Hank put his phone away and reached for his radio. “I’ll get someone on it, then fill Birdie in.”
While Hank made his call, Titus pondered the information about the love spell a little more. Was that why he suddenly thought Jenna was so beautiful? She was beautiful. All valkyries were, but he felt like he was noticing her beauty in a way he never had before. Hmm. Was this line of thinking proof that the spell was affecting him?
Hank finished talking to Birdie and looked at his brother and Jenna again. “All right. Deputy May is on her way over there to talk to Pandora.”
Jenna chewed on the inside of her cheek. “You said you had good news and bad news. What’s the good news?”
Hank thought a moment. “That Alice has started to figure it out.”
“Oh.” Jenna looked like she’d had hopes for something else. “And the bad is the love spell and the binding spell.”
“Right,” Hank said.
Titus realized they’d glossed over the second one. “What’s the part about the binding spell? Can you explain that?”
Hank glanced at his brother, his gaze lighting up with the most curious gleam. “That’s where it gets interesting.”
“Like it wasn’t already?” Titus frowned. “I don’t like where this is going. Tell us what you know.”
Jenna nodded. “Please.”
Hank took his phone out again. “Whoever set up this little magic bomb apparently intended for the target to not only fall in love with them but be bound to them. Like you said, a very stalkerish combo.”
Jenna held out her hands. “We’re not bound to anyone.”
The corner of Hank’s mouth twitched like he was trying not to smile. “But you are. You two are not only under the influence of a love potion, but it seems you’re now bound to each other.”
Jenna sat down hard on the utilitarian love seat near the window. “Bound. To Titus. By magic?”
“Wait a second,” Titus said. “Is that even a thing? I mean, how do you know it’s working? There’s no magical force keeping us together.” Thankfully, because being bound to Jenna would be a nightmare. Planning the race with her was already testing the limits of his good nature. He couldn’t imagine having to be around her all the time.
Except that he could. In fact, he was. And the things he imagined were raising his temperature in ways that were only going to get him in trouble.
“Alice said,” Hank began, “that if you two get too far away from one another, you’ll feel the consequences.”
“Consequences?” Jenna looked at Titus with the same panicked expression he probably had on his face. “If that’s true…”
Titus nodded. “We already have.”
Jenna couldn’t fathom what she was hearing. Bound to Titus? The man who’d made her life miserable these last few months? And under some kind of love spell, to boot? She refused to accept that was possible, magic or not. Sure, he was a very attractive guy who was probably a great kisser, but—wow. What was that? She shook her head. “Nope. Don’t want that. Don’t want the love spell either.”
Hank snorted. “I don’t think it works that way.”
“I don’t care. I’m a valkyrie. I have my own magic.” She’d just use the sheer force of her willpower to negate whatever magic had been performed upon them. She looked at Titus. She was not going to let herself be influenced by…he really did have the nicest eyes.
Freya on a stick, she was in trouble. She was not falling in love with anyone. Ever again. Love meant heartache. And she’d had enough of that for a hundred lifetimes.
“Good luck with that,” Titus said. “Isn’t valkyrie magic just swords and stubbornness?”
Jenna glared at him. “Oh, suddenly man’s best friend is an expert on valkyrie magic?”
Titus glared back. “I’m a wolf, not a—”
“There’s my favorite nephew!” Birdie Caruthers strode into the room with all the calm and quiet of a category five hurricane. She wiggled her fingers at Jenna, making the hot pink fringed handbag hanging off her elbow sway. “Hiya, Jenna.”
“Hi, Mrs. Caruthers.”
Hank frowned. “Aunt Birdie, you realize I’m standing right here.”
“Settle down.” She wrinkled her nose at him. “You’re my favorite healthy nephew. Now don’t be so needy.”
“I’m not—” He sighed and shoved a hand through his hair. “I’d better get back to the station, because clearly no one else is there.”
Birdie rolled her eyes. “There’s someone there. Probably.”
“Sheriff?” Jenna stood.
He paused on his turn toward the door. “Yes?”
“Is Alice working on a way to break these spells?”
He nodded. “She is. Or rather, she will be. She has to figure out all the remaining ingredients first, but then hopefully she’ll be able to come up with something.”
“Until then, what am I supposed to do?”
Hank looked from her to Titus. “That’s up to you two. I’ll get someone to cover your shifts until you figure that out.”
Titus made a face. “I have the inspector coming in this week. I have to be at the station.”
Jenna put her hands on her hips. This was a complication she didn’t need. “And the race is coming up.”
“Like I said, figure it out.” Hank turned, lifting his hand in a wave.
Jenna huffed out a breath and sat back down, staring at the door as it closed behind him. “This is unacceptable.”
Birdie sat down beside her. “What’s that, honey?”
Jenna turned to the older woman. “This whole thing. But especially that your nephew and I are apparently bound together because we were exposed to a magic bomb.”
Birdie looked way too amused by that. “Is that right?”
Titus let out a little grunt. “You’re kind of glossing over the big one.”
“Oh?” Birdie said.
“We’re also under the influence of a love spell. Apparently.” His gaze shifted to Jenna. “I can’t say as I feel particularly amorous, however.”
“Good,” Jenna said. “Let’s keep it that way.” But inside, she was the slightest bit miffed. Was he really not attracted to her even the tiniest bit? How was he ignoring the magic’s pull when she was definitely feeling it? Of course, she was also ignoring it. Hard. But feeling it all the same.
“So what are you two going to do if you can’t be apart?” Birdie asked.
Neither Jenna nor Titus answered right away.
“Well?” Birdie said.
“I guess we haven’t thought that far,” Titus finally replied.
“What we need is for Alice to work out a way to dissolve the spell.” Jenna stood. “Maybe we should test just how far apart we can get.” She already had an idea about that based on where she’d been in the parking lot when her stomach had started hurting, but the truth was, she was outnumbered by werewolves at the moment and needed some air. Air that wasn’t saturated with the scent of Titus.
He raised his brows. “Where were you when your stomach started to hurt?”
She sighed. He was ruining her chance to escape. “Pulling out of the parking lot.”
He looked out the window. “This room is almost directly over the main entrance, so that makes the lot exit about, what? Thirty yards? I think we can use that as a gauge.”
Birdie whistled. “A hundred feet? That’s it? Doesn’t give you two a lot of options, huh?”
Titus made a face. “No. It doesn’t.”
“So,” Birdie said. “Whose house are you going to live in when you get out of here?”
Titus looked at her. So did Jenna. Then they looked at each other. In horror.
Jenna recoiled. “I can’t live with you.”
He shook his head. “I’m not living with you.”
Birdie laughed like it was all a big joke. “You two. So funny. What other option do you have? You can’t be away from each other. Look on the bright side. It’ll be easier to work together on figuring out
who planted that package.”
“That’s not the job of the fire department.” Jenna paced to the door. “And Alice will have a remedy soon. I know she will.” Jenna knew nothing of the sort, but she refused to believe anything different.
“And if she doesn’t?” Titus asked.
A nurse came in, saving Jenna from having to answer. “There you are, Deputy Blythe. We’re ready to start the new round of tests now. If you could just come with me. Chief, Nurse Lawrence will be in for you shortly.”
Jenna hesitated. “Where are we going?”
“Back to your room next door. I have everything set up in there.”
“Okay, great.” Jenna exhaled, glad she didn’t have to explain why she couldn’t go too far away from Titus. The hospital was a mix of human and supernatural workers. This nurse was definitely human. “Let’s get this testing done so we can get answers.”
That was paramount. Because living with Titus could not happen. It was one thing to be stuck in a room with him, but to be with him twenty-four seven? She might be a legendary warrior with the stubbornness of a thousand hellborn mules, but she was also a living, breathing, red-blooded woman with needs and urges and… She swallowed and glanced back at Titus.
Even lying in that hospital bed and wearing that silly gown, he radiated maleness. The kind that turned up her internal thermometer and put her hormones into overdrive.
Being around him for any length of time would definitely break her.
As soon as Jenna left with the nurse, Birdie went to stand closer to Titus. She took his hand and patted it. “Are you really feeling okay?”
“Sure. A little headache, but that’s probably just because I need to get all the garbage I inhaled out of my system.”
“A nice run in the forest would do you good.”
He smiled. “It would. That’s exactly what I’m going to do when I get out of here.”
“With Jenna, of course.”
He sighed. “Thanks for reminding me.”
Birdie laughed. “Oh, Titus. Stop that. She’s a beautiful woman. Accomplished. Smart. Wicked sense of humor. A body like—”
“Aunt Birdie.” He narrowed his eyes. “Can you stop selling her to me?”
“Do you really not like her?”
“She’s a pain in the—”
“Language.” But Birdie smiled. “Why does she bother you? Because you’re so much alike?”
“We are not.”
“No? I think you are. And I know you both pretty well.”
“Then you should know how annoying she is. She’s stubborn and opinionated and, frankly, a little full of herself.”
Birdie rolled her lips in like she was trying not to laugh. “You know who that sounds like?”
“Don’t say me.”
“I was going to say Bridget. And you love your sister.”
He opened his mouth to respond, then closed it. Bridget was all those things. “That’s different.”
“How?”
“She’s a werewolf. You know how we are.”
Birdie’s eyes tapered into her don’t start with me look. “And Jenna is a valkyrie. A legendary Norse warrior tasked with combing battlefields for dying soldiers worthy of being taken to Valhalla. The woman has a magical sword embedded in her back. You think that doesn’t entitle her to be a little full of herself? To know her own mind?”
“Okay, okay. You’re right. But I still think she’s annoying.”
Birdie’s sly smile was back again. “Of course you do. Sometimes that’s how chemistry works.”
A nurse came in, interrupting the conversation. But Titus refused to buy what his aunt was trying to sell. Any strange thoughts or feelings he was having about Jenna were all caused by the spells they were under. Nothing more.
Time would prove that out.
Jenna had been back in her hospital room for about thirty minutes when Titus pushed the door open and came halfway in. She put her magazine down. He was in track pants and a T-shirt. There was something infinitely appealing about seeing him like that. Casual. Sporty. “Hey.”
“All done with your testing?”
She nodded. “You too?”
“Yep. Just waiting for those test results so I can be discharged, probably like you are.”
“I am.”
He pointed toward her. “Can I come in?”
“Sure.”
He walked through the door, leaving it open. “Heard anything from Alice?”
She let out a long, slow breath. “No. You?”
“Not a word.” He stopped at the end of her bed. “Which means we need to get to work figuring this out.”
She stared at him, jaw set in frustration because she hated the situation they were in but also because she hated how handsome he was. And hated how she was losing the fight against the magic spell they were under. “I assume you mean the living arrangements?”
He nodded. “Unless we both want to be in constant pain, I don’t see that we have a choice but to bunk together. I mean, not together together, but—”
“I know what you mean, Merrow.” She shifted her gaze to the window for a moment. Why did he have to be so unintentionally charming at times? Like now. It wasn’t helping. She got herself under control and made eye contact again. “How big is your house? And where do you live?”
“I live in Wolf Creek.”
“Of course you do.” Most of the wolf shifters in town lived there because that community was up in the hills and gave them instant access to the forest that surrounded Nocturne Falls. It was a very nice place. Out of her financial reach as a deputy. Not that she wanted to live with a bunch of wolves. On a rainy day, that whole area had to smell like wet dog.
“Hey, it’s where my kind lives. What about that bothers you?”
She shook her head, instantly sorry she’d snapped. “Nothing. I’m sorry. It’s really nice up there. I’m just on edge, I guess.”
“We both are.” He blinked like he couldn’t believe she’d apologized.
She couldn’t either. And she seemed to be doing that a lot around him. This stupid love magic was changing her. He seemed unaffected, oddly enough. “Yeah.”
“I have a decent guest room with its own bathroom. It’s all yours. But it would be a little farther to work for you.”
She laughed softly, suddenly amused by the whole thing. “I don’t think work matters, because I can’t go on patrol unless you’re with me.”
“Oh. Right. And there are days that I’ll have to be at the station, with the inspector there.” He put his hand on the back of his neck. “This is going to take some getting used to.”
“Hopefully, it’ll be over before we get used to it.”
He nodded. “That would be optimal.”
“So I guess we’ll go by my place, and I’ll pack what I need, then we’ll go to yours?” Had she left any bras hanging up to dry? She genuinely couldn’t remember. Her mind seemed to have a big blank spot in it. Maybe she’d hit her head when she’d gotten knocked out and fallen? Or was this the short-term memory loss kicking in? Whatever. She’d have to check the second bath as soon as she got in the door.
“Sounds good.”
Dr. Navarro came in, a tablet tucked under his arm. “Deputy, Chief. Since you’re both in here, I’ll tell you at the same time. Unfortunately, the tests have been inconclusive. You’re both discharged, though, so you’re good to go. Please rest as much as possible. If the abdominal pain reoccurs, please don’t hesitate to call or come back in.”
“Thanks,” Jenna said. “Do we have to wait on wheelchairs again?”
Dr. Navarro’s sympathetic smile answered her question. “The orderlies will be along shortly.” He gave them a wave and left.
Titus put his hands on his hips and huffed out a breath. It was a very wolfy sound. “A wheelchair. Can you believe that?”
His words held the kind of attitude she’d felt earlier. “I know, right? It’s regulation, though, and there’s no use arguing.”
<
br /> He glanced at her. “Because you tried?”
“I did. Got nowhere.”
He sighed. “Waste of time and money. I’m—that is, we’re both perfectly capable of walking ourselves to the parking lot.” He made a face. “Hey.”
“What?”
“I just realized we have no vehicle. And no one here to give us a lift.”
“You want me to call the station? Have them send a squad car?”
“No, we shouldn’t pull them off duty.” He reached into his pockets but came up empty-handed. “I don’t have my phone either.”
“I have mine. Tessa had it. But I know our uniforms have to be cleaned. Maybe your phone needed to be cleaned too?”
His brows rose. “We’d better call a nurse.”
Chuck the orderly showed up with a wheelchair. “Your ride has arrived.”
“Hi, Chuck.” Jenna got up. “Is there a second one behind you? Also, do you have any idea where Titus’s phone is? We need to call for a ride.”
“I was about to give it to you.” He pulled Titus’s phone out of his pocket and handed it to him, then hooked his thumb over his shoulder. “Ben has the other wheelchair. Nurse Lawrence took the phones earlier to the nurses’ station to disinfect them, but she forgot to bring the chief’s back.”
“No worries,” Titus said.
“Yeah, thanks.” Jenna climbed into the wheelchair he was driving and opened up her Ryde app to call for a car.
Titus was still muttering about the whole wheelchair thing even as he sat in the one meant for him.
She was having a hard time not laughing. She completely understood his grumpiness about it, but having been through it once, it was funny watching him. Maybe a little distraction would help.
She held up her phone with the Ryde app on the screen. “A car will be here in six minutes.”
He stopped muttering. “Good. I’m ready to get out of here.”
The ride down to the exit seemed to take forever, although Jenna remained amused by Titus’s grumblings about having to go in a wheelchair.
The ride to her house took about the same amount of time. The driver was chatty, talking about the weather and how nice it was for picnicking, so they were saved the need to make polite conversation, something neither was much in the mood for.
The Werewolf Dates The Deputy (Nocturne Falls Book 12) Page 4