The Responsible Witch (The Ward Witches) (14 page)

"It'll be our secret," he agreed.

"I know it's early, but I'm beat. Something about being pregnant, I guess. Can I get an infusion before I go to bed?"

"Sure thing. I'll come up with you."

"Thanks."

When Dymphna and Skylar left, Leo gave Gage a hard look. "Did she really figure it out today?"

"I think she really might have. It certainly seemed like she had an epiphany. And I sure noticed that she wasn't paying attention to the movie this evening."

"No, she wasn't. I'm glad you picked up on that as well."

"I meant it when I said I was going to try to be the best husband possible for her. I want to be able to pick up on her moods, her patterns, and her opinions. I love her."

"I'm glad to hear that. Have you told her?"

"No. From what I've seen, she's not ready to hear it. Or at least, as of this morning she wasn't. After this afternoon and the emotions she went through at the grave, she might be. I don't want to pressure her to do or feel anything she doesn't want to."

"I appreciate that. Dymphna has been my twin and my best friend for many years. It's a great relief to me that she's found someone like you who loves and appreciates her."

"I'm glad to be that man."

"I don't even have to threaten you, though I'll admit I've always rather wanted to treat one of her boyfriends to the riot act."

They both laughed and were laughing as Dymphna returned. "Your wife is ready for bed. Well to be honest, she's already asleep."

"I've got to wake up early anyway, so I'll head up as well. Goodnight, you two."

"Goodnight."

"What do you want to do now?" Gage asked her. She seemed rather tense, and he wanted to make her relax. She was on sabbatical, after all, and she needed to take advantage of it. She clearly worked too hard when she was working.

She seemed to debate with herself on something. Finally, she spoke. "I have been thinking about how you've been working with Skylar. I think you could probably apply some of the same techniques to your other areas. From what I've heard, the meditation and such required to do fire magic is similar to what everyone else does."

"That certainly sounds reasonable. What do you think I should try?" He expected her to say water magic, and he was looking forward to having her show him something.

"Air magic." That startled him.

"Air magic?"

She blushed and looked at her hands, gripped tightly in her lap. Something was going on, and he wasn't sure he liked it. But for the life of him, he couldn't figure out what. "Yes, air magic."

"I can try it. What do you want me to do? Levitate something?" Gage looked around for something reasonable.

"No," she whispered. "I want you to do a reading. I want you to try to do a reading on me. I want to be your first, and if things keep progressing like they have been, you'll be getting there soon with other people. It's a very intimate thing, and I want to be first."

"I can understand that. And in another way, I was your first, so I'd love to do you the same honor. Let me see if I can figure this out or if I'll need to ask Leo for a pointer."

He fell into the meditation easily enough, but rather than call for a fireball, he called for a thread of magic, like what Skylar had sent to him. If it worked for Skylar to test their magical compatibility, maybe the same principal would apply here. He wasn't sure how to differentiate his types of magic, so he concentrated on the objective and hoped it would work. He centered his thoughts on Dymphna, then reached, ever so carefully, to her. He saw, much like when he worked with Skylar, a cord of magic reach from him to her. But this magic appeared white rather than red. He connected to the seat of her magic, and he tried to read what was there.

The first thing he got was trepidation. But since he had seen her wringing her hands, he knew that already. He kept going, trying to let the feel of her wash over him. It took a while, but she seemed patient enough to wait. He started to feel her excitement, but he wasn't sure if it wasn't his own.

Then, could it be love he was feeling? He knew it was in his own heart, but was it possible that she was feeling the same for him? Was he that lucky? He tried to open his eyes so that he would see what she saw. Amazingly enough, when he opened his eyes, he saw himself. And when he looked at himself, he felt love. And the feeling wasn't precisely the same way he felt. It was still love, and it was strong, but the flavor of it was just different. That's how he knew that he was feeling her love. For him.

He blinked and returned from his meditation to look through his own eyes. "Dymphna?" He asked slowly. "I think I did that right."

"It felt a lot like when Leo or Seb has done it. But I could tell it was you because it felt like you."

"Then did I feel what I thought I was feeling?"

"Yes. I didn't know how to say it, so I thought I'd show you. I love you, Gage." She looked like she was going to keep speaking, but he was so exuberant at the confirmation that he grabbed her and pulled her to sit in his lap. Then he kissed her for all he was worth. She responded eagerly.

After a long kiss, she pulled back. "I feel like I've loved you for a long time, but it was only tonight that I fully realized it. I couldn't wait to share it with you. I was nervous, too, and I wanted to make sure I didn't lose my nerve."

"Why were you nervous? It's great."

"I thought you could feel what I felt. I
was
nervous because I wasn't sure if you loved me back. There, I said it."

"Oh, D
ymphna
! I do love you. I've loved you all along, and I just didn't want to pressure you to say the same. You're an amazing woman, and I'm so glad to have you."

She had tears in her eyes, but she was smiling. "So you love me?"

"I do. I'd do anything for you, Dymphna, and you should know that. And I'm very happy that you love me too."

"I really do. It took me a long time to wise up to it, but it's better than never."

"Yes it is. I look at you and see everything I want for my future."

"What about kids? Do you see those in our future?" She asked, looking deeply at him.

"I would like to have kids, yes. I love children, and I would like to have some that are yours and mine. But we have the rest of our lives. I know that you're very involved in your career, and I know it's important to you. I don't want you to think that you have to choose between children and your career. How do you feel about it?"

"I didn't think about kids much until I met you. But I'd also like to see what our children would turn out like. I'll even admit that I've been jealous of Melanie when she had her twins and of Fiona and Skylar waiting for theirs. Childcare may be an issue, but I have a feeling that between the eight of us Wards that there will be something in place. I'd need to take a few months off work for a child, and I would probably have to cut back on how many cases I've been doing. But I've already figured out that I'll need to cut back now that I'm married, much like Leo did. So yes, I do think I want kids. But not quite yet."

"Sure. We have plenty of time for kids, and I imagine that if we watch your family with their kids we'll learn a lot for when it's our turn."

"I'm glad we're in agreement."

He kissed her again, just to show how much they were in agreement. "I'm glad you love me. And it was special that you were the first person I've read."

"Feel free to practice on me anytime. Just give me a heads-up, alright?"

"Sure. I appreciate it.
But I did sense something off about that visit to Martha that was still on your mind. Should I guess or will you tell me?”

“
I'll just tell you. After both my mother and my mentor, the two water witches I knew the best, both killed themselves in the same way, I was sure I would go like that as well. I didn't know what would push me, but I felt sure I'd end up on the edge of that same lake with the same purpose.” Tears welled in her eyes, and he pulled her to him.

“
That's terrible!”

“
But after standing there with you, I realized that I have the opportunity to change my own destiny. If I don't want to die there by my own magic, I don't have to.” She smiled, even as the tears continued to fall.

“
That's so true.
You are so brave that you can fight through anything that could push you to that point. You're too strong for suicide.”

“
Thank you.”

“
Then let me cheer you up,” he said. He showed her just how he wanted to cheer her up by whispering those words into her ear then kissing it. He kissed a train across her cheeks and to her mouth. She responded readily, and he thought he could work that through with her.

"I've heard my brothers mention that an air witch can read their partner during sex. Apparently it makes the whole thing a lot better
for both participants
."

"That does sound hot. After all, even if we're not having kids yet, we can certainly practice for that time."

"I like the way you think."

But before they could adjourn to the bedroom, Gage's phone started ringing. Groaning, he checked the caller ID. "Bad timing for a call from Mom when I'm hard as a rock."

Dymphna laughed as he picked up. She teased him
by kissing his open ear with lots of kisses in quick succession
.
She was moving through her revelations and right into the next mood.
It was really hard to pay attention to what his mother was saying. It seemed to take a lot longer than it really did for her to be finished.

"My mom's plane will arrive tomorrow at 3:10. Can we pick her up from the airport?"

"Sure," Dymphna breathed on his ear, tickling the sensitive skin there with her breath.

He said goodbye quickly and hung up. "That wasn't very nice of you."

"Perhaps. Perhaps you should... punish me for that."

"Oh I think I will," Gage growled, moving in to tickle her. "I'm giving you a one minute head start. If you're not naked on that bed when I get up there, your punishment will be even more severe."

She giggled and jumped up, running out of the room. He counted out loud to sixty then followed her. He liked the idea of reading her during sex and how that would allow him to make it even better for her. For someone who was new to sex, she was enthusiastic about learning all she could.

When he got upstairs, she was still trying to get her jeans off. He picked her up, sat her on the bed, and ripped off her pants in one movement. Then he undressed himself as she grabbed a condom. But as she reached for him, he pulled back.

"If I'm going to read you, I'm going to make sure it's extra good. Now relax so I can connect to you."

Making the connection this time was faster, and he felt her excitement. He
crouched
before her and eased her legs apart. When she realized what he was going to do, he felt her get wetter and ready for him. And when he licked her, he felt as well as tasted her delight. It was certainly a learning experience to be able to feel what she liked best, then do that more. From the noises she was making as well as what he was feeling through her, she had no objection. She came against his mouth, and he pulled away.

Then he let her put the condom on him. As soon as he was protected, he thrust into her. He took his time making love to her, savoring each bit of enjoyment he could give her. They moved together until they both came simultaneously.

"Wow," Dymphna managed to get out a short while later. "That was amazing."

"I'm glad. It was pretty revolutionary for me too."

"I think I'm done for the night.
I have to wind down from that.
Do you want to watch another movie?"

"Sure. What do you have in mind?"

"Fiona's favorite Vincent Price character is Dr. Phibes, and there's two movies about him. You'll totally impress her if you can talk about him."

"Bring it on."

She set the movie to play and curled up with him on the bed. He pulled out of her mind and just enjoyed holding her. She was precious to him, and now that she'd admit she loved him too, his wife was even more precious. Dymphna was special, and she was all his. One day they'd have kids, and that would just add to the happy family.

Gage was happy, but he was afraid that it was too good to last. If his brother and the Dark Order had anything to say about it, his good fortune wouldn't last. Hopefully his mother would come to Boston with the answers that would let Justin and his Coven Protection team get rid of the Order sooner rather than later. They'd find out what she knew tomorrow.

157

CHAPTER NINE

The next morning, Gage got a call from Seb.

"What's up?"

"I think it's time you start looking into your other abilities. I know Skylar's been working with you on fire magic, and Dymphna texted me this morning to say that you tried some air magic last night." Gage didn't want to think about what he did with his air magic while on the phone with her brother. "I think you should head over here this morning, and we'll see if we can't link you with some mentors. I'm sure Dymphna can find something to do while you're working over here."

"OK. We also need to go to the airport at 3:10 to pick up my mother."

"Dymphna didn't mention that she was coming today. We'll be sure to call it quits before that. Given that, I assume you'll want to get her settled somewhere, and then I'd like to talk to her as soon as possible."

"I'd agree. She wants to go to a motel, and I need to ask Dymphna and Skylar if she can stay at the Manor instead. I know she won't be able to come to the Coven House because of the protection against blood witches there.”

“
Of course. Why don't you give me a call when she's settled, and we'll all get together at Ward Manor?”

“
I can do that. Let me tell Dymphna the plan, and we'll be right over.”

“
I'll see you shortly.”

He sat down with the women in the kitchen, and he waited until they were done eating to tell them what Seb said.

“
I hope it works out well for you,” Skylar said. “You've been picking up the fire magic fast, and I hope the others come as easily.”

“
Thank you. I need to be ready so that I can do something to stop Eric.”

“
Did you know Eric?” Dymphna asked, realizing that he had never mentioned having a brother except in the context of the Order.

“
No. Denise mentioned that my father had cheated on her and had another child, but she was
already
on the run from that life so we never met him. But that doesn't mean I'm not somewhat responsible. It's my family, and I should have done something.”

“
You're being irrational about that,” Dymphna told him. “It's not your fault. I understand that you want to help take him down, but you need to want that because it's the right thing to do and not because you share any of his guilt.”

Gage wasn't sure he agreed with that assessment, but he'd go with it anyway. “I needed to ask you two something, since you two are in charge of the house.”

“
I don't know if you can say that,” Skylar objected.

“
My mother raised me to respect that the woman rules the house, and the men should honor that. It's not meant to be offensive, it's just more old-fashioned.”

“
Alright,” she capitulated. “So what did you need to ask?”

“
Denise is coming into town this afternoon. She said she wanted to stay at a motel, but I was hoping to have her stay here. But I understand if you're uncomfortable with that at all.”

“
I'm fine with it,” Dymphna said first. “She's your mother, and the Wards know how to take care of family. Sending her to a hotel isn't taking care of family.”

“
I'm with her. Invite her
to stay here
.”

“
It might be awkward to have my new mother-in-law living with us. I sure hope she doesn't find fault at my housekeeping.”

“
What housekeeping?” Skylar joked, poking her in the arm. “I do the housekeeping!”

“
That's for sure. Have I told you lately how much I appreciate that?”

“
No, but I know. I'm sure between the four of us, we can impress her.”

“
Thanks.”

“
So, while you two are at the Coven House, I'll clean out the spare bedroom. It's in Dymphna's half of the house anyway.”

“
I can't have you lifting all that heavy stuff, Skylar,” Gage objected.

“
Too true,” Dymphna agreed. “I'm your water witch, and I'm saying no. I'll drop Gage over at the Coven House and come back to take care of it.”

“
I don't like that idea either,” Gage said.

“
You can be old-fashioned all you want, but I'm a capable woman, and I'm going to do it.”

“
You're right.
I'm constantly amazed at just what all you can do.
Good luck, and let me know if I can do anything to help out.”

“
I will.”

“
I'll at least get some fresh sheets and towels out,” Skylar offered. “I don't want to be totally useless.”

“
You're hardly useless. And thank you both for helping me
and my mother
out.”

“
Like Dymphna said, we take care of family. Get over to the Coven House before Seb gets impatient and calls again. I'll see you later.”

“
Sure thing.”

“
Are you really nervous about meeting my mother?” He asked in the car.

“
Yeah. I mean, she's important to you.”

“
I wouldn't worry too much about it. Remember, my mother is a blood witch, and she's been using that
same magic on
me since I was a child.”

“
That's true. How do you feel about that?”

“
I don't like i
t
. It makes me feel dirty, to be honest. But at the same time, I know she thought it was best. She didn't think she could take me to a coven and get a cleansing. And based on Fiona's experience, even if she had, there was no guarantee they could do it right. So she took steps to make sure I was alive and healthy, and she managed to do it in a way that wouldn't result in my being a blood witch as well. I know she did it out of love, but it still feels wrong.”

“
At least you know she did it for you. I know you well enough to know that you'll forgive her and get past it. You're close enough to her that you can fix whatever breach in your relationship came with her admission.”

“
You're right. You don't mind dropping me off to go back and clean out that room?”

“
No, it's not a problem. I need something to do while you're in training anyway.
Both Street Fighter Four and Skyrim can wait.
”

“
OK.”

They pulled up, and Dymphna decided not to brave the cold just to go in and say hello, so Gage went in alone as she drove off.

He hadn't been to the Coven House before, and it boggled his mind. It looked like an architect had lost his mind. Every wing was a bit different, and the whole of it became a rather ugly conglomeration. Knowing what he did about how the Coven expanded, the effect probably came from different architects adding different wings as they were needed. He also knew that there were twenty witches who worked for the Coven in residence as well as the Wards, so they would need all that space. But knowing that didn't mean it was any less ugly.

Knocking the snow off his feet, he barely got through the door when he saw Melanie. She was playing with her daughters in a small sitting room off the main entryway.

“
How are you, Melanie?”

“
I'm doing great. The twins and I were just waiting for you to arrive.”

He crouched next to them and reached out a hand to one of them, watching her fingers grab his much bigger one. “How old are they?”

“
They're just now six months. I like working in the same house because I can give the babysitter a break and take some time with them during the day.”

“
That makes sense. It's Rose and Jasmine, right?”

“
Yes,” she said, clearly pleased that he remembered. “This one's Jasmine, and the one who has your finger is Rose.”

“
Good to meet you, Rose,” he said, and she gurgled.

“
I should really give them back to the babysitter and get you started.”

“
I don't want to rush you.”

“
No, it's no problem. Seb was thinking that if Skylar was a good match for you in teaching you fire magic, I might be a good match for your air magic and Fiona might be good for your water and earth magic.”

“
That makes sense to me. I'll carry Rose back to the nursery
with you
if you'd like.”

“
That would be great.”

Melanie led him down the hallways, and Gage was sure that without her he'd get lost. He was entranced by the infant, too, who looked up at him like he was great. She made him think about his conversation with Dymphna and how wonderful it would be to hold his own child. One day, that's for sure.

Melanie stopped at a room decorated with bright colors and strewn with toys and other children's things. “This is the nursery. Mine are the only children who live here, but Justin's father started a service years ago where witches can pay for daycare here. Since they're magical children, and often before they can understand why they need to control their magic, it makes sense to have them all together. The witches in charge keep them from doing something dangerous with their magic and keep them happy at the same time.”

“
That sounds like a good plan.”

They handed off the infants, and Gage followed Melanie down more twisting hallways with unlabeled doors. “How do you find your way around here?”

“
It just comes from being here
for what seems like a long time
. If you get lost, there's usually someone around to point you back in the right direction. One thing I love about living here is that everyone who does is so nice. They live here because they want to be part of the community. The witches who want to be part of the Coven, but not the more close-knit community
or have families
just come to the meetings and don't live here. I wouldn't have thought it would work, but it does.”

“
Don't they have disagreements though?”

“
Of course. Any group of people living together is going to have its disagreements. But Fiona serves as a kind of house mom and manages disputes and such. She's fair and honest, and people appreciate that. Before her, Seb did it, and he wasn't nearly as successful.”

“
It's good to hear that even the great Seb can have weak areas.”

She laughed. “Oh he certainly does, but don't tell him I said that.”

“
Your secret is safe with me. Where are we going to start?”

“
We're headed to the magic gym in the basement. There's a gym down there with the typical weight machines and bikes and such, and there's one that's heavily warded that we use for training our magic.”

It did look like a gym with its two walls of mirrors and cushioned mats on the floor. Melanie headed over to a closet and brought out two folding chairs, setting them up facing each other, and three balls of various sizes.

“
There's no reason to sit on the floor for this,
so I'm going to at least go for the uncomfortable chairs
. Now, I assume you remember when Skylar tested your magical compatibility as mentor and student.”

“
Yes.”

“
I'm going to do the same. Relax.”

Gage did, and he watched as a thread of her magic reached for him. Like with Skylar, it felt comfortable, and Melanie clearly agreed.

“
Good thing we work. That
wi
ll make this all a lot easier. What have you tried with your air magic?”

“
Not much. I did a reading on Dymphna, and that's about it.”

“
That's a good place to start. I want you to keep practicing that with her because you can do that anywhere, and it's pretty clear if it's working or not. Try to improve your speed, and work on reading direct thoughts as well as feelings. Does that sound reasonable?”

“
Sure.”

“
In here, we're going to work on levitation. First we'll work with the golf ball. You're going to concentrate on it, and in your mind, envision it rising to your hand. Then, you're going to impose the force of your will on the ball and make it rise to your hand, just as you saw in your mind. It might help to concentrate on a thread of magic that will get it done, or it might not. Give it a try.”

He did, and nothing happened. So he kept trying. It took until one that afternoon, but he lifted the golf ball, the beach ball, and the bowling ball with minimal effort.