“I know. But you can’t be growling and nearly shifting, okay? Touching me won’t make him my conduit, and I’m not attracted to him,” Cece said.
Fresh embarrassment hit him like a sledgehammer to the gut. “Sorry for being so… this. My bear is being really fucking weird right now, and I’m not sure why.”
Liar!
He ignored his inner voice. “I’ll keep him under better control.”
“Okay,” she said. “Your bottom lip is bleeding.”
He swiped his hand across the spot on his lip where his fangs pierced, ignoring the stinging pain and studying the red streak on his palm. “It’ll heal.”
Her hand rose as if she was going to touch him, and he wanted nothing more than to lean into her touch. Instead, he took a step back, and she twitched all over before grimacing.
“Sorry. Ready to go?”
He nodded, and she ducked past him to open the boardroom door. Mal and Monroe joined them, and Mal gave Briggs a look, his gaze lingering on the stretched seams of Briggs’s shirt. “Are we good?”
“Yes,” Briggs said before looking at Monroe. “Sorry about earlier.”
“All good,” Monroe said.
He lit the candle with Cece’s name and placed it in the circle of stones before lighting the rosemary, blowing it out, and waving it back and forth as the smoke streamed from it.
“Too close, Briggs,” Cece murmured.
He realized his arm was nearly touching hers, and he made himself take a few steps back, ignoring his bear’s protests. But when Monroe extinguished the rosemary stick and his gaze dropped to Cece’s chest, Briggs couldn’t help but growl, “She’s not removing her shirt.”
“She doesn’t have to,” Monroe said. “Just unbutton a few buttons, please, Cece.”
She unbuttoned three, spreading her shirt open to expose her upper chest. Briggs willed himself not to get an erection as he stared at her exposed cleavage. He could see the edge of her soft pink bra, the one he saw in her bathroom that first night, and his dick went half-hard. Was she wearing the matching panties?
Mal cleared his throat, and Briggs glanced behind him to see his boss giving him a pointed look. Shit, the wolf shifter could smell his lust for Cece, and he kept his gaze on the warlock and his mind away from the thought of Cece’s panties.
He swallowed his growl when Monroe rested his hand on Cece’s upper chest, but he couldn’t help the tension that made every muscle in his body stiff. As if sensing it, Cece glanced at him and murmured, “Still you, Briggs.”
Relief washed over him. Monroe gave them both a curious look but didn’t ask for an explanation. Instead, gripping the shell around his neck with his other hand, and his voice taking on that low and lilting tone again, he said, “Cecelia, be safe, be whole, be strong. Where you walk, may nothing go wrong.”
As his hand glowed with the teal light, he continued, “You who are Mother and Guardian, surround Cecelia with a shield so bright, to keep her safe both day and night. Protect her with your love and light. Keep her in your guarding sight. So mote it be.”
The light in his hand flared bright before dimming. Monroe dropped his hand, and Cece smiled at him. “Thank you, Monroe.”
“You’re welcome,” he said. “Will you also wear this?”
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a silver chain. A black rock, similar to the ones on the table, hung from the chain.
“Yes,” Cece said before turning to Briggs. “It’s a black tourmaline stone. They can be a powerful shield against harm.”
“I’ve charged it with a specific protection intent and anointed it with my own blend of rosemary and juniper oil,” Monroe said.
“Thank you, Monroe.” Cece took the chain from him and slipped it over her head, tucking it inside her shirt before buttoning it.
“Have you done protection spells on your home?” Monroe asked.
“I did some cleansing this morning, and I’ll do the protection spells when we return home,” Cece said.
“Mal said you’ve just recently discovered you’re not an apprentice witch but a blood witch, and you’re struggling a little with your magic. Do you need my assistance with some threshold spells?”
“I appreciate that, but I can’t afford it,” Cece said.
