“What the hell was that?” Carmen shrieked, looking between me and Ryan.
“The bitch just shocked me!” her sister cried, cradling her wrist.
I rolled my eyes and said the first thing that came to my mind. “Sorry. I slipped.”
Carmen spun around, pinning me with a harsh look, and made the mistake of trying to poke me in the chest.
That mere touch put her on her ass, energy humming protectively around me.
Is Tray doing this somehow?I wondered.
“Mother!” Ryan shouted, drawing my attention back to the wicked stepsisters on the ground.
Carmen was out cold.
Huh. That’s new.
I lifted my hands to examine them while Ryan continued to call for Clarissa. I ignored her, too busy gaping at the blue embers dancing between my fingertips.
Holy crap…
I barely registered Clarissa’s angry voice, the sound at my back as I began walking away from the house. They could finish shoveling, for all I cared. This was far more important.
Because either my powers had just flared to life or Tray had put a protective spell around me.
In any case, I had questions only my mate could answer.
Fortunately, I knew where to find him.
Unfortunately, it was a several-mile walk.
With a groan, I turned back around to find my bike, only to be stopped by a very angry stepmother in the driveway. “Where do you think you’re going, young lady?”
“Out,” I replied, pushing past her and smiling at her shocked gasp behind me.
Another idea occurred to me, one that had my lips pulling upward as I headed into the garage.
Why bother with the bike?
I’d take a car instead.
Finding Ryan’s keys on the wall, I twirled them around my finger and approached her prized possession. She bellowed from the yard, coming to her feet. But I already had the door closed and locked before she hit the semi-shoveled pavement.
This would be a fun experience.
I knew how to drive because Clarissa taught me—how else would I get groceries for the family on Sundays?
But I’d never taken Ryan’s pretty baby for a spin.
Her sporty little two-seater purred to life, drowning out the shouts of my monsterous stepfamily.
Ryan had the brilliant idea to jump into the middle of the driveway as I hit reverse.
I focused on her in the mirror and backed out of the garage, deciding a game of chicken could be fun. I almost hoped she called my bluff.
But as expected, she jumped out of the way at the last moment, her curses lost to the rev of the engine.
I gave them all a little wave, grinning at their flabbergasted expressions, and gunned it out of the neighborhood.
