Magic's Crown

by Sela Carsen

  “They’re like wards or charms. She tuned them for me, then made me put them in the minute I moved into the house. Nothing that wishes me harm get around them.”

  He stroked her fingers and she pushed herself closer, hating the cold iron that stood between them.

  “Are you sure?”

  “I’m sure, querida. You’ll all be safe there.”

  She believed him. Believed in him, which was more than she could say for most of the men she’d known in her life.

  “I’m so sorry, Javi.”

  “Sorry for what?”

  “I couldn’t do that wind thing to help.”

  He chuckled, and she felt the sound come right through her hands where they were connected. “How long have you actually been doing ‘that wind thing’?”

  “Well… today. I mean, I’ve had a breeze follow me around before, but I’ve never been able to control it like I did today. I’m not sure why.”

  “I’m guessing it’s because of Shura. You know as well as I do that dog is a familiar. She amplifies your abilities.”

  Medina leaned her head against the bars and he touched his forehead to hers. “My brain’s been in such chaos, I hadn’t thought it through. You’re right. I still don’t know exactly what I am, so I suppose I’ll have find someone to teach me. But not right now. Right now, we have to get you out of here.”

  “We’ll worry about that tomorrow. In the meantime, think about this.” Javi released her hand to tip her chin up just enough that he could reach her through the bars. It was a light kiss, barely a touch, separated by far too much, but it was enough for her to feel its rightness.

  Her world slid into place with a quiet snick, just as his lips released hers. She stared at him, eyes wide with the knowledge that she wasn’t the same woman she’d been yesterday. Or just a few minutes before.

  Javi smiled at her shock. “Now you know how I feel.”

  An answering grin stretched her lips wide. “You’ve been holding out on me.”

  “I had to wait for you to catch up. Now go home. Tomorrow will come soon enough.” With another stroke of his mouth against hers, he released her.

  After extracting a promise from Birdie to make sure Javi was looked after, Medina walked out of the station to find a Ryde waiting for her. Her neighbors had called for it before they left, and the driver assured her he’d take her wherever she needed to go. She gave him Javi’s address and bundled in with the dogs. Shura and Lando sat quietly on the ride, as if they rode in strange cars every day.

  When they stopped in front of his mailbox, she paused for a moment to take it all in. It was a small, neatly kept home, tucked away in a neighborhood of larger, more traditional-looking places. The older ranch had a cool, retro sense to it that made it feel like she was walking up to her grandmother’s house, and her grandmother was a vivacious and stylish woman who kept up with the times.

  A tingle swept over her as she stepped onto the walkway—magic from the hechizos Javi had told her about. She felt the searching touch in her heart and mind and held herself still for it to discover that she meant no harm to the man who lived here. After a moment, she was released and she breathed a sigh of wonder at the warmth of the loving magic that followed her.

  Lando recognized his home turf and went from being a military working dog on duty to a giant goofball in the blink of an eye. He spotted a favored toy on the lawn and dove on it like a cat on a mouse. After rolling around with it in his mouth, covering the rubber thoroughly in slobber, he brought it over and presented it to Medina as if it was a precious treasure. To him it was, so she took it gingerly from him with a smile and praise.

  “Is this your toy? What a nice toy. Thank you, Lando.”

  He dropped down onto his front legs, leaving his rear end waving in the air, and she knew he wanted to play. Medina tossed it, and he chased. When he brought it back, though, it wasn’t to Medina. Instead, he presented it to Shura, who nosed it carefully, then rolled it back to him.

  Medina breathed a sigh of relief. The dogs were going to be fine.

  Stepping into Javi’s home was another revelation. Sure, it had what she assumed was normal bachelor clutter, but it wasn’t dank-smelling or grimy, or whatever worst possible scenario she might have dreamed up.

  Instead, she saw hints of him in every piece of sleek vintage furniture that never ceased to look modern. Long, low lines on the couch, the chairs, and the coffee table looked both neat and welcoming. Everything was colorful but simple and no-nonsense, though there were some cool and funky pieces of art on the walls and bookshelves. Immediately, the comfort of the home drained her of all her stress, leaving nothing but exhaustion in its wake.

  “All right, guys. Let’s get you fed, then I think I’m done for the night.”

  They all made it through dinner without falling on their faces. Even Medina doggedly ate all of the sandwich she made. After she washed up, she went exploring. There were two bedrooms, and the first one she looked in had been converted into an office. Down the hall a bit, she entered Javi’s room.

  She breathed it in. It smelled like him. And dog. And maybe a hint of the wild wolf that lived under his skin. It was a scent she couldn’t resist, even if she tried. And she didn’t try.

  Medina hadn’t brought anything with her, so she changed out of her clothes and dug through his dresser to find something to sleep in. As soon as she touched the soft, worn cotton of one of his old uniform T-shirts, she knew she’d found what she wanted. She pulled the fabric up to her nose and absorbed the smell of laundry detergent that couldn’t quite hide the scent of the man who’d worn it for so many years.

  She slipped the shirt on, finished getting ready, then crawled between the cool sheets on his wide bed. Burying her face in the pillow that she could tell he preferred, she relaxed.

  And wept.

  The dogs crept up onto the mattress and curled up against her. While she buried her face in Shura’s ruff, Lando dropped his head across the back of her neck and breathed noisily into her ear. When she kept crying, he started to snuffle through her hair and paw at her head.

  “Stop it, Lando.”

  He slurped tears from her cheek and let his tongue hang out of his mouth in a panting grin.

  “Fine. I’m done.” Medina wiped her face on Javi’s shirt and gave one last, loud sniff. “You’re right. It’s not time to cry. And it’s past time to let my rotten attitude quit interfering with getting to know that man much better.” She looked straight into Lando’s intelligent eyes. “At least your master is a better kisser than you are. Let’s get some sleep, and we’ll bring him home tomorrow.”

  Chapter Seven

  Javi was going to have to spend more time in lockup if this was the sight that greeted him when he got home.

  Medina was sprawled out on his bed, face down, arms and legs spread out like a starfish. She’d borrowed one of his T-shirts to sleep in, and because she was so tiny, it would have covered her nearly to her knees… if it wasn’t hiked up to show off cotton undies with blue polka dots.

  He loved polka dots.

  Her dark hair was a mess, poking up in random bits here and there, and she slept with her mouth slightly open, so she made a faint sound he was too much of a gentleman to call a snore.

  Shura was curled up in a neat C that conformed exactly to her mistress’s curves. When he entered, she opened one eye and moved her tail an inch in welcome.

  Lando was on the other side of her, but not nearly so neatly—on his back, legs splayed out, all his goods on display, and his tongue hanging out. But the moment he sensed his master had returned, the tongue reeled in and his ears perked up. He crawled off the bed as his tail started a full-on wag that traveled up his body until he was a wiggling blur.

  “Shhh, buddy. Let her sleep.”

  Lando rose on his hind legs until he could reach Javi’s face to give him a welcome back, where were you, we were so worried bath.

  He went back into the hall, and when Shura joined them,
let both dogs into the yard to do their morning thing. He got coffee going, then returned to the bedroom to see if he could sneak in and grab some clean clothes before he took a shower in the guest bath.

  When he opened the door, Medina was just beginning to wake up. She scrunched her face up before she yawned and stretched luxuriously, and there was no way he was keeping his eyes off those pale, smooth hips as they rolled on his sheets.

  By the time his gaze returned to hers, she’d spotted him watching her, and had gone as still as a hunted rabbit. Whatever look was on his face seemed to be welcome because she relaxed and rolled onto her back, then propped herself up on her elbows. She smiled at him, her eyes sultry.

  “Good morning. Welcome home.”

  He nearly went to his knees at the mere fantasy of hearing her say those words to him every day. Javi tossed inhibition to the wind. She already knew how he felt.

  Medina didn’t seem alarmed in the slightest when he stalked her and climbed onto the bed to cage her with his arms and legs. “I should make a habit of getting arrested if I come home to this every time.”

  She laughed, and he buried his face in her neck to inhale the sweet warmth of her skin and lip at the slim gold chain he found draped there. He was in heaven the moment she put her arms around his shoulders to keep him close. “I wouldn’t,” she murmured. “You make a habit of it, and I can guarantee you won’t get the welcome you want.”

  “Fine. But maybe every once in a while. For special occasions.” He murmured the words as he kissed his way around the too-wide neckline of his old shirt. The chain she wore pulled up until he saw the top of a pendant he couldn’t make out. He was curious, but there were other things on his mind.

  “I feel like we could find something else to do on those special occasions,” she whispered back, her fingers trailing up and down his spine, short nails digging in just enough to tease.

  “Like what?”

  “Like shower.” This time, her fingers hit his most ticklish spots. He rolled over to get away, but the woman followed him ruthlessly until she straddled him. There were worse ways to spend a morning.

  “You…” She leaned down and sniffed at him delicately. “You smell like you slept in a jail cell.”

  Javi reached up and booped her on the tip of her cutely pointed nose. “You have a very keen sense of smell, ma’am.”

  “You may be a werewolf, but I’m apparently in control of the breeze that carries the scent.”

  He sighed dramatically and enjoyed her giggle. “Fine. You want to save water and shower with me?” Javi sat up, gripping her hips to keep her from sliding off his legs. She wiggled off anyway and held out a hand to help him off the bed.

  “No thanks. Not this time. Work to do, bad guys to catch.” At least he thought she looked as regretful as he felt.

  “You are one highly focused woman.” He admired it as much as he wished she’d change her mind and roll around on the bed with him for a while longer.

  “I am. And this is… there’s a lot going on. There was a family out there for me, I can suddenly conjure the wind, there’s you and now Shura, but with this guy in our lives…” She shrugged, and he wanted to gather her tiny body into his arms and never let her go. “It’s a lot.”

  He cupped her sweet face in his hand, and brought their foreheads together. “I didn’t mean to rush you, Medina.”

  “You’re not. I promise. I just want to be sure.” Those dual colored eyes were warm and crinkled slightly at the edges when she smiled. He meant to make her smile so much those crinkles became permanent. She’d look amazing with smile lines.

  “Take all the time you need then.” He stood, leaning on his good leg because his prosthetic was killing him. “But don’t take all the hot water. I haven’t gotten around to replacing the water heater yet.” He steered her into the master bathroom with a not-too-subtle pat on her polka dots, making her squeal. He grabbed some clothes from his dresser and hit the guest bath like he’d originally planned to do.

  The end of his residual limb was red, sore, and sweaty because he hadn’t taken it off while he’d been sitting in that jail cell. Not that his cell mate had bothered him—aside from the smell—but he wasn’t going to relax as long as Krovatik was out there. He’d worried about Medina but told himself she’d be fine, protected by not only his grandmother’s hechizos, but by a combined one hundred sixty pounds of devoted canine.

  About ten minutes after dawn broke, Hank Merrow, still rumpled from bed and wearing jeans and a T-shirt, had run down the stairs to the cell and slammed the door wide open.

  “Javi, man. I’m so sorry.”

  The sheriff was as close to devastated as Javi had ever seen him. He looked as if he’d barely slept, and his eyes were red-rimmed with exhaustion.

  “I don’t know what happened.” The man sat down on the hard bench next to Javi, ignoring the drunk still sleeping it off in the cell next door. “Alex and I got a call to the Excelsior, and everything was normal. We went up to Dr. Theron’s apartment, and… that’s it. That’s all I remember. I woke up this morning to about a dozen messages from Birdie, telling me I’d screwed up in a big way.”

  Hank scraped a hand down his face. “I don’t know what to say.”

  They were interrupted by another set of footsteps running toward the cell. Alex Cruz, the deputy, slid to a squealing halt when he saw his boss sitting in the cell with Javi.

  “I’d hoped it was a nightmare,” he said. “I scared Roxy when I jumped out of bed.” Alex looked as bad as Hank, and both were typically very clean-cut.

  The fact that both of these men had rushed down here this morning to right their mistake told Javi everything he needed to know about how honorable they were.

  The Nocturne Falls alpha stood and took Javi’s hand in a firm shake, giving reassurance and asking for forgiveness. Javi gave it unconditionally.

  “Don’t even worry about it. It’s not your fault I stayed there overnight. Krovatik wanted me out of the way, and he played all of us. I knew he couldn’t get to her here, so I gave him what he wanted. For now, at least. That guy’s magic is something else. I’ve never seen anything like it. ”

  “Neither have I, which is why I’ve called in a few of our heavy hitters. Bring Medina and come sit down with us at Elenora’s house at ten o’clock. We’ll see what we can work out.”

  Alex had given him a lift home before returning to his own place to smooth things over with his wife. “Roxy’s going to have a field day with this, but I feel worse for Hank. Birdie’s never going to let this go.” The two men parted friends before Javi came in to discover Medina in his bed.

  After finishing his shower—sadly alone—he took a little extra care drying and moisturizing the stump before he reattached his leg with a fresh liner then went out to start breakfast.

  A short time later, she joined him in the kitchen in yesterday’s clothes, watching with a freshly poured cup of coffee as he scrambled eggs and chorizo while tortillas warmed in the oven. He put the dish together and crumbed a little queso fresco over the top before he handed her a plateful.

  Medina looked from him to the tortilla piled high with goodness, then leaned over until her face was in the steam and took a deep breath. “That smells amazing. You keep feeding me like this and it’ll be hard to get rid of me.”

  “Right. When my abuela comes up for a visit, we’re making tamales and getting engaged.” He was teasing. Mostly.

  “If they’re as good as this breakfast, we just might.” She looked like she was teasing. Mostly. She winked and took a bite. After moaning enough that he had to shift his stance a little, she said, “So what’s on today’s agenda?”

  “Aren’t you working today?”

  “I called Rock Winthorpe, another vet in the practice. He said he’d cover for me while I took a personal day. I’m good.”

  “Great. Because Hank has called together some of the witches in town to try to come up with a solution.”

  Medina’s eyebrows w
ent up and she swallowed. “Wow. Isn’t that a lot of fuss just for me?”

  “Number one, there’s no such thing as too much fuss for you.” He pulled her hand up to lay a kiss on her fingers. “Number two, folks get nervous when the sheriff gets whammied. They don’t mean for Krovatik to get away with it. And number three, we’ve just been reacting so far. It’s time to get ahead of him for a change.”

  Chapter Eight

  Breakfast cleanup complete and the dogs fed and watered, they all piled into Javi’s Jeep and trundled over to the Ellingham Estate. The place looked as if someone had transplanted an English mansion into a small town in Georgia, complete with vineyards across the way. When they walked in, they were both awed by the creamy marble floors, the soaring ceilings, and the beautiful art adorning the walls and niches. The dogs didn’t so much as sniff at a table leg.

  They joined the group already gathered in what the housekeeper called the solarium. Bright with greenery, it was a cheerful room, although it was difficult to be all smiles right now. The small crowd that circled around a table piled high with brunch options put Javi’s hackles up briefly as his wolf growled in suspicion. He didn’t like not being the apex predator, his alpha aside, and the people gathered here could turn him into a pile of singed fur without too much effort.

  Medina and Shura, however, blended into the sophisticated company without a blink. She and her elegant familiar were part of them, while he was just a scruffy, three-legged dog from the wrong side of the tracks. He retreated to a defensible corner while she circulated and greeted people with the poise of a very small queen.

  He’d seen her pause and her eyes widen a fraction more before she nodded graciously to Corette Williams, who owned a bridal boutique, and her daughter, Pandora, the local real estate agent. They were both powerful witches. Pandora’s husband, Cole Van Zant, was also here in his role as her human familiar to amplify her abilities.

  Hank carried an extra cup of coffee and stood next to him.

  “Not really our crowd, is it?”