Spellbound Falls [5] For the Love of Magic Read Online Free PDF Page A

frustration as he shot past the road to Inglenook, remembering how the honeymoon had come to an abrupt end two weeks ago—although for the life of him he still didn’t know
why
. There had been no inciting incident or warning signs, as one day they’d been galloping the resort trails like flirtatious young lovers—which had led to a passionate interlude on the sun-bathed sands of a hidden grotto at the north end of the fiord—and not two days after that the woman had suddenly announced she was leaving him. Something about feeling suffocated and needing a breath of fresh air, he recalled her saying.
    The one thing he
did
know was that once Rana made up her mind on a matter, the combined power of the gods couldn’t alter her course. Within a week she’d purchased a house, and three days later he’d found himself sleeping in an empty bed.
    Realizing he was about to overshoot his destination, Titus quickly decelerated and somehow managed to enter the marina without killing or maiming himself. He pulled up next to his son’s SUV, set the kickstand and shut off the engine, then took off his helmet and scanned the docks for Duncan MacKeage’s pontoon boat.
    “Nice of you to finally show up,” Maximilian said as he walked from the direction of the office. He stopped beside the motorcycle and peered down at the instrument panel. “The Japanese didn’t think to put a clock on this model?”
    Titus got off the bike and pulled the key from the ignition. “I can’t be late, since MacKeage isn’t even here yet.”
    “We’ve all been here for nearly an hour.”
    He looked at where Mac was gesturing to see Nicholas step off a large boat and start untying lines just as its motor started. “Is there a reason we’re taking a tour boat?” Titus asked, following his son down the ramp to the floating dock.
    “We’re on a covert mission,” Mac drawled, stepping to the side to let him board.
    “Both Duncan’s pontoon boat and cruiser are easily recognized,” Nicholas added as he also stepped onboard, his Nordic blue eyes suddenly narrowed and direct. “Why am I seeing
camp road
dust on your new toy?”
    Titus walked over and sat down on the first row of benches directly behind the wheelhouse. “Because nine miles wasn’t far enough to blow it off.”
    Nicholas sat down beside him. “I thought we agreed you’d give her all the time
and space
she needed to come back on her own.”
    “You agreed,” Titus said as he slid his helmet under his seat. He straightened with a threatening scowl. “And I suggest you mind your own marriage before your new wife discovers your cats are more civilized than you are.”
    “Well?” Mac asked with a chuckle, sitting on the other side of him. “Are you satisfied
your
wife hasn’t run off to live with another man?”
    “She’s living in a hovel. I’ve seen outhouses that looked better.”
    Nicholas released a heavy sigh. “Please tell me you didn’t say that to her face.”
    Titus stood and walked to the wheelhouse as Duncan guided the large vessel through the narrow channel protecting the marina, which had been nothing more than a gravel pit before Maximilian’s little epic stunt had flooded it with seawater. “Remind me again who we’re disguising ourselves from?” he asked Duncan.
    The highlander glanced over at him, his eyes widening with his grin. “I hope the dealership threw that suit in with the bike.”
    “You’ve had command of the magic for almost four years,” Titus said, arching an equally impudent brow, “and you still require two wizards and a mythical warrior to back you up at the first hint of trouble?”
    That got rid of the cocky bastard’s grin. “I wouldn’t,” Duncan muttered as he sent the tour boat surging into the swells of the fiord, “if I’d been given a mountain that could stay awake.” He shot a glare over his shoulder at Maximilian. “Ye could have warned me there was such a thing as contrary magic.”
    “It usually takes on the