The Ex Hex (Ex Hex #1)(51)

“She’s not interested in your sexual prowess, Rhys,” Vivienne said, not taking her eyes off the ghost. “And I’m not sure she’s actually talking about you.”

It was hard to see where Piper was looking now, what with her head nearly brushing the ceiling, but the ghost opened her jaw, one of those banshee wails spiraling out even as more and more of her was sucked into the candle, and Rhys found himself moving closer to Vivienne.

“What was wrong must be righted, what was taken must be relinquished,” Piper howled, and the air suddenly felt charged, like lightning was about to strike.

And then, with one more shriek and a sound disturbingly like something going down a drain, the rest of Piper was sucked into the Eurydice Candle.

The flame wavered once, twice, briefly glowing blue.

And then went out, leaving Rhys and Vivienne in the darkness.

Alone.





Chapter 23




It was nearly two in the morning by the time Vivi used her spare key to unlock Something Wicked. The Eurydice Candle was tucked in her satchel, and even though it just looked and felt like a regular candle, she didn’t want to hold on to it any longer than she had to, and she definitely didn’t want it in her apartment overnight.

The storage room at the store had seemed like the best place to keep it, and she made her way to that space now, Rhys close behind her.

They hadn’t talked much on the drive over, and they definitely hadn’t talked about that moment in the closet, much like how they weren’t talking about the kiss in the library.

Vivi and Rhys were getting really good at Not Talking About Things, which, she thought, was how it needed to stay.

And, she thought as she pushed back the curtain leading to the storeroom, she needed to remember that whole thing about not being alone with him in dimly lit spaces anymore.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake,” she muttered to herself as she stepped into the storeroom.

She’d forgotten that Aunt Elaine’s spell made the room shift depending on time of day, even depending on the weather. If it was raining outside, there’d be a fire in a fireplace, candles glowing cozily on the walls. If it was sunny, there were windows letting in soft pools of sunlight.

And if it was the middle of the night, you got the fire in the fireplace, the candles and a sky full of stars overhead.

“Is your aunt meeting someone in here later?” Rhys asked, looking around him, and Vivi kept her eyes on the wardrobe ahead of her as she said, “No, this is just . . . the vibe.”

“The vibe,” Rhys repeated, clearly pleased. “I like it.”

Vivi didn’t say anything to that, just opened the wardrobe and gingerly took the candle out of her bag. It was still a little cool to the touch, colder than a normal candle would be, and Vivi was careful as she set it among a pile of plain white candles and several jars of dried herbs.

In the morning, she’d text Gwyn and Elaine to tell them about this, but for now, she just wanted to go up to her apartment and take a very hot bath, followed by several hours of sleep.

“Christ, it’s late,” Rhys said on a sigh, and Vivi nodded as she finished settling the candle in its place.

“I know. I’m glad I don’t have morning classes tomorrow.”

From behind her, she heard Rhys give a low chuckle. “Scheduling teaching around witchcraft. Or witchcraft around teaching, I suppose.”

“That’s my life.”

Except that Vivi hadn’t done this much witchy stuff in ages. And even though tonight had not exactly been a joy, there had been something a little exhilarating about it all. Creeping through the woods to a haunted cabin, summoning up the spirit of a long-dead witch . . . It was the kind of thing Vivi had thought of when she’d first learned about who—about what—she was.

Maybe that’s why she didn’t feel all that tired or worn out or stressed about teaching her classes tomorrow.

She’d gone into a haunted house, lit a magical candle and captured a motherfucking witch ghost.

And that felt pretty awesome.

“Thank you for your help,” she said to Rhys now, shutting the wardrobe and turning the key in the lock. “I’m sure being terrorized by a ghost wasn’t high up on your list of things to do tonight.”

Turning around, she leaned back against the wardrobe, crossing her arms over her chest. Rhys was still standing there across the room, the firelight playing across his handsome face, his hair definitely doing The Thing and his stubble really upping his whole rakish air.

Which is probably why Vivi said, “And let me add a retroactive thank-you for never trying to have sex with me in a haunted house back when we were in college.”

“Young Hainsley does need to rethink his game,” Rhys acknowledged, mimicking her posture against the cabinet just across from her. “But to be fair, had the option been available back then, I probably would’ve tried it. I would’ve attempted to shag you most anywhere. Haunted house, abandoned asylum, Department of Motor Vehicles . . .”

“If you’d done that last one, we could’ve also tried to have sex in jail,” Vivi replied, ignoring the way her heart seemed to flutter in her chest at both his words and the half smile he was wearing, wishing Aunt Elaine weren’t quite so committed to her aesthetics because this room with its warm wood and soft lighting and plenty of available soft surfaces was not helping matters.