The Cursed Prince by Teresa Roman (reading e books txt) 📕

be broken. That at least gave me hope. It also frustrated me. I hated puzzles that I couldn’t solve.

I lay on my back, staring up at the ceiling. A thousand thoughts ran through my mind. I wondered why Peter hadn’t returned my call yet. I reached for my phone, checking to make sure I didn’t have any messages or hadn’t missed a text. Nothing. I wished that he knew how badly I needed to hear his voice. And I wondered what was keeping him from answering when I called.

I didn’t hear from him until noon the next day. I was in my office combing through some files a client had sent me about their upcoming audit when my phone rang.

“Hey stranger,” I said.

“I’m sorry I didn’t call back yesterday,” he said. “But I’ve got so much to do before Friday night gets here. I want our weekend together to be perfect.”

“I won’t see you until then?”

“It’s only a few more days, sweet Willow. And once you see what I’ve been planning, you’ll realize it was worth waiting for.”

I wanted to ask if we could at least meet for lunch. Friday seemed so far off. I shook my head, realizing I’d spent more time with Nicolai in the past week than I’d spent with Peter in the last month. When we started dating, Peter had warned me that he worked a lot. I was okay with it then, but now that Nicolai had gotten me so twisted up, I needed more from Peter. There was no crime in being attracted to someone, I reminded myself, as long as I didn’t act on it, which I wouldn’t do.

That evening I had dinner with my father who had questions about Maria and what she wanted from me. I answered him the best I could, but his expression told me that he knew I was lying. Thankfully, he didn’t push the issue. After we finished eating, I hurried through cleaning off the table and washing the dishes before heading to the castle. Maria scolded me for being late.

“If I’m never home, my father is going to get even more suspicious than he already is.”

My lessons that evening were different. Instead of practicing spells, Maria had me read from some sort of magical encyclopedia. She paced back and forth in front of me, stopping every few minutes to answer my questions. I’d reached the section on centaurs before giving up. Normally, I liked reading and enjoyed soaking up new information, but there was no way I was going to get through that entire book in one night.

“Can we just pick this up again tomorrow?” I finally asked.

“You need to study this book on your own as well,” Maria scolded. “There is so much for you to learn in a very short amount of time. Helping Nicolai is important, but if something happens to you, you won’t be able to.”

I frowned. “Why would anything happen to me?”

“You’re a beautiful woman with a great deal of power, but you know so little about magic and the supernatural, and you are rather naïve—”

“I am not naïve.”

Maria walked over to me. She grabbed one of my hands, giving it a squeeze. “Just promise me you’ll keep reading.”

“Okay.” I pulled my hand away from her. I’d planned on reading more when I got home anyway, just probably not from that boring encyclopedia. “I promise.”

She smiled. “Good. Now go find Nicolai. He’s waiting for you in the music room.”

Chapter 13

The next few days passed by quickly. After work each evening, I drove straight to the castle, skipping dinner because magic lessons and time with Nicolai had become more important than food. But magic and Nicolai weren’t the only things screwing with my appetite. Every day that passed meant my weekend with Peter was getting closer and closer. A mixture of anticipation and apprehension filled me.

Maria had me read more pages from the encyclopedia until I begged her to let me work on spells instead. I should’ve realized something was up when she relented so easily. By Thursday, I didn’t just have a hunch that something was bothering her. I was certain. Yet when I pressed her to tell me, she flatly refused. I gave up trying to have an actual conversation with her and went to find Nicolai instead who was waiting in the music room.

“I know how much you love to hear me play, but I’d like to do something different tonight,” he said as I walked up to him.

“What do you have in mind?”

Nicolai pressed a button on a small remote he held in his hand, and music played from speakers in the corners of the room. He extended his hand. “Dance with me.”

I trembled as he pulled me closer. The heat from his body, coupled with his strong arms that wrapped around me, had a dizzying effect.

“I’ll miss you this weekend,” he said.

I laid my head on his chest. “I’ll only be gone for a few days.”

How had life gotten so complicated? Two weeks ago, I was just an accountant who lived with her father in the same house she’d grown up in. Now I was a witch who was dancing with a werewolf in his castle while trying my hardest to keep from doing something I’d regret the next day. In less than twenty-four hours, I’d be with my boyfriend, headed to his cabin for our first weekend trip together.

Nicolai stopped dancing and took my chin in one of his hands, lifting it to meet my gaze. “Don’t go,” he whispered.

I swallowed hard. “I have to. I promised Peter.”

“Then break it. Tell him something came up.”

“Why would I do that?” I asked, hoping he could see the pleading in my eyes.

Nicolai stared at me. I willed him to tell me that he didn’t want me to go because he had feelings for me. Because he couldn’t stand the idea of me in someone else’s arms. But he didn’t say any of those things. Instead, he shook