The persuasive baritone sank deep into my being like languid-flowing honey, turning my breathing into a slow, rhythmic cadence. My focus, however, sharpened, and it didn’t take long for me to imagine all the visuals Hank had mentioned.

My skin became electrified, the tiny hairs standing. I raised my arms as he had raised his, ignoring the soreness, and instead thinking of the water he’d lifted and the way thousands of tiny droplets had separated from the mass below, the way they hovered and then fell like the softest rain. I could hear it, and the sound was like tranquil music.

A rich chuckle reached my ears, and I looked to see the water falling just as I’d imagined it. Instant joy erupted in me, a balm of feel-good sensations and energy that made me throw my arms up high in victory and shout. I lunged forward and threw my arms around Hank’s neck. “I did it!” The water fell back into the pool as my weight caught him off guard and sent him backward onto the mat. An “oomph!” shot from his lips as I raised my head, gripped by a great sense of wonder and accomplishment.

Pride glowed in his eyes; I could tell by the way they crinkled and lit up. “Not bad, kiddo. Not bad at all.”

This felt so much better than using anger and negativity to drive my power. And it had the added benefit of furthering the healing process. I barely hurt at all. I stared at Hank for the longest time, panting and grinning like a damn fool until I realized that my bare thigh rested between his bare thighs, both of my palms flat on his bare chest. Too close, we were too close and nearly naked, and he smelled insanely good.

I was in so much trouble.

I pushed myself up, rolling to the side and scooting away awkwardly, silently cursing my ungraceful exit, as Hank pushed to his elbows, leaning back on them and just staring at me with an odd, crooked grin.

The breath died in my throat. His irises had turned the color of blue diamonds. My lungs burned, forcing me to gasp for air. I scrambled up and turned away from him, trying to calm my racing pulse.

Hank’s eyes changed on emotions. Lately they’d held on to their hard, dark sapphire color as he dealt with the fallout caused by our fight with Mynogan. But slowly, every once in a while, they would lighten. When he’d forget all the bad things. When the old Hank would shine through, or I’d do something totally asinine. But, blue diamonds? That was a new one. And I had known Hank, had seen him nearly every day, for the past three years.

Confusion clouded my vision, and I fisted my hands together at my sides, just standing at the edge of the pool and wondering what the hell had changed. What the hell was wrong with me that I was noticing every tiny detail about my partner and my friend?

It had to be the darkness. Being constantly turned on by that kind of raw, primal power was like a drug. I needed an out. Needed to release some of it. It was too much, too much inside of me. Made me start looking at my partner like he could give me the release I needed. At least that’s what I told myself.

A groan lodged in my throat. I needed a distraction and quick. “How about we try something a little more dramatic?” I shut my eyes and focused intently on water. Water everywhere. Water that matched my emotions.

“Charlie, I don’t think that’s such a good—” Hank’s voice drowned in the rush of power pounding through my ears like the torrents over Niagara Falls.

Yes, drown him out. Don’t listen to his potent voice, the decadent timbre that resonates through your body like a heavy drumbeat. Don’t listen, Charlie. Don’t. Listen.

Tears rose and closed my throat. I really just wanted someone to be close to, to make me feel secure and protected for once. How pathetic was that? How pathetic that I was so desperate I’d begun looking to my partner for it?

He called my name. I didn’t listen. Instead, I wiped at my eyes before he could see how weak and stupid I was.

“Charlie!”

Wet strands of my hair slapped me in the face, stinging me back to reality.

My jaw dropped. Oh shit.

I couldn’t move, just stood there in awe, staring at the tornado of water swirling in the center of the pool directly in front of me, writhing and spinning and shooting water everywhere. And my partner going along for the ride.

I was drowning him. Quickly, I closed my eyes again to summon my power, but I was too stunned and panicked to focus.

Come on. Come on, Charlie! Do something!

I tried again. The sound of water was deafening. Plants toppled over. The fires went out. Sconces flew off the wall. How the hell could anyone concentrate in this? I glanced around frantically. My control over what I’d manifested was lost. It should’ve collapsed the churning spiral, yet I’d somehow given it a life of its own. Hank yelled again. Before I could think better of it, I dove into the spiral.

It sucked me into a wide arc, dragging me in circles around the pool. Fighting against it was useless, so I streamlined my body and flowed with it, moving into the turns as it swept me along.

The panic ebbed. Being inside of my creation was so much easier than standing on the sidelines and watching helplessly. My confidence rose and I became one with the water, not fighting it, not fearing it. Soon I was guiding it, controlling it. Slowing it when I slowed. And up I went, using the water to take me higher, almost to the very top of the dome ceiling, where I swept past Hank and grabbed hold of his outstretched hand. We pulled together and wrapped our arms around each other.

And then I let it all go, releasing my command over the water.

We dropped, along with a few thousand gallons of water, into the pool below.

The water cushioned some of our fall, but we still hit the bottom of the pool pretty hard. Hank’s arms tightened around me, and he angled his body toward the concrete just as we hit. Then he was pushing us up, through the water and back to the surface.

We broke through with gasps and coughs.

My legs and arms were wrapped tightly around him, my forehead pressed into the crook of his neck, and I didn’t let go, too afraid I’d sink straight to the bottom of the pool if I did. I was weak, totally spent, in shock at the thought of what had come out of me.

“Why didn’t you fight it?” I asked. “Use your power?”

“Because I knew you could fix it, Charlie.”

Hank’s heart pounded hard and strong against my chest, mingling with the frantic beat of mine. I eased my hold a little, realizing I was reluctant to do so. He felt safe and warm. I, on the other hand, was a shivering, teeth-chattering mess. Reluctantly I lifted my forehead off the side of his neck and looked eye level at him.

I don’t think either one of us wanted to be the first to speak, so instead I pushed a wet strand of his hair from his forehead, unsure of what I was doing or why.

Whatever the reason—adrenaline, shock—my blood pressure rose. I licked the wetness on my lips, captured by the blue diamond irises staring back at me, mesmerized, and unable to look away. I felt a tug, a pulse of awareness between my legs. That part of me, I realized, was pressed intimately against his groin, and another bloom of desire rocketed through me.

His Adam’s apple slid up and down. His gaze dropped to my lips. His entire body stilled as I held my breath. Then his gaze was back, fixed on me like a burning blue flame.

I couldn’t help it. It had been so long since I’d felt like this. My hand curled around the back of his neck as we moved in closer. My chest and stomach became like an explosion of feathers, so light and airy and breathless. Almost there …

And he wanted it, too. I could feel it against me, see it in the way his gaze had locked back on to my lips. The pressure of his hold increased. One of his hands slid up my back and cupped the back of my head. Our noses brushed. His fingers curled into my hair, tugging at the roots as my head angled.