The Wicked by Thea Harrison

followed on her heels. He stayed so close that she could sense his body heat on her bare arm. With an effort she had to turn her attention away from his presence and focus on the task at hand.
    She followed the magical thread to a leather-bound book in a corner bookshelf.
    “There you are,” she whispered as she squatted in front of it. With a careful, practiced eye, she mentally translated the archaic title on the faded leather spine. Instructions on Angelic Visitations and Demonic Summoning . “This is a medieval grimoire, a very old book of spells. The oldest books are always the most unruly.”
    Sebastian asked in her ear, “What are you going to do about it?”
    She wagged a finger gently in the air without looking at him. “I’m going to do my job, and you are not going to distract me. Either that or Bailey can come help me.”
    “Bailey’s not going to help you,” he growled. “I am.”
    She bit back a smile. “Then be quiet.”
    In the vast variety of magical books and treatises that Olivia had encountered throughout her professional life, they all had one thing in common—books wanted to be opened. The key to handling an unruly magical book was to make sure one’s own Power was quiescent, so that it didn’t trigger some kind of backlash or attack.
    Carefully she extended one hand, letting the magical energy of the grimoire adjust to her nearing presence. When she finally laid her fingers on the leather cover, it didn’t react.
    She pulled it off the shelf, and it came smoothly, even eagerly. As she held it in one hand, she said, “ Claudo .” At the same time she uttered the single word spell, she sketched the symbol for “close” over the front cover.
    Despite its unruliness, it was still a book. The magic it contained snapped shut.
    She looked over her shoulder and smiled at Sebastian’s fascinated expression. “One down. Many more to go.”
    They worked through the morning. By lunchtime the air in the cottage was beginning to feel much more settled. After eating, Sebastian and Bailey returned to the library with the symbologists, but by midafternoon it became clear that their assistance was no longer needed, so they took off to fish for their supper. Sebastian gave her a quick, hard kiss before he left.
    The symbologists continued to work until early evening and the shadows in the cottage grew dark. Dendera told Olivia and Steve, “We will stop now. We’ve done a good first day’s work.”
    Steve looked up from the open container where he was carefully packing a five-volume set. “I’ll keep working.”
    Dendera shook her head, her round features softening with a smile. “I know how hard it is to pull yourself away. This library is fascinating, and I could keep working through the night as well. But I don’t want anybody to work on the collection on their own. We’ll leave together.”
    “There’s so much to do, and I’m not tired,” he argued. He waved a hand in the direction of the rooms full of books. “You can sense for yourself that we’ve contained the most unruly magics.”
    “I’m sorry, but I’m just not willing to take that chance,” said Dendera. “We’ve got plenty of time, and it will all be waiting for us in the morning.”
    Olivia watched with interest as Steve’s expression tightened with frustration. He did not like being told no. But all he said was, “If you think that’s best.”
    “I do.”
    He shrugged. “When do you think we’ll start work on the papyri collection?”
    “We should be ready to tackle that section in a few days,” Dendera said. “Let’s go eat supper.”
     
     
    The next several days fell into a pattern that was pure bliss for Olivia. The mild days were full of seemingly endless sunshine, and the nights turned chilly enough to call for fires, blankets and hot tea.
    She immersed herself in all of her passions. By day, she handled rare and unique books. In the evening they ate freshly caught fish, grilled with wild onions and