“What happened?” He stared at the woman in confusion.
“I have no idea, but I suggest we leave before things go sideways.”
He nodded, still confused, and led me outside, leaving Kenji to his games. He seemed to get a kick out of compelling people to do things they wouldn’t normally do, presumably using some kind of manipulation magic.
It was sort of cool, honestly, but if he ever tried it on me, I’d shove his furry little head in a snowdrift.
“Try it and see what happens,” he growled in my head, but I ignored him.
“I have to go deal with a problem, little mate,” Maverick said in a low voice as he tugged me toward a brightly lit restaurant. The sign saidSanto’s Pizzeria. Oh, this must be the pizza place the receptionist mentioned.
“What problem?” I asked when we reached the door. Inside, every table was full. Families, mostly human with a few people who looked like shifters, sat eating delicious pizza and garlic bread. Stars, I needed pizza like I needed oxygen. The cheesier the better.
Preferably before Kenji arrived and stole half my slices.
“There’s a feral shifter in the forest nearby. Boon called and asked me to deal with it.”
“Boon?” Maverick tugged me over to a booth in the corner where Alaric sat drinking wine while scowling at his phone.
“An old colleague of mine. I told him where we were going so he could warn me if trouble was heading our way.”
“Trouble?” Maverick threw me an exasperated look. He clearly didn’t appreciate all my questions.Oh well.I had more on the tip of my tongue.
“Yes, mage trouble.” He gave Alaric some side-eye but the mage didn’t look up. His aura swirled listlessly around his head, dull and lacking its usual glow. Even the faint tether between us barely twitched.
“Now stay here with the mage while I fix this problem before it comes into town and causes carnage.”
“By fix, you mean…” I made a slashing movement across my throat and then gulped when Maverick nodded. He pushed me into the booth and waited for Alaric to raise his head.
“I have a job to do. Take care of the witch.” Alaric seemed surprised to be tasked with protecting me, but he nodded anyway. “The merman is swimming, and the incubus has disappeared, so I am trusting you with her safety. If anything happens…” My bear skewered the mage with a look that promised a slow and painful death if I so much as broke a pinky nail while in his custody.
Alaric rolled his eyes. “She’ll be fine as long as she doesn’t talk me to death with her inane nonsense or burn us all to a crisp when she loses control of her magic.”
I scowled at him. How dare he cast aspersions on my ability to control my magic! Okay, so he was one hundred percent correct. I had no control whatsoever, but still. His lack of faith in me stung.
But I kept my chin high, refusing to acknowledge my hurt feelings. The mage could go suck a bag of dicks. I planned to eat my body weight in pizza, drink some wine, and then return to our inn and catch up on my sleep.
“Be good, little witch. I’ll see you back in our room.” He passed me our keycard and, with a last lingering kiss, stalked back out of the pizzeria. I noted how all the females watched him leave with heart eyes.
Jealousy tugged at the tether between me and my bear, and I heard him chuckle in my head. Good to know my jealousy amused him. I wondered how he’d like it if some random shifter got the hots for me.
Maverick growled when he heard my thoughts. “Anyone other than your mates touches you and they’re dead.” I skipped past his use of the plural mates and went straight for the jugular.
“Good, because that’s exactly how I feel when other females ogle you!”
“You never have to worry about my loyalty. I love you, little mate.”
I sank into a warm, gooey puddle on my faux-leather bench seat.He loved me. Even though I knew he loved me, he’d not said the words before. Probably to avoid spooking me.
“You love me?” I squeaked, unfortunately not in my mind because Alaric’s head snapped up.
“Yes, little mate. I love you to the moon and back. Now fill your belly and stay close to the asshole mage. I’m closing our connection now, but if anything happens, I’ll be back as fast as I can.”
“Stay safe. I love you too.”
“Less of the lovey-dovey shit, please, before I lose my appetite.” Alaric sneered at me before shoving his phone into his pocket. A server appeared and asked us for our drink order.
“A bottle of tequila, please.”
