Before he left, he lowered his head and touched his cheek to mine, less a kiss than a nuzzle; a brief reminder of how we’d touched last night when we were deer. But instead of leaning into it, as I had when we were deer, I flinched. He stepped back and stared at me.

“I’m sorry,” I said. “I’m …”

“Exhausted,” he finished for me. “Get some sleep.” Then he was gone.

I opened the back door, chiding myself for reacting to Duncan’s touch like a … well, like a startled deer. Duncan was a nice man. He was trying to help. If I acted like that to every man who touched me I was going to be alone for a long time in this big silent house.

Silent.

I listened for a moment until I had confirmed my first impression. The rain pounded on the roof but there was no ping or patter of falling water within the house. Bill had managed to seal the leaks – at least temporarily – with his tarps. What a prince! I might end up alone in this big old house, but at least I’d found someone to take care of it.

Chapter Fourteen

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

I SLEPT SOUNDLY and dreamlessly. In the morning I awoke to sunshine and the sound of hammering. I dressed, noticing that the wounds on my ribcage were almost entirely healed. Duncan Laird was quite a powerful wizard. I shivered a little recalling his hands on me – on my naked body. How would I ever face him again? The transformation I’d undergone last night hadn’t unlocked my power and now we had another problem – a crazed undine on the loose who somehow thought I was keeping her from breeding.

I wasn’t going to figure out what to do without some coffee, though. In fact, I was so foggy that I could swear that I smelled coffee. I went downstairs and found Bill, in navy sweatshirt and baseball cap, in the kitchen pouring a cup of coffee into my favorite mug.

“I hope you don’t mind that I let myself in,” he said, handing me the mug. “I wanted to get an early start so I used the key under your gnome.”

“Oh,” I said, taking the mug, “how did you know the key was under the gnome?”

He grinned. “Everyone in this town keeps their key under their gnome. Anyway, I just wanted to check that the tarps kept the water out last night.”

“Oh yes,” I said taking a sip of the coffee. It was delicious, a perfect combination of the two blends I kept in my freezer. “I didn’t hear any drips at all. You did a great job.”

He pulled his cap over his eyes and looked embarrassed at the praise. “It’s just a temporary solution,” he mumbled. “I’d better get to work on the roof. I think the rain’s letting up.”