by Celia Kyle
“Yeah, dude. He’s outta here like last year.”
She sounded certain enough, but it didn’t do much to settle the tickle of panic racing under Aurora’s skin. If she had hoped to step into a quiet afternoon, she was to be sorely disappointed.
The street was alive with people, some running and shouting, others screaming in place. She was so intent on making sure Dane wasn’t lurking nearby that she failed to see the cause until it was right in front of her.
“Holy shit, would you look at that?” Kelly pointed, and the trio turned to find a small horde of the strangest animals they’d ever seen. Many were recognizable, but their shapes seemed off somehow, as if they weren’t constructed properly.
Then a creature hopped past them and stopped to look up with inquisitive glassy eyes. It was a field rabbit, with a pair of sharp teeth protruding over its furry little lips. Sprouting out of its head was an impressive pair of antlers. Aurora furrowed her brow in disbelief and her jaw dropped.
“Is that…a jackalope?”
They didn’t exist, so how was it that one was holding court on the sidewalk in front of her, as real as the clothes on her back?
“Hey, can you ladies grab that for me? You don’t know how hard they are to fabricate.” A middle-aged man in a leather apron looked completely bewildered by the off-kilter menagerie.
“Fabricate?”
“For my shop.” He pointed to the sign hanging from the eaves.
Timothy Hartsfield, Taxidermist.
So, that’s what was so strange about all the creatures. They were stuffed!
“What the hell happened,” Kelly asked.
“No clue,” Mr. Hartsfield shrugged. “About five minutes ago, the whole shop just burst to life at once. One minute I’m dressing a bobcat, the next? Pandemonium.”
Aurora had a pretty good idea what kind of energy had caused such a ruckus, and she knew she needed to beat a hasty retreat before anyone put the pieces together. Tucking her chin, she made for the end of the block, making sure she was well out of sight before she sent forth a burst of energy that would render all the critters lifeless again.
With any luck, Mr. Hartsfield’s merchandise hadn’t gone too far afield.
Eight
She triple-checked her dossier to make sure everything was in place and then checked it again. The news that Aurora was actually going to be presenting evidence in court had gone over about as well as she’d expected with the rest of the juniors. One or two had taken the hint and started to dress a wee bit better, but others had resigned themselves to shooting her dirty looks.
Suffice to say, she wouldn’t have put it past any of them to muck with her files while her back was turned. Well, really just Heather. By and large, they were quietly impressed by her bump in status, but the other female in the room held a bit of a grudge. Probably because she’d just learned that all her flirting with the lead investigator was worth squat.
Stealing one last look in her compact, she offered her reflection a tight nod of approval, and stepped out into the hall. The courtroom was on the third floor, and Aurora steadied her breath before starting the climb. The way her heart was pounding, she was torn between tearing up the stairs like a madwoman and fleeing home to throw the covers over her head.
Just breathe. You’ve got this.
Paul had walked her through what was expected of her, and she had taken her usual meticulous notes in her impossibly neat handwriting. She knew how and when to address the judges and what order to present the evidence in. They’d even practiced how best to respond to the defense’s questions.
As she passed the second-floor landing, she very nearly ducked into the bathroom so she could talk herself out of throwing up. It had worked three times so far. The butterflies in her stomach were churning up a real show in there.
Tightening her resolve, she pushed up the last flight, the heels of her best shoes snapping against the terrazzo floor as she strode down the middle of the hallway. It was empty and taking the middle gave her a feeling of power. Within moments, she was at the oak double doors.
“Okay,” she whispered aloud. “This is fine. Everything is fine.” Taking a look both ways to make sure nobody overheard her, she gave herself a little high-five. “This is just the first one, after all. Getting to present was the whole point of joining the Judiciary in the first place.”
Which was true, even if it was much sooner than she had anticipated. Even if it was just a one-off to help keep Paul Keenan’s workflow running smoothly.
“Step one,” she said with a smile. “You’re smart, you’re poised, and you could lay out these details in your sleep. So get in there, and knock this thing out of the park. Keep your focus and nothing can trip you up.”
With that, she pulled open the door and stepped in with as much confidence as she could muster. The room wasn’t packed, which helped her breathe easier. The defense hadn’t arrived yet, and Aurora smiled at her habit of arriving early. This was going to make her look really good.
Even so, her skin tingled with anxiety.
Except, it wasn’t only anxiety. When she looked up at the triune of judges seated at the bench, she froze in place. Her whole body went cold and hot at the same time. Her heart exploded in one diamond-white burst.
Dane was one of the judges.
His gaze locked on her like a laser, his jaw dropping slightly and those startlingly warm brown eyes looking into hers for the first time. For one suspended moment, she could feel the air between them sizzle.
Then all the fireworks going off inside Aurora erupted into the room. A dazzling flash was followed by a thunderous pop as a bright red cascade of light crackled out. Then blue. Then green.
What few people were in the room immediately dove for cover. The bailiff scrambled to get under the defense table and the judges threw their hands up to shield their faces.
Except Dane.
Even with the chaos blasting through the room, his gaze remained focused on Aurora. Which, given the cataclysmic display, was a serious feat.
“I call a recess.”
His rich voice reverberated through every cell in Aurora’s body. It rang in her blood as if she’d known the sound of it her entire life. It only intensified the fireworks.
At his release, the poor souls in the room tore for the exits. Dane lingered long enough to give her a look that beckoned her to follow him. She couldn’t have resisted if she wanted to. And she wasn’t entirely sure she did.
It felt strange to cross the courtroom and step toward the doors at the far side, as if she was about to enter some kind of secret world. Of course, considering she was following a wolf who raised inexplicable feelings in her, she may as well have been. The bursts continued behind them even after the door thudded closed.
Dane walked ahead of her without even looking back. The bravado of it made Aurora’s bones ache. He had to know she was powerless to do anything but follow him.
Pushing through a door, they found themselves in a small, private office just off the main courtroom. As soon as they were alone, he turned to face her. Given how charged the atmosphere between them was, the room felt impossibly small, as if this wolf in judge’s clothing were already on top of her.
“What’s your name?” Again, his voice vibrated into her, and Aurora found herself stammering in reply to this most basic of questions.
“Aurora,” she managed at last. “Aurora Rhonelle.”
“I’m Dane Hensley.”
“I know,” she said before she could catch herself, and his eyes flashed wide with surprise.
“You do?”
“Mmm-hmm. I saw you in the yard. The night Ronun talked to you. You said I smelled like decaying lilies.”
“Stargazer lilies,” he corrected, as though the exact type of flower actually mattered. “And Chanel No. 5.”
Furrowing his brow, an almost shy look crossed his face. “You said you saw me?” The implication in his voice was clear, and Aurora blushed hard at the memory o
f his body.
“Not all of you! There was a…um…bush in the way? I think? So, yeah. Not everything.”
He nodded, but she couldn’t tell if he was pleased or not. Her own feelings were becoming more enigmatic on that point all the time. When he looked at her again, his face was both kind and determined.
“All right, Aurora Rhonelle. I’m going to pay you the compliment of getting right to the point. Does that work for you?”
“Yes,” she said, her voice barely a whisper.
“I’ve been trying to find you since I scented you at that engagement party. The instant I caught your smell, I knew there was no question. I don’t want to shock you, but we’re meant to be together. You’re my fated mate.”
An enormous crack from the other room sent everything on the desk shuddering as the fireworks display kicked into high gear. All the air in Aurora’s lungs rushed out at once, and her head began to swim. When her knees buckled, Dane reached out to catch her as if he’d anticipated it all.
His arms sent a blistering snap throughout her whole body as he settled her into a chair. As soon as his hands left, she ached for his touch again.
“So,” she said, shaking her head to clear away the fog of shock. “Just so we’re on the same page about everything, we just met. Right? Like, literally just met, for the first time.”
“Correct.” He stood in front of her, looking down with clear eyes as if there wasn’t a single insane thing about what was happening.
She opened her mouth to balk, but another deafening series of explosions from the next room made her close it again. Deep inside her, a tiny voice shouted how impossibly hot he was. Even with that, Aurora got a grip on herself and worked to quell the tempest inside her.
“Listen, I can’t deny that there’s a kind of intense connection between us…”
Boom!
“Obviously. But fated mates? Meant to be together? That’s a lot to say up front.”
“I warned you I was going to be direct.”
“Well, that’s direct, all right. Listen, it’s not that I don’t believe in fated mates in theory, but it doesn’t add up for me.”
“Why not?” Again, he seemed to be missing the pure absurdity of it all.
Thankfully, Aurora found her feet again and stood up. She nearly always reasoned things out more clearly on her feet.
“For starters, you’re a wolf shifter and I’m a witch.” She stopped herself shy of saying necromancer. Considering she hadn’t raised a human yet, it felt like she’d be inviting a conversation that would just leave her depressed and humiliated. “I’m not sure how the whole thing would work between our kind.”
“It happens. Clearly.”
The fact that he was so certain put her off balance, so she kept talking to stay focused.
“Besides, I’m impossibly busy. My workload here at the Judiciary means there’s exactly zero room in my life for a man right now. Honestly? I’ve got way too much shit to do. Sorry. Language.”
He looked down at her, clearly amused by the little chiding she just gave herself. The way his lips curled up at the edges warmed his face even more. That tiny voice inside her cried out again, but this time it was to insist that she reach up and kiss him.
“Not only that,” she said to cut off the urge, “but what about the case? I’m just at the beginning of my career. If something were to happen between us, it would not only jeopardize the case I’ve worked so hard to build but maybe my whole career.”
Invoking the trial seemed to get Dane’s attention.
“You think so?” That little chink in his confidence was all she needed. The storm in the next room began to subside, and she felt herself gaining the control she was used to having over her emotions.
“Absolutely. Whatever this is between us, we can’t let it interfere with the case. It would be a conflict of interests. Maybe once this thing is wrapped up, we could talk about exploring...whatever this might be.”
Dane shifted to lean back against the desk, evidently not too happy that she had scored her point. She could tell he was the kind of man who was used to getting what he wanted. With that brawny frame, who would deny him anything? She let herself indulge in a brief flash of victory. If she could argue so effectively against the feelings raging inside her, she was going to have one hell of a career.
“You’re right,” he said finally. “I’m here for the case, and we can’t do anything to upset a fair and thorough trial. But...” His eyes found hers again and her resolve began to waver. “Could we at least be friends? I don’t think we should hide from each other. Not that I could after finally seeing how stunning you are in person.”
“Careful with that kind of talk,” she said, ratcheting down her emotions again. “I’m willing to explore friendship, but I want to be clear. There will absolutely be no benefits.”
The little smirk on his lips turned to a pursed mouth. “Fair enough,” he said with a defeated sigh.
Standing, he offered his hand. After a moment’s hesitation, Aurora took it, and that amazing jolt ran through her again. For a moment, it raised the question of fated mates again, but she quashed it as quickly as she could.
No sooner had they shaken hands than a knock sounded at the door. Aurora nearly jumped out of her skin, but Dane crossed past her and opened it. It was the bailiff, looking more than a little harried.
“Yes, Jerry?”
“The action in there finally died down.”
“Excellent.” Dane shot her a quick look, like he knew she was responsible for what happened in the courtroom. “So we’re good to proceed?”
“Actually, Mr. Abernathy hasn’t arrived.”
“Oh,” Aurora chimed in. “But he’s the lead witness for the prosecution.”
“Very well,” Dane said to the bailiff, “let the rest of the triune know. I’d like to see them so we can call a continuance until Mr. Abernathy is at hand.”
“Yes, sir.”
Jerry headed off down the hall, and Dane turned back to look at Aurora. Standing there tall and strong, framed in the doorway, that tickle wriggled in her stomach. And, in the courtroom next door, there was a single, crackling pop.
Nine
“I need a drink.”
The words so rarely fell from Aurora’s lips that the whole of Hollow House rang with them. Maybe because the house made it a point to let them echo just a little bit louder. Her roommates peeked as if to see if they had heard correctly. Even Nathan peered out of his basement, like a groundhog coming up to see if it was spring.
Not that a reason was ever truly necessary, but Kelly declared that the very fact Aurora had said it was cause for celebration. Within twenty minutes, they were all out in the solarium at the side of the house, howling with laughter. Even Ryan was there, everyone finally giving up the pretense that he and Nathan weren’t an item.
“Wait, what?” Tiffany rolled forward, coming dangerously close to spilling her beer all over her favorite black leggings.
“The wolf that was here?” Ronun shook his head lightly and raised his whiskey glass. “I’d be careful. The guy seemed like a creep to me.”
The word “creep” stuck under Aurora’s ribs, but she forced herself to smirk and nod.
“Right? Talk about coming on strong.” She took a deep gulp of wine, letting it filter over all the conflicting emotions in her stomach.
“He actually used the words ‘fated mates’? Like, he actually said that?” Tiffany let out a peal of laughter as Aurora nodded.
Despite the fact such incredulity was exactly what she wanted, the laughter stung a bit. Still, she could hear how bonkers it all was coming from her friend’s mouth. “I know, right? Completely crazy.”
“Damn straight.” Nathan lolled back in his seat.
Ryan sat folded up neatly on the paving stones, resting his arm on Nathan’s foot. Between the two of them, not to mention the way Kelly and Ronun were always linked up, a wee part of Aurora thought it might not be so bad.
&
nbsp; “You really think so?” Ryan looked up into Nathan’s face, and the shirtless vampire registered a look of faint surprise.
“What, meeting some werewolf for the first time and having him telling you straight off that you’re ‘meant to be’? Yeah, I’d say that ranks pretty high on the insanity meter. Tacky, at the very least.” He took a long, slow sip of beer.
“I disagree.” Ryan folded his hands in his lap and his wings twitched. He had a vaguely distant look on his face and a small smile.
The mysterious joy of it cut right into Aurora’s heart, as if tickling at a secret she was keeping from herself. “Really?”
“Absolutely. I’d love to think that kind of thing is real.”
Nathan shifted almost imperceptibly, but Kelly piped in. She had that same smokey, wistful gaze.
“I mean, hello?” She rubbed a hand along Ronun’s thigh. “You had a front row seat to the whole thing. Remember?”
Ronun reached out and stroked Kelly’s hair. Again, the open shows of affection served to roil up everything Aurora was working to suppress.
“Anyway,” Kelly said as she propelled herself to her feet, “I need a fresh one. Anybody else while I’m up?”
“I’ll come with you,” Aurora said.
Given that Kelly had actually been through the whole fated-match thing, Aurora realized she had a moment for a private audience. They tripped back into the house and headed for the booze stash in the kitchen.
“So tell me,” Aurora said, splashing more wine into her glass, “how did you know?”
“What, about me and Ronun?” Kelly topped off his tumbler and pulled out a few more bottles of beer. “It’s not really easy to explain. Just that, whenever he was anywhere close, I’d get all weird. Like, tingly and shaky and that kind of thing. Not like I flopped around on the floor or anything, just a little vibration. Plus, he’s irresistibly hot, but I think I’m not the only one who sees that.”
Aurora laughed a little uneasily. All of it sounded more familiar than she liked to admit.