This Coven Won't Break - Isabel Sterling Page 0,71

To apologize for her getting hurt in the first place. Instead, I let her lead me out of the house. We pick up Morgan, and her enthusiasm about the dance is infectious. By the time we get to school, I’ve committed to having the best night of my life.

An hour later, I’ve let homecoming erase all the stress that’s been dragging me down for weeks.

Morgan grabs my hand and spins into me, pressing her body against mine as we move to the pounding bass of the maxed-out speakers. My hands slide across the fabric of her black dress, finding a resting place at her waist, tugging her closer. She’s gorgeous tonight. She’s always beautiful, but something about the flush of her cheeks and the way she let a couple strands of hair fall out of her bun sets my pulse on fire. She tilts her head back and presses a kiss to my cheek.

Gemma tried rocking the dance floor without her cane, but it’s clear her leg is still giving her trouble. She sat out the last few songs, and though she played it off by doing tarot readings for some of our classmates, I noticed the way she massaged her thigh. Noticed the crease of pain above her brow.

But she’s back, putting the rest of us to shame as she swivels her hips and moves like her body is made of rhythm and melody instead of muscle and bone. She has her cane now, and she incorporates it into her dancing to take some of the pressure off her leg.

“Hey now, get a room!” Gemma shouts when Morgan tips her head back for a kiss.

“This is a room!” Morgan says, but she slips away from me, taking Gemma’s hand and spinning her twice. I watch them, my heart full and my mind lighter than it’s been in a long, long time.

Morgan dances back over to me. “We’re going to get a drink!” She has to shout to be heard over the music, even though she’s close enough now that I could kiss her if I leaned forward a little. “Come with?”

Rather than shouting over the noise, I nod and follow her and Gem out into the hall, where there are long tables filled with punch bowls and trays of snacks. I grab a handful of chocolate-covered pretzels and follow Gemma down the line of tables to the drinks.

She grabs a bottle of water, drains half, and tries to hand it to Morgan.

But Morgan shakes her head. “I’m good. I’m actually going to go to the bathroom. Hannah?”

I glance up at the sound of my name, finishing the last of my pretzels. “Yeah?”

“Keep me company?”

“Yeah, sure. You good, Gem?” I look to my best friend, but she rolls her eyes and shoves me after Morgan. We bypass the main hallway bathroom, slipping instead around the corner unseen.

“Where are we going?” I whisper as Morgan takes my hand and pulls me into a vacant classroom, the rows of desks illuminated by the streetlights outside.

Morgan closes the blinds. “Somewhere we won’t be interrupted.” She smiles shyly and lets her fingers trail up and down my exposed arms. “I thought you might like a moment alone.”

I grin. “That sounds like a brilliant—”

Her kiss cuts off the rest of my sentence. I freeze at first, caught off guard, but then I melt into her embrace, wrapped in the quiet cocoon of the empty room. “What was that for?” I ask when she pulls back.

“Have I told you yet how beautiful you are?” She wraps her arms around my waist, pulling me closer.

“At least twice,” I say, “but a third time doesn’t hurt. You look pretty great yourself.”

“Yeah?” The smile on her face says she already knows. I nod anyway, and then we’re kissing again, flying really, her magic tingling across my skin, making my whole body warm. She steps forward until I’m pressed against the wall, her hips on mine, fingers tangled in my hair.

Locked in our own world, I forget the dance down the hall. Forget the trial starting on Monday. Forget Alice’s ultimatum. I forget everything but the parting of her lips and the graze of her teeth against my skin. I want her hands everywhere, and as if she can hear the thought in my head, she deepens the kiss, her tongue slipping into my mouth.

But then Morgan pulls away, her fingers warm against the back of my neck. She smiles, suddenly shy, and kisses me briefly on the lips before