by C. D. Gorri
Joselyn simply smiled. Noelle might as well have been speaking ancient Sumerian for all Joselyn knew what she was talking about. Unlike her best friend, Joss wasn’t overly attentive to fashion or design. To her clothes were functional and necessary, that was it. Her thoughts wandered as Noelle talked.
Her best friend was beautiful too. She was lean and delicate with fair skin, blue eyes, and long, thick brown hair. Joselyn was the exact opposite of the two of them. Not that she was unattractive to a certain guy, but there was a huge difference.
They’ll look great in their gowns, and I will look like a damn heifer in a silk sheet. She shook her head and exhaled as she stared at the perfectly smooth length of the silk. Guilt flared through her as she realized she was being petty. Noelle had doubtlessly spent hours agonizing over the perfect gown for both Fred and Joss. The least she could do was give the dress a chance.
Joselyn could be a little anxious about her size sometimes. She was blessed or cursed depending on what mood she was in, with full, rounded hips, a double-D cup size, and some mighty powerful thighs. She in no way resembled the women who made up the rest of the small bridal party.
Not that she wanted to. She wasn’t jealous of them. She loved Noelle and Fred. She just hated the idea of everyone else judging her when she stood next to them. With her curvy body, dark, tightly curled hair, and tanned skin, she most definitely stood out.
The dress was amazing though. She had to admit it. The fabric was gorgeous. Soft and smooth, yet rich and heavy, it felt warm in her hands. In truth, it was the most beautiful thing Joselyn had ever seen. Tears threatened to spill from her eyes as she stared at the maid of honor’s gown.
The cut was slightly different from the bridesmaid’s dress. The bodice was fitted and dipped low enough in the front to be modest and still sexy. The most notable difference was the way it cinched at her waist, where the bridesmaid was loose to allow for her expanding waistline. The deep, vibrant, crimson material would then flare over her hips, actually making her look slimmer than ever. Whoa.
Noelle had chosen the gown without her. Joselyn didn’t mind, she wasn’t a clothes horse and didn’t really care about fashion all that much. Besides, her friend knew all about her insecurities and would never make her look bad or foolish. She trusted Noelle.
Joss raised an eyebrow as she looked at the cinched waist and wondered if she’d need to buy some Spanx or if she could manage with what she always wore. As she caressed the dress in her arms, she forgot all her worries. She somehow knew deep down in her bones that it was going to be perfect on her.
“Nice job, Noe, thanks. I’ll see you later Joselyn too, I’m uh, going to rest a bit and then I’ll get changed for dinner,” Fred waved goodbye and left the room.
“Yeah, uh huh, get changed? You know that was Callius texting her! She’s probably meeting him upstairs! Gosh, I hope Sander still wants me like crazy after we’re married,” Noelle went on, but Joselyn didn’t hear a word she said. Her focus was on the dress.
The color was hauntingly beautiful. It would look stunning with the olive tone of her skin and her hazel eyes, but there was something else that was drawing her to it. Something pulling her, the fabric grew warm under her searching fingers.
The red gown seemed to turn to liquid and began to swirl and twirl in front of her, like a million red rubies glittering in the sunlight from fiery orange to a deep, intoxicating blood red. The colors flew into one another until Joselyn was dizzy with emotion, desire and need being the strongest. Beautiful and foreign. Exciting.
She gasped with the strength of her emotions. Suddenly, Joselyn felt light as air. She became weightless, almost as if she were somewhere gravity could not reach her. She could feel herself smiling as the dress grew even warmer in her arms. Something somewhere was calling to her. Her fingers continued to caress the warm, impossibly soft fabric and then, whoosh.
Joselyn closed her eyes and allowed herself to be swept away by the vision. She fully recognized the pull of her clairvoyant powers. She no longer fought against them. That would only be counterproductive. After much trial and error, she knew now to simply ride the wave of magic that pulsed through her. No matter how unexpected. She ignored the yell of her friend as she eagerly fell into her sight and allowed the vision to fill her mind.
It was a tad bit hazy, but she could see herself there, in the ballroom of Castle Falk. There were flowers and candles and soft music playing. She couldn’t make out the other people in the room, but there she was. She was wearing the ruby red gown, and she was swaying. No, not swaying, wait for it, ah! She was dancing.
Large, muscular arms surrounded her. The owner of those arms caressed her back and hips as they swayed to the softly playing music. He was laughing, a deep rumble in his chest and she laughed too. She felt safe and deeply satisfied. Wanted. Sexy. She could almost feel him holding her now. She rested her head against his large chest and felt the beating of his heart, a strong and steady beat.
He was warm and smelled pleasantly of smoke and pine trees. Joselyn loved the combination. She was not alone anymore. Her heart squeezed inside her chest. He was important. Unique. She couldn’t see a face, but she could sense him. Powerful and true. Oh, my! Dragon.
Her heart thudded rapidly inside her chest. Breathless excitement, a tangible happiness she’d never felt before, filled her. She gasped and felt her heart swell, though whether it was in the vision or in the present, she couldn’t tell. She only knew she felt contentment and profound joy. She was so full, full of, of- Oh Goddess, no! She was in love!
“No way!” She yelled aloud.
There was no way Joselyn Coracao was falling in love at her best friend’s wedding! Not with everything she’d just set into motion for herself. She shook herself out of the vision that threatened to change her life. Noelle was waving a hand in front of her face, calling her name. Joss struggled to get her mind focused on the present. She shook her head and apologized to the nervous bride.
“My bad, Noe, I’m sorry. I was just, um, thinking.”
“Was that a vision? Did I just witness your witchy powers at work?” Noelle whispered excitedly.
Joselyn laughed. It wasn’t an easy adjustment for her, having others know about her supernatural abilities, but Alexsander, Noelle’s fiancé, had outed her to his intended. She couldn’t blame the guy. He wouldn’t keep secrets from his soon-to-be wife, and that meant she had to come clean. She was grateful he’d given her the chance to do it herself.
“Um, yes. Remember I told you about my talent. I’m telepathic, well, clairvoyant really. Mostly, I get these visions-”
“OMG! Was it about me? The wedding? Sander? Ooh, the coven?” Noelle whispered the last word, even though they were alone.
“No, Noelle, it was not about you,” Joselyn had to laugh at her friend’s enthusiasm.
That didn’t always happen. Most people, even Witches, got freaked out when she told them she could see their future or hear their thoughts. Her talents were rare even among her kind. Rare, but not necessarily coveted.
Also, her visions themselves were kind of scary at times. She didn’t blame people from shying away from her. No one wanted to hear when their dog was going to die or, that their girlfriend was sleeping with their best friend or, that they were going to get fired that day.
Needless to say, she grew up without many friends, close or otherwise. Noelle had been her best and most loyal friend over the years. She might not have known until recently what Joss really was, but she’d always been supportive of what she’d thought of as Joss’ psychic abilities. Others, not so much.
She’d gotten used to being called freak and weirdo when she was a kid. Sure, it made her self-conscious as a child and teen, okay, perhaps as an adult too, but Joselyn knew who she was now and accepted it. She reveled in her powers and allowed her visions to come more freely when she was alone or in safe company.
She had learned long ago to hide her visions from people, especially if she wanted to keep
them as friends. It had worked, but only to an extent of course. But now, Noelle knew the truth and her closest friend not only accepted Joss, but she was pretty vocal about how awesome she thought it was to have a Witch as a bestie. Joss grinned. She was grateful to not have to hide who or what she was with someone.
Supernaturals across the world had an unspoken agreement to hide their existence from normals. The humans they shared the Earth with tended to overreact to anything that reeked of magic or the paranormal. Still, since Noelle was marrying a Dragon Shifter, telling her she was a Witch seemed pretty tame in comparison.
Noelle zipped the dress bag closed and handed the package to Joselyn. Joss smiled, she still couldn’t believe Noelle and Fred just accepted her the way they did, but she was grateful for it.
She didn’t have to keep her powers secret anymore. Even better, she had someone to sort of talk to about what she was going through. A Witch without a coven was a target. Especially a psychic one. She needed protection.
It took her a whole month to get enough courage to petition the local coven again for a meeting. She’d done so once before to notify them of the emergence of her powers as a teen after they’d moved there when she was a kid. They wanted her to join them then, and she’d politely declined. She only hoped they didn’t rub it in her face now.
She walked over to the spare bedroom where she would be spending the weekend and hung up the tempting gown. Images of her vision flashed through her mind. Love, hmm. Joselyn quickly shut the closet door and shook her head. No way.
She didn’t have time for an affair. She had to make certain she had proper protection so that she could live and work in peace. Men were not a priority at this stage of her life. Especially not the kind of men she dated. Ugh.
“Are you sure you’re okay?”
“Yes, I am sure. Go get ready for dinner.”
“Okay, then, I’m here if you need me,” Noelle squeezed her hand and left the room.
Joselyn went to the adjoining bathroom and ran cool water over her face. She gazed into the mirror and took a good, long look at herself. What the heck just happened?
Her hazel eyes flashed green, then gold, then ruby red as she watched herself. In her lifetime, she’d been deeply impressed that the only guarantees were maybes. She’d have glimpses of futures that could be, not that would be.
There were only two constants in her life. Joselyn would always be a Witch, and she would always be alone. She didn’t want or need anything else. It was time to teach the Fates to stop meddling!
CHAPTER 2
Joselyn had been fidgeting with her napkin ever since he’d walked into the dining room. She recognized him immediately and judging from the looks he’d been giving her from across the table, he sensed something too.
Frigging Dragons! It had to be Dragons! Why couldn’t Noelle fall in love with a banker, or a teacher, or hell, even a Werewolf? This was Maccon City after all, and the damn beasts were everywhere! But a Dragon!
Now that was something different. Ancient and powerful, why, she could feel the magic pulsating through his veins from across the table. The rhythm was hypnotic. A deep throbbing ache welled up in the pit of her stomach. Was this what she had been waiting for all her life?
“Joss?”
“Huh?” She looked up into the startled blue eyes of her best friend and sat up straight. Her dark, curly hair was pulled back in a ponytail, but still, she smoothed the sides as if righting some imaginary out of place strand.
“Sorry, Noe, what did you say?”
“I said let me introduce you to the best man and your partner for the weekend,” Noelle nodded her head towards the man with the intense dark eyes and Joselyn felt the urge to run from the table.
His face was chiseled as if from stone. A beautiful statuesque male specimen with deep auburn hair that showed flecks of bright red highlights throughout the thick mass. Joselyn’s fingers itched to run through the locks, to test their weight and softness. What the heck was wrong with her? She didn’t do things like that.
She blinked her eyes and refocused on her best friend. Noelle was smiling as she spoke his name. Joselyn closed her eyes, the significance of the moment hit her. Hard. She knew before the last syllable left her tongue that she was a goner.
“Edric, this is my best friend and maid of honor, Joselyn Coracao. Joss, this is my soon to be brother-in-law, the second eldest of the Falk brothers, and your partner for this weekends’ festivities,” the gleam in Noelle’s eye told Joss she’d been dying to introduce them. Uh oh. Even her BFF had it out for her. Just great!
Joselyn gave a half smile as the man seemed to measure her up. His dark eyes weren’t brown exactly, more like mahogany. A deep, deep reddish brown that seemed to be encircled with a red flame that glowed brightly just around the rims of his irises. The color intensified as he focused on her and inhaled.
Fuck. She knew the second recognition flared in the depths of those hypnotic eyes of his. She felt it like a magnetic pull to her very core. His head tilted as curiosity warred with hunger in his lusty gaze. She knew he’d scented her anima magicae, the heart of her powers, so to speak.
Supernaturals could usually tell one from another, though not always, by scent or aura. She’d encountered his brother Sander a few months ago, right there in the castle, during a Christmas event that Noelle had catered. Noelle’s almost husband had known instantly that she was a Witch.
Joselyn hadn’t recognized Sander’s scent, but her powers had recognized him as a Dragon Shifter. The first she’d ever encountered. Now, she determined the scent that clung to this stranger, felt it as soon as she inhaled the smoky pine fragrance of her partner for the wedding festivities. Her own powers stirred in response. Dragon.
Each brother’s scent was different of course, as it pertained to their gifts. Callius’ scent had a deep, Applewood smoke quality to it. Sander’s, the groom-to-be, smelled like winter frost and snow. The one with the pale green eyes reminded Joselyn of books for some reason. Nikolai, she recalled since she’d been introduced to him earlier. It was a pleasant odor, familiar, but nothing like this brother’s scent.
It reached her nostrils and sent shivers through her entire body, pine and smoke yes, but there was more. His scent was like lightning and thunder if such things could be described as having an odor. Like ozone, except his scent was so much more intense and primal. It sent shivers down her spine.
She wondered which fragrance he attributed to her. His nostrils flared, and his eyes seemed to consume her from across the table. Joselyn wiggled a little in her seat. She saw the growl build up in his chest. It was a bright, glowing thing, a magical force, as it were.
She knew what it would say though she’d never heard Dracan, the language of Dragons spoken before. She licked her lips; her hands gripped the napkin on her lap. Anticipation and trepidation made her tremble as she waited for it. His ruby colored eyes held hers at the same time she heard the strange words echo from his mind’s eye to hers. Es meus.
His lips hadn’t moved, but Joselyn suddenly knew what they meant. Furthermore, she knew that he knew. Goosebumps popped out all over her bare arms. She felt naked under his stare. Noelle said something to break the tension, but Joselyn couldn’t concentrate on her friend’s words.
She smiled and murmured in what she hoped was an appropriate response. Her mind was racing. This can’t be happening to me. She knew shifters were not regular supernaturals when they discovered their mates. But she was no shifter. Those rules didn’t apply to her. Did they?
Shit. If she had a coven, perhaps she could have asked them about this. Maybe they’d have some advice. But fuck that, she didn’t like the idea of a coven. Never had. Joselyn didn’t want to be beholden to anyone, much less a group of Witches who would demand use of her unique gifts.
No. She would deal with this on her own. The rumble coming from across the table was in time with the flash of lightning that blazed beyond the dining room window for a split second. She shivered
in response. Joselyn always liked storms, but for some reason the rumbling thunder from outside made her insides tremble.
Why the hell did she wear a sleeveless shirt anyway? It was twenty degrees outside! Joselyn usually felt warm indoors, but suddenly she was freezing. The man across the table hadn’t stopped looking at her the entire time. She felt exposed. All her secrets laid bare. It was disturbing and exciting at the same time. She felt defenseless under his weighted stare.
It was almost as if she were nude, laid bare before him. There was simply too much of her visible in the sleeveless black cocktail dress she wore. The skirt flared out around her hips in a fun and flirty way that made her feel feminine despite being larger than was deemed popular these days. She wore her favorite knee-high, black velvet, high-heeled boots with it.
She always dressed exactly how she wanted to with no thoughts for what was fashionable according to the so-called experts. The things they marketed for women her size was laughable. She could choose between looking like a teenager or like a grandmother, but since she was neither she went her own way.
Her style was usually a mix of comfort and sass, but for this dinner she wanted to look especially good. It was a celebration after all. She crossed and uncrossed her legs. The smooth velvet of her boots made swooshing noises as she did so. They sounded loud as fuck to her ears.
Usually, those boots made her feel confident, but not as he watched her. As if he could see every movement and knew its cause. His eyes seemed to memorize every nuance, and she took the opportunity to do the same.
His bronzed skin was at odds with his obviously red hair, but on him, it looked natural. More than that, the combination was exotic, attractive, okay, sexy as all hell. Joss didn’t usually go for redheads, but something about him made her practically drool on her place setting. He was sitting down, but he was obviously well muscled, like his brothers, though fuller than either Sander or Nikolai.