Love's Magic by Traci E. Hall Read Free Book Online Page A

Nicholas, and his gaze upon her, she knew that he was the one person she couldn’t look at without crying. He would never love her.

    Nicholas stared down at the petite blond whose head barely reached the middle of his chest and felt a stirring of protectiveness. It didn’t matter that he didn’t want this; she was as much of a victim as he. The hard shell around his emotions cracked as he saw the damp lashes, but no tears. She was strong and brave, yet so small and fragile in appearance. His fingers itched to touch her flaxen hair, but he knew that he would not give in to such a foolish gesture. It would be pure folly to care for her, even a tiny bit. His soul was already dark, and he planned on blackening it further.
    Bowing his head as he listened to the droning of the priest’s prayers, Nicholas wondered at how he had come to be in this garden, next to this woman, when he’d been on his way to mete out death’s justice without thought of what would happen if he didn’t die himself in the process.
    He did not care about tomorrow.
    Father Jonas discreetly elbowed him, loudly clearing his throat. Nicholas snapped to attention, realizing the priest had given him an instruction and he had no idea what it was.
    “Join hands, please,” Father Jonas said kindly for the second time.
    Celestia brought her hand forward slowly, and he could see the uncertainty as plainly as if she had written it down. She was afraid. He would never hurt her, he thought with surprise. He just could never love her.
    A cloud passed over the sun, darkening the sky.
    Nicholas reluctantly clasped her slender outstretched hand.

    Panic clawed at her breast as he took her hand. Tempted to jerk it away, Celestia knew she could not. She’d been wary of touching him unguarded after she’d merely brushed the wounds at his wrists with her fingers and she’d been inundated with his pain. As an experienced healer, she was trained to look at injured body parts and see what she could mend, but his scars were too tender, as if he was protecting himself even deep in delirium.
    The same had been true when she’d skimmed his unmarred flesh. His deepest injury lay buried within his spirit. Unprepared for the shock of it, she’d almost fallen into his despair. After that, she’d avoided touching him because it had felt like an intrusion on his privacy. As an innocent woman, she was terrified of the feelings he brought out in her. She could not afford to give him her affections, because lust without love would ruin her. As a healer, she was mystified by his hidden wounds.
    The heat from their joined hands was not unpleasant, as she’d feared. In fact, it was more like a low-energy version of how her hands tingled when she healed. The warmth traveled from her fingertips to her wrist, to her elbow, then her shoulders and her breasts, and finally landed in the pit of her belly, robbing her of breath. Surprised, she glanced up and met his dark, dark gaze.
    Innocent, yes. Naïve? No. Celestia knew this was desire.
    Father Jonas announced heartily and loudly, “You may now join in the kiss of peace, and may God bless this union with love.”
    The sound of cheers and clapping could be heard, but Celestia froze in place. Kiss him? Nay!
    He must have read the look of bewilderment on her face, because she watched as he tried to think of a way around it.
    There wasn’t one. He gave her a shrug.
    Swallowing hard, Celestia leaned forward, her chin tilted up in defiance. Nicholas bent down, his lips parted slightly. Celestia didn’t dare breathe as his firm mouth covered hers. She kept her lips still beneath his, her eyes wide. Would the flesh-to-flesh contact send images through her head? Celestia felt scared and exhilarated at the same time.
    They touched.
    Nicholas’s eyes darkened, and she didn’t trust the way her heart was fluttering in her chest. His lips captured hers, softly, as if he had planned on making the kiss a light melding to satisfy the people who