Real Love

by Sophie Martin

  “Then what’s the problem?” Ross asked.

  Jack looked into those feline eyes and stated flatly, “There is no such thing as a true love spell. The so-called love spells are enchantments which create in their target the need to please the caster. They are barely more than a form of mind control. They cannot create true emotions.”

  “Okay?” Ross sounded confused. “I still don’t see the problem.”

  “Yeah, see, there is this small catch, a way to avoid being put under a love spell. Do you know what that is?”

  “No, but I’ve a feeling you’ll enlighten me.”

  “If a person is already truly in love with someone else, they cannot fall under the love spell’s influence. So, you see, he had never genuinely loved me, not even when he professed his feelings.” Jack finished and fell silent, staring morosely into space. Ross was quiet for a long time. Jack nearly forgot about his presence altogether, when a sharply spoken word startled him.

  “Bullshit!”

  “I beg your pardon?”

  “I call bullshit,” Ross snapped. “This is so not the reason you look miserable.”

  “I…” Jack started, then thought better of it. There was no reason to deny it. Hadn’t he already decided to speak to Ross about what bothered him? No sense backing out now. “How do you know?” he asked just to be contrary. Ross’s strange, disembodied voice huffed, and Jack had a feeling that if the owlcat could, he’d be rolling his eyes.

  “You were both still incredibly young back then. Barely more than children. And while you had the help of being paranormal and recognizing your prospective mate in Lucas, he was, still is, simply human. Humans of this age rarely know their minds well enough to truly, lastingly love someone. He might have been in love with you, or it might have been a crush that would have changed into something stronger given time. But he was snatched by the witch before it could happen. You’re a smart man, and a teacher, so you know kids’ nature better than anyone else. Teenagers are in love with this person one day, the next they already love another. Don’t tell me that’s the reason why you look like a kicked puppy.”

  “And just where did you learn so much about human teenagers’ nature?” Jack asked mostly to stall, but his lips twisted in a small smile.

  “From the telly, where else? You’d be surprised what truths daytime television reveals,” Ross snarked, then asked, “So, tell me the truth.”

  Jack shot the owlcat a quick look then stared into space with unseeing eyes again.

  “I’m broken, Ross,” he said quietly, hesitantly. “What they did to me in that brothel… I still have nightmares. I might seem all right on the surface, but I’m not. I’m in no shape to start a relationship, and Lucas… His situation is precarious enough. His wife was a witch and mind controlled him with spells for years. He’s got a couple of children, one of whom is a witch, the other a teenage warlock. If or when he learns of the paranormal, it’s going to be a huge shock for him. He doesn’t need to deal with my baggage on top of it.” He finished speaking and stayed quiet, not looking at Ross again. The owlcat was silent for the longest time.

  “You still love him, don’t you? You wouldn’t be so worried about him otherwise.”

  “I still care about him, yes. But is it love? Can you even love a person you haven’t seen for decades? I admit, our parting had left me heartbroken. And I wasn’t lying when I said he hurt me badly. His betrayal left me wary of relationships. I haven’t been with anyone since then. I have trust issues which haven’t been helped by my first alpha’s treachery. I’m a mess, plain and simple.”

  “So, what are you going to do? Avoid him? Pretend you feel nothing for him?” Ross’s voice was gentle as he inquired.

  “I don’t know, Ross. I simply do not know.” Jack shook his head and looked at the owlcat, feeling wretched.

  “I cannot give you advice,” Ross said. “I have no relationship experience, and it’s not my place to give you my opinion anyway. But just remember, if you ever feel like talking about it with someone, I’m here to listen.”

  “Thanks, Ross, that means a lot to me.” Jack meant it. Having someone to speak to was a luxury he had never had before.

  “Anytime,” Ross said, then fluffed-up his feathers—and when did he turn into owl anyway?—and teased lightly, “So, what does an owlcat need to do around here to get some nice juicy steak?”

  “I don’t know,” Jack teased him back, feeling inexplicably lighter, “steal it from a tiger?”

  “Ha, there’s a fine idea!” Ross perked up at the thought. “Come on inside then. I’ll need your help getting into the fridge.” With a chuckle Jack stood up and obeyed, following Ross in his cat form again into the house. He might not know what to do about his date with Lucas, but there was no reason to worry over it too much. No sense borrowing trouble. The pack had had enough of real ones already.

  Chapter Six

  “Are you avoiding me?” The teasing voice startled Jack as he was unlocking his car. He closed his eyes briefly before turning around with a smile.

  “Of course I am not avoiding you. Why would you think that?” Lucas’s smile at his answer managed to nearly hide the sliver of uncertainty from Jack. But what reason would Lucas have to be uncertain?

  “Well, you did cancel our date on me and haven’t called me back since. And I know I’m not such a good catch, a widower with a couple of kids. I wouldn’t blame you if you did try to avoid me.” Jack’s jaw nearly dropped. Lucas thought he wasn’t a catch? Not knowing how to address that, Jack decided to concentrate on an issue he knew how to explain.

  “I’m sorry for cancelling our date and not calling you. The school’s been busy with the end of term, and I’m undergoing an appraisal, as I’m quite recently employed here. I’m sorry it seemed as if I was avoiding you.” Lucas’s face brightened and he relaxed.

  “Oh, good. I was afraid I scared you away for good. I didn’t want to come across like some stalker, but I had great time when we went out and I thought you did as well.” Lucas’s voice turned softer and more serious. “I would really like to see if there could be something between us. I know it might seem soon, but we don’t need to rush into anything. We can take our time, get to know each other better.”

  Before Jack could answer, they saw Brian approaching.

  “You’re not flirting with my teacher right in front of the school, are you, Dad?” Brian asked suspiciously.

  “Me? Why, of course not. We were discussing the end of term.” Lucas grinned at his son who didn’t seem to believe him.

  “Right. ‘Cause it would be embarrassing if you did, for both me and Mr. Robinson, you know that, right?” Brian wasn’t letting go.

  “I would never do anything to embarrass Jack,” Lucas assured the kid with sincerity. Brian watched him through his narrowed eyes for a second, then relaxed and twisted his lips in a very teenage-like grimace of disgust.

  “Well at least you’re not pretending you wouldn’t embarrass me,” the kid grumbled.

  “Son, once you have your own kids, you’ll quickly learn this is the best part of having children. Embarrassing them. It’s also parents’ revenge for all those sleepless nights and worry you put us through,” Lucas said with a twinkle in his eye. Brian only snorted.

  “Whatever. Can we go pick up Ruby now? I’ve got tons of homework for next week and want to deal with it today. I’m going out with Morton tomorrow. He promised to teach me…” Brian faltered. If Jack weren’t aware of what the older witch was teaching the kid, he wouldn’t have caught it. “Some of that science stuff he’s studying.” Lucas sighed dramatically at that.

  “My son, the nerd.” He threw his hands in the air in false exasperation.

  “Whatever,” Brian mumbled with an impressive eye roll and looking embarrassed. He reminded Jack of younger Lucas right then.

  Jack chuckled and said, grateful to the teenager for saving him having to answer Lucas’s offer, “I won’t keep you then. You should praise your son for bei
ng such a good student and always doing his homework, Lucas, not try to embarrass him.”

  “Ha, what would be the fun in that?” Lucas grinned and Jack shook his head, chuckling. “Okay then, let’s go pick Ruby from her karate classes.” The man addressed his son. Brian nodded and turned to Jack.

  “Goodbye, Mr. Robinson,” Brian said before turning and going to Lucas’s car after Jack nodded at him in acknowledgement. Lucas turned to Jack, smiling.

  “Seems I’ve gotta go. Call me when you’re less busy and we can set up another date, hmm?” He didn’t wait for answer, simply turned with a little wave, and left. Jack stood there for a moment watching him. He told the truth about being evaluated and extremely busy. At least the pack’s enemies had been quiet recently. Jack didn’t know what he would do if he had to deal with it on top of everything else. But what he didn’t say was that he still had no idea how to deal with Lucas’s interest. He pushed the issue aside for the time being, but obviously soon he’d have to deal with it.

  With a small sigh Jack got in his car and started it. He had to deal with the school stuff first. He knew he likely had nothing to fear from the appraisal. He was a good teacher and he knew it. His old school gave him good referral since he had already handed in his notice before he had been kidnapped. They only knew he never came back for all his documents, but he explained it as family emergency when he had gone to pick it up, so there were no hard feelings. The new school was also happy with him. He had made a few tentative friends within the teaching body. They were barely more than acquaintances as it was never a good idea to get too close to humans, but that was enough. Not every human made close friends in their workplace either. The headmistress often told him how happy she was with his teaching methods, so the evaluation was more of a formality. Still, he wanted to show himself in the best possible light. The end of term was a busy time as well, and Jack was really swamped with work. He appreciated that Lucas seemed to understand that. He remembered younger Lucas being less patient and more demanding. That was probably one of many changes in the man. There were decades separating them after all. Gods knew Jack had changed drastically in that time. He was less idealistic, less trusting, but much, much stronger. He had survived hell and came out of it a hot mess, but alive.

  Jack shook his head, realizing he was still sitting in the school’s parking lot. Putting his car in gear, he dismissed the thoughts of his love life and concentrated on what he needed to do once he got home.

  * * * *

  Dominic was nervous, but he thought he hid it well. He was on his way to the airport to pick up his grandparents. He had no idea what to expect. His father didn’t have any photos of them, so Dom had no idea what they could look like. Fortunately, his father would be waiting for him at the airport and would be there to facilitate their first meeting, so Dom didn’t have to worry about missing them. Still, Dominic’s stomach was twisted with nerves and his wolf was restless as if sensing his unease. At least Jimmy decided to go with him. Dominic was glad. His mate’s presence helped to calm him and his inner beast. The wolf had been more and more active lately, coming out at the slightest provocation. The animal was becoming frustrated with being locked up inside Dominic, never to be let out. Tough shit, Dom thought. He wasn’t so thrilled to share space with the ornery animal either.

  He tried to hide it from Jimmy, but he was getting worried. He was no closer to shifting than he had been when first learning about being a shifter. Meeting his grandparents was probably his only chance of getting help now. He knew what was going to happen if he didn’t shift. He was going to go feral. He had heard all the horror stories. Dominic didn’t want to turn into a crazed killer, and he feared he was closer to it than anyone suspected. The agreement he had reached with his wolf thanks to Eric’s help was wearing thin. The wolf was losing his patience fast. Dominic didn’t tell anyone, but he was getting short-tempered, his usual self-control all but gone. He had caused trouble at work the last few times he went out on a job alone. The only time he felt content and calm was when he was with his mate.

  Dominic looked to Jimmy, who was nearly bouncing with excitement in the passenger seat, and smiled. His mate was the source of never-ending joy for Dom. The little fey was Dominic’s dream partner and he thanked fate for having met him.

  “What do you think they’ll be like?” Jimmy chattered, his eyes wide and sparkling with eagerness. “Do you think they’ll be nice? Your dad is nice, and they raised him so they might be nice too. Do you think they’ll like me? Will they mind that I’m a pixie? Maybe they wanted you to settle down with another werewolf. Wolf-shifter!” he exclaimed. “I meant wolf-shifter! Cor blimey, I hope I won’t insult them when we meet. You know how I can sometimes blurt stuff out without thinking.” Jim scrunched his face in an adorable frown. Yes, Dominic found his mate’s frowns adorable, so sue him.

  “I’m sure they’ll love you, sweet. You’re a very lovable guy after all. But if they have something against you, then they can stuff their opinion where the sun doesn’t shine. You’re my mate and that’s that. It’s not like they’ve been in my life up till now. As soon as they helped me with my problem, they can sod off back to their Hawaii or wherever.” Dominic and his wolf agreed on that.

  “Aww, that’s so sweet of you to say. But I do hope they like me. Wouldn’t it be nice to have more of your family around? Ones that you have something in common with?” Jimmy’s tone was wistful.

  “God, Jimmy, I’m sorry. You must be missing your family.” Now that Dom said it, he was surprised that he hadn’t noticed anything before. Jim and Tim were forbidden from visiting the fey realm because of pixie disappearances over there.

  “Ah, it’s okay.” Jimmy’s smile was bittersweet. “It’s just, I haven’t seen them in five years, and I was okay with that. We spoke on those magic-globes, so I didn’t miss them. But it’s like, as soon as I learned we couldn’t visit, I immediately wanted to, you know? It’s like forbidden fruit or something.” He scrunched his face thoughtfully. “Since you know you can’t have it, you crave it even more. And I really wish they could all meet you and Joel. It’s such a big thing, finding your mate, and I’d like to share it with them.”

  Dominic’s heart gave a painful twinge at the longing in his lover’s voice. He wished he could fix the situation and give Jimmy what he wanted, but it was way beyond his means. Instead he reached over and took Jimmy’s hand in his, squeezing it reassuringly.

  “Let’s hope they can get the situation sorted soon and then we’ll be able to visit.” Jim gave him a wobbly smile, then seemed to visibly shake off his morose thoughts.

  “Sorry for getting all gloomy on you, sweet. We should be excited to meet your grandparents instead of wailing of not being able to see my family. Besides, Thoren visits quite often and I’m still not sure whether I like it or not.” Jimmy scrunched his nose. “He can be really overbearing. Hey, do you think Joel and your dad are already at the airport?” Dom’s mate changed the subject in his usual abrupt fashion. “I hope Joel won’t leave before we see him. I wanted to show him new pictures of the little ones.” Jim pulled out his smartphone and started scrolling through the dozens of pictures of their kittens that he took in the last couple of days. Dom hid his smile. His little pixie was adorable with the kittens, and even Dominic’s wolf was grudgingly admitting that adopting the little rascals was a good idea. Dom suspected that his inner beast had a hidden soft spot for the two fur-balls, and they both seemed to love him, climbing on top of Dom whenever he practiced being one with his inner wolf. Glad for the thoughts of the kittens distracting him from the impending meeting, Dom once again focused on the road and Jimmy’s amiable chatter.

  * * * *

  Ruby was bored. She’d finished all her homework. She didn’t feel like reading a book, watching telly, or playing Xbox. Brian was holed up in his room reading that huge book Morton lent him. He was trying to discover more about his warlock powers. Dad was busy with work emails downstairs and she didn’t want to distur
b him. Ever since they came to live here and got accepted into the pack things were going great with Dad. He was spending more time with them and was more relaxed. Ruby thought a lot of it had to do with Mr Robinson. She liked Brian’s teacher, she thought as she flopped listlessly on the bed. He was chill and he didn’t behave like most grown-ups. He actually listened to both Brian and Ruby and did his best to explain things. Ruby hoped him and Dad would become boyfriends. It would be nice to have another paranormal in the house, an adult one. And Mr Robinson knew things. A lot of things. Ruby bet he knew more about paranormals than Mother ever did. Ruby came to realise that her mother’s teachings had a lot of holes in them. Like, she never even said there were other paranormals than witches. And there were so many! Shifters and vampires and fey and demons. Ruby wondered whether Mother even knew about them. All she had ever taught Ruby was how to access her magic and some basic spells. Mother’s grimoire was quite thick though. She must have had more spells in there.

  “Oh!” Ruby felt like she just had a cartoon-style lightbulb moment. She could look through the grimoire. Maybe she’d find some interesting spells in there. And even if she didn’t, she could still learn more about magic. It sure beat being bored out of her mind. Decision made she went to the airing cupboard where some of Mother’s things were stored. She pulled out the correct box and carted it to her room. Placing it on her desk she carefully opened it and pulled out the grimoire. Excited now she placed it in the middle of the desk. Taking a deep breath and grinning madly she opened it in a random place. Suddenly, there was a whooshing, then creaking sound. Ruby got lightheaded and went to grab for the back of her chair to steady herself, but her hand missed.

  “Wha–” She looked at where her hand was hovering twenty centimetres over the top of the chair. That wasn’t right. She shook her head, but the dizziness didn’t dissipate. Worse, it seemed to get stronger instead. And then she finally noticed it. Her feet weren’t touching the floor! Ruby couldn’t help it, she screamed in fright. Not a long scream, just a short burst of sound which she soon muffled behind her hand. “Oh no, no, no, no, no. Please, this can’t be happening!” she muttered to herself. A curse! There must have been a curse on the grimoire. Mother always said not to touch it without her supervision, but in her excitement, Ruby completely forgot about it. And now she was trapped! Ruby watched with wide eyes as her feet lifted higher and higher off the floor. It felt weird, as if she were floating in the sea. She tried jumping up and down, hoping the down motion would carry her back to the floor, but no luck.