Page 38 of Grimoire Omens

“She’s not dead, just unconscious,” Ulseere drawled. “Next time you’re feeling possessive, a simple slap would probably be more appropriate.”

I singed him with a glare. “How about not letting her touch you in the first place?”

His lips curved. “But then I’d miss your jealous reaction.”

“Hardly jealous. I was protecting you from a possible threat.”

He snorted at my obvious lie. “In that case, good job reacting quickly. It’s good to see you’re starting to figure out how to access your magic.”

Should I admit I had no idea what the fuck happened or how I’d done it? Not a chance.

I crouched down, and my eye caught a familiar athletic brand logo on a bag. A peek inside showed yoga pants, a crop top, and matching zip-up sweater.

I snagged it and rose. “I’ve got what I need. Let’s go.”

This time I led the way up the stairs to our suite, and unlike him, I didn’t complain when I felt his gaze on my ass.

On the contrary, I gave it a bit more of a shake. Probably why he pinned me to the wall beside the exit for our floor and gave me a torrid kiss.

Mmm.

“Room’s just down the hall,” I reminded.

A room that offered no privacy because Flo and Cedric had returned.

Sigh.

The French fries, salty as they were, didn’t make up for the disappointment of missing out on epic sex.

The only saving grace?

Ulseere looked more miserable than usual.

10

As we munched, I filled Flo in on our mini adventure, because I had no secrets from my bestie.

“Holy shit. You like totally used magic,” Flo exclaimed, clapping her hands.

“Yeah. Now I just wish I knew how I did it.” Because having control over it seemed kind of important so I didn’t accidentally kill someone. Not to mention, if I were in danger, I needed to be able to count on being able to defend myself.

“I’m surprised you didn’t receive any training, given your grandmother was a witch,” Ulseere noted in between bites of his burger.

The comment had me musing aloud. “You know what’s weird is I’ve never accidentally used magic before, and yet I’ve been pissed many a time. When that girl at the coffee shop kept intentionally fucking up my coffee using almond milk instead of oat, you’d think she’d have received an air slap or two because I certainly wanted to smack her.”

Cedric offered the surprising answer. “You never had it happen in the past because your Grams had your power bound.”

My gaze shot over to the cat. “Excuse me? What do you mean, bound?”

“When you hit puberty, your magic suddenly blossomed, and Alice didn’t like it one bit. She cast a spell on you so that it funneled it to her.”

I blinked and digested the tidbit before exclaiming, “You’re saying Grams leeched my magic? Who the fuck does that?”

“The same woman who bound your mother when she showed signs of it, although Ava didn’t have anywhere close to the power you do.”

My mouth rounded. “That fucking ragged old bitch. She claimed I was useless, and all that time, she sucked my power dry. I assume the leeching spell disappeared when she died?”

“Yes, but given the many years she kept you fully drained, it took some time for you to rebuild your reservoir. It’s now overflowing, which is likely why it so easily spilled when you got agitated.”