Julia groaned. “It’s Saturday night! And you’ve been working way too hard. We’re not binge watching a show and eating popcorn. You haven’t had sex in so long you’ve got to be wondering if it’s changed.”
And here we go...
“I’m just having a dry spell.”
“Eighteen months is not a dry spell! It’s a dry hell! Eventually, you’re going to explode.”
She winced, remembering the snake. “Work has been busy.”
“Work was a fine excuse for a while, but it’s time you get a life. You need to find someone to balance you out.”
Her shoulders sagged. She’s right, but what if it’s not just someone I want, but a trio of someones? And what if I just effectively made certain I wouldn’t see the three of them again?
Cassandra took a deep breath. “You’re a witch. All you have to do is make a love spell, and boom. You’ve got some guy going at you like a rabbit. We mortals don’t have it so easy.”
Julia was quiet for a long moment. “Come on, you’re hot. The problem isn’t that you can’t get a guy, it’s that you’ve already got your eye on certain ones.” She paused. “Have you even asked them out for a drink? Have you even hinted that you want something more than just to fight at their sides?
No, but I punched one of them for even mentioning the idea, and I cut them out of my life.
Julia won’t like that answer though.
Cassandra rubbed her temple. “What do I have to do to stop this conversation?”
“Come with me tonight! My friend, Aurora, just opened up a new bar on 4th called Secret Desire. Let’s go there.”
She wanted to say no, but the truth was she was longing for a change. Hiding out in her apartment wasn’t helping her feel less lonely and miserable. Maybe a few drinks, dancing, and a bit of flirting could.
It can’t hurt, right?
“If it’ll end this line of questioning, I’m in.”
“Of course!” Her friend’s tone was far too chipper for her liking.
She was about to hang up when Julia added quickly, “I’ll meet you in twenty. And for God’s sake, try a little. For me, okay?”
“Fine,” she ground out, clicking the phone off.
Looking in her closet, she spotted her favorite pair of jeans and a dark green halter top. That’ll work. She dressed quickly and did her hair and makeup as fast as humanly possible before throwing on a pair of heels.
Grabbing her cell phone and card, she went downstairs and walked the four-blocks to the new club. Stopping outside of it, she looked at the neon sign, the two huge bouncers at the door, and the long line around the building. This doesn’t look like a place to grab a few casual drinks. When the doors opened and pounding music poured out, she had the sudden desire to turn and run the hell out of there.
But then, someone called her name.
Turning, a stunning brunette with piercing purple eyes and model-good-looks hurried up to her. “Cassandra?”
“Yes.”
“I’m Julia’s friend, the owner of this club,’” she said, smiling. “And I’m told you’re having a bit of a dry spell.”
“I’m going to kill her,” she mumbled softly, knowing her cheeks were bright red.
Aurora chuckled, pulling her along the sidewalk and down the few steps into the pulsing darkness of the club. “You’ll be thanking her later. Trust me.”
Inside, the music was just as obnoxious as Cassandar had imagined. Lights flashed around the room, on the floor, and on the ceiling. Magical creatures— massive shifters, pale vampires, and purple-eyed witches— and humans alike danced together on the crowded floor, their dancing more like dry humping than anything else.
“Our specialty bar is over there,” Aurora shouted over the music, indicating to the right with her head. “Down there are our private rooms, which reminds me.” She spun and reached up, putting a silver necklace over Cassandra’s head. “Your room is Number Two.”
Cassandra frowned. “I’m not going to need—“
“And up those stairs are the bathrooms and the rooftop deck. That area is a little quieter and a little calmer.”
A quiet place to chill? Sounds perfect to me.
“And where’s Julia?”
She shrugged. “I guess she’s not here yet. She’ll arrive when she’s supposed to.”
Great. Cassandra rubbed her forehead. I guess I’ll head to the rooftop deck. At least it should be quiet.
The witch caught her arm as she turned to go. “Over here, I’ll have my bartender make you something.”
Cassandra’s shoulders sank, but she followed Aurora through the dancers to the bar in the back. Every man’s gaze seemed to follow her progress. One guy winked at her. He was probably a human. A few steps later, a drunk werewolf, his irises burning yellow, blocked her path.
“Not tonight,” she said, weaving around him.
A vampire with pale skin and dark red hair opened his mouth, stroking one of his fangs in a sexual gesture. She shook her head. But secretly, she couldn’t deny liking the attention.
Maybe this isn’t so bad. Even if these guys aren’t three sexy wolves who drive me wild...
Geez, I’m pathetic.
At the bar, Aurora gestured toward a tiny older woman, with peppered-gray hair and the typical purple eyes of a witch. The woman stood behind the counter, looking completely out of place. Two young bartenders weaved around her as they worked to fulfill the orders of the crowd, but the old woman stood frozen, as if waiting.
“Marta, could you make my friend Cassandra that special shot we talked about?” Marta asked, leaning over the bar top with a smile.
“Abracadabra,” the older witch said sarcastically, and a blue drink appeared in front of her in a flash of smoke that was almost comically cheesy.
Cassandra forced herself not to roll her eyes. Witches...always so dramatic. “So what is it?”
“A shot. My own personal creation just for you. I call it Inhibition.” Marta said smugly, shoving the drink closer to her.
Cassandra raised an eyebrow.
Aurora laughed. “Don’t let her... quirks worry you. She’s the best bartender in her specialty in the state. And I attribute the success of my club entirely on her skills.”
“I guess I can try it,” Cassandra said, frowning down at the weird-looking drink and regretting her decision to leave her apartment.
The older witch’s face grew stern. “Ahh. I can see now why you need this drink. Don’t be a wimp, sweetie, chug it down.”
I’ll do one with you, Aurora said with a smile, pouring herself a quick shot of vodka. “To hot sex!”
Internally sighing, Cassandra picked up the drink. The glass felt cold to the touch. “To sex.”
They clicked their drinks together, and Aurora chugged hers.
Cassandra lifted the glass to her lips and drank it as quickly as she could, but was left gasping for air. It tasted like heaven, but burned like hell. “What was in—?”
Her phone buzzed.
Reaching into her pocket, it took a second for her eyes to focus on Julia’s text.
Sorry, huge emergency at the office. I won’t be able to make it.
Just great, she thought, shoving her phone back into her pocket. What do I do now?
A fight started between two shifters in one corner. Aurora flashed a smile. “Sorry, duty calls,” and slipped into the crowd toward the chaos.
Cassandra looked at Marta. “Maybe I’ll head out—“
“No, you’ll head to room two,” Marta said, with absolutely certainty. “How else will you have your epic night of sex and fun?”
“Room...” she started to speak, but the entire world shifted beneath her feet as she spun away from the bar. The lights seemed brighter. All thoughts faded away.
Except one.
And in that moment, everything in her life came into crystal clear focus. I’ve been scared to give Ethan, Ben, and Samuel a chance because of my shitty life. Because of my dead parents. My d
ead partners. And my list of failed romances.
But if I don’t give them a shot, I’ll regret it for the rest of my life.
Pulling out her cell phone, she started typing.
Chapter Six
Ethan was toweling off from the shower when his phone beeped. No way in hell do I want to answer that. It’s probably work wondering about the mess we left behind.
I’ll handle it... in the morning.
He’d had enough trouble for one day. And now what he wanted more than anything was to lie in bed and stroke himself off, imagining Cassandra. He would think about her tight body squeezing around him, her nails digging into his back. The sound of her screaming his name as she came.
Unfortunately, he’d probably spend his night staring at the ceiling, his two pack brothers snoring in bed beside him. His mind would go to her, alone in her own bed, where anything and everything could hurt the little human, and he wasn’t there to protect her.
The thought of it drove him insane.
Why the hell did I have to fall for her? Her of all women!
When he’d first met Cassandra, he couldn’t stand her. He hated her bossy attitude and her arrogance. He hated that his dick hardened every time she fought like an enraged wolf, and yet treated him like a clueless pup.
But over the past few months, he’d come to begrudgingly enjoy being around her, and their strange friendship had turned into something more. He’d accepted that she wasn’t arrogant. She was confident in her abilities. She wasn’t bossy, but she was his boss. More than that, he’d realized that she pushed him to do better and be better.
Now, he lived for the times he saw her. He drank in everything about her—her scent, her voice, even the curves of her body. His pack brothers felt the same.
By all logic, the four of them should be together. Every day he struggled to understand why they weren’t.
There was simply no reason for it.
No reason except for her damn stubbornness.
Now she plans to get rid of us as partners altogether, which is completely fucked up.
“Thinking about her again?” Samuel said, staring at the book in his lap.
Ethan startled, realizing that he’d been standing in the center of their bedroom just staring off into space. “What makes you think that?”
Samuel glanced up and raised a brow. “Your hard dick.”
Ethan looked down. Sure enough, his cock was being a horny bastard again. “It’s not my fault. It’s hers!”
Samuel snorted.
“You got something to say?” Ethan demanded.
The massive shifter sighed and carefully put his bookmark in before closing the leather-bound book. “What was all that shit about her needing to get laid?”
Dammit! “You saw how she was acting tonight!”
“You didn’t think that hunting a monster that killed her previous partner and nearly ended her own life wouldn’t perhaps set her on edge?”
Ethan frowned. “I hadn’t really thought about it. She just always seems so... tough.”
“And yet we all know she isn’t.”
I knew something was wrong. Why didn’t I figure it out? And why was I self-centered enough to think her attitude had to do with me?
Ben strolled into the room, naked and eating a giant turkey leg.
Ethan glared. “You know the rules—no food in bed.”
His pack brother smirked before he flopped into the massive chair by their window. “Someone’s still pissed about ticking off Cass.”
Ethan glared. “Can’t you at least put some pants on? I don’t want to stare at your ‘boys’ while I’m getting dressed!”
Ben grinned, grabbed his dick and wagged it. “Don’t mind him Rex, he’s just jealous.”
Samuel chuckled. “Rex looks a little cold.”
Ben flipped him off and took another massive bite of his turkey leg before he turned to Ethan. “So, how do we plan to convince Cassie not to cut ties and run?”
There it was, the worry crawling under his skin. “I don’t know.”
“It would’ve been easier for you to just not be an asshole in the first place,” Ben said, leaning back further. “You were a whole new level of jerk tonight.”
Ethan's entire body tightened. Because seeing Cass nearly bitten in half by that damn snake made me feel like I couldn’t breathe.
“He was upset.” Samuel was watching him. “He’s never been in love before.”
Ethan’s heart raced. “I’m not in love with her.”
The lie slipped from his lips, but felt wrong to even speak aloud. Especially when both his pack brothers were looking at him with pity. Yes, they’d been in love before, but no woman had been entirely right until Cassandra. But Ethan? He’d spent his life feeling like women were just things to help him pass the time when he was bored.
Life was simpler then. Yes, he may had been an idiotic prick who didn’t see women as equals, but that was easier than whatever this was. Now, seemingly out of nowhere, he’d found a woman he was proud to have fighting at his side, a woman he could easily picture carrying his cubs.
And she’s working a job that could kill her from one minute to the next.
How could anyone blame him for being so tense? He was losing his mind imagining her hurt. Imagining losing her.
After a quiet moment, Samuel spoke. "Bullshit. We’re all in love with her, and I’m pretty sure she’s in love with us too. The problem is that we have to convince her of it.”
Ben chucked his bare turkey leg in the trash can by their bed, which Ethan tried not to find absolutely disgusting. “Hate to say it, but without a love potion, or a cage, I don’t think we’re going to be able to convince her to take a chance on us.”
Which is exactly the problem.
“And once she gets rid of us as partners, we won’t even have the chance to slowly earn her trust,” Samuel closed his eyes and rubbed his temples. “And after tonight, when we fucked up so badly, I think we actually ruined the little bit of a relationship we’d had with her.”
“You’re the elegant talker,” Ben said. “Why didn’t you clarify all that respect talk?”
Samuel opened his eyes. “I wasn’t sure what was worse. For her to know that we respect her and think she’s a capable Protector, but that we love her, or for her to believe we don’t see her as an equal.”
“I’m pretty sure she would have dumped our asses either way,” Ben said. Any trace of humor was gone from his voice.
Ethan’s shoulders sagged. He’s right. At least for tonight, I don’t see how we can fix this. Might as well get some sleep and think about it in the morning..
He dropped his towel and walked past his phone. It beeped again and Cassandra’s name flashed on his screen. His inner wolf sat up. What the devil?
She had never texted him so late at night. Is something wrong? The hairs on the back of his neck stood up.
Striding over, he unplugged it from the charger and saw several unread messages. Shit.
I care about the three of you. More than I’ve ever cared about any men before. But what happens when you’re gone?
His fingers shook as he texted back.
What makes you think we’re going anywhere? We... care about you.
He sent the message and waited, his stomach twisting.
“You okay?” Samuel asked.
He looked up slowly. “It's Cassandra.”
Both his pack brothers were beside him in an instant, scanning over the messages already exchanged.
“You should have told her we love her, and that she’s our mate, not just a quick lay,” Samuel said, frowning.
“Hell no, play it cool!” Ben exclaimed.
His phone beeped.
I can’t be broken again. I just can’t be. I won’t survive it.
Ethan looked down at the phone. Should I play it cool? Or tell her how we feel?
We won’t break you. I give you my word. We can go slow. We can just date and get to know each other.
/>
Clicking send, he held his breath. Had he made the right choice?
His palms grew sweaty. His could sense the tension from his pack brothers, filling the air. It wasn’t just their hearts on the line. It was their entire futures. Their wolves had chosen her as their mate. They’d chosen her as their mate. If they lost her—his phone beeped again.
I don’t want to take things slow. I want you to come here and fuck me. I want you to fill my mouth with your big cocks.
Can you handle that?
Ethan stared at the screen in shock. Is this a joke?
“Tell her yes!” Ben shouted. “What the fuck are you waiting for?”
He started to type, but Samuel wrapped his hand around the phone. “This isn’t like her. Is it possible she’s drunk?”
His heart sank. That made a hell of a lot more sense than that she’d suddenly decided she wanted them.
Another text message appeared on the screen.
I’m at that new club Secret Desire. I’m planning on having a dick in me in the next hour. I hope it’s yours.
He realized he was panting—fucking panting—and his hands shook as he texted her back.
Are you drunk?
Not drunk. Horny. Thinking about sucking you until I taste that hot werewolf cum sliding down my throat.
A growl tore from his throat. Throwing his phone on his bed, he pulled on a pair of jeans. He cursed as he realized he forget his underwear, stripped them back off, and then he fell over while pulling them on.
Get it together, Ethan!
Near him, Ben and Samuel were dressing like madmen. None of them spoke. But none of them had to. This was all they’d ever wanted, and they weren’t going to fuck it up by not acting quickly enough.
Samuel was suddenly standing by the door, keys in hand. “Whether she’s drunk, needs us to take her home, or actually wants us, we all need to be ready. Understand?”
“Got it, Captain,” Ben replied, saluting obnoxiously.
Another text came in. Ethan grabbed his phone and opened the message, hands shaking.
I’m in Room Two in the back. I’m going to do things to the three of you that you’ve never imagined.
Just hold on, he responded. We're on our way.
Shifters and Alphas: A Standalone Reverse Harem (A Witch's Sinful Spells Book 1) Page 3