“What do you mean, ‘he would force you to do things like what happened to my mother?’”

“Just that. Harold is a blood witch from a coven of equally insane witches. They have no problem with extortion, slavery, torture, murder. Anything to serve their disgusting appetites.”

“What do they need you for?”

“My healing gift. It would amplify their work. He wants me for that. He made me do it before, and that’s why I left. But he won’t let me go. Even after divorcing him, he still wants my power.”

“Can you stop them all?”

“I can’t stoop to their level. I’m just defending myself. That’s all. If there were another way, anyway, I would have taken it. Summoning a demon to banish Harold has given me bad karma. I’ve cursed myself with my own hands.”

“Can you bring him back?”

“Maybe. I don’t know. Demons aren’t exactly the most agreeable sort.”

“Do you even want to be mated with me?” he said, changing the subject.

Vivian was taken aback and blinked several times, trying to think of an answer to his question. “What does it mean to be mated? Would I be your wife?”

“Yes, but more. My bear demands I mate you. It’s been growling at me since the moment we met.”

“I’m not sure I’m ready to be anyone’s wife.”

“I’m not sure I’m ready to have one.”

“Come in. Let me get you a cup of tea or something. It’s getting cold out here.”

Vivian walked to the front door of her house and went inside. Laurence followed right behind her, bringing his massive form into her little kitchen.

He slid into the stool at her kitchen counter. Vivian felt his eyes burn on the skin of her neck and collarbone as she moved the kettle under the water tap.

After she filled the kettle, she put it on the stove and took a bundle of herbal tea from her cabinet.  She crushed the herbs between her fingers and dropped them into the pot before adding water. The smell of lavender and lemon peel wafted on the rising steam.

After a moment she poured two cups and set one in front of Laurence. “What makes you think this ‘mating’ will work against a witch’s spell?” she asked.

“I can’t guarantee anything. But like I said, the mate’s bite is powerful. It overrides almost anything. It cannot be broken. It carries through time and space. If anything can supersede your ex’s binding spell, it is the bite of a mate.”

“Laurence, I’m really grateful for the suggestion…” she took a sip of her tea, letting the subtle tastes of herbs trickle down her throat. She sighed and looked into his earnest eyes. She’d never seen Laurence look so eager to please her. Except maybe back on the island, when he’d been between her legs. “I just got out of a really bad relationship. I’m not ready to jump back into something else. It sounds like I’d be as bound to you as I am to Harold. I can’t do that right now. I’ll just have to accept the karma that comes with casting this kind of spell.”

“Hey, I get it. Believe me. I can’t even believe I’m offering. And I wouldn’t, if not for my bear roaring at me nonstop, day in and day out.” Laurence stood, crossing his arms. He took up the space like a giant in the room. Vivian clutched her robe more tightly around her neck and frowned. She wouldn’t mind continuing what they’d started on the beach, but being bound to a new man all over again just seemed like a red flag. “Give it some thought. My bear isn’t going to let this go until I leave for Alaska. And even then, who knows.”

“You’re leaving?”

“Yep. As soon as my insurance pays out. I’m headed home. Fishing’s better. And I’m used to the cold.”

“I didn’t realize.”

“You’ve got a week to decide. After that, I’ll be gone. I’m not coming back.”

Vivian followed him to the door and ran her hand down his arm as he grasped the doorknob. Her fingers gripped through the fabric of his green flannel shirt and he turned to her.

“I’ll call you,” he said, his eyes bright as they flicked over her chest.

She pulled him down to her as she leaned up on her tiptoes. He was so much taller than she was. Vivian reached up to put her arms around his neck as Laurence dipped his head toward her. His lips brushed against hers, and she could smell the herbal tea on his breath and the scent of cedar firewood.

He wrapped his arms around her and brought her against him, deepening the kiss until it left her breathless. She could feel his arousal growing hard against her stomach. He pulled away.

“Laurence,” she breathed.

“I should go.” He opened the door. “A week. Then I’m gone.”

He walked out into the night, got in his truck, and drove away, leaving Vivian in the doorway of her house under the glow of the waning moon.

Vivian closed the door and shut herself in her house. The bad things would come now. She knew it. Summoning a demon had bad enough karma attached to it, let alone banishing a man to hell for a century. It couldn’t be helped. Could it?

Laurence’s offer was tantalizing. She doubted that it could work against a blood magic binding spell. What she did believe was that it would bind her to Laurence as much as she was bound to Harold. That she could not handle.

She went into her kitchen and poured another cup of tea. The water had gone cold and the tea bitter. She poured the cup in the sink and looked out the window.

Laurence had some good qualities, but she doubted he loved her. He hated witches, for one thing. They barely knew each other. How could a marriage or “mating” between them ever work?

Opening the freezer door, she looked inside and pulled out a gallon of strawberry ice cream. Just as she put the carton on the counter, the electricity went out. Great. The bad karma had begun.