by E. M. Moore
He looked around me, almost chuckling now in the awkwardness as if he was searching for someone else to come deal with the crazy girl in front of him. “Don’t you want it?”
Feet thudded toward me and Liam was at my side, his body angled in front of mine and facing down the guy. “What’s going on?”
The guy looked even more perplexed now. “She dropped this. I was just handing it back to her.”
His eyebrows drew in as he regarded us like two freaks at a sideshow.
Liam reached out to take the bottle from him, and I woke up from my confused trance. “You don’t know me?” I asked.
He glanced from me to Liam. “No… Should I?”
Liam looked back at me. “He was under a spell.”
I whispered back, “How do we know he’s not under one now?”
From behind the guy, Randy and Travis began to walk by, trying to look casual. One of them was doing a better job than the other. A surge of magic flared within me, and a rolling wave of pleasure tingled my extremities.
I threw my hair over one shoulder. “I just thought I recognized you from somewhere. Jimmy, right?”
The guy shook his head. “No. It’s Seth. Seth Hartle.”
I couldn’t believe he gave me his name that easily. It was true then when they said he must’ve been easily manipulatable to be coerced into doing Dupre’s bidding. I wished there was a way to make sure he never did so again. Freewill should be a given.
“Oh,” I said, acting disappointed. “Guess I had the wrong person. Sorry about that.”
“It’s no problem,” he said.
Liam placed his hand at the small of my back and led me away. When we’d gone at least ten feet, he said, “That was pretty smooth.”
“Likewise. What did Randy do to him?” I asked, talking about the magic I felt.
“It wasn’t Randy, it was Travis.”
Huh. I hadn’t caught the smell of either one of their magic, I’d just assumed it was Randy since I’d felt it all through me. Since I’d taken my relationship with the guys to an intimate level, I felt closer to them, magic and all. Not sure how that explained why I felt Travis’s magic as much.
“He put a tracking spell on him. Now we’ll know where Seth Hartle is whenever we need him.”
I shrugged. “It’s better than nothing.”
A few people in the crowd cheered, and I looked back to find the other team giving each other slaps on the back. Damn. It was now two to one.
Once we were high enough in the bleachers for me to be seen over the people standing on the ground, I turned and cupped my hands around my mouth. “Come on, Gabe, you sexy Brit.” I pumped my hand in the air, drawing a few laughs from the crowd, but the best was seeing the enamored smile on Gabe’s face when he winked at me.
I was looking forward to having the rest of the game be about ogling him in his soccer uniform and nothing else. After all, that was the best part about watching him play. He was good at it. Seriously good, and it made me high with a fierce pride. I’d once joked to him I’d daydream about having sex with him while I watched him play, but I shouldn’t have laughed at it. It was totally hot watching him out maneuver people and run hard. Damn. As if I needed help turning up the old libido.
3
I watched as the clock counted down from ten seconds left. We were still up two to one and the ball was nowhere near our goalie. I stood on my toes and cheered with everyone else. When the clock hit zero, I stepped down onto Travis’s bench and then hit the bleacher steps, taking them two at a time. I didn’t care if I looked like a crazy lunatic; I was just so proud of Gabe. He’d scored a goal and had an assist on the other one. He searched for me in the crowd and I waved at him just before jumping down onto the packed dirt.
Picking my way through the crowd, I made my way toward the gate entrance. I unlatched it and sneaked through before finding Gabe strolling toward me. I ran toward him, throwing my arms and legs around him. He chuckled into my neck. “What’s this for?”
“You did so good.”
“You liked watching me play then?”
I nipped at his neck. “You have no idea.”
He stiffened. “I think I do. I think I had the same idea except I was trying to concentrate on a black-and-white checkered ball.”
I pulled away and kissed him solidly on the mouth. “Sucks to be you,” I said against his lips. “As for me, I’ve just been watching you and thinking and daydreaming…and plotting.”
A guttural sound came from the back of his throat as he stepped forward a few paces, me still solidly in his arms. “You know we can’t do anything right here.”
“It’s okay,” I told him, curling my hand around the back of his neck. “I’m also staking my claim on you like a boss.”
Gabe pulled away, his brows furrowing. “What’s that, Love?”
“Travis tells me there are girls called Bleacher Bunnies and I’m letting them all know that you’re mine.”
He laughed out loud, the warmth of it spreading love through my chest. “That’s crazy.”
“Do you deny the existence of said Bleacher Bunnies?”
He cleared his throat. “No. I deny that you have to worry about it though.”
“One, you’re British. Your accent literally melts the panties off American college girls. It’s a lethal weapon.”
“If you say so.”
After feeling the effects myself, I fucking knew so. “Two, you’re good at sports. Like, seriously good. As in you shouldn’t be playing for Salem State, but some other awesome college team with a scholarship or some shit. Girls are probably thinking about pulling me off you right now and pouncing on you themselves.”
He bit his lip.
“What?”
“I’m imagining girls pulling you off me and you going all Norah on them. Not gonna lie, it’s kinda hot.”
“You just wait until we get home, Gabe,” I said, pushing off him and sliding down his front until my feet hit the grass.
“If you’re trying to threaten me, it’s not working.”
By this time, the rest of the guys joined us. They either shook hands or clapped Gabe on the back, doing the bro thing. Though, I supposed it would’ve looked weird if they’d thrown their legs and arms around him like a monkey as I’d done.
Gabe grabbed a water bottle off the bench before we followed after his teammates back toward the locker room. “Do I want to know why you three ran off the bleachers after Norah?”
I leaned into him, putting my head on his shoulder. “Seth Hartle.”
“Am I supposed to know who that is?” he asked, glancing at the other guys for help.
“Just one of the slugs we interrogated who came after Norah and Liam at the cafe,” Randy offered. “Don’t worry, he was completely of his own accord, no magic around him whatsoever. Norah got his name and Travis threw a tracking spell on him.”
“Now we can chase that lead down,” Liam said.
Gabe’s face turned red, his features hardening. I grabbed his hand. “Not that guy. It wasn’t the one from the house in Maine. It was the younger one.”
His shoulders drooped. “I should’ve known. Randy would probably be in the back of a cop car by now.”
Eyes wide, I looked up at Randy. He smiled a toothy grin, and I shook my head. “I can handle myself.” I wasn’t telling them anything they didn’t know, but it made me feel better to confirm it with them.
“There’s nothing wrong with letting one of us do the dirty work every once in a while, Babe.”
“Good game, Gabe,” a feminine voice called out.
I looked over to find the same girl from the bleachers waving at him. Gabe waved back. “Thanks, Becky.”
“It’s Trina,” she said, her mouth pulling tight.
Gabe shrugged as if he couldn't care less. I hid my smile in the hoodie of Liam’s I wore. I didn’t want to be that rude even though she deserved it.
“So, give me ten minutes?” Gabe asked, leaning over to kiss my
forehead. At the same time, he pinched my ass, and I yelped, smacking his hand away. He ran off toward the locker rooms with the rest of his team and I turned, rubbing my behind. Liam and Randy smiled, but Travis turned away, his face pulled taut. I looked around, but couldn’t find a reason for the sudden change in attitude.
I shrugged, chalking it up to one of Travis’s weird quirks.
Gabe
I threw my mobile into the gym bag after listening to another one of Grandpa’s messages asking me if we’d heard from the fifth yet. Bloody hell. I didn’t know what to say to him, and what worried me was that they were becoming increasingly more frantic. Not just a checking in message, but more of a desperate one. What would happen if I just told him Norah was the fifth? Could it really be that bad? I had to believe the Order would help us if something truly bad would come out of it. I guessed what worried me was in how they would help us. Would they take the pull away? Fuck that. Or worse?
I didn’t even know where these thoughts were coming from. I respected the Order above most things. It had been ingrained in me since I was a child.
I ran a hand down my face and slammed my locker shut before pulling my gym bag over my shoulder. Standing up, I noticed I was the last one there. After Coach Red gave his usual after game speech, everyone had dispersed pretty quickly. The pleasant dip in my belly of the pull toward Norah got stronger, and I slipped out of the locker room with a smile on my face. She was the only one waiting outside for me. “Where’s everyone else?”
She pushed away from the brick wall of the school and put her hands on my forearms. “They wanted to head to the car.”
“You mean the massive new Jeep?”
“Yeah,” she chuckled. “That one.”
She ran her hands up my arms and around my neck before pushing herself on her tiptoes to press her lips against mine. The magic tethering us together pulled tight, and I was instantly hooked on her as if she was a drug and I needed my next fix. I slipped my tongue past her lips, sweeping it over her to get every last bit of taste I could manage. Mmm, sugar. She stepped forward, and I stumbled back against the wall of the gym. Disoriented, I pushed my hands into her hair, looking to ground myself on something.
“Gabe?”
I broke away, looking down at her doe brown eyes. She was at once innocent and wild, a complete mixture that boiled my blood. “Yes, Love?”
She flicked her eyes toward the locker room. “Has everyone else left?”
I tamped down the excitement threatening to spew forth. After taking her hand, I pushed the locker room door open and gave a quick look around before dropping my gym bag again. When I turned, Norah threw herself at me like she’d done right after the game. Her legs wrapped tightly around my torso, I immediately felt my arousal perk up. God, this woman. I twisted until her back was against a row of lockers and she moaned deep in her throat.
“Remember when you said you’d picture yourself riding me when I was out there playing?”
She bit her lip and nodded.
“Did you do that?”
She answered me with another scorching kiss. I raised my hand to tease her nipple, and she sighed.
She pulled away, her hips rocking into me. “Inside, Gabe. I need you inside.”
My dick strained against my athletic shorts the more she teased. I simultaneously wanted to do exactly what she said, but also knew that having sex with her in this locker room, though hot, wasn’t what she deserved. Conflicted, I slipped my hand under her shirt to cup her breast over her satin bra.
She rocked into me quicker and I steeled myself. I would not lose myself in my pants like some teenager.
“Gabe,” she groaned in frustration. “Please.”
I pulled her to me and kissed her, lingering against her lips. “Let’s wait until we get home.”
“No,” she snarled. She pulled away and her face twisted in anger.
“Gabe! Gabe!” a voice screamed.
The air shimmered in front of me and Norah disappeared. My eyes fluttered and I sunk to the floor, energy draining from me as if my veins were all sliced open and I was freely bleeding all over the place.
A heavy thunk sounded somewhere, and it echoed through my head. Then came another and another.
Finally, a shaft of light illuminated the cement floor where my head had landed. I blinked at it, not understanding. Where was Norah? How did I get on the floor?
Soft hands cupped my face. “Gabe, hey. Are you okay?”
I turned my head to find her staring at me, her beautiful eyes examining me with an intensity I loved.
It wasn’t until the rest of the guys poked their head into my line of sight that I realized something was wrong. Did they just come from the door? I thought they were in the car. “What’s going on?”
Randy helped to right me and Norah quickly opened a Snickers and shoved it in my face. I took a big mouthful, hating how weak I felt. Coupled with the game I just played, I was running on empty.
Travis backed away from us and disappeared, returning several minutes later. “There’s no one else in here.”
“What happened?” Liam asked. “We all felt this pull toward you. Well, Norah felt it first. We thought she was just being paranoid, but then we all felt it. Randy had to kick the door down.”
I looked up at Norah. “You were outside?”
“Yeah, we were waiting for you. You said you’d only be like ten minutes.”
Right. I remembered that, but hell, that game must’ve taken a lot more out of me than I thought. I probably passed out and dreamt of getting frisky with Norah. That wouldn’t be too different from my normal dreams. It was hard to have her in the house and share her with the other two. Headphones were my friend, but that didn’t mean my imagination didn’t run wild, seeping into my sleep, providing me with stiff ones pretty much every night.
“Just tired, I guess,” I told them, pushing myself to my feet. I wavered back and forth but steadied myself against the row of lockers. I took another bite of the Snickers and at the same time, Norah pressed her fingers into my forearms, both of which were helping me regain the energy I’d inexplicably lost.
“I’m not surprised,” Norah said. “I couldn’t run for that long. You were all over the place out there. You’re sure you’re alright?”
I nodded, standing up even straighter. Would’ve loved for that dream to be real. Damn. I’d have to try that sometime with her.
“What are you smiling at?”
I put my arm around her. “Nothing. Can we go home?”
She eyed me suspiciously. “Just keep eating the Snickers, big boy.”
“I can think of a better way to get my energy back.”
The rest of them groaned, but Norah caught her lip between her teeth. She pushed the Snickers up to my lips. “If that’s the case, you’re going to need energy to start with.”
I could certainly handle that. I stuffed the last of the Snickers in my mouth and took Norah’s hand. We followed the rest of them out of the locker room and back toward the big new black Jeep. I really needed to get ahold of myself. I didn’t need to dream about Norah when I could have the real thing. And the real thing was so much sweeter, I thought, remembering the almost evil look in her eyes when I’d told her we should wait. Dream Norah wasn’t having any of that.
4
I didn’t like Gabe’s look. He was still too pale and his leg bounced up and down in the Jeep all the way home. When we got back to the estate in Ipswich, he refused to let me heat up some leftover pizza for him and went right up to his room. After waiting down in the living room with the rest of the guys, almost chewing all my nails off, I decided to go after him.
Liam caught my hand on the way through. “Something seems off,” he said, his chestnut eyes concerned. “I’m sensing his magic is…haywire.”
“Is there anything I can do to help him? Like, transfer some to him or something?”
“I’ve never heard of anything like that. We’ve never run into this problem be
fore. Let me do some research.”
He stood and picked up a book on the counter. It was one of his Order books. I’d thumbed through it myself a week or so ago, making sure he hadn’t missed something on female Enforcers. It was a shot in the dark because Liam was thorough, but it couldn’t hurt and I learned some things in the process even if it wasn’t what I was trying to find out. “Let me know.”
I took the stairs two at a time and hung a right. Gabe had called one of the rooms on the opposite side of the house from me. It wasn’t really his doing. Liam and Randy had already called the ones right by me, so he was stuck with this one. The only room further away from mine was Travis’s.
I knocked on the door, but Gabe didn’t answer. Fretting over my lip, I decided just to go in. If he was naked, it wasn’t as if I hadn’t seen it all before. A brief glimpse of Gabe’s athletic body popped into my head and I drew in a breath. Unfortunately, he wasn’t sprawled out on the bed waiting for me when I came in. His room was empty, however, the shower was running in his bathroom. I knocked on that door and opened it a crack. “Gabe, you okay?” Odd that he’d be taking another shower since he’d taken one right after the game too.
“Yeah,” he said. His voice cracked, so he tried again. “I’m fine, Norah.”
I snuck in and shut the door behind me. The steam from the shower rose up, and the humidity in the small room warmed me. “Are you sure?”
He pulled the shower curtain out of the way and leaned against the back of the shower wall, his arms crossed over his chest. His chiseled chest led to narrow hips with a muscular vee showing off his goods. I tilted my head to stare at him, a smirk coming to my face.
“Does that answer your question?” he asked, his gaze dipping to his hard cock and then back up to meet mine again.
I walked closer to him. “That’s not fair. I was worried about you and here you are up here nursing a hard-on.”
“It’s your fault,” he told me. “You shouldn’t have thrown yourself at me after the game.”