The next morning, Diana rose early, as was her custom, and again was perched on her window seat. She was enjoying a cup of tea, browsing idly through her Book of Shadows.
She should be perusing the book, of course; the Circle was compiling ideas on what to focus their powers on, now that they had the Master Tools. After so many years of searching, to finally have found their ancestral tools was beyond a victory. Opportunity and possibility stretched wide before them, but all Diana could think about right now was a particular pair of mahogany eyes and the mysteries within them.
Diana half-hoped that Nick would return this morning, and she was admittedly disappointed when she saw his Mustang drive away from Crowhaven Road. Suddenly she was irritated, and slammed her Book of Shadows closed with surprising force.
She paced the room now, slowly, wondering at herself. What was it that she wanted to happen? That Nick would come back, and hold her as he had yesterday, his shoulder strong and warm as he murmured comforts and reassurances into her ear? She found herself craving him, craving that closeness, craving his warmth, craving even his scent. That smell, unmistakably masculine – wood smoke and leather and a faint citrus. Cologne, perhaps. She wanted to breathe him in, and take him in her arms, and…
Snap out of it, her inner voice said. This is Nick.
Yes, Nick, she thought, whom she had always known, whom she had always cared for. He had always been special to her, but yesterday it felt like something more. As though being in his arms was like finally coming home. They were connected; there was a bond between them…a chord…
Diana continued her pacing, moving more quickly now. Was she imaging this feeling? Could it be that she was simply creating something, something to ease her pain of losing the one man she thought she would spend forever with?
On one hand, she thought that might be it. She had loved Adam for her entire life, she had never considered her future without him. Yet suddenly he was gone, and she had to give him away with both hands. Even though she was happy for Adam and Cassie, she was the one alone now. Were her emotions that fickle, transferring to the first man who came close to her? Filling her void, her emptiness, with Nick? She was surprised at herself.
But deep down, she thought that perhaps there was something else and she had been too distracted before to see it. There was one way to find out. She would see Nick again, touch him again – see if their magic was real.