of his house the next evening. Looking at the screen, he groaned. Eleanor's
face smiled up at him and his heart plummeted. Ignoring the incessant ring, he
shoved it back into his pocket.

He walked up the stairs and opened the
door. The smell of cleaning products hit his nose and he remembered it was
furniture polishing day. Enid would have polished her little heart out. Even
though it was now only him, she refused to cut back her hours. She kept to the
same routine she had when his parents had been alive and he didn't have the
heart to tell her he really didn’t need her as much. She had helped raise him
and still organized the routine of the house.

Red walked into the kitchen and took a beer
from the fridge. He looked approvingly at his dinner. Enid could be relied upon
to make all his favorites. Problem was he didn't always feel hungry when he got
home. Sometimes he was just too tired to eat. Or he was just not in the mood,
like tonight.

The last thing he needed was Eleanor
ringing him. She’d made the move and dumped him, breaking his heart. She could
just leave him alone. Now Rhian was on the scene, he had started to feel better
about himself, and his old girlfriend did nothing but drag his emotions down.
He threw himself down in an armchair and turned on the television. Watching
some sport would help him unwind. He finally ate his dinner watching the Moto
GP.

Twice more he ignored the phone when it
rang. In the end he left it on the kitchen bench, hoping she would get the
message and he could sleep easy without it ringing or vibrating beside the bed.
He folded down his top sheet and headed for the bathroom. Standing under the
hot water, he let his mind wander back to work. So close in the final round of
tests. The vaccine was almost ready for human trials and he was getting more
and more excited.

He wondered if Rhian would be interested in
how his work had progressed and decided he would bring it up to see what her
reaction was next time he saw her. It surely wouldn't be as bad as Eleanor's
scathing remarks. Rhian was a much nicer person all round. Her life was her
animals and caring for them. There was no way Eleanor would let one anywhere
near her. She would turn up her nose crying in disgust if one dared touch her
and marked her clothing.

How he had fallen for her was now beyond
him. Although his heart had fluttered when he saw her name on the note, it was
not a pleasant anticipation he’d felt. Red knew now she was not the type of
wife he wanted, certainly after the way she had treated him. He wanted someone
who would love him for who he was and how he was, someone who wouldn't try to
change him. He had accepted life as it was dished out to him - the woman he
married would too.

Rhian's face came into his mind and his
body reacted. Her luscious curves and willing body amazed him. Eleanor had
handed out sex like a prize when he performed things she deemed appropriate.
Like Sunday breakfast with her parents at the best restaurant in the bay. If
they were spotted by a reporter she was happy and he got lucky.

Red didn't feel comfortable around famous
people like her father. A big deal in the political world, he could make Red’s
company more financial than it was with a nod in the right direction. But that
wasn't what he wanted. He needed to make drugs that helped those who needed it.
Not drugs popular for cosmetic use or the wealthy only.

He turned off the water and stepped out of
the shower. He would call Rhian tomorrow and see if she would like to go on a
picnic after work. Satisfied with his decision, he dried and dressed for bed.
Sinking down in the soft mattress, he lay with his hands behind his head. He
could feel his lips turn up as he thought of the inviting smile she gave him
just before she climbed on his lap the last time he’d been with her. Red had
watched in amazement as she had squirmed on his knee, already moaning in the
throes of a massive orgasm.

There was no way Eleanor would be as free
and uninhibited as Rhian with sex. The woman loved sex, it was no big deal
apparently. So did he, but he'd never had the opportunity to be as free as they
had been. He had always been told what to do, for how long and how hard. Rhian
had let him be himself and he would be forever grateful someone had shown him
the difference between making love and being controlled.

* * * *

Rhian was exhausted. Her body ached, her
eyes burned, and her head throbbed. All she wanted to do was lay down and
sleep. This spell had taken it out of her and her body needed to shut down and
regenerate.

That was not going to happen. She had to
open the surgery in a couple of hours so a short nap followed by a hot shower
to wake her up was all that was possible this morning. But it was worth it. She
had put her magic out there and now it was up to the universe to bring it into
being.

“Blessed be, Mother for letting me have the
skills to bring your greatest gifts. Thanks be, for the memories you gave me
and the man you have shown me. Blessed be your gifts that will find their way
to his body and make him whole.”

Rhian blew out the candles and put a cover
over her cauldron. She turned toward her bedroom dragging her feet. The sun was
rising over the bay and she sighed.
Why couldn't the timing have been
better?

She threw back the covers on her bed and
set the alarm before sinking into a deep sleep.

Nero was kneading her chest when the noise
screamed in her ears. She threw her arm out, groping for the loud alarm.
Hitting it on the top she rubbed her eyes and looked at the cat. “I think
that's quite enough of that, don't you?” He looked at her, his green eyes
locked on hers. “It's done, as well you know. You must have had second thoughts
as you're sitting here on my body. He is worth it, Nero. You'll see.”

She pushed her familiar from her chest and
rolled out of bed. Stumbling to the bathroom, Rhian turned on the shower and
shrugged off her nightgown. She put her face directly under the warm stream of
water, willing her body to wake up. The warm water soothed her and she noticed
her headache was now just a dull throb an aspirin would take care of.

Rhian quickly soaped herself, wishing she
had the time to soak her tiredness away. She scrubbed her body and did her
usual shower routine before flicking off the tap. Stepping out of the shower,
she reached for a bath towel and wrapped herself in it. Looking into the
mirror, she ran her fingertips under the shadows around her eyes. Sighing she
reached for her moisturizer before going back to her bedroom to dress. Nero
still sat where she had left him. He watched her every move and when she walked
out to the kitchen, he wound in between her legs as he purred for his
breakfast.

Rhian fed him first and turned on the
coffee pot before she made a bottle for Bambi. When he was fed she made toast
and stood at the kitchen counter and looked out over the bay as the town slowly
came to life.

She poured another mug of coffee, and then
she walked into her surgery to look at the bookings for the day. Nothing too
demanding on the cards but one could never tell how the day would unfold. The
clinic had a way of getting busy when you least expected it. She had everything
ready for the first patient before May walked through the door.

She leaned her butt on the edge of the desk
as May put her purse away and turned on the computer.

When she had everything straight and ready
for the day she turned to Rhian. “Okay, spill. I know you’ve been up to
something. I can tell by the look in your eye.”

Rhian looked down at her feet, hoping the
heat travelling up her cheeks wasn’t visible.

“Oh come on, tell me. You’ve been using
your magic haven’t you? You have that glow on your skin you always get when
play with spells. What have you done, Rhian?”

May came and stood before her, hands on
hips. Rhian smiled at her but it came off wobbly. The realization of what she
had done was hitting her now. The tears welled in the corner of her eyes and
May’s face went through a series of changes.

“You didn’t use a spell on someone without
their permission did you?”

“Yes.” Her voice came out as a small squeak.