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My gaze drops back to the spell, and sure enough, it requires us to spill our blood into a vessel, and then burn it.
But we don’t have Bryant’s blood.
Pop! My excited bubble bursts, crashing me back into the reality where there’s a crazy vampire out there who wants to be my daddy, and not in a sexy way.
More like in a Rapunzel-locked-in-her-tower-by-an-obsessed-parental-wannabe kind of way. Which is far more terrifying, because my hair isn’t nearly long enough for my knights to climb up and rescue me.
LIKE A GODDESS
A bloop bloop cracks through the air, making me jump and fumble the grimoire.
The piece of notebook paper flutters out of it, Zane and I both diving toward it at the same time. Our knees knock together, and I lose balance, toppling onto my ass.
The fall jars up my spine, and the cold of the cement sidewalk seeps through my thin sheet.
“Sorry.” Zane reaches toward me, then freezes at the sound of a car door opening.
I push to my feet, grit from the sidewalk sticking to my palms, as Deputy Arden climbs out of his truck.
He comes toward us slowly, his sharp gaze locked on Zane. “Everything okay here, Rowe?”
I roll my eyes. “It was until you scared the crap out of me.”
“We had a call about someone loitering outside the clinic.” His hand drops to the gun at his belt as he joins us, his eyes still on Zane. “You’ve been told to stay away before. This is your second warning.”
“Oh my god!” I throw my hands up in exasperation. “Did Haut tell you to harass Zane? Bad Deputy!”
“Why don’t you go back inside?” Deputy Arden’s eyes flick to me. “It’s cold out, and you’re not dressed for the chill. Not sure you’re dressed at all, actually. Don’t let Haut catch you out here like that.”
“Excuse me?” I straighten my spine and smooth a hand over my toga. “This is the height of fashion, you backwater lawman.”
His lips twitch. “Still not enough to ward off the cold.”
Zane takes a step to stand between us. “A little more distance, please. I’ll leave peacefully once Rowe is back inside.”
Protectiveness comes through the bond I share with Zane, his fear of Deputy Arden a sour underscore.
Why didn’t I feel the others’ emotions this strongly when we bonded? Am I more conscious of Zane because he’s not my mate? And is his protectiveness being pushed on him by this false sense of closeness?
I reach out to touch Zane’s back. “It’s okay. Deputy Arden won’t hurt me.”
Zane shifts toward me but keeps Arden in his line of sight. “He’s a werewolf. People are being killed by werewolves. A little caution is warranted.”
Easily overhearing the hissed words, Arden grimaces. He can’t deny what he is, but I no more think Arden is ganging up with Bryant than I think Owen is. Haut trusts him, and I therefore trust him.
I take the translated spell from Zane. “Go home for now. I can’t do the spell this second, anyway, unless you brought a thimble and a candle?”
Frustration flattens his lips, and he shakes his head.
“Since you’re not confident of your German, I’ll talk to Owen to make sure the translation is right, and then we’ll get together to perform the bond-breaking.” I touch Zane’s arm, then pull away when Arden stiffens. “We’ll do it as soon as I’m released from the clinic, okay?”
Zane looks unhappy but nods. “Go back into the clinic before I leave.”
Arden takes a step to the side, his hand still on his gun as he waits for me to scurry back to safety.
Geez, aren’t four overprotective mates enough?
Besides, if I wasn’t safe in my bedroom, what’s to stop someone from coming after me in the public space of the clinic?
