Elements of magic rune w.., p.25
Elements of Magic (Rune Witch Book 2),
p.25
Niall seemed to be loitering without purpose, pacing slowly back and forth across the lobby’s marble tile floor and occasionally glancing toward the staircase leading down to the ballroom where the marketplace was bustling.
Sally tuned out Clare’s prattling about her plans for Halloween, and she disengaged herself from her roommate’s grasp to approach her friend.
“Niall? What are you doing here?” Sally glanced around at the wide, ornate foyer and the grand sitting parlors on either side. “This can’t be for research for your paper?”
Niall chuckled. “No, I’m a far cry from being ready to set pen to paper on that one. I’m here to look after my gran. She’s down at the marketplace.”
“Shopping?” Sally glanced back at the ballroom.
“Selling,” he answered in a low voice.
Beaming an excited smile, Clare stepped up beside Sally and extended her hand to Niall. “I’m Clare! I’m Sally’s roommate. So your family’s in the Craft, then? Real Irish magick?”
Sally sighed heavily. “Clare . . .”
Niall accepted Clare’s outstretched hand. “Not at all. I’m not really caught up in all of that myself, but I suppose you could say it’s kind of the family business. I’m Niall.”
“Ooh!” Clare cooed in her Texan drawl as she tried to hang onto his hand. “I love your accent! Your lilt is simply to die for.”
“Well, we are in Dublin. The city’s lousy with Irish, you know.” Sally pulled Clare’s arm back, forcing her to break off from Niall.
Clare’s dark, shoulder-length hair bobbed in her excitement as she turned to Sally. “It must be fate! Here I am, having come all this way to learn Irish magick, and just like that! I cross paths with the heir to an honest-to-goddess bloodline of Celtic witches.”
Sally gritted her teeth. There was so much about what Clare had said that was wrong and uncalled for.
“I’m afraid I’m not heir to so much as a potato patch, miss,” Niall offered in a deadpan tone.
Sally placed her hands on Clare’s shoulders and turned her toward the door. “Well, we really should be going.”
Clare reached back toward Niall but didn’t quite make contact. “You should stop by our flat! We’re on the third floor of House XXV in Rubrics. Room number five. We can put on some tea and talk about witchy things!” Clare called out as Sally pushed her toward the exit. “You know I’m part Irish myself, and a real practitioner, too! We’ll break out the biscuits and the Tarot cards!”
“Sorry,” Sally offered over her shoulder to Niall. “She’s kind of enthusiastic.”
“That I can see,” Niall nodded. “But I just might take you up on that offer,” he added with a wink.
“Ooh!” Clare’s eyes sparkled as she clapped her hands together. “Real Irish magick, in our apartment!” Clare glanced sideways at Sally as they exited the hotel. “I mean, more real magick, of course.”
Sally didn’t comment. She felt the weight of the marble ring on her finger and walked down the damp steps to the street.
Black Pool Magic (Rune Witch 3) is available now on Amazon and Kindle Unlimited.
Also by Jennifer Willis
Rhythm
The Rune Witch series
Moon Dog Magic
Elements of Magic
Black Pool Magic
Raven Magic
Chaos Magic (coming spring/summer 2018)
Twilight Magic (coming spring/summer 2018)
Mars Adventure Romance Series (M.A.R.S.)
Mars Ho!
Lovers and Lunatics
Mars Heat
For news of future books, occasional freebies, and other updates, please visit jennifer-willis.com and/or sign up for my readers list.
Acknowledgments
Writing is often lonely work, but I didn't pull off this project completely on my own. I offer my heartfelt thanks to the following people—to borrow a term from Mhairi, you folks are my awesomesauce.
My beta readers, Tuffy and Mhairi. Your guidance—both gentle and brutal—has helped to make this a better story.
Terri Kleinberg. You are one of the best friends I've ever had and one of my best sounding boards for crazy plot devices (like enchanted art supplies) and wacky story ideas.
Scamper Robinson. Your art just blows me away, and you have been a valued and trusted “digital friend” for many years.
Jo, Krystal, Abby, and Shannon at Maplewood Coffee & Tea. A large portion of this volume’s rewrite was done at your little neighborhood hang-out, and I greatly appreciate your smiling hospitality and your willingness to let me linger over many pots of Mt. Hood Sunrise.
Cooky, Heather, and Crystal—librarians at my tiny local library. Thank you for your resource recommendations and for continuing to ask how the writing is going. It’s a great motivator. Librarians are unsung heroes. You all deserve to live like Oprah Winfrey.
My writing group, the Masked Hucksters, for coming along with me on this journey, and Laurel Standley for your patience and friendship.
The readers who posted their thoughts online or wrote me personally to share their enthusiasm for this series. Writers would still write even without readers, but knowing you're there on the other end makes the work so much sweeter.
Always and again, my partner and alpha reader, Mike. Your patience, tolerance, and support know no bounds. There's great power in having someone believe in your work, and that's one gift you keep giving me in abundance. As the song goes, "I love you more than I could ever promise."
About the Author
Author photograph by Rachel Hadiashar.
Jennifer Willis loves tales of magickal mayhem, unlikely adventure, and playful intrigue.
An admitted sci-fi nerd and urban fantasy fan, she is the author of the Rune Witch urban fantasy series and the M.A.R.S. science fiction romance books. When she’s not hiking, knitting, baking, star-gazing, or reading like a fiend, she spends her time trying to bring enchantment to the world. She is the writer behind the Northwest Love Stories feature in The Oregonian and has a byline in the Hugo Award-winning Women Destroy Science Fiction anthology from Lightspeed.
She lives in Oregon with her dude, their dog, a quartet of cats, and possibly a family of raccoons residing under the house.
For more information . . .
Jennifer-Willis.com
Jennifer Willis, Elements of Magic (Rune Witch Book 2)
