Free Magic In The Storm by Meredith Bond Page A

laugh.
    She wished she could have followed him so
that she could peek into his home and find out how he lived. She
burned with a curiosity to know all she could about this confusing,
fascinating man. But the voice of propriety inside her stopped her
with “a lady never enters a gentleman’s home, and certainly not
alone!”
    She contented herself with looking around the
outside, taking a turn around the clearing between the cottage and
the barn. Morgan’s home looked very much like him—a little rough,
but beautifully built, very masculine and spare. The one window of
the well–proportioned cottage had no curtains, only plain wooden
shutters that had been left carelessly open. There were no flowers
growing by the door, but the area was clean and well–kept. It
looked very comfortable, lived in and home–like.
    Morgan reappeared, carefully closing his door
behind him. Walking back to where she stood near the pile of wood,
he took a moment to look down at her sketchbook in his hand. “May
I... do you think I could have one of your sketches?”
    “You want one?” she asked, amazed someone
would. Her guardian had always told her they were awful, emotional
hogwash. But Morgan actually liked them enough to want to keep
one?
    He gave a shrug and a little smile. “It
allows me to feel close to you, even when you’re not here. I can
feel you in the picture.”
    Adriana caught her breath as she was engulfed
by emotion. That was the sweetest thing anyone had ever said to
her! She blinked back the tears that came to her eyes.
    “Of course,” she said, her voice rough with
emotion. She cleared her throat and tried again. “If you truly want
one.”
    “I do.”
    She opened her book to the first sketch she’d
made of him by the stream. It was the happy picture showing Morgan
and his dog playing. She had wanted to keep it to remember seeing
him having fun. The second sketch was much more intimate and full
of desire. He was in all of his naked glory. Yes, perhaps she had
better give him this one. It wouldn’t be right if anyone were to
see that she’d even drawn such a picture.
    She felt her face heat—she still couldn’t
believe he knew that she’d seen him this way. She took a deep
breath to dispel her embarrassment and even managed to look up into
his eyes. They were filled with something Adriana couldn’t quite...
oh, but she could—they were filled with desire. She was shocked to
admit it, even silently to herself.
    “Yes, that one,” he said, his voice deepened
with emotion.
    Adriana swallowed hard, and felt awkwardly
warm all of a sudden. She didn’t dare to say a word, just gave a
nod and then carefully ripped it out of her book.
    “Thank you,” he said, as she handed it to
him. “I shall always treasure it.”
    Her eyes met his. She tried to look away, to
act like the demure young lady she was supposed to be, but she just
couldn’t. He drew her to him, like a moth to the flame.
    He was the first to break the spell, taking a
step away from her as if it were the most difficult thing to do.
“I’ll keep this carefully.”
    He turned and ran back to his house. He
slipped in and out quickly this time, returning to squat by the
wood and set it alight. Not meeting her eyes, he gave a stir to
whatever was in the pot with a large spoon.
    “What are you making?” she asked, moving
closer, unable to even stay two feet away from him.
    “A potion to heal the animals,” he
answered.
    “A potion? You mean medicine?”
    He paused for a moment then replied,
“Yes.”
    He kept his back toward her, and seemed to be
muttering some words as he stirred the pot. He sprinkled in a
powder from a wooden bowl sitting next to him and continued
stirring and mumbling.
    She watched, fascinated. “What is wrong with
the animals?”
    “They have the pox.”
    Adriana gasped and took a step backward away
from Morgan. The pox was very dangerous. She had heard that even
being near someone with it could cause you to become ill