-Blair's POV-

Blair tossed and turned in bed. The slivers of gold light that pushed through the thin curtains told her that she had laid awake all night. She wanted to strangle that irritating burn on the back of her neck that warned her of something that was coming her way. Blair loved her powers, but when they got between her and her sleep she almost wished for them to go away.

Blair kicked off the blanket that made her body even more exasperated, she was just about to head over to the bathroom when something peculiar caught her attention. A black shadow swatted across the balcony doors, she got another closer look at the shadow and moved towards it, she pushed the curtains and the same visitor from the other day was sitting on the ledge ruffling his glossy black feathers. Blair opened the door and the crow's unusual red eyes faced her, she tilted her head and found it uncanny how this bird was behaving around her.

"Hello, again," she greeted the crow respectfully because the one thing her grandma taught her was that crows were guardians just like our ancestors.

Blair lifted her hand and ran her fingers softly against the way his feathers laid, the crow didn't mind in fact he moved closer to her touch. Blair took a deep breath and radiated her magic around the bird that had attached himself to her, she recognized the old spell that had enchanted the crow, it was a binding spell. Someone had sent this crow to watch over her, but she didn't understand who would have done that. Blair's grandma could've just contacted her through dreams and her parents never talked to her, so it was none of them.

"Who sent you?" She asked the crow. Blair got no response, when suddenly, something crashed outside her room. The crow flew away around the building and Blair went to investigate.

Blair tiptoed outside her room but nothing was there, and Maddox was nowhere to be seen. She guessed he was still asleep this early in the morning because even the birds hadn't started singing yet. Blair couldn't find the cause of the noise, she turned towards her room to go back when another painful groan came echoing through the halls. It was Maddox.

Blair crept through the extremely cold hallway, she wondered why he liked it so cold in his house; it was dreadful. Blair found his room's door and stood immobile, when another terrible cry came through the door. Blair would've turned away if only she wasn't a witch, she knew Maddox was asleep but in pain and she couldn't just ignore that so easily. She could get rid of anything that was bothering him with these nightmares, so she summed up a bit of courage and turned the knob of the door.

Blair masked herself with a simple incantation that made her unseen. She entered the room confidently now, and the first thing she knew was that this bedroom was the chilliest part of the whole house. It was a simple modern room with a platform bed and in the centre rested Maddox, he had a deep frown and he was sweating greatly even though it was so cold in the room. Blair went around the bed and stood right next to him, she spotted a shattered glass on the floor that probably fell from the bedside table and caused the noise earlier. She found it fascinating how peculiar this man was becoming the more she got to know about him.

Blair delicately laid her hand over his head, she closed her eyes and let the magic pour out of her hand onto Maddox's temples. She held her form and the air grew thick with blazing heat, a storm of energy swarmed around her and she absorbed it all into her body. Maddox felt the tremble of magic that coursed through her body because it was in him too. Abruptly, her mind was filled with a terrible image of fire and blood, she gasped at the horrible image and knew that this was Maddox's nightmare inside her head. Blair's hand burned terribly but she didn't stop the spell.

"May your terrors wash away," whispered Blair and the images cleared for both of them. "Whilst the moon is awake may your sleep be protected just until the sun shines again. O, Lady Moon may you guide his dreams and shine your divine light over him."

Blair's eyes snapped open and she was panting hard like Maddox. Blair gaped at her palm, there was an angry burn mark sliced across her hand but it quickly vanished. Maddox's frown had dissipated and her spell bound itself to his body, she noticed that he had relaxed and that the spell had worked well.

Blair couldn't shake off the images she saw; they were horrifying. Usually, nightmares were on the scarier side but this was so real. It was a memory for Maddox that terrorized him, she now understood why he was having trouble sleeping, but what she hadn't figured out was what was so traumatic in Maddox's past that it even scared her, and she's not easy to scare.

Suddenly, Maddox awakened with a jump startling the wits out of her.

Blair was so thankful that she had the cloak of invisibility over her body, otherwise this situation would have been hard to explain. She didn't know what to do, he was right in front of her so she couldn't make any sounds. Blair covered her mouth that was loudly breathing and froze where she was standing because the glass next to her was unpredictable.

Maddox raked his sweaty wet hair and irritably threw the blanket off, it reminded Blair of herself this morning. Blair gaped at what she saw next; Maddox was shirtless and in boxers only. Blair inwardly groaned at her dumb luck, she didn't know where to look or what to do with herself.

Maddox got on to his bare feet and exposed his muscular built for her. She quickly closed her eyes and granted him some privacy, she heard a few cupboards open so she guessed that he was retrieving some fresh clothes. Blair opened one of her eyes and she saw Maddox disappear behind another door, she found her chance and she tiptoed around the glass and dashed across the room, when abruptly Maddox appeared again. Blair froze exactly where she stood, she couldn't leave because if a door opened on its own he would find it strange and probably freak out.

Suddenly, Maddox came straight to where she stood, she backed away and her back hit a hard wall, his body closed in on her but he fortunately stopped at the right moment. Blair held her mouth tighter, but she felt like he would hear her frantic heart that was smashing inside her body.

Blair didn't even dare to move, she just watched silently as Maddox grabbed a few more things for his work attire. She may be in a dire situation but she couldn't ignore his good looks. His strong jaw was taut and his hair was tousled in a sensual way, it made him lose his unflawed gentleman persona and turned him into more of a bad boy. He smelled delicious even though he just woke up, it was that scent that warned her to be careful, it drove her a little over the edge. She didn't understand why Maddox Steele had such an effect on her, but he did and she was terrified. Blair looked into his amber eyes that were lost in thought and clearly upset about something, she guessed it had something to do the nightmare. Blair was curious about him, and something told her that Maddox had something important to do in her life.

Maddox released a heavy breath and turned away from her, she released a breath of relief herself, which she immediately regretted it because Maddox heard her.

Blair blocked her mouth again when Maddox turned around to see where that sound came from, but since he didn't see anything, he ignored it as a mistake and sauntered back into the bathroom. Blair didn't waste any time, she ran out the door and back into her own bedroom.

"You survived that one, Lightwood," she softly chuckled and jumped into the shower herself.

Blair was sitting on the stool as Maddox kindly cooked a light breakfast for them, he offered although he was clearly in a bad mood. Maddox was dressed in a sterling grey suit; the blazer was taken off, but his starch white shirt did nothing to hide his broad shoulders and robust arms. He had a vest on that made him look like the rich and sophisticated businessman he already was, she thought he was good looking this morning and now he just wiped the floor with his killer looks. But his handsome face had a frown and his jaw was clenched firmly. He was cranky because of the night terrors, she knew that he would get a good rest tonight but she couldn't tell him that just to reassure him. Although, she could help to lighten his mood.

"Are you alright?" she asked politely.

Maddox's eyes locked with hers, he released a sigh and she held his gaze that told him clearly that he couldn't lie to her, so he shouldn't even try. "No," he answered. "I couldn't sleep."

"Does that happen often?" she questioned.

"More than I like to admit," he disclosed rather easily to her.

Blair nodded because she understood that his nightmare was an old memory still haunting him.

Maddox came around from the kitchen and joined her with two plates that had an English breakfast arranged neatly for them to enjoy. They both took a seat at the round table and she poured them some fresh orange juice; she felt strange whilst performing such an act, it made her think if she had been in a relationship this is what she would be doing with her partner.

Maddox gazed at her inquisitively. "Do you have something that can help me?" he asked her coyly.

Blair couldn't help but smile, she found it amusing that he still teased her about her skills even though he was sleep deprived. "Actually, I can," she told him and he grinned.

"Of course, you can," he muttered.

Blair knew that her spell would do all of the work, but she couldn't leave him hanging now. "See this ring," she directed his eyes to her ring finger. A delicate gold band rested there with a very old violet amethyst stone placed in the centre. It had a special family spell that washed away dire auras that crushed the positive ones. "This will help with your problem," she told him.

"How is that exactly?" he asked her with interest.

Blair pulled off the ring and asked for his hand, he hesitantly gave it to her. She slipped the small ring on his pinky; it surprisingly fit perfectly, the ring barely showed but it surely packed a punch that Blair was certain about. "Wear this for a couple of days," she instructed. "And see the results yourself."

Maddox didn't protest, he kept his hand in hers but then she realized that she was the one holding onto him. She quickly let go and continued to finish her breakfast.

"How was your night?" he asked her.

"I actually had a similar night to yours," she said. "My thoughts just wouldn't let me sleep."

Maddox's deep gaze assessed her. "I'm sure that mind of yours distracts you a lot," he remarked.

Blair laughed. "You have no idea," she shook her head.

Suddenly, a phone rang and it wasn't hers. She looked at Maddox whose gaze had turned stern again, his composed demeanour returned but he kept his eyes locked with hers.

"Hello," he answered with a deep tone that probably sent chills down the person's body because it certainly did for Blair. "Send them upstairs," he said and cut the phone. "Your workers are here," he told her.

Blair jumped out of her seat. "Thank you for the breakfast, it was delicious," she said as she picked up her emptied plate. "I have to get to work now, so I'll see you tonight."

Maddox grabbed her hand before she could walk away. "Thank you for the ring," he said with a small smirk.

Blair bit her lip. "Don't worry about it," she mumbled and ran off to meet Jones at the door.

"Blair," a familiar voice called out. It was Jones and a few unfamiliar people. "This is Jack, Linda, Brian and Jasper," Jones pointed at a group of young carpenters. "They're here to do the paint and molding job."

Blair clapped her hand together. "That's great, it's nice to meet you all," she greeted them and took them to the private office with Tony who was looking more and more refreshed every passing day.

"Hey, are you okay?" asked Jones.

Blair stared at him with a blank expression. "Yes, why?"

"Your cheeks are red," pointed Jones.

Blair's eyes widened because she knew that she blushed when Maddox grabbed her hand earlier. "I'm fine," she lied to Jones. "Just really hot." Jones nodded and followed her inside to continue their work for another day.