Something Spooky by Janet Woods

were one person, one hand.
    ‘Thanks.’  Surprised he hadn’t put on some display of male superiority she forgot to remove her hand. Carrying it to his lips he kissed the palm. An erotic little quiver stroked up the inside of her arm and lodged in the bend of her elbow.
    ‘My pleasure.’
    She wouldn’t have picked Patrick for being a flirt. ‘If you find fixing the plumbing a pleasure, it’s you who’s crazy.’ She’d like to coat his sensual mouth with honey and lick it all off. Hell! Where had that thought come from?
    ‘Being in your cupboard with you is the pleasure.’ His dark silky lashes lowered a fraction. ‘I’d still like to kiss that crumpled bit.’
    Ditto! Their minds seemed to be running along the same lines at the moment. It was better than fighting. ‘Go ahead whilst you have me at a disadvantage.’ Ellie knew she’d have to watch herself if her tongue kept releasing her inner thoughts. Earlier in the day they’d bordered on pornography.
    His hand had already cupped her chin in the limited space. The gentle pressure of his fingers molded her lips into a perfect kissable shape.
    The sigh of resignation she gave when his mouth captured his prize turned into a sigh of complete and utter ecstasy. The tip of his tongue painted her lips with nectar, then tenderly suggested the possibility of further exploration.
    She allowed him access before the insidious little voice in her head advised her against it. She didn’t like half measures. Either one did or one didn’t. Half a kiss was worse than useless, would leave her wondering. Better to experience it all at once, and then it was done with.
    Acting on her own advice she stopped thinking and started experiencing. Sensation followed sensation. Starting from her mouth a glow crept down to the column of her neck than outwards to each breast. Stopping only to pulse each center into fullness it gathered momentum and fanned down her body in one fiery flash.
    Sensuality was something Ellie acknowledged in herself, but the riot he provoked in her was unprecedented. Had their bodies not been effectively separated by the cold metal U bend she’d have succumbed to the temptation to slide her pelvis against its natural mate.
    Suction against her lower lip told her he’d reached the object of his desire. He turned it into a sweet red cherry as he took it in his mouth. As kisses go this one was sublime. Tingles spread down her limbs and her toes curled upwards. Patrick topped it off with a restrained bite that made her groan with its promise of passion.
    A touch of coolness on her sensitized mouth reminded her the kiss was over. Regretfully she opened her eyes.
    ‘That was really something.’
    The low sexy murmur of his voice was music to her ears. Perhaps the spell had worked after all. If she was going to make him suffer she might as well start right now.  ‘If one kiss has given you ideas you can forget it right now. I don’t indulge in casual affairs.’
    The words thrown mockingly in his face couldn’t have been a more effective dampener. Patrick slid out from under the sink and stood up.
    ‘A man with any sense should keep you at arm’s length, Eloise.’
     The effect she’d had on him was obvious if the visible portion of his body was anything to go by. He only had himself to blame for the hard-on, she thought guiltily. His jean-clad legs and hips turned suddenly, his perfect backside headed for the door.
    ‘I’m going to get a shower,’ he muttered.
    Sliding out from under the sink, Ellie made face as the door slammed behind him.
    ‘Obviously you haven’t got any sense, Patrick Morgan.’
     

Chapter Four
     
    There seemed to be no spell in the book to reverse the effects of the love potion, nor one for removing a jinx.
    Ellie decided to put Patrick’s problem in the hands of fate. She’d once won some money of the Melbourne Cup using her tried and trusty method. She closed her eyes and flicked through the pages, stabbing her finger