Total pages in book: 203
Estimated words: 199654 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 998(@200wpm)___ 799(@250wpm)___ 666(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 199654 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 998(@200wpm)___ 799(@250wpm)___ 666(@300wpm)
Oh shit. Here come the tears.
She pulls me into a hug and I say into her pretty, fragrant blonde hair, “I don’t want someone who only wants me because of biology.”
She squeezes me. “Oh honey, fated mates aren’t just about biology.”
“That’s what it feels like. He’s known me my whole life. He was so awesome growing up. He was always there. He always had time for me. And he showed me how gallant and sweet he could be so many times. But he’s been a dismissive asshole to me lately.”
“Probably because he knows you have a crush on him and he doesn’t want you pining for him when he’s about to mate.”
“He could’ve done it differently, though, couldn’t he? Did he have to be so cruel? And well, I’m not pining for him now. I don’t want him to just get to put his hands on me just because something in his nose tells me he has that right. What kind of a life is that for me? Only mated to him because of how I smell?”
I pull the baggie from my bra and hand it over. “There’s a Starling power suppression necklace in there, too. Your Aunt Mimi made it. I thought it’d help. I didn’t know I couldn’t use it.”
She blows out a long breath. “I’ll use some of my good will to buy you some time. And I’ll talk to my sisters once we get some things squared away. Don’t fret, dear cousin. Just give the necklace back to Grey when you get home.”
“You can buy me some time? For real?”
“Absolutely. Told you I owe you one…”
12
JASE
I’m about to come out of my skin. Bailey has been out of my sight too long and this shield must be fucking with my scenting abilities because I couldn’t smell her at all for a couple minutes. Being unable to physically track her has been frustrating as fuck. But now I smell her again along with the additional scent of Danica Young.
They’re coming down the stairs together as I’m raking my hands through my hair.
“Jase,” Danica greets.
I haul in a steadying breath as I take in Bailey, who is looking anywhere but at me.
“Danica,” I mutter.
She looks me up and down and correctly reads my vibe.
She says, “Any involvement by my coven to put you and Bailey in the same space came from indications it needed our intervention. We had no knowledge of any nefarious plans by anyone.”
I can’t hide my annoyance, and I won’t hide the fact that I do blame them. I say, “I don’t appreciate being blindsided when I was trying to help. In fact, I take issue with being treated like a chump.”
“I’d say that’s fair, but let’s not pretend your motives were altruistic,” she states.
This gets my hackles up and I don’t hide it, though she seems unaffected by my kill stare.
Bailey shuffles uncomfortably while Danica goes on.
“My understanding is that because of the spell we put on the artifacts, they did a locator spell to find you. How they knew you’d planned to accompany me to deliver them safely, we don’t know for certain, but Alta is known to dabble in gray magic for fact-finding. Now, I’m here to help,” she goes on, “so let me follow up with Erica and Aphra to see what we can do to get you released. Excuse me.”
She climbs the stairs and Bailey is standing at the foot of those stairs looking uncomfortable, looking anywhere but at me.
A growl erupts, showing my frustration as I pace some more, claustrophobia hitting a new level as I push away the annoyance at Danica’s attitude. I’m beyond ready to get the hell out of this shield, this house, and back home. I want to grab my mate and pull her close, tell her how good it’ll be, see if feeling her eases my need. While I’d love to immediately put my money where my mouth is and show her how good it’ll be, I’m not claiming her here where all this shit happened, where we’ve been stuck. Maybe instead of taking her home immediately, we’ll go on a trip. Have our mating at a swanky resort, far away from the pack and any other potential drama. Yeah, I like the sound of that. My near-boiling blood simmers slightly.
Her eyes are on me briefly, before they dart away. And I know she caught the smile I just flashed.
“Know what I’m thinkin’ about, Bay?” I ask, stopping as close to her as I can physically get.
“Obviously not,” she mutters, adjusting her eyeglasses and shrinking, like she’s worried about me touching her.
“I’m thinkin’ instead of going home, you and I should check into a nice hotel. Somewhere with a hot tub. Or even better… our own private beach. How does that sound?”
“Sounds like you’re delusional,” she mutters, looking like I’m offering her another shit sandwich.