The leaves shifted as the hulking beasts pushed through the tree line. Fire rose in me, maybe it was Trip’s fire.
Vince stepped forward. “Stay back, love,” he said softly.
“Not a chance,” I murmured.
“You don’t have any training,” he stated.
“Worry about yourself, you’re the one they’re after,” I murmured.
They pushed through the trees, there towering bodies much larger than a human's. There were three of them and their skins were a darkish blue-grey. They all turned to Vince. “Daemon,” one of them growled.
I blinked.
“Look, I’m sorry about what happened, although in my defence, it was self-defence,” said Vince casually.
“You have dishonoured our tribe by killing one of our own and insulting our people,” another of them growled.
“You all are just too sensitive,” he told them. “Now, leave before I decide to kill you for learning my location.”
“No deal, puny little man.”
“Love, I really think you’re going to want to go inside,” said Vince softly.
“I can’t fight in close quarters,” I growled before realising that was a strange thing to say. Could I even fight out of close quarters?
“The intention was so that you wouldn’t have to fight,” he said, swinging his sword.
One of the Trolls lunged forward, attacking Vince. He moved easily to meet the blows. I raised the shovel and began twirling it. The weight was far from perfect but I compensated well enough. Maybe I was a cheerleader or a baton twirler in my previous life.
I slammed the flat side against the second one’s head as it went for Vince, then I swung into a roundhouse kick which landed right in his gut. No, probably not a cheerleader. He fell with a heavy thud but was still conscious.
“Why must you be stubborn?” asked Vince.
“I’m not going to let you be outnumbered.” I leapt onto the fallen troll and slammed the shovel into his head, it took three tries to knock him unconscious.
I glanced over to see him standing over two corpses. “Being outnumber really isn’t much of a problem for me.” He dropped the sword into the ground so it stood upright.
“You shouldn’t do that, it could blunt the tip,” I told him.
“Come here,” he ordered.
I walked over to him and he grasped my face, kissing me as he pulled me firmly against him. “Kicking ass gets you hot? I always knew you were a weird one,” I teased.
“I’m just glad you’re okay, you could have gotten yourself killed,” he murmured, his grip on me almost bruising.
“Apparently I’m good with a shovel, who knew?” I shrugged.
He kissed me again, his tongue teasing mine. “Now, can you head inside... please?”
I glanced over at where Trip hid on the roof, he was still staying out the way but I sense that he had relaxed. “Okay, it’s clear.”
“We’ll join you in a moment, dear,” said Felix, who hadn’t moved from his seat.
I glanced at Vince who gave me one last squeeze before releasing me. I reluctantly headed inside. The kids were sitting at the kitchen table, still eating cake, while the grownups dealt with leftovers and the washing up.
None of them seemed the least bit concerned by what had happened. Well, I suppose if they weren’t there was no reason for me to get worked up about it.
They were calmer than the guys, anyway, who were having a heated discussion.
I glanced skyward, it’s not nice to eavesdrop.
Trip expressed that it wasn’t eavesdropping if they knew you were there.
He had a point. I wondered idly what they were arguing about. Trip mentally nudged me. No, I don’t want you to get closer. I internally rolled my eyes. He responded with amusement.
“The cake was lovely, dear,” Madge said.
I smiled. “A perk of the job, I get a great discount on cakes.”
Vince walked in, a muscle in his cheek twitching but otherwise he didn’t appear annoyed, in fact, his expression softened as his gaze met mine.
“Hey, love,” he kissed my cheek softly.
“I should be heading home,” said Felix, with a small frown.
“Us too,” agreed Amber, squeezing April’s arm.
Madge walked over to kiss Vince’s cheek. “See you soon, my boy.”
He smiled. “Bye mum.”
The rest of us said our goodbyes and then they left. I finished cleaning up while Vince settled the kids in bed I was putting away the last few plates when arms came around my waist. I relaxed back in Vince’s hold.
He kissed my neck.
“Was- did you think it went okay?” I asked.
“It was perfect. Thank you.” He turned me to face him. “Come shower with me,” he said, nuzzling my neck.
“Mm, okay.”
Chapter Twenty Four
I reached the barn holding a tray of hot chocolate, pushing the doors open with my shoulder before walking inside. Trip came sniffing around my legs but I nudged him away. “You boys got time for a break?” I asked.
“I think I’m in love, Vince, you won’t mind if I steal your girl, would you?” asked Vince’s friend, Connor as he leapt down from the second floor. I’d gotten a brief introduction that morning when he and Vince had arrived, just as I was setting off for work.
“Try it and I’ll kill you,” growled Vince, jumping after him, both landing with surprising ease. They had to be supernaturals, maybe there were even the same kind. The troll had called him a Daemon, which I had yet to confirm.
Connor grinned and took a cup from the tray. “Thanks, sweetie.”
Vince set the tray aside and pulled me against him. “I don’t accept hot beverages as payment,” he murmured playfully.
I laughed softly. “I’m sure we can work something else out.”
“Yes,” he claimed my lips briefly.
“Guys, please keep your perverted acts confined to the bedroom,” Murray said as he walked down the stairs, just behind Wilson.
“I’m glad you brought up the subject because I would love to discuss their perverted bedroom acts, call me curious,” said Connor, winking at me.
I blushed and Vince chuckled. “Never gonna happen, man.”
“I wasn’t going to ask you, killjoy. Tell me, sweetie, is he satisfying you in bed?” Connor inquired, slinging one arm over my shoulders.
My blush deepened, but I grinned. “He does his best.”
There was a brief pause, then Connor cracked up laughing and Vince gave me a look of indignant outrage.
I gave him an innocent smile in return.
“You’ve done it now.” Vince bared his teeth and I yelped before running away, back out of the barn.
He pursued me and I suppressed a giggle as I sprinted across the field, towards the safety of the forest. I had just reached the tree line when he tackled me to the ground. We rolled together, grappling.
We laughed and he kissed my neck as we playfully fought for dominance. Eventually, he pinned me down and held both hands above my head, clasped in a single one of his. I bit my lip. “My best?” he asked, voice low and dangerous.
“I never said it wasn’t good,” I said in my defence.
“Mmhmm.” His eyes watched me darkly.
“It really is quite pleasing,” I insisted.
“Quite?” He pressed.
“Very pleasing?”
He scraped his teeth against my neck. “Better...”
“Really rather very pleasing,” I murmured, distracted by the feel of his body on top of mine.
“Mmhmm, you really think that? I’m not sure I believe you.” He pressed more firmly against me.
“If you don’t believe it, I’m not entirely sure how I can convince you,” I told him.
His free hand cupped me through the material of my skirt. “I’m sure I can think of a number of ways.”
I bit my lip as I moaned. “You think so?”
He nodded, lips quir
king in amusement. “I’m sure of it, love.”
I laughed softly and relaxed back against the earth.
He pressed his face against my hair and took a deep breath, like Werewolves did when they were scenting someone. Then he kissed me deeply, his body teasing mine. I was panting for breath and squirming when he lifted me to my feet.
He let me go and slapped my ass with a wicked smirk. “Back to work.”
He walked away, leaving me still struggling to catch my breath. That guy was pure evil. I gave myself a few minutes to get my legs under me before following, growling under my breath as I walked back across the field.
“Thanks for the drink, munchkin,” said Murray as we walked in.
They each had a mug now and the tray was empty. I smiled. “Least I could do.”
Vince shot me a smug look and I blushed. He was such an ass.
“How are things looking upstairs?” I asked curiously.
“Hospitable,” said Wilson.
“Well, that’s encouraging,” I said sarcastically.
“Don’t worry, dove, we’ve already installed the tiny cameras in your shower stall,” Connor assured me.
I rolled my eyes. “I’ll go check it out, make sure you’ve got the right angles.” I bounded towards the stairs. Vince slapped my ass as I passed and I growled. He just smirked and I glared his way before heading up the stairs.
He huffed a laugh. Upstairs was a wide open space, in the corner was the bathroom area they had just finished. The floor covering that area was covered with tiles, with a drain in the floor and a plain tiled walls surrounding it that reached chest height.
It looked good, they’d even attached a showerhead to the ceiling. They’d spent most of the time working on the bathroom but there was also a bed and the walls had been insulated, the windows replaced.
It was cute, and the two doors at the front, once used for hauling stuff up from the ground, made a perfect entrance for Trip. I smiled. It would be good to have my own space. And it was impressive for just a few weeks works.
“What do you think?”
I turned to Wilson. “It’s great.”
“Your boyfriend's not terrible,” he told me.
“Whoa there, you might want to calm down on the praise or I might be worried you’ll try and steal him from me,” I teased.
He smirked. “You know I don’t go for the dark and dangerous types. You got any input about anything else you want up here?” he asked.
I shrugged. “I have total faith in your interior decorating skills,” I assured him.
He chuckled. “Once we’ve finished with the flooring and furniture up here we’ll start on a kitchen. With all four of us, it should only take another weeks or two.”
I grinned. “Thank God none of you have lives,” I teased.
“OKAY, HIT ME WITH IT,” I said, leaning forward eagerly.
“As you may know, Wiccans tend to have one element which they are draw to, one that they find it easiest to manipulate.”
“I did not know that,” I commented.
He smiled. “Well, you do now, here are some basic materials.” He gestured to the objects on the counter between us; a pot with a small plant, a spoon, a small rock, a glass of water and a lit candle.
“Who taught you all this?” I asked curiously.
“My father, when I was young, but he passed when I was a boy so there were a lot of things I had to figure out myself. I got lucky, though, and found someone to tutor me.”
“That is lucky,” I agreed.
“Yes, so, I want you to feel these items, see which out speaks to you.”
My first thought was to go to the candle. After all, my best friend was a dragon who breathed fire. Hell, he’d hit me with a blast of the stuff and I’d barely felt it. I reached to the candle, then yelped and yanked my fingers back when the flames burned me.
“I didn’t mean feel them in the literal sense,” Adam teased lightly.
I stuck the tip of my finger into my mouth. “That was dumb,” I said apologetically.
He chuckled. “In learning magic there are no mistakes, just hard truths.”
Huh, I wondered if he was quoting someone.
“Maybe fire is not your element,” he suggested with a wry grin.
“Maybe not,” I agreed sheepishly. “What’s your element?”
“Mine’s... a bit of an odd one. It’s light, which I figure is either an offshoot of air or fire, though I couldn’t say which.”
“Light?” I asked curiously.
He lifted a hand and his fingertips began glowing as he waved them at me. “Not the most useful tool,” he admitted.
“I think it’s awesome.” He could make a flash bomb, or find his keys in the dark.
He blushed a little, glancing down, and the shy gesture endeared him to me. “Any element can be useful if you learn to weild it properly. Try again.”
Reaching out with my unburned hand, I picked up the rock. After all, I could hardly make myself look foolish holding a rock. Unless I dropped it on my foot.
“I’m not sure you really understand what I mean by feel,” Adam said.
“No, I get it, just... give me a sec.” I took a deep breath, feeling the need to center myself. Then I realised what he meant, the tactile stimuli from touching the rock was distracting me from reaching deeper. I set it back down.
I bit my lip as I concentrated. “I feel it but...” Something was missing, well, not missing just... out of my reach, maybe. I had no idea how to begin to explain how it felt.
“It’s not yours,” he finished for me.
I glanced at him, surprised. “Yes, that’s exactly it, I think.”
A small smile curled his lips. “Try the spoon.”
I shot him a look. “If my specialty is power over spoons, I’ll be rather disappointed,” I warned.
He laughed, as I had intended him to. “It’s metal, similar to rock but different enough that it might affect you.”
“Okay, I-” I jerked and nearly fell off my chair when I felt the magic. My magic, or maybe it was the objects magic, hummed against my skin. I laughed. “It’s there, I feel it!”
He grinned. “Now let’s figure out how to use it.”
Chapter Twenty-Five
“I’m not your babysitter,” I informed Vincent as I stepped into his house.
“No, but you are a lifesaver. With any luck, I’ll be back before midnight and when I do get back I will do literally anything for you... or to you,” he murmured against my ear.
A warm shiver ran down my spine. “Yeah, you will. Now, go on so we can trash the house with the huge rager we’re going to throw while papa’s away.” I nudged him toward the door.
He chuckled, dark eyes sparkling in amusement. “Mm, now come give papa some sugar.”
I laughed but leant up on my tiptoes to kiss him.
He cupped my cheeks in both hands, quickly taking control. “Bye, little one.” He squeezed my ass and kissed my cheek before walking out the door.
“Alright, babies, looks like it's just you and me,” I said, sitting on the floor next to them. We were colouring. If anyone asked I would have said I didn’t have a maternal bone in my body, but I didn’t mind watching these two, I even enjoyed it most of the time.
I had just finished a purple giraffe when there was a knock on the front door. “I’ll get it, I want that bumblebee done by the time I get back,” I said, giving them a stern look, which they were too distracted to notice. Shaking my head, I ruffled Jem’s hair as I rose to my feet.
Navigating my way over the toys that the kids had left out, I made my way to the door. I checked my watch. It was too early for Vince to be back, though my heart jumped a little in excitement at the possibility.
I answered, smiling automatically at the stranger on the other side of the doorstep. “Hey, can I help you?” I asked.
He was an older man with black hair and dark eyes. He smiled, his expression pleasant enough, but something about him sent a
shiver down my spine. “I actually was expecting to see my son,” he told me hesitantly.
My eyes widened. “Are you Vince’s dad?” I asked.
“I am indeed,” he said, his smile growing a little.
He was younger than I would have expected, but I thought I could recognise something of Vince in his facial features. “I’m sorry, he had to go out on a job. Could you come back another time?”
“I can but could I get your name?” he asked.
“Of course, I’m Elsa.” I wondered idly why I had never met him before. I don’t think Vince had even ever mentioned his father.
“Urie.”
“Well, it’s nice to meet you.” I smiled.
“May I come in?” he asked.
I glanced back toward the living room. “Now’s probably not the best time. Vince should be back by tomorrow, though.”
He nodded. “Of course, it was a pleasure to meet you,” he said.
Fear sparked down my spine and I had to restrain from slamming the door in his face. I forced another smile. “And you.”
I closed the door slowly and flicked the lock shut, taking a deep breath. For whatever reason that guy made my skin crawl. “Those look like they’re coming along well, good work team,” I said as I returned to the living room.
“We are going to give papa a quick call,” I told Jem as I routed through my jacket for my phone.
“Papa!” said Jem, his eyes sparkling.
I grinned back at him as I dialled. The phone went straight to voicemail so I gave a quick, “Call me when you can.” Then hung up. “I guess we’ll just have to speak to him later. Nevermind.”
I sat and Kit climbed onto my lap, showing me her picture.
“I think that might be the single greatest kitty cat I have ever seen,” I told her, kissing her hair.
After a while, I made dinner and then cleaned up the kitchen while they played. Later, I had them set their toys away before putting them to bed and reading them a story. The were very well behaved and I wondered idly if Vince had bribed them with anything.
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