Soar

“Have you had the vanilla storm coffee before?” She used her pointer finger to mark the spot on the menu. The remnants of some sort of light pink polish remained on a few of her nails.

“No, but it sounds good.”

“Want to order that for two?” She glanced up at me. “It’s funny that you have to order things that way.”

“Sure, sounds good. “ I didn’t mention that they had different types of menus. The witch had slipped us one that only offered larger portion beverages—designed for intimate dates.

As soon as the waitress arrived, I ordered the vanilla storm and a crème brulee to share. By Casey’s smile, she agreed with the dessert order.

She settled back against the pillows lining our bench seat and gazed outside. The sun was just going down, creating an orange-red glow across the sky that nearly lit up the window. I assumed the witches were accentuating it somehow, but Casey was transfixed so I was glad for it.

Our waitress brought over our order and Casey tore her eyes away from the sunset. “You definitely know how to pick a place.”

“Thanks.” I smiled. “I try.”

“They take this whole ‘for two’ thing seriously.” She warily picked up the two handled container of coffee.

I laughed. “We don’t have to drink it at the same time or anything.”

“Yeah, that wasn’t going to happen.” Her expression was light as she lifted the cup and brought it to her lips. She let out a soft moan that made me wonder what a much louder moan caused by something else entirely would sound like. “This is heavenly.”

I took the outstretched cup from her. I sipped the coffee, and she was right. “Very good.”

“I wonder why they call it a storm?”

“I don’t know, but I doubt they’ll tell us. They’re pretty secretive about recipes here.”

“Oh.” Some disappointment crossed her face, and I knew I’d get the recipe sooner or later. “Well, then, we might have to come back.” She accepted the cup from me and took another sip. After she gave off another of those small moans, I got a little suspicious.

“Would you excuse me for a minute?”

She nodded, going in for yet another sip.

I found the witch that owned the place, the same one who’d seated us. “What did you put in our coffee?”

She smiled. “You shouldn’t have tasted anything different, sir.”

“But she’s tasting something different, isn’t she?” I nodded over my shoulder.

“I thought I’d help you out a little. Push things in the right direction.” She rolled her tongue over her teeth.

“It’s an aphrodisiac spell?”

“The spell only affects women. I know The Society rules about using magic on Pterons.”

“Now what do I do? I can’t take it away from her, but I can’t let her drink it.”

“Why not? You can take her home after this.”

I shook my head. “This better not happen again or I’ll close this place down.”

“You could thank me.” She wore a playful look, and I was certain this wasn’t the first time she’d used the spell on a customer.

“Thank you?” Witches were usually okay, but this one was earning a spot on my bad side.

“For helping out. It’s been too long. Allie’s gone, it’s time to find someone new.” She spoke as though we were close friends and she knew exactly what I was going through. The reality was, we’d only met a handful of times.

I knew the action was done with the right intentions, but it really put me in a bad place. Now even if the opportunity arose, I couldn’t ask Casey to go back to my place. I sure as hell wasn’t going to take advantage of her that way.

“Relax, Toby. It only works if the girl’s into you already. If she isn’t, it will be useless. If it works well, you know you’ve got her attention even without the spell.”

“I could kill you for this,” I muttered before returning to the table to find Casey with a nearly empty cup and half the pot of crème brulee.

“Sorry I started on this without you.” She pushed the dish toward me.

“It’s okay.” I put an arm behind her and she happily snuggled into my side. I figured letting her get close wasn’t taking advantage of her.

“I’m glad you asked me out.” She ran a finger down my chest, and even through the cotton of my shirt, it made me shiver with a mix of anticipation and need. “I’ve wanted this for a long time.”

“Me too, but it’s getting late.”

“Are you ready to go home?” Her words were innocent enough, but her eyes weren’t. She wasn’t planning on spending the night in her own bed, which made it that much more important that she did.

“Unfortunately, I have to run into work. I’ll make sure you get home safe first though.”

“Really? That’s not fun.” She pouted. Then she looped one leg over my lap and straddled me. Her fingers moved to my shirt again, but this time they didn’t stop at my chest. I stilled her hand before she could start playing with my belt buckle.

“How about we go out another night? Maybe next week?” I wasn’t against using her state to my advantage by lining up a future date. Hopefully she’d remember we made one.

“I’d love to. But do we have to wait that long?” Her teeth nipped my ear. “Can’t you just put off work a little bit longer?”

“It’s going to be a busy week for me.” And a painful night. I’d never hated my jeans more. “But I’ll see you at work.”

“At work?” she purred into my ear. “Can’t it be at play?”

What kind of spell had they used? Casey was ready to go right there at the café. I had to cool things down and fast.

“Not yet.” I carefully moved her off my lap and stood up.

The physical separation seemed to help a little. Her face relaxed, and she rested her hands at her sides. “Okay. Hopefully the week will go fast.”

“You and me both.” I wasn’t sure how long the spell would last, but hopefully a week would give it enough time to leave her system.

I sat on the opposite side of the cab and gently pushed her back over to her side every time she got too close. The looks the cab driver was giving me in the rearview mirror were priceless. He thought I’d lost my mind. I’m sure it looked that way. Generally, it wasn’t my practice to push away a sexy girl who’s trying to get into my pants. Knowing her desire was accentuated by magic didn’t make it easier.