Longing for You (Touched by Magic Book 1) by Kelli McCracken Page A

Let’s get you home.”
    “I’m right behind you.”
    Before Ally joined her, Jonah cut off her path. He spoke in a soft voice, making it difficult to hear what he was saying. Cassie didn’t want to know anyway. She wanted to tell Theo goodbye, but Mike hadn’t left the doorway.
    Damn him.
    Fed up with his hot and cold attitude, she parted her lips to ask what his problem was this time, but Theo moved between them. “You really gonna make use of that number?”
    Cassie nodded. “Sure will, handsome.”
    She didn’t miss the way Mike’s eyes narrowed before he walked away. Good. That meant he heard her call Theo handsome. If he was going to think the worst of her, she might as well have fun doing it.
    Theo could help her achieve that goal. He’d show her a good time—one hell of a good time—in any and every position she wanted.

CHAPTER SEVEN

    Cassie pressed her back against the wicker chair on Ally’s porch and finished off the last of her cocktail. Rum burned its way down her throat as she set her empty glass on the table positioned between her and her friend. The wind seemed to whisper between the oak trees lining the street in front of Ally’s house, but the comforting sound didn’t ease the tension knotting Cassie’s neck.
    What a night it had been… No, it was more like, what a day . From the ass chewing she received at the studio to all the crazy shit that unfolded at Midnight Blues, it had been more than a day from hell. It was an all-inclusive trip into a shit storm of love, lies, and lunatics. Not even the devil would subject his tormented soul to such chaos.
    The fun didn’t stop when they left the club. From the twenty-minute cab ride they’d spent in silence, to the moment Ally walked inside and started pouring drinks, Cassie knew her friend was pissed. But it wasn’t until they downed their first drink that Ally’s tongue loosened.
    Boy, did it loosen…
    It came as no surprise that Ally was upset over her suggestion to Theo. The one about them getting together when he and Jonah got back in town. They’d spent the last three hours discussing it, as well as debating over her friend’s feelings for Jonah.
    At least they had been, until five minutes ago when Ally dropped the conversation that had her squirming in her seat. She was drunk. There was no question in Cassie’s mind. Her friend hadn’t held back on the liquor she used for the five cocktails she’d made them.
    Shifting her gaze to the center of the table, Cassie focused on the citronella candle, the same one Ally lit when they brought their drinks outside and sat in the chairs. She came into view, but the canopy of oak branches and Spanish moss held her friend’s attention.
    If it weren’t for the way she was jiggling her foot, Cassie would swear Ally had fallen asleep. She wished she could judge her friend’s mental state. The last thing she wanted was for Ally’s first weekend back to end with a fight that kept them from talking.
    “Are you sure you don’t want me to stay with you?”
    Ally’s chest inflated as she took a deep breath and then released it. “Yeah, I’m sure. I’ll be fine. I really don’t feel like having company.”
    “You know I want what’s best for you, don’t you?”
    Weary eyes met Cassie’s. “I know. I’m sorry for being so pissy with you. I’m in a state of confusion right now and I need time to process everything.”
    Cassie couldn’t agree more, but she kept her thoughts to herself. If Ally gave herself time to think about Jonah without letting the past weigh in her conclusion, she’d see what Cassie saw all along—that Jonah had it bad for Ally.
    “Seriously, Cass, don’t worry. I’m fine. I’m going straight to bed once you leave. All of this other stuff can wait until tomorrow.”
    It was the best news Cassie had heard in the last twenty-four hours. Ally was in dire need of sleep. They both were, but Cassie had gotten used to long days and short nights. Life in the music