"Do you like me?" I asked. "Do you really like me?"
Imogen nodded. Water gathered at the edges of her eyes. "Yeah," she whispered, in a voice pained enough to crack my heart.
"Then let's...go out, after this," I said. "We'll go on a date. We can figure this out together, and we can take one step at a time. Okay?"
Imogen nodded again. I took her hands in mine. 
Heartwood: Forbidden is the tale of the young, headstrong Ophelia stepping into a world of magic and witches. At first it seems like her greatest challenge will be finding her Familiar or drawing her Implement from a great tree, but then she runs into Imogen, daughter and heir to the Magnolia family, and learns very quickly that romance and magic probably shouldn't be allowed to mix. If Ophelia plays the game well, she might be able to get the girl and still end up on top. But Ophelia has never been good at following the rules... 
Heartwood: Forbidden is created by EOK Gifford-Smith, an EGlobal Creative Publishing signed author.

Heartwood: Forbidden

The feast was indeed over, and the crowds had started to move locations. As such, the hallways were mostly empty and Klaeris force-marched Imogen and myself to the newly constructed amphitheater.


I was holding Imogen's hand still and I gave it a tug to pull us closer together. We bumped shoulders.


"You alright?" I mumbled. "Circumstances being what they are?"


"You mean my heart being outside my body? Or the imminent loss of my magic?" Imogen asked.


I shook my head. "Yeah, dumb question, sorry."


"I'm alright, actually." Imogen said, surprising me.


"Really." She said. "It's terrible, don't get me wrong, but... My life hasn't been great for a while now. When you were gone, all I could feel was this emptiness in me. Like a piece of me was missing."


"A dull ache?" I offered. "I know that feeling."


Chapter 44: A Meeting of the Families