Page 63 of Kiss and Spell
“Kisses are powerful,” Ursula said, trying to inject her voice with a calmness she didn’t feel. “The act of kissing has been around since people were using stone tools. It’s mentioned in the earliest poems, papers, and books in the world. A single kiss can express so much. When it comes to family and friends, kisses represent acceptance and forgiveness. With a lover, it symbolizes a promise and the possibility of passion.”
Xavier watched her for a suspended moment. He blew out an impressed breath. “I won’t ask that question again.”
She took another sip of her drink and let it burn a trail down into her gut. He appeared in the dim bar light to be more ethereal than when they first met. Before on the boardwalk, he had looked like a playful daydream, but now he had desire and frustration burning in his eyes and want ringing in his voice.
“What now, Your Highness?”
“We toast the night.” He tapped her glass to his, causing a pleasing clink. “Have you ever had a bad kiss?”
She gave a little snort. Oh yeah. “I’ve smooched my share of frogs.”
He raised a brow. “Have you ever kissed any princes?”
She almost did. Ursula made a sound. “Not yet.”
The night’s still young. He stretched his arm across the back of her seat. She felt the warmth of his hand near her shoulder. Ursula leaned back into his touch. His fingers made slow, deliberate movements, sending fiery sparkles through her veins. Need constricted about her heart. They’d known each other only a few weeks, but they’d clicked automatically. The meet-cute on the boardwalk. The shared laughs. The lingering looks. How many times had she considered claiming him for herself in the most desperate, late-night moments?
Ursula clutched the glass to her chest, rattling the ice cubes. She knew how to bind souls together. Honey could work as a binding agent, but fresh sweat would be better if you wanted this certain spell to take hold. Ursula had never attempted to bind Lincoln because he didn’t believe in her power. The man who didn’t kiss her on New Year’s Eve because he didn’t entertain superstition. He wouldn’t allow himself to be seduced. Oh no. He was too elevated for that supposed nonsense.
Not Xavier.
From the way he regarded her with complete awe, this prince believed in every inch of her. She could make him sweat and bring him crawling to her bed without question. Without shame. Without mercy. To bind his blood and bone so that they became one for the remainder of their time on Earth. Goddess, she’d treat him so good that he’d want nothing else but to be with her for all his days. She’d demolish him with her affections, and he’d want to drink her bathwater by the mouthful. In turn, she’d take him into every part of her body, mind, and soul. Her wanton thoughts mortified the stars above, but she had held back from telling him how much she yearned for him. Ursula willed herself to be strong.
Let him have his happy ending without you.
Xavier spoke up again, sending her dark thoughts scattered back into the corners of her mind.
“I have one job. Show up. Kiss the beauty. Ride off into the sunset.”
She shook her head hard. “There’s more to the story than that, but let’s start there. Spend a little time getting comfortable with your date; then you’ll get the whole kissing thing.”
Xavier tilted his head. “I’m comfortable with you.”
“I’m not your date,” she reminded.
Two words slipped out of his mouth so softly she almost missed them. “Why not?”
He put his hand under her chin, turning her face toward him. The question remained between them. Why not?
Her heart answered. Because I would go wild with you.
“I’ve read enough fairy tales to know how much trouble a kiss can cause,” she finally said.
He gave a low chuckle that made her head spin.
Xavier didn’t respond but tapped his glass with hers. Clink. They had another drink. She shifted in her seat. They stayed until it was a quarter to midnight. He helped her out of the booth, paid the bill, and left the bar. Xavier, being the gentleman that he was, walked her to her building and waited while she fished her keys from her pocket. His nearness made her clumsy and her palms sweaty. Ursula tried to put her key in the lock, missed two times, and then finally managed to find it.
The lock clicked and the door opened. “Kablam,” Ursula said.
He chuckled. “Is that an official magic word?”
“Yes,” she said. They shared a smile. He was so striking, so princely. Everything around her felt like it was moving in slow motion. The sidewalk felt crooked under her feet. They stepped onto the landing. Tonight, she was grateful that she was the only resident in this building, and she wasn’t waking up any neighbors with her magical mayhem.
Ursula motioned up the stairs to her apartment. “Do you want to come up for some tea?”
He shook his head. She tamped down her disappointment and gave him a small smile. The night was over.
“Thank you for the company. Good night, Xavier.”