by Shona Husk
And do what?
Take over the coven finances and help with the running of the agency. Is that how he wanted to spend his life? He’d never really stopped to think about that, and he didn’t have that luxury now when even living wasn’t guaranteed. He pushed aside the thought. Going into battle expecting death was a sure way for it to arrive, and he wasn’t ready to join the Morrigu’s eternal army.
He was, however, ready to ask for his heart back so he could truly live again, he just hoped that the Morrigu was ready to release it, and him, from his promise to find a way to destroy demons.
In his mind a mountain formed, the one he’d often imagined his quest to be. Always slogging up hill and never sure what was just around the next bend, yet always hoping it would be the last one and he’d have reached the top. As he stood there now, the scent of pine needles on the breeze and the cool air on his skin, he realized that the top wouldn’t offer a better view than what he had now. Stretched below was a world waiting to be explored while he’d focused on the one thing. He glanced up but the peak was shrouded in clouds, the same as always.
He used to come here and be so frustrated, sure he was circling the peak and not actually climbing. He shoved his hands into his pockets. He was ready to climb down and find a new challenge.
“A new challenge when you haven’t finished this one?” Her voice was as soft as silk wrapped around a knife.
“I have finished it the best I can. I understand the difference between personal demons and those that attack and kill.” The view shifted as if they were walking around the mountain, where there had been land there was now ocean.
“Then you also know that once a demon is in your world, to vanquish it requires a death.”
He’d been coming to that unwelcome conclusion.
“Everyone dies, Noah, you know that, so don’t grow morals that don’t suit you. Witches have been dealing with demons since humans fell from the trees.”
Thus why witches had developed a bad reputation. As religions had changed, people had mistakenly thought they were making deals to gain power. He’d wasted five years of his life. “You knew the answer.”
“You wouldn’t have listened if I’d told you. You had to throw yourself at the mountain and work it out for yourself. Some people are too broken to fix, you should know that better than anyone.”
He did. He had come so close to finding out what having a demon meant. If not for Her guarding his heart and his back, he’d have been no different to Cory. He shivered and it had nothing to do with the cold breeze swirling around the mountain.
He glanced at Her. Her skin was like snow, and even on the mountainside She was dressed in lingerie and feathers. He glanced at Her feet, they were bare. He bit back a smile as he thought of the shoes Rachel had showed him; he’d been wrong. The Morrigu didn’t wear shoes—not for him, anyway.
She raised one eyebrow and gave him a lazy smile with Her blood red lips. “You don’t like what I’m wearing?”
He did, always had.
“It got your attention the way nothing else would. You didn’t want a warrior at your side, or someone to show you how to build an empire. You wanted a woman who would look at you and not run, who would understand you and look past the damage.” She trailed Her hand over his chest, pausing over his heart. She’d always touched him as if they were lovers. But no mortal could truly love Her. “You have that now.”
She meant Rachel. She didn’t love him. She needed him, wanted him. He’d like a chance to see if there could be more.
“She knows you and all things you try to hide from everyone else. She has faith in you that even you lack.”
“I gave my heart to you.”
“And I have kept it safe.” The cup appeared, crimson and cream, his old team colors. The cracks were gone. Instead of being empty, it was filled with something pale and almost golden. Hope. It had been his drive and ambition that had leaked out, without them not even anger could survive.
He glanced between Her and the cup, not sure if it was a trick or not. “I can have it back?”
“It was always yours. You will come back to me one day.”
“Not today?”
“I have not spoken to the Fates. Would you like to know your dying day?”
He thought for a moment. What would he try to squeeze in if he knew the time and place of his death? Would he be able to face it or run? “No.” But he would make sure to live properly and enjoy what he had instead of treating each day like a battle that could only be lost or won.
The Morrigu handed him the cup. It was warm in his hands, his second chance, and he wasn’t going to screw it up.
“Don’t go into the battle on your own. This is not your fight, but every witch’s fight. Spread what you have learned so that others can rediscover the lost lore.”
He nodded. “I will. Am I released from my vow?”
“You are.” Her voice echoed off the mountain.
For a moment he was weightless, as if he were flying, then reality snapped back and he was sitting on the bathroom floor with a numb ass and his legs cold and cramped. His stomach turned as Her words reformed and echoed around him. It took a couple of slow breaths to regain control, and another before he was game enough to stand up.
He was free and he had his heart back…so why didn’t he feel any different?
Rachel admired her feet in the shoes. They looked great, but could she walk in them? No. Not for more than a few yards. If she practiced she was sure she’d be able to totter around in them on a night out. She’d certainly like the chance to try. She dropped onto the bed and looked at her feet again. Shoes worth dying for? Close, very close.
The door opened and Noah came out dressed only in a towel that was slung too low on his hips to be decent. He looked tired, but there was something else. He looked as though he’d come to a decision and was relieved that it was made. There was an air of finality—that’s what it was. A warrior ready to go into battle and face whatever happened head on.
She stood, her ankles wobbling. “Noah?”
His gaze skimmed down her body and landed on her feet. He frowned. “What are you doing?”
“Um.” She tugged the hem of her t-shirt, wishing it was about two feet longer and covered a little bit more. “I was getting ready for a shower, then I thought I’d wear my shoes while waiting…no point in having them if I’m not going to wear them.” She forced a smile.
“Yeah, sorry I took so long. I had to speak to Her.” His gaze kept sliding to the red heels.
“I know.” She stopped trying to tug the t-shirt down and took a couple of steps towards him, hoping that she wouldn’t roll her ankle or trip and land on her face in the process. “Does She answer?”
Because whenever she’d prayed as a child it was rather one sided.
“She’s real and solid and we talk the same way we are.”
“And She’s in lingerie.”
He huffed and shook his head. “I didn’t consciously pick that, She plucked it out of my brain as a way to get my attention. Trust me when I say that whatever you are thinking has happened, hasn’t. She’s a warrior goddess, She expects men to fight and bleed and die for Her.”
“I thought She was about fertility and wealth, as well.”
“She is. Fertility means I’m supposed to marry and have kids, so the youngest son can serve Her; wealth means that I won’t starve.”
That wasn’t entirely true, Peyton was worth a mint. She’d been able to tell that from his suit and car. “But Peyton—”
“He fights on paper and donates a portion of his wealth to the coven. He is limited with the magic he can do now.”
“What do you mean?”
Noah hesitated for a moment before replying. “He got bitten by a hell hound a few years ago—using too much magic triggers a rather unpleasant side effect.”
Rachel raised her eyebrows. “What kind of side effect?”
“You aren’t going to like it.”
“I was riding around in his car.”
“And I trust him, except for when he turns into a hell hound.” Noah kind of mumbled the last few words and it took a moment for her brain to unscramble them and make sure that she hadn’t misheard.
“A what?”
“Peyton is a perfectly trustworthy witch. I wouldn’t have left you in his care otherwise.”
“And I thought demons were bad… Wait, what is a hell hound?” It didn’t sound like anything good.
“A kind of a dog—but nothing like a demon. Peyton won’t be helping us deal with Cory. He can’t, and he’d be pissed to be there and unable to throw magic around at the level required. He was almost as powerful as Mason. If he hadn’t been bit, in a few more years he’d have been one of the most powerful witches on the east coast.”
That had to hurt. To have power but not to be able to use it to help your friends. “And where do you fit?”
“Because I’ve been chasing demons, I haven’t done as much study as I should. I have enough raw power to pull this off. Sawyer and Oskar will help. If it all goes bad, at least Peyton and Mason can rebuild the coven.”
She wanted to ask if he thought it would, but she didn’t even want to voice those thoughts. “What can I do?”
“Be there for me.”
“Always. Whatever happens after this, if you ever need me, just call.” She meant that, she would drop everything if he asked for her help, but she’d much rather be by his side. With Noah, she’d discovered a new side of herself and she wanted to explore it and see where it went. She wasn’t asking for forever, just whatever worked out. She placed her hand on his chest over the raven tattoo. In heels, they were eye to eye. “How much time do we have here?”
“Long enough.” He kissed her softly on the mouth. His lips cool. “I’ll make some phone calls, you can have a shower…then maybe put your shoes back on.”
Her lips curved. “Once more for luck?”
“Something like that.” His fingers traced her cheek and slid into her hair. “I don’t want to lose you.”
She closed her eyes. She didn’t want to lose him, either. Despite the fact that she was running for her life, she’d enjoyed her time with Noah. He’d made her laugh, made her feel like she was worth saving. He’d made her remember what it was like to fall in love. “I want to keep seeing you after this.”
He didn’t answer straight away.
She knew he didn’t do relationships. She shouldn’t have said anything. She opened her eyes, ready to step away, but he stopped her. His hand was on her hip, under the t-shirt.
“I’m no good at being with someone.”
“You don’t know that. I know what you are, and what you do, and it doesn’t scare me.”
He let her go. “Tell me that again after the battle. Tell me then that you still want me and that you don’t care than I’m a witch.” But instead of his words being harsh, they sounded like a plea.
Whatever he was planning wasn’t going to be pretty, but what did she expect? Cory could rip limbs off people. If they did nothing their limbs would be scattered around a hotel room and the police would be wondering what had happened.
“You aren’t just a witch, Noah. You are the man who fought for me when no one else would. I’ll never forget that, or you.”
“Thank you.” He looked at her for a moment, then gave her a smile. “I haven’t forgotten that you owe me a drink.”
“Neither have I,” she said as she walked into the bathroom.
When she closed the door, she leaned against it to catch her breath. Had they just agreed to date if they lived? A smile curved her lips—would that be fun or terrifying? She’d know what kind of trouble he was getting up to while he as away. If she got the chance, she’d certainly give it a go. Whatever life threw at her she’d embrace with open arms instead of running and hiding.
The water was warm and she washed her hair, and spent as long as she could in there for the simple reason that it might be her last ever shower and she was determined to enjoy every moment of it. She sniffed and tried not to think about last times. She was going to live and do new things.
Rachel tipped her face to the water. Noah had a plan. A plan that could get them both arrested and charged with killing Cory. That made her pause—surely not. They’d take precautions. Her breath hiccupped. What did she think was going to happen? That they’d all walk away and say job well done? Someone would look for Cory and questions would be asked.
Isn’t this what she’d suggested at the start: killing Cory? And Noah had said no, he wasn’t a killer, that Cory could be saved. That it was the demon making him crazy. And here they were, several days later and back at the start, with Cory now more driven than before and only one card left to play.
She scrubbed her face and gave her hair one last rinse. She tried to imagine all the stress and anxiety washing down the plug, but for everything she let go something else popped up. A new doubt or a new fear. How did Noah do it? How did he focus enough to make fire? If she hadn’t seen him do it, she’d have never believed him. That was tangible, where the trick with the flour and the felt tipped pen could be written off to luck.
Could she live with a man who was able to focus on a single thing so well that all else faded?
But that was the thing she liked about him. When his attention was on her it didn’t stray. And how long until he got bored with a school teacher? Someone who couldn’t even shake off her doubts and still couldn’t understand magic even though she’d seen it.
She definitely wasn’t his usual fling.
And he wasn’t hers. She hadn’t had a fling ever. Who was to say she wouldn’t get bored of him first? Maybe she would. She didn’t know how she’d handle dating again, as it had been so long, and before Cory there’d only been a few guys in high school.
She dried and finger-combed her hair, wishing she had some makeup so she could make her eyes smoky and sexy, then put on the shoes and wrapped a towel around herself. It was as short as the t-shirt, but if she pulled it down her boobs would pop out of the top. Tiny towels that no one would dream of stealing. It was a good ploy by the hotel.
With a final glance at her reflection, she cracked open the door and listened for a heartbeat. She hoped he wouldn’t laugh when she walked out in the towel and shoes.
He wasn’t talking on the phone so she opened the door, turned off the bathroom light, took a breath and walked into the room.
Noah was lying in the bed, the sheets pulled up to his waist. His eyes were closed. “I thought you’d drowned in there.”
“Says the man who spent way longer.”
“I didn’t have the water running the whole time.” He opened his eyes and beckoned her over. “I’ve done what I can for the moment. Let’s enjoy a few hours before…”
“Before all hell breaks loose?”
He almost laughed. “Yeah.”
She pressed her lips together and fiddled with the top of the towel. One tug and it would fall off and she’d be in nothing but the shoes. She’d never been able to run around naked, always worried about what she looked like, but Noah had already seen her in the unforgiving lights of a hotel bathroom. He hadn’t said a word about her butt, her belly or thighs.
If she was ever going to let her inner exhibitionist out, it was now or never. Never seemed like a good idea, but she sucked in a breath and then her stomach and let the towel drop to the floor.
He turned, propped up on his elbow as she attempted to walk over to the bed without breaking her neck on the heels. “I don’t think I have ever appreciated shoes properly until now.”
“You just haven’t had the chance.” It was nice to know she was the first woman to make him notice.
“You walk around naked in expensive stilettos all the time?”
“I can barely walk in these.” Her feet were starting to hurt already. Maybe these were restaurant shoes, walk in sit down and walk out. They were certainly not made for dancing.
“Good thing yo
u don’t have to do much walking.”
She put her knee on the bed and realized just how impractical wearing the shoes in bed was going to be. There was a good chance she was going to stab him with one of the spiked heels. “This isn’t me.” She turned and sat down to take the shoes off. She was such a coward.
He put his hands on her shoulders and dragged her onto her back, her feet still on the floor. His face hovered over hers for a moment before he kissed her. “Sure it is, it’s just a tiny part that you don’t let out. It was very sexy watching you walk over in those shoes and nothing else. All the right bits moved.” He kissed her throat, his fingers spiraling around her breast and drawing closer to her nipple.
She bit her tongue on her reply. He wasn’t just saying that to be nice. He had no reason to. “It would be easier with the shoes off.”
“No, you asked me which pair I wanted by my ears. I chose…not that I expected them to look that good on.” He moved around her, his tongue laving over her nipple then feathering kisses down her stomach.
In the corner of her eye she glimpsed his cock, hard and waiting for attention. She reached out and ran her fingers along his length.
“Wriggle up.”
She eased further across the bed and he swung himself around to be between her legs, her feet now dangling in space. He spread her legs further, his hands sliding up her thighs so his fingertips grazed the lips of her sex. He was watching her. Even though she could see the shadows of what was to come, he was here with her now, wanting her now. And she needed him. She lifted her legs and rested her calves on his shoulders.
He grinned. “That’s more like it.” His breath was warm on her skin as he lowered his head and flicked his tongue over her already-slick skin.
She groaned and tried to make sure she wasn’t going to gouge his back with the heels, but it was hard to concentrate when he was busy trying to draw her attention to the nerve endings between her thighs.
“Relax, I’d rather get scratched by your shoe than by a demon.” He slid one finger into her and drew a gasp.
She couldn’t clear her own mind, but he could scatter every thought with a few touches. “But you’re thinking about the shoes and the risk.”