Rathe took the book bag off his shoulder and dropped it on the grass beside the bench, before joining me without an invitation to do so. He was interrupting my solitude in the worst way.

“I was curious. You intrigue me. So, I asked a few questions,” he replied, and I could feel his gaze on me, although I was focused on the water fountain in the pond in front of us, and refusing to look at him.

“Do you not have somewhere to be? A class maybe?” I asked.

His deep, low chuckle made me feel funny inside, and I was suddenly very uneasy.

“At the moment, I can’t think of anywhere I need to be,” he paused then added “what about me bothers you so much, Catalina?”

Hearing him say my full name made the strange tingle he was causing intensify. Dang it. Not this guy. I knew being attracted to a man who wasn’t a caster was pointless. There was no future in it. Yet my body was overpowering my good sense. Everything but my brain was attracted to Rathe. Simply because my brain knew he was too weak for a Kamlock female. He’d fallen under Leanne’s spell too easily. I may not be like my mother and sisters but their cursed blood was also mine.

“Cat,” I corrected him. Because hearing him say Cat sounded less delicious.

“Your name is Catalina, and it fits you. Cat does not.” He was so matter of fact that I turned my head to look at him without thinking. His eyes were more steel gray than blue today. It didn’t make them any less mesmerizing though. He held his own sort of magic with his sheer sex appeal.

“I judged you when we first met. I do that with men. First impressions are important to me. I’m always spot on. It’s a gut thing. Although you made me question my gut. You enjoyed reading, that’s rare in guys these days. You said some things at the wedding that made me think just this once I was off. I thought possibly there was more to you than… I expected. But then you proved I’d been right in the beginning. You’re everything I don’t like about men.” That was harsh but it would put him off. Unlike the repel charm was doing because It seemed to have no effect on him.

His brows drew together in a frown, but unlike Heath his appeared sinister instead of sincere. “Oh, now I’m even more curious. Please elaborate,” he coaxed. I doubted he was curious. More like insulted would be a better description.