“For all of two seconds,”
she says dismissively.
I look from Lyre to the Lycan, who now stands with his arms crossed protectively over his chest.
“Was it him?”
I ask, pointing at Jack-Eye.
“No,”
he answers quickly.
Owen flinches.
I trail my finger in my erstwhile kidnapper’s direction, and the beta clears his throat and nods.
Wow. Poor Owen.
Lyre shrugs.
“I wanted to know where you were, and he realized we were tailing him about a mile in. It was the easiest way to get his attention. Don’t worry. I waited until he was at a stop sign. I’m not a monster.”
Then she tilts her head, looking thoughtful.
“Sounds like the real monster’s arrived, though.”
LYRE
There’s a special joy that comes from watching someone who once stood tall crumble into terrified submission. Owen-all six-foot-something of Order-aligned angelic muscle-keeps flinching whenever I so much as breathe in his direction. It’s adorable, really.
He’s young. Strangely young. Maybe mid-twenties at best. Seems odd, considering his bloodline, but I’m not about to ask. Knowing means involving, and involving means work.
No, thank you.
My phone buzzes in my pocket, and I fish it out while maintaining eye contact with Owen, just to watch him swallow nervously. Poor thing. I’d only turned him into a toad for a few seconds. Just enough to make sure he didn’t run away.
Didn’t think it would bother him this much, but it is a delightful bonus.
The text on my screen makes me roll my eyes.
[CAINE: Why aren’t you answering your phone? This is just an empty building. Where are you??]
The digital equivalent of a wolf’s howl.
Sighing, I turn to Owen.
“Do they need a key?”
He nods stiffly.
“Yes.”
“Better go let them in before His Royal Broodiness tears this place apart with his bare hands.”
“This isn’t-“
He stops himself and blows out a heavy breath.
“Okay.”
Jack-Eye straightens.
“I’ll go with you.”
Of course he will. Any excuse to get away from the big bad witch who turned his new friend into an amphibian. Wolves are so predictable. So boring. Take away their agency once and they lose their ability to function.
Owen hesitates, looking from me to Grace and back again.
“Don’t worry,”
I tell him with my sweetest smile.
“We’re best friends. Right, Grace?”
The angel-descendant looks at Grace, his silver eyes troubled.
“Will you be-“
“I’m fine,”
Grace interrupts, her cheeks flushing pink as she looks at me.
“We’re friends.”
I press a hand to my chest, mock-offended.
“Just a friend? After everything we’ve been through? I’m wounded.”
Grace’s face crumples with genuine concern, her green eyes widening as she reaches toward me.
“Oh no, I didn’t mean-I just-best friends! We’re best friends!”
I chuckle.
“Breathe, blueberry. I’m just messing with you.”
I wave my hand dismissively.
“You’re wound too tight. Relax!”
Grace’s shoulders visibly relax, tension melting away as she exhales a long breath.
“That wasn’t funny,”
she mumbles, but there’s no heat behind her words. A small smile tugs at the corner of her mouth despite her best efforts.
She’s so cute. A sweet little bundle of innocence, wrapped in a world determined to grow her into a fate too large for her dainty shoulders.
I can see the threads of her fate, and they’re beautiful.
But surrounded by so much pain.
The best fates usually are. The Divinity call it balance, but I’ve never agreed.
Jack-Eye follows a hesitant Owen toward the exit, and I can’t help but twirl my finger in the beta’s direction.
“Ribbit, ribbit.”
He actually snarls at me before following Owen out. At least he has some spice to his fear. Doesn’t like being poked at, does he? Maybe he’ll be more fun than I realized.
When they’re gone, Grace collapses onto one of the cushions scattered across the floor, her eyes wide.
“You turned him into a toad?”
“Just for a second,”
I tell her with an easy smile.
“I wanted to talk to him, and it’s the easiest way to get a point across.”
“Is that why Jack-Eye is afraid of you too?”
I shrug.
“Jack-Eye just has good instincts. Unlike your mate, who bulldozes through life with all the subtlety of a freight train.”
Grace’s face does that endearing pink thing again.
“He’s not my-“
“Grace,”
I interrupt, sitting beside her,
“we’re well past that particular denial, don’t you think?”
She opens her mouth, then closes it, hands fidgeting in her lap. Her nervous energy fills the space between us-anticipation and anxiety in equal measure. It’s sweet.
“Is Caine really upset?”
she asks quietly.
“He’s been tearing the city apart looking for you.”
I pat her knee.
“In his own charming, homicidal way.”
A soft smile plays at the corners of her mouth, and I marvel at how someone so genuinely good could end up bound to a creature like Caine. The universe has a twisted sense of humor.
“I should warn you,”
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.