Page 90 of A Witch in Notting Hill

Complete the Ritualistic Restoration Cleansing in a pond, lake, or slow-moving river to prepare the body for the Reversal. ??

Participate in a Full Moon Ceremony. Stay awake until the following sundown for maximum effect. ??

Commune with those who have passed on. They know more than any of us who remain in our mortal forms on Earth.

Convince a skeptic of the existence of magic. Use the experience to fortify your powers to effectively produce the Reversal.

Chapter 30

Oliver

I’d dreamt of Willow quite a bit since she’d arrived. I’d had more than my fair share of fantasies. More than a few late nights with visions of her in the shower, undressing for bed, showing up at my flat...

And not a single one held a candle to the real thing. Even as a bookshop owner, I didn’t have the imagination required to conjure something so beautiful.

The flush of her cheeks, the way she said my name, her full lips and her full chest and her full ass, each a work of art in their own right. She was magnetic. I could live a thousand lifetimes and still not be able to get enough of her.

“I can hear you thinking,” she whispered from where she lay on my chest. “What’s going on in there?”

“I don’t want this night to end,” I answered honestly.

“Good thing it doesn’t have to.” I could hear her smile. “In case you’ve forgotten, we have to stay awake until tomorrow. Or tonight. I have no idea what time it is.”

She stretched over me to reach her phone on the nightstand, and the light illuminated her face just in time for me to see her expression change completely. A full 180. Elated to confused to angry in a matter of seconds.

“What is it?” I asked, sitting up underneath her arm. “What’s wrong?”

“Someone saw me.” She spoke slowly, scrolling through what looked like hundreds of notifications. “Sawus.”

“What?”

“In the woods. Kissing. Someone saw us.”

She turned her phone screen so I could see it, and I tried to keep my expression neutral. Tried not to add fuel to the fire. But there we were, only slightly blurry, kissing on the lantern path.

“My god, Willow, I am so sorry.”

“This isn’t your fault.”

“I was supposed to protect you.” I got out of bed and ran my hands through my hair, trying to make sense of how I got so lost that I let this happen. “And instead I was the one who took your mask off. And I was the one who wasn’t on the lookout for anyone else.”

“And I was the one who kissed you,” she said. “I’m not your responsibility, Oliver. Even if you’ve put that on yourself. I knew the risks, and I too chose to ignore them.”