the last guest in, but in a few seconds, he was gesturing for them to enter.
I was immediately intrigued by the individual as she looked more like a teenager or at least someone who’d just turned eighteen. She had long pink hair with golden locks that held a bit of orange undertone to them, while her skin was a caramel shade. Her complexion was beyond flawless, and I wondered what nationality she was from because she definitely held two cultural traits.
I assumed African and potentially Korean descent from certain facial features and the silky strands of her extremely gorgeous hair, but from one look at her aura, I knew without a doubt she held intense magic.
Is she a witch? Healer? Hybrid?
Signaling the guard to close the door gave us the privacy we needed to start a conversation. I arched an eyebrow as I waited for her to say something, but I noticed the way her body tensed before the waves of nervousness practically oozed out of her body.
"And she's shy," Bria concluded, her knowledgeable eyes staring at the woman just like I was.
"So, you are?" I prompted, my irritation obviously striking through my question and making her flinch to attention.
"I-I'm sorry! My name is Whitney! Some call me Whit, others call me by my nickname Winter," she introduced. I frowned, not because of her name, but because of the chosen nickname. I couldn’t see why she’d be named after such a chilly season.
"Winter?"
"Ah." She seemed to realize what I meant and nervously bit her lip. "Am I allowed to show you?"
"If it doesn't kill me, sure," I replied because I was actually curious. She beamed at my approval and quickly lowered her bag and the clipboard to the side of where she stood. She walked right over to my desk. I remained alert and observant as she reached the exquisite surface and placed her hands lightly on it.
Lifting my arms off the desk, I let one slip beneath to scurry for Saint's hand. His hand grasped mine while I let my other hand pick up the pen to casually spin and distract her from what my true intentions were.
My eyes widened as I watched the entire desk freeze in a blink of an eye, before the room itself seemed to be frozen in a matter of seconds. I squeezed Saint's hand to ensure he wasn't a frozen popsicle, and he squeezed my hand back, relieving the way my heart had gone from calm to galloping panic.
"Holy fuck," I cursed and Whitney giggled.
"Ya. I can freeze anything in a certain radius," she admitted.
"You didn't freeze me," I acknowledged.
"Correct! I sensed a bit of your energy upon entering so when casting my internal spell, I made sure my magic wouldn't freeze anyone with a beating heart that resonates with your aura."
"So what if my guards were in here?" I further inquired.
"Uh...they probably would be fucked," she admitted and covered her mouth after swearing. "I mean, they would be frozen because there isn't a deeper resonation of your power inside them."
"So who would be spared if you were attempting to protect me in, say, a dangerous situation?"
"The highest chances are lovers or someone that really cares about you."
"So energy connection wouldn't count?"
"If they're your bonded mate, it would count, but aside from that, it's about their internal intentions," she revealed. "Uh...it's weird magic. I'm technically not allowed to show anyone other than royals, but since I'm here on behalf of Ruby Phoenix, I kind of assumed you're a royal or have an association with her," she confessed while she grew more nervous. "I think I said too much."
I smirked while absorbing her words.
Ruby Phoenix. My sister.
"She could have killed me," Saint huffed.
And yet you're alive, under my desk, and holding my hand. Guess you have feelings for me as William, too, huh?
"Why do I feel like you're happy about that?"
Who knows.
"I'm glad to know Ruby sent you," I began as I looked around the room. "Are you able to return my office to normal? I wouldn't want to replace the millions of dollars worth of furniture for water damage."
"R-Right!" she shrieked and removed her hands. I watched as the ice began to fade away like an illusion versus the previous chilled ice oasis that dropped the temperature to blizzard degrees. "My apologies."
"It's fine," I replied. "I figured from your aura that you're rather talented in the realms of magic."
"Yes!" she declared. "I'm currently in training to be of service to Ruby's sister!"
Oh.
"Ah. Ruby’s