Mal nodded, and with one last glance at Cece, Briggs followed him into the room. He shut the door, and Mal said, “It’s been one hell of a night, huh?”
“Yeah. I’m handing in my resignation on Monday.”
“Why?” Mal asked calmly.
“Cecelia is my mate, and tonight has proved that the best way to keep her safe is by letting her use me to increase her magic. I won’t be separated from her on days off or be denied the chance to mate with her. I know there are rules about how we interact with clients, and I respect that. Which is why I’m quitting.”
Mal studied him for a moment. “Eh, they’re more like guidelines than rules.”
“What?” Briggs said.
“There is no actual rule that says employees can’t sleep with clients,” Mal said. “And even if there were, obviously, we wouldn’t keep you from your mate. Kat, Bishop, and I appreciate the work you do for us. You’re a good employee, and we’d hate to lose you. I feel safe in speaking for them when I tell you that we’re perfectly fine with you having a relationship with Cece.”
Relief swept through him. “I appreciate that. More than you know.”
“So no more talk of quitting, yeah?” Mal clapped him on the shoulder and changed the subject. “The witch tonight is the same one you saw at Cece’s house, right?”
“She is.”
“Okay, so do you think Cece’s family will send someone else to go after her?”
“I don’t know.” Briggs ran a hand through his hair. “Cece’s grandfather contacted us yesterday.”
“What?”
“Sorry, I should have told you sooner, but with everything that happened… anyway, he approached Cece and was… nice.”
“Nice?”
“It’s a long story which I’m happy to explain tomorrow or Monday, but basically, he says he didn’t know anything about Cece even before the amnesia spell was put on them. He found out about her by accident a week or so ago, and despite his wife and son asking him not to, he secretly reached out to Cece. We had coffee with him, and he assured her multiple times that it isn’t his family who is after her.”
“Do you believe him?” Mal asked.
“I don’t know. He seemed sincere, but it could be for show. He gave Cece his number and told her to call him when she was ready. He flat-out refused to believe that his wife or son killed Cece’s father, which is a red flag to me.”
“Sure,” Mal said thoughtfully, “but we never want to think the people we love are capable of something like that.”
“True,” Briggs said.
“I think for now, we continue with the security detail for Cece. At least until we know for sure it isn’t her family. Maybe the WWC will have some luck in getting the witch to confess, or at least find out who she is and if she’s connected with Cece’s family.”
“Maybe,” Briggs said. He glanced at the door, itching to see Cece, to confirm that she was okay. His bear didn’t like having her out of his sight, and, honestly, Briggs didn’t either.
Mal squeezed his shoulder. “Take your mate home, Briggs. We’ll talk more on Monday.”
CHAPTER 32
Cece wiped away the fog on the bathroom mirror and studied her face. She looked exhausted with dark circles under her eyes, pale skin, and trembling lips. She’d had a good cry in the shower, which had helped some of the emotions running rampant through her system, but had also left her with puffy eyelids and a swollen nose.
She held her hands up and whispered a simple light incantation, one she could easily do even when she’d thought she was only an apprentice witch. No small orb of light appeared above her hand, and she whispered the incantation again, concentrating fiercely before sighing and giving up.
It was no use. Her magic was completely drained from the fight, and she had a feeling it would take days to return.
Briggs can help.
She sat down on the side of the tub and towel-dried her hair. She needed to leave the bathroom, but it wasn’t just that she didn’t want to go out into the freezing air and slide into her cold bed. She wasn’t sure she could resist going to Briggs.
Her stomach clenched, and tears threatened again. While they were in the office, Ava had told her and Rosalie what happened after the witch attacked them. Briggs had taken a full blast of the witch’s spell to save her, and it was only the protection spell from Monroe that had saved him.
