Page 15 of Jinx

No touching.

No attachments.

No exceptions.

As I reminded myself of them, a familiar face caught my eye as they walked by, and I winced when he backtracked to the cafe. I held to my rules even tighter.

I knew that the last time I saw Bellamy wouldn’t actually be the last time I saw him, even though I’d tried to tell him to leave me alone. He struck me as the kind of man who didn’t have to deal with rejection very often, and I wasn’t sure how to convince him of how dangerous I was, short of stabbing him in the kidney. My magic hissed at the idea, raking its claws against my ribs.

Okay. No stabbing Bellamy.

“Hey, Blue.” He helped himself to the empty stool beside me.

Part of me wanted to be petty, to snark back something mean because maybe upping the bitch-factor would get the message across, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it. I could make him squirm a bit under a thick layer of frost, though. I pulled my teabag out of the water and set it on the saucer before taking a careful sip.

“Bellamy.” My cold tone contradicted the warmth humming under the surface of my skin. I expected my magic to scold me, but it seemed to be okay with a little torment, if not full-on torture. It wasn’t his fault that Margo was a Grade A Bitch, but he’s the one who let her put her nasty ass in his lap.

He waited a beat to see if I’d say more. I didn’t, so he plowed on. “I’m really glad I ran into you.” He drummed nervous fingers on the counter, and I could feel his eyes tracing the side of my face while I continued to pointedly avoid looking at him. It wasn’t long before he heaved a sigh and moved to stand.

Boy needed to work on his stamina.

“Speak, Bellamy.” The command was infused with a dominating undercurrent that was 100% my magic.

Okay, 98%.

I finally turned to look at him and was met with a hungry gaze. His dark amber eyes dropped to my lips, and I pulled the bottom one between my teeth like he hadn’t earned it yet. My magic shivered with excitement at this discovery, heat rising like a creeping inferno to pool in my core.

Bellamy cleared his throat and repositioned himself in his seat. A slight flush crept up his neck and colored the tips of his ears. “Right. Uhh…I didn’t…I didn’t want to go all weekend without, uhm…apologizing.”

My magic preened, looking down at him like a queen. He should be sorry. He should be begging for forgiveness.

“Or just begging.”

I contained my gasp when the devious whisper filtered through my thoughts. Gritting my teeth, I reminded my magic once again that we couldn’t have Bellamy. Or his friend. Or anyone else. I arranged my face into something I hoped resembled indifference, but my heart was stuck in a staccato beat.

“There’s no need,” I told him with a disinterested tone that didn’t sound all that convincing. “Who you’re with is not my business. We hardly know each other, and we’re not friends.”

“But I want to be.” His hand on the counter twitched closer, and my eyes focused on it. I could take it. I could give in and claim this man for myself until whatever fate I jinxed him with came to claim him instead. Would it be worth it to have him for a moment only to lose him for a lifetime?

What was I thinking? It didn’t matter what I wanted. I couldn’t doom an innocent man because I was feeling selfish and lonely. If he knew the truth—if he knew what I really was—he’d turn away and never look back.

Friends? I don’t get to have friends. I don’t get to have anyone.

“Look,” he went on in a softer tone. “Margo said that awful shit, and I should have shut it down immediately. I should have shut her down. I’m sorry I didn’t. And I’m so sorry I grabbed you like that.”

My head jerked with a little nod, while I tugged on my magic’s leash to get it to heel. “Apology accepted.” I forced a twitchy smile. “Just don’t let it happen again.”

Bellamy’s throat bobbed as he swallowed, my eyes following the movement while his danced over me and lingered on the skin exposed by my half-zipped hoodie. “I’ll try, but I–” He swallowed again, lifting a gaze that was both desperate and hopeful. “Fuck. I don’t know what it is, but I really want to touch you.”

11

CORDELIA

Lust flared through me, hot and bright, as my magic eagerly agreed that was a great idea.

“Touch him. Take him.”

His tawny hair was mussed like he’d been pulling at it. My fingers itched to dive into those thick locks, messing them up further. I wanted to yank his head back and claim every breath, every moan, every heartbeat.