AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He’s been lying to me this whole time.
And even as I think it, I can’t bring myself to believe it. I know my mate, and he would never keep something this monumental from me.
Would he?
42
I’M A WITCH
The moment I step through the automatic doors, I’m locked in Jesse’s embrace. He holds me so tightly, it almost hurts, but I don’t attempt to loosen his grip. If anything, I pull him even closer, my relief nearly overwhelming me.
It’s over. We’re safe. Well, for now.
I reach out and pull Steph into our hug, and she laughs as an old man slides around us to enter the store, frowning and mumbling something about rude people blocking the entrance.
“How did you free yourselves?” Jesse asks, pulling back to meet my gaze.
“I’ll explain everything later. Please, just get us out of here.”
He stares at me for a beat longer, then nods before leading us to the passenger side of his car. Steph climbs into the back, and as I slump into the passenger seat, weariness washes over me. The adrenaline has faded, and I feel like I could sleep for a week.
“We’ve been out of our minds with worry,” Jesse says quietly once we’re out on the road. “Bernadette has been attempting locator spells on the both of you nonstop, but she never got a single hit. Your location was cloaked until a half-hour ago. I was already on my way to you when you called.”
“That doesn’t make any sense,” Steph says, leaning forward between our seats. “They wanted you to come for us. They planned to kill you when they did. Tamelen and Hyacinth said so just before they kidnapped us.”
“Maybe the plan changed when Erik killed Jasmine,” I offer with a shiver of revulsion as the image of her head dropping to the ground replays in my mind. “She wanted to be queen and needed them to kill Jesse for her.”
“I don’t know,” Steph says. “They don’t seem like the kind of people who’d do anything that didn’t directly benefit them. I assumed they’d kill Jasmine, themselves, as soon as they didn’t need her anymore.”
“You’re probably right,” Jesse says, and I can hear the pain in his voice.
Betrayer or not, Jasmine was his sister. The only family he had left. Jesse may hate her for taking the life of their father, but that doesn’t change the fact that he’s alone, now.
No. Not alone. He still has me.
Reaching out, I take his hand and twine my fingers between his, giving it a squeeze. He returns the gesture without taking his eyes from the road. Steph leans back with a low sigh, and the rest of the drive back to the manor is made in silence.
As soon as we step inside, Bernadette rushes forward to embrace her niece. Giving her a little wave as we pass, I pull Jesse up the stairs and straight into his sound-proofed bathroom. The door barely closes behind us before he pushes me back against it and seals his mouth to mine.
We kiss like we’re starved for each other, and a feeling of innate rightness washes over me. The heat builds as I rub myself against him, but before I can get carried away, the surprises of the last few hours trickle through my mind, making me stiffen.
Going still, Jesse rears his head back and meets my eyes. “What’s wrong?”
“I need to tell you something,” I say, slipping from between his body and the door to pace the length of the room.
When I turn back, he’s facing me with a curious expression. Moving back in his direction, I stop directly in front of him and lick my lips.
“Have you been keeping something from me?” I ask, then shake my head. “Sorry. I didn’t mean that. I know you’d never lie to me.”
“Eden, what are you talking about? You’re radiating fear and suspicion. Tell me what’s happened so I can ease your mind.”
“I performed magic today.”
His entire body jerks back as if I’d slapped him. “What?”
“I brought down two separate barrier spells and made myself invisible to rescue Steph and get us out of there.” I lower my voice to a whisper. “Steph thinks I’m a witch, Jesse.”
“Impossible,” he says with a light shake of his head. “I’ve never smelled a hint of magic on you save for the day I picked you up at the airport after you drank that spelled tea. And even if the scent were blocked, I would’ve tasted it in your blood, Eden. As far as I know, there’s no way to mask it there.”
