“Why?” I asked. “We’ll fail the test, and then we can leave, right?”
Mel shrugged. “That’s what happens if you fail. A lot of people pass parts of it, and then they have to listen to suggestions to make things work. Sometimes, they pass part of it, but they’re still told they aren’t a good match. Those ones usually end up looking like something out of a daytime talk show, complete with yelling and the occasional chair flying across the room. So, you could get stuck there listening to a boring explanation of your results. If you pass, then you have to deal with Isadora Hunt and her quest to find a witch for her son. I hate to say it, Allie, but something tells me Isadora is going to get her wish.”
As if summoned by our conversation, the doorbell rang, and when I looked through the peephole, I found Isadora Hunt standing on the front porch.
“She’s here,” I hissed to Mel over my shoulder. “Dylan’s mom is outside.”
“Then you’d better let her in,” Mel said. “That woman is a force to be reckoned with, and even I try to stay on her good side.”
I opened the door and gave Dylan’s mother a shaky smile. “Hi, Mrs. Hunt. Dylan is at work right now.”
She smiled and continued to make her way into the house. “Yes, I saw him there about three hours ago. Actually, I came by to see you. Please, call me Isadora.”
All I could manage was a nod. Why would Dylan’s mom want to see me? Maybe she’d finally figured out I wasn’t good enough for her son.
“Melina,” Isadora said by way of greeting to Mel. “How is your mother?”
“Same as always,” Mel replied. “She’s happy and busy.”
“And your sisters?” Isadora asked.
“Pretty and perfect,” Mel said less cheerfully. “Amelia is having another baby.”
“Your mother must be thrilled,” Isadora gushed before her eyes drifted to my belly. “I can’t wait to have grandchildren of my own.”
“Hopefully, Dylan will find the right witch soon,” I said, feeling oddly jealous just thinking of Dylan getting another woman pregnant.
Isadora laughed. “Oh, my! You certainly are going to make this difficult for my boy. Naturally, as his mother, I should be upset that you’re being disagreeable and making him work so hard to get what he wants.”
“Doesn’t seem to bother you much,” Mel remarked.
“That boy needs a witch who can keep him on his toes,” Isadora said.
“I’m more succubus than witch,” I reminded her.
She shrugged off my statement. “I came by to talk to you about the affinity test.”
“What about it?” I asked.
“I’m sure you’re wondering why I insisted on it,” she said. “It seemed like we should talk about this before tonight. Unless I’m mistaken, this is causing you more stress than it is my son, but I think he’s resigned himself to the inevitable.”
“Doesn’t that just make things sound nice,” I muttered.
Isadora chuckled. “Stop being so gloomy, dear. This is all going to work out, but I want to make sure you understand why I’m forcing this issue.”
“I already know why you’re pushing for the affinity test. Everyone knows you’ve been hoping to find a witch for Dylan. Even though I’m not an ideal choice, I put myself in a position where you could demand an affinity test.”
“You did make it easier for me, but I wouldn’t have pushed the issue if Dylan had refused,” Isadora explained as she made her way toward Dylan’s kitchen. “I’m going to make some tea.”
Since this was her son’s house, I figured she had every right to use his kitchen. Still, I stood there watching her for a moment, wondering where this visit was headed.
“This is really bizarre,” Mel said quietly as we watched Isadora disappear around the corner toward the kitchen.
“I know,” I agreed, glad I wasn’t the only one who felt that way. “Should I follow her into the kitchen?”
“Duh,” was all Mel said.
“Writing scripts for teens is really impacting your conversation skills,” I told her.
“I definitely need a vacation,” she said. “Preferably somewhere with hot guys to wait on me hand and foot. It’s been way too long since I’ve had a man. Seriously, I haven’t had sex since I was audited.”
“You had sex with an IRS demon?” The few I’d met seemed boring beyond belief, so I was having trouble picturing one in bed.
“Those guys are total freaks. Maybe I should try getting audited again,” she said thoughtfully.
“Why not call Trevor?” I asked, bumping against her playfully. “He’s usually the perfect doting boyfriend for the first week.” It actually sounded like a good solution all around. Mel could get her need to be pampered out of her system, and Trevor could get his obsession with Mel out of his system.
Mel’s scowl told me she didn’t like the idea at all.
“Not gonna happen,” she said as we entered the kitchen.
Isadora had a teapot I hadn’t realized Dylan owned on the stovetop already. When we walked in, she smiled. “Shall I tell you my reasons for pushing you to take such a big step, Alana?”
“I’m dying to know,” Mel piped in.
“We’ve already established you want your son to find a witch and settle down,” I said.
“I want my son to find the right witch for him to settle down with,” Isadora corrected me. “I think you would be a good match.”
“I’ve heard all about how this test is supposed to tell me if we’re compatible, but I don’t buy it,” I argued.
Isadora gave me a sympathetic look. “I can see why your family history and personal experience with warlocks would make you feel that way. I’ve been with Dylan’s father for nearly a century. We have three wonderful children, including my baby, Dylan. That makes it a little easier for me to believe in happily ever after.”
“There are just as many, if not more, stories of witch couples who aren’t happy and end up being unfaithful,” I argued.
No matter what anyone said, trusting some stupid witch test made about as much sense as letting a quiz in Cosmo decide if Dylan was the man for me. For the record, the Cosmo quiz said he was, but the Glamour quiz said he had put me in the friend zone.
“Dylan’s not the type of man who would cheat,” Isadora insisted.
“He’s not a man looking for marriage, either,” I pointed out. “If he were, he wouldn’t have been trying so hard to avoid dating witches. Had Dylan realized I was a witch in good standing that first night, he would have avoided me like the plague. The only reason he’s with me now is because he believed I was a succubus—someone completely unsuitable for a long-term relationship.”
“I doubt he would have been able to stay away from you,” Isadora said with a laugh.
“I’m with Isadora on this one,” Mel added as she dug in the back of the freezer, probably looking for some hidden ice cream. Hopefully, she’d find some because I really needed my good friends Ben and Jerry right about now.
“Dylan clearly has feelings for you,” Isadora said. “Why else do you think he made a big show of letting the entire council know you were with him?”
“With the robe situation, he didn’t have much choice,” I argued before relenting. “Fine, Trevor would have agreed to say I was with him. He actually offered, but Dylan wouldn’t let him.”
“Because he wanted everyone to know you were with him,” Isadora repeated. “That’s never happened with Dylan. He also could have argued against taking the affinity test. Dylan has never been one to just bow down to council authority.”
I wanted to insist that Dylan had only agreed to the test because he was being contrary, but I wasn’t sure that was true. Everything with Dylan was confusing.
Isadora finished making tea in silence before pouring a cup for me and patting my arm. “I need to go, but I thought this would help you relax. It’s my own special blend,” she explained. “I’ll let myself out, dears.”
With that, she swept out
of the kitchen, leaving me staring at my tea.
“Wow!” Mel said, breaking the silence.
I had nothing to add to that. As Mel had already said, Isadora Hunt was truly a force to be reckoned with.
“How’s the tea?” Mel asked after I’d taken a couple of sips.
“Relaxing,” I admitted. “She was definitely right. About the tea,” I quickly added. There was no way I was admitting she might be right about Dylan and me.
Chapter Fifty-Two
Dylan
Anticipation hummed through my veins as I walked in the front door. I was running late, so Melina had already left because they were shooting an episode of Night High and she insisted that things always went wrong when she wasn’t there. Since I was a bit of a control freak regarding work myself, I had no room to judge her workaholic ways. My last client had run later than planned, meaning I wouldn’t have time for more than a quick snack before we headed to the council meeting.
I found Allie in the bedroom dressed in jeans and a tank top, applying makeup with shaky hands.
“Is that what you’re wearing to the council meeting?” I asked, because I’d expected her to dress up. After all, this meeting was a big deal. At least, I thought it was a big deal, and I really hoped she did, too.
She shrugged without looking at me. “I figured it didn’t matter since I’ll be wearing a robe. Mel brought me one of hers so I can be in my family’s color tonight.” Sure enough, she held up a black robe. That’s when she finally looked at me over her shoulder, her expression challenging me to disagree with her—a challenge I intended to take.
My face hardened, and my temper flared at the idea of her wearing that robe. I knew the robe was her way of putting some distance between us, and I wasn’t going for it. Fuck this!
“No,” I said simply as I kicked off my shoes and started unbuttoning my shirt. I might as well wear jeans and a t-shirt, too. My eyes remained locked with hers, waiting for her response.
Fire flashed in her whiskey-colored eyes, and she looked seriously pissed. That worked because I was seriously pissed, even though I knew I had no right to be. Honestly, it shouldn’t make any difference to me what color robe she wore, but I didn’t act on logic when it came to Allie. No, instinct drove many of my actions.
“What do you mean, no?” she demanded with her arms crossed under her full breasts.
“After you wore my robe last time, the council will expect you to wear it this time,” I explained, slipping the t-shirt over my head and grabbing a pair of jeans, proud of myself for making such a reasonable argument when I felt far from reasonable.
“I wore it because I didn’t have my own,” she reminded me.
“Doesn’t matter why you wore it.”
“We don’t have time for this,” she said with a huff. “There is no good reason why I need to wear anything other than the robe Melina bought me. I made pasta and left a plate out for you. It probably needs to be heated up for about thirty seconds, but you should have time to eat it before we leave.”
“Thank you, sweetheart,” I said with a grin. Dressed in blue jeans and a deep red t-shirt, I slipped on my shoes and grabbed her robe on my way out to the kitchen. I stopped by my office and tore the robe into four sections before running the pieces through the paper shredder with a satisfied smirk.
“What the hell are you doing?” Allie screeched from the door. Her labored breathing was making her breasts move up and down in a tantalizing way. I had to force myself to look away because we really didn’t have time for sex before the meeting.
“Your robe was damaged, so it looks like you’ll be wearing red again,” I said calmly and smacked her ass when I walked by.
As I made my way into the kitchen, I heard her muttering something about putting my dick through the paper shredder, and I wasn’t sure if I wanted to laugh at her fit of temper or hide the paper shredder.
Hearing the shredder running again, I chuckled, knowing exactly what Allie was doing.
“Oops!” Allie called out. “The red robes were damaged, too, and I think you’re going to need a new paper shredder.”
I laughed so hard I nearly fell off the stool at the breakfast bar. “At least, you won’t be able to run my dick through it now,” I called back.
“Such a pity,” she said.
“Let’s go, honey,” I called out from the garage. “Time to get hitched to my witch.” Teasing Allie seemed like a good way to get her to forget about putting my dick in the paper shredder, which was probably broken now.
“It’s just a test, Dylan,” she said with an exasperated huff as she slid into the passenger seat of my car. “No matter which way it goes, we are only taking a test tonight. Of course, I doubt they’ll even let us take the test now that our robes have been destroyed.”
I shrugged, and Allie uncrossed her arms, looking less confident.
“They wouldn’t make us to do more, right?” she asked in a panic. “Even though your mom really wants you to get married, they aren’t going to force us to take the next step tonight, right?”
“No, sweetheart, they won’t force us to do anything more than take the test tonight,” I assured her. “Unless someone pushes the issue, that is, but I would be shocked if that happens. My mom is just trying to prove a point.”
She visibly relaxed, and I hadn’t realized until that moment how terrified she was of having that choice taken away from her. Before starting the car, I reached over and squeezed her hand until she looked at me. “No matter what happens, I would never force you to do something you don’t want to do.”
“You’re forcing me to take this test,” she reminded me. “You also destroyed my robe to try to force me to wear your colors.”
I let out a sigh as I started up the car and pulled out of the garage. “You make me act crazy,” I admitted. “Even while I was agreeing to the affinity test, there was this voice in my head telling me it was a total asshole move, but I just couldn’t stop myself. Still, this is a far cry from forcing you to marry me like we’re in some historical romance novel.”
“You’re right,” she said, and then she giggled.
“What’s so funny?” I asked.
“I was just picturing you reading historical romance novels,” she said, and that’s when I realized what I’d said.
“Before you think too little of me, Trevor’s oldest sister really loves those books,” I began.
“And she let you borrow them?”
“No, you little smartass.” I pinched her thigh. “She got really sick a couple of years ago, and when I visited her, she’d ask me to read them to her.”
“That’s really sweet, Dylan,” she said softly.
“What can I say? I’m a sweet guy—a guy any witch would want to marry,” I teased with a grin.
“What are you hoping to gain if we pass tonight?” she asked, switching back to the subject I’d been hoping to distract her from.
“All I want is for you to see we’re a good match and give me a real chance to prove that to you.” We were at a stop sign so I turned to look at Allie. “Don’t forget. When we pass the affinity test tonight, I win the bet, which means I get to spend the rest of the night enjoying your body.”
Allie’s breathing became labored, and this time, I knew it was from arousal. One thing Allie couldn’t deny was the pull between us, and that was a start.
Chapter Fifty-Three
Allie
Standing before the Council of Witches and the other attending witches was intimidating. Witch in good standing or not, I was still a succubus, and sex demons were looked down on by most witches, probably because of their tendency to seduce warlocks, even attached ones. The fact that Isadora Hunt wanted me with her son still made absolutely no sense. I’d been assuming she was just getting desperate, but our conversation earlier had me questioning my original assumption.
Dylan reached out and squeezed my hand before leaning toward me. “It’s going to be okay, sweetheart. I’m right here, and I won
’t let anything bad happen to you.”
“I’m not worried,” I said, but it seemed ridiculous to argue when anyone with eyes could see I was terrified. “It’s just that I really wish I knew what was going to happen. Not knowing makes it harder.”
“I wish I could tell you, but you already know the test is different for everyone,” Dylan told me, looking regretful. “Allie, I’m sorry I let my mother push you into this, and even more sorry I helped her do it. Seeing you like this is tearing me up inside.”
There were moments like this when I knew I could fall in love with Dylan, but I was still terrified he would break my heart. No, Dylan wouldn’t cheat on me. He’d be faithful, but how could I be enough for a warlock of his stature? Despite my father’s high rank, I was still half-succubus, and most witches still didn’t accept me because of that. Then I had to wonder if all of these worries were just excuses to avoid admitting that I was already falling in love with Dylan. Was I just trying to keep myself from hoping we’d pass the affinity test?
For some reason, I’d assumed we’d come into the meeting and move straight to the affinity test. Apparently, we were last on the agenda, which meant we had to sit through the entire meeting while we waited to see what would happen, as if I weren’t already stressed out enough.
The meeting seemed to go on forever as the COWs discussed all sorts of boring business, including a complaint about how Night High was portraying witches as ditsy cheerleaders. Yes, this was a major concern, and the council unanimously agreed to call Mel before them to explain her script. That was a meeting I might attend because Mel’s response was sure to be entertaining.
Dylan leaned close until his warm breath fanned out across my ear. “We should come back when Melina answers their questions about Night High. I’d love to see their faces when she tells them to go fuck themselves.”
I put a hand over my mouth and looked down, hoping the council wouldn’t notice me trying to stifle my giggles. Dylan had apparently spent enough time around Mel to know how she’d react. It wasn’t the part about explaining herself that she’d react poorly to as much as them telling her to change her portrayal of witches. I couldn’t wait to see what she did with the witches on the show after that meeting.
Sinfully Spellbound (Spells That Bind Book 1) Page 23