A Modern Witch - By Debora Geary Page 0,18

to think it had grabbed a witch. And pretty much everyone who knew her could vouch for her uncanny instincts.

God, was she seriously sitting here wondering if she had some mysterious powers tucked away under her kidney, or something? Lauren unfolded her legs and dug out of the couch. Definitely time for a second pint.

Chapter 5

Jamie bespelled the outer-entrance door lock on Lauren’s apartment building. No point warning her he was on the way up. He hoped the coffee and bagels would earn him enough of a pardon to get past her front door. In this weather, anyone should appreciate coffee.

He’d hung out with Nash last night and done the guy thing—pizza, beer, talking about random shit as they surfed the sports channel. If he was really lucky, Lauren had done whatever suspicious women do at night and was in a more receptive mood this morning.

A man with three older sisters should know how to handle female moods. Hell. A man with three older sisters knew when to run for cover.

Nell was really going to owe him. Schlepping all Aervyn’s teleported stuff back for weeks on end had been bad enough, but at least she’d fed him well, and it was warm in California. He wondered if magical powers ever just froze to death.

Did the woman have to live four stories up in a building with no elevator? Who designed places like this? Grumbling, he climbed the last few steps and knocked on Lauren’s door.

His timing was excellent. She still looked half asleep. He was pretty sure he wouldn’t get anywhere with a fully-awake Lauren.

She obviously gave serious consideration to closing the door in his face. He tried to look as innocuous and unwitchlike as possible, and resisted the temptation to send out even tiny calming vibes. The decision needed to be entirely hers.

“Coffee first. Talk later.” She grabbed a cup and walked back into her apartment. Jamie took a deep breath and followed her in. She hadn’t dumped the coffee on him. Yet.

Recognizing a fellow coffee addict, he said nothing, just unwrapped a bagel & egg sandwich and handed her half. For a few minutes, they ate and drank at the kitchen counter in relatively companionable silence.

“I appreciate the coffee and breakfast. Do I want to know why you’re outside my door at nine on a Saturday morning? I won’t even ask how you know where I live.” Lauren picked up a funky green can and started watering her plants.

“Nothing weird. Power of Google.” Jamie paused until Lauren turned to look at him. “I’m sorry I made you uncomfortable yesterday.”

“You’re making me uncomfortable now.”

Jamie tried humor. It had gotten him out of a tight spot with her at the restaurant. “Usually I like hearing that from a woman, but I’m guessing it’s not my charm and good looks that are making you nervous.”

Lauren snickered. “I’m not sure whether to be grateful or frustrated, but I don’t think there’s that kind of buzz between us.”

“Thanks, I think. Probably good in this case, though. Sexual vibes can get in the way of a good assessment. We need to know if you have any power, Lauren. If you do, it needs to be trained.”

Lauren gave him a steady look. He had to give her credit; she didn’t shake easily. “You push your luck. I’m still wondering whether it was a good idea to let you in. Coffee’s a decent bribe, but I’m not sure it lets you stay.”

She resumed watering her plants. Jamie was pretty sure they were all drowned by now. “Yesterday,” Lauren said, “you seemed pretty convinced I had power. Why is your story different today?”

Oh, boy. Jamie had hoped it would soften her discomfort to let the assessment speak for itself, rather than the bull-in-a-china-shop approach that had failed miserably yesterday. Clearly she wasn’t going to let him off that particular hook.

“Can we park that for a bit? If we start doing some of the basic steps in an assessment, the answer will be pretty obvious to both of us fairly shortly. Give me an hour. If you still think you’re not a witch in an hour, you’ll be right, and I’ll leave you in peace.”

Lauren’s eyes were back to suspicious. “What exactly is an assessment? I don’t want you inside my head.”

“Fair enough. I think Nell told you that I work—we both work, sometimes—as trainers for young witches. The first step in training is to do some simple tests to identify where someone’s power lies.

“There are seven basic