Violet

by Mia Harlan

  “The turn is going smoothly,” Aldo tells us. “We need to take her inside before her skin starts to burn, but I predict she’ll be up and about by morning.”

  “If Aldo says she’ll be fine, she will be,” Bert says confidently. “He’s been around for hundreds of turns.”

  The vampire in question nods while Hugh scoops her up and gets to his feet. I start to follow, but Cash wraps an arm around my shoulder, holding me back.

  “I need to be with her,” I tell him.

  “Right now, she needs to be with her mates,” he says softly. “It’s a vampire thing. But I can promise they’ll watch over her.”

  “We’ll be there the whole time,” Bert swears. “Come by the house in the morning. I’m sure she’d want to see you then.”

  “I will.” I smile and turn back to Cash. “What do we do now?”

  “Whatever you want, little furry.” He smiles back, but instead of looking at him, I turn toward the forest longingly.

  “You want to find your bear shifter, don’t you?” Cash asks softly.

  And even though I know Nole betrayed me and then left without a word, I can’t help it. I nod.

  “Then come on. We’ll take you.” Cash threads his fingers through mine, and Liam wraps an arm around my shoulder, leading me past the burnt squad car to the Screech company car.

  Chapter 26

  Nole

  “Can one of you guys get the door?” I ask my brothers, not bothering to look up from the prank video I’m watching.

  The three of us are lounging around the living room, dicking around on our phones—two hairy-ass motherfuckers and me. They look like baboons with all that hair growing out of their arms, legs, chins, cheeks, and even their foreheads. It’s so bad, they’ve had to trim around their eyes just to be able to see—but it serves them right for forcing me to show up to work in Wes’s tiny-ass suit.

  Whoever’s at the door knocks again, and my brothers groan.

  “Fine, I’ll get it,” Nyle finally grumbles. He gets to his feet and I barely contain a snort.

  This is going to be good!

  The lock clicks, the door groans, and the people outside gasp. I feel a moment’s satisfaction... but it’s dulled, knowing I can’t share it with the one person who’d understand. Violet!

  I miss her so much already, and it’s only been a few hours since I last saw her. But knowing that I won’t see her at work—that we’ll never get to come up with pranks or even just talk—really hurts.

  "What the hell happened to you?" a familiar voice asks Nyle from the front porch. Stupid fucking blood mage who stole my mate—who protected her, too—not that it makes me feel any better.

  He snorts at my prank—at my brother—and I almost shift at the spot.

  "That's not Nole. It's one of his brothers." Violet, my Violet, giggles. I recognize her young, beautiful voice—so unlike the old one I’m used to, and yet so her. So right.

  “I’m Nyle,” my brother introduces himself. “You must be Violet?”

  Which must have been pretty obvious when I threw myself in front of her during that fight and refused to budge. Wouldn’t do that for anyone unless she’s my mate.

  “I am. And that’s Cash... and Liam,” she says. Who the fuck is Liam? “I like your hair-style, by the way.”

  Nyle snorts and I can’t help falling a little more in love with her. She always gets my pranks... always gets me... so why has she never wanted me the way I’ve always wanted her?

  I jump to my feet and storm to my room before my brothers can see me cry. Because grown-ass men don’t cry, not even when they’re losing their mates.

  “Is Nole home?” Violet’s voice rings through our tiny cabin, though I haven’t a clue what she might want with me. Whatever it is, I know I wouldn’t be able to say no.

  “He’s in his room. Sulking,” Neal calls out. Loudly. “Come on in.”

  I sit on the edge of my bed and brace myself, waiting for my mate and her two bodyguards to storm in. I only hear one set of footsteps, and when she steps through the door, it’s just her. My Violet. My mate. Who’s not really mine.

  She’s still wearing her granny clothes, stained with grass, mud and blood. Her hair’s a complete mess and she hasn’t a lick of makeup on, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone more beautiful. Just knowing that she left that fight and came straight here... it makes me want to pull her into my arms and never let go. Even though I know she doesn’t want me.

  “What are you doing here?” I ask calmly. Like it doesn’t hurt just looking at her. Like I don’t want to fall at her feet and beg her to be with me.

  "I... I just wanted to say thanks," she says softly, a light blush tinging her cheeks.

  "Why?” I ask, because that is the last thing I expected.

  "You brought your clan to the fight. And you risked your life to save mine.”

  "I'll always be there for you, Violet," I tell her softly. "Even if we can’t be together.”

  “But why can’t we? Be together, I mean?”

  “Because you don’t want me.” I scowl, trying to push away the hurt and the pain as it comes rearing back. “You never wanted me.”

  “I have. Since the moment we met,” Violet says. But it’s a total and complete lie.

  Tears spring to her eyes and I want to pull her into my arms, but I’m hurting too. And her words... her lies... they could destroy me. “You could have told me who you were, Violet. You had a year to tell me. If you really wanted me, you would have.”

  “I couldn’t risk it,” she whispers.

  “Not even with your mate?”

  “I didn’t know you were my mate, Nole. I’m a chameleon. We don’t feel mating bonds the way other shifters do,” she says, but I’m already shaking my head.

  “Yet you ran and told your blood mage the first chance you got.”

  “No,” Violet cries. “He just found out. I swear. And I wanted to tell you. I did! I was just scared.”

  “Of those witches? Or of losing your precious job?” I spit, even though I know I’m being unfair. I’m being a fucking asshole to her right now, but the pain, the hurt—the knowledge that my mate chose another man over me—it refuses to let go.

  “I was never planning to keep that job.” Violet cries. “I get that you didn't know people were after me when you told the mayor—"

  “I didn’t tell the mayor!” I growl. “I swear to you, Violet, that wasn’t me.”

  “But...”

  “Fine, I thought it was me.” I throw up my hands. “But as soon as the mayor left, I called Amber. She’s the only person I told, and she swore she hadn’t mentioned you, not even to my brother or her other mates. She said it never came up.”

  Violet just stares at me.

  “I swear to you, Violet. I wasn’t the one who told Mayor Shchnarl.”

  “Then who did?”

  “We could always ask.” Because I’m telling her the truth, and I believe my brother’s mate. So it had to have been someone else.

  “We could.” Violet smiles softly, and I start to feel hope.

  “So you really want to give this a shot?” I ask, not daring to breathe.

  Violet nods and I reach for her... but she quickly backs away.

  “There’s one more thing you should know,” she says, refusing to meet my eyes.

  “What?” I demand, trying to keep the fear out of my voice. Is she not really my age? Are there more people after her? Does she secretly hate pranks?!

  “I have another mate,” she says softly. “His name’s Liam.”

  “Were you sleeping around with him the whole time I knew you?” I demand before I can keep my big mouth shut.

  Violet’s eyes widen, but instead of slapping me, she looks like she’s the one who’s been slapped.

  “I’m sorry! I didn’t mean that.” I run my hands through my hair. “You don’t have to answer that.”

  “I actually met him a few days ago,” Violet says, and I can’t help feeling re
lieved. “He’s Betty’s grandson.”

  “Betty from the library?”

  Violet nods.

  “The uniformed troll fighting beside you?”

  She nods again.

  I nod in approval. “He protected you.”

  “He did.” She says with this soft smile that makes jealousy course through me. One day I hope she’ll be smiling like that when she’s thinking about me.

  “And where are your mates now?” I ask, because there’s one more thing I have to do.

  “Waiting on your porch,” Violet’s cheeks flush.

  “Then I guess it’s about time that I met them.”

  Chapter 27

  Violet

  After Nole’s done meeting the guys—which consists of a lot of growling and posturing, followed by handshakes—Cash suggests that we order pizza.

  Nole and his brothers—who look like sasquaches—jump on the idea like rabid dogs on a bone... or rabid bears on a berry? Whatever the case, I’m no better than they are, because I’m still in major pizza withdrawal.

  When our order arrives, I hog an entire box. The guys grab plates, pass around drinks, and then Liam, Cash, and I squeeze onto the couch. Since there’s no more room, Nole settles on the carpet at my feet and his brothers pull up chairs. Then they put on a movie. The whole thing feels so normal—so ‘age appropriate’—that I suddenly want to cry.

  After the movie, my mates and I relocate to Wes’s cabin so we can have some privacy. Just the four of us, alone, standing awkwardly in the middle of the sparsely furnished living room.

  “I don't know how to do this...” I finally confess.

  “This?” Nole frowns.

  “The multiple mate thing.” My cheeks heat. Maybe I should have gone with my sister to Jewels Cafe and asked for some advice instead of coming here. Or paid more attention when reading reverse harem books, so I’d know what to do next.

  “I’m sure we’ll figure it out.” Cash shrugs, like it’s no big deal. Then again, he’s not the one standing in the middle of a cabin, surrounded by his three hot mates... who are just staring at him instead of doing something. Anything!

  “Bears have multiple mates,” Nole blurts. “My sister Clara has four, and she has them on a rotation.”

  “Rotation?”

  “A different man in her bed each day of the week. Except on weekends, Wednesdays, and holidays.”

  “That’s very... um...” Scheduled? Weird? “organized.”

  “It is.” Nole nods. “Gives her a break in between.”

  “Right...” And it’s totally not weird that he knows about his sister’s sex life.

  “My other sister, Carla, only has two mates,” Nole adds, “and they always fight over her.”

  “They do?” I glance at my guys, worried they’ll start fighting, too.

  “Nothing serious, mostly just trying to one up each other.” Nole shrugs.

  I frown.

  “Carla usually takes whichever guy wins to bed, but sometimes she just sleeps with whoever is less annoying.”

  “That doesn’t really sound...” Appealing? Desirable? “All that great.”

  “I think what Nole’s trying to say...” Liam moves closer and pulls me into his side, “is that every relationship is different, and we have to figure out what works for us. Isn’t that right, Nole?”

  Whatever look the troll shoots him over my head must be pretty menacing, because Nole is suddenly nodding emphatically, eyes wide.

  “Do you guys really think we can make this work?” I ask hopefully.

  “Obviously,” Nole says, like it was never even a question.

  “We can,” Cash adds, giving my hand a squeeze.

  “Do you remember what I said before, gorgeous?” Liam suddenly turns me to face him.

  “What?”

  “You're a troll’s mate now. All you have to do is tell me what you want, and I’ll see that it’s done. So if you want this to work with all four of us, I’ll find a way. Starting now.”

  Liam cups my cheek, leans down, and covers my lips with his. He kisses me, soft and slow, and then hard and rough, while two sets of eyes bore into me, watching.

  Knowing that my other two mates are right there, watching me make out with my troll, is unbelievably hot. I let out a whimper of need... and promptly shift.

  “What the hell?” Liam jumps back. His rejection hurts more than I can say—until I realize I just shifted into his gran.

  “Betty from the library?” Cash smirks.

  “She’s his grandmother,” Nole adds with a snort. And that does it. I instantly shift back.

  “You could have just told me to stop,” Liam pouts. “If you think we’re going too fast, we can take our time. There’s no rush.”

  “Liam’s right...” Cash starts to say, but I shake my head vehemently.

  “I don’t want to stop. And I don’t want to wait. I didn’t even shift on purpose.” I cover my face with my hands.

  “Then why did you?” Liam asks.

  Cash and Nole don’t say anything, but I can tell they want to know too.

  I don’t want to tell them—I really, really don’t—but there’s no getting out of it. Not if I ever want to be intimate with my mates. So I take a deep breath and just blurt it out. “This always happens when I’m turned on.”

  “Turned on?” Cash smirks.

  Liam seems mollified.

  Nole, on the other hand, looks hurt. “Does that mean I don’t turn you on?” he asks.

  “Of course you do.” My cheeks grow hot. “I had to fight it... when we were at work.”

  “I turned you on at work?” Nole smirks.

  I flush.

  “But you didn’t shift...” he adds.

  “You just need to move closer,” Cash tells him, moving toward me. Crowding me. Taking up all my personal space. “Then, you need to seduce her.”

  He presses his finger gently against my lips and then trails it down to my collarbone. By the time he reaches the spot between my breasts, I start to pant.

  “You can’t just make me shift whenever you want,” I pant, trying to fight the magic.

  “Are you sure?” he leans in and sucks on my neck.

  Just like that, I shift. Not once. Twice. First into old Violet, then into Betty.

  Predictably, Cash pulls away.

  “Is there a way to make it stop?” Liam asks, watching Betty-me wearily. I don’t really blame him.

  If my mate turned into my grandmother—or the closest thing I’ve got to a grandmother, which I guess means Violet—I’d be pretty put off, too.

  I wish I could say there was a cure, or a way to control it, but wonky magic is wonky magic. “I’ve tried to learn to control it, but I can’t. It doesn’t stop, not until...” My cheeks flush.

  “Until what?” Liam asks hopefully.

  “You can tell us, little furry,” Cash adds.

  My cheeks flush and I blurt out, “Until I orgasm.”

  “Well, that's good, then." Liam smirks. “Trolls have a rule about that.”

  "A rule?"

  He nods. “Before we can make love to our mate, we have to make her orgasm... Twenty-four times."

  “What?” I gape at him.

  “It’s actually one orgasm for every birthday the troll’s had...” he shrugs. “But in my case, that makes it twenty four.”

  “Twenty-four times?” I repeat, waiting for him to say he’s kidding.

  “Is that not enough?” he asks instead.

  “I think it might be too much,” I say, feeling a little faint.

  Liam smirks. “Then we'd better get started.”

  Epilogue

  Violet

  “It's going to take me a while to get used to you looking like that,” Betty says as we walk up the front steps to Spell Library.

  “I’m really sorry I lied to you about who I was, Betty. I—”

  “I know you had no choice and I understand, my dear.” She pats my hand warmly. “And I’m so happy
you’re mates with my Liam. Makes you my granddaughter, you know.”

  “Now that’s going to take a while to get used to,” I tell her honestly as she starts to open the library door. “Betty, wait. Are you sure I should even be here?”

  “You still have a library card, don’t you?” She asks. “And we can’t have a Mood Tea and Books meeting without you. It wouldn’t be right.”

  I’m not sure being here is right, but I step inside anyway. I can’t avoid the library forever—it’s where all the books are. Plus, Nole works here, so I’m bound to end up coming to his workplace to see him. Not to mention that I really do love this place... and even if I can’t work here, at least I can still come here to read.

  “Meo-uff!” Stacks races up to me, tail wagging, the moment we step through the door.

  "I missed you, little guy." I bend down and scratch him behind the ears.

  The cat-dog flops onto his back, belly up.

  “Are you coming to Mood Tea and Books, Stacks?” I tease as I fall to my knees so I can give his belly a good rub.

  My brand new jeans pull tight and ride low—a feeling I’m not used to after a year in Granny Wear—but if the benefit is that I get to look my age, I’m so not complaining.

  I give him one final scratch, get to my feet—pull up my jeans—and follow Betty across the main floor. A main floor which, I realize, is completely empty.

  “Where did everybody go?” I frown. Nole’s not behind the front desk, and there’s absolutely no sign of the new librarian he said would be starting today. Plus, the tables, the couches, the shelves—they’re completely devoid of people.

  “They’re probably already in the program room,” Betty says, like it’s perfectly normal not to have a single patron on the main floor.

  Then again, nothing about being back at Spell Library feels normal. Since the first day I set foot in this building, I was always the eighty-year-old librarian, but for the first time, I’m just me. And I don’t even work here. Plus, crossing the main floor to the program room takes under a minute, instead of ten that leave me breathless, which definitely feels foreign.