AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Hi there, Judith.” He laughed as I ran kisses up his throat, right up to the point when I bit his ear. “Ow! Crazy woman!”
“Eh, you bloody well love me,” I told him.
He thought about it for a long moment. “Yep. I do.”
I gave him a sunny smile. “Good.”
He watched me expectantly, and when I didn’t follow up, he jostled me. “Oh, come on. Don’t play it all cool and collected.” I laughed until he threatened, “I’ll start calling you Judith again.”
“I love you, too. Very much. You idiot.”
“Be still, my beatin’ heart.” He sighed, his gaze dropping to my boxes and suitcase. “So you’re really leavin’, huh?”
“I’m sorry. I stuck around here as long as I could. But I have to go. I’ll be able to come in a few . . . months, maybe? I will miss you. A shocking number of people in Kilcairy insist on wearing shirts full-time. Disheartening, really.”
“It’s my fault. It took me a while to explain everything to my family. Fair warning: when you walk into the middle of the family barbecue and announce, ‘Oh, the curse thing was just a witch’s practical joke,’ the reactions are gonna be strong.”
“Are they OK?” I asked.
“Well, the news that they could shift into anything they want, anytime they want, has led to some . . . security issues. All of my uncles are turning themselves into werewolves and giant turtles and frost giants. In broad daylight. Sometimes in the Little Debbie aisle at the Piggly Wiggly. They’re like little kids. My dad is spending a lot of time trying to keep them in line so they don’t blow our cover. Normally, that’s the sort of thing I would help him with, but I told him I had urgent business to get to up here. He said I’ve earned a little time off.”
I arched an eyebrow, a smile playing on my lips. “And what do you plan on doing with that time?”
“Well, I was thinking, and I’m just throwing this out there, that you’ve learned pretty much all you can, and should, about our culture. But I know absolutely nothing about Ireland other than Lucky Charms and Saint Patrick’s Day. And I don’t think that thing about leprechauns is for real.”>Melinda’s face was thunderous, but John conceded. “It’s a wise decision.”
* * *
Several hours later, after outlining a basic but fairly historic interclan treaty, the Kerrigans were left somewhat mollified with my offer of Flame and Air, while I kept Sea and Earth. Of course, they also had to take my mother with them, so they may have considered the whole experience a wash. We agreed to hold a full meeting at home to iron out the details. But for now, we’d split the elements, and by dawn the next morning, the Kerrigans’ magic would be restored. That would be the true test of whether they took this peace seriously or not.
I figured I should probably leave town as soon as possible.
Jed stroked his hand down the length of my hair and gave me a blithe grin. “So how was your day?”
“Typical.” I sighed. “My dead mother conked me over the head with an Egyptian idol. I made fire with my mind, confronted some upsetting lingering parental issues. And I negotiated a peace treaty in a centuries-old witch war.”
“Somebody’s getting milk and cookies when we get home,” Andrea said sweetly, patting my head.
I smiled nastily. “Thanks, Granny.”
The patting turned into a light slap.
“So how did you know how to find me?” I asked.
“Well, earlier tonight, we did find your ex-boyfriend locked in my office, next to some damaged equipment and a smashed, extremely rare geode,” Dick said, lifting his eyebrow. “All we had to do was shake him a couple of times, and he sang like the proverbial canary. He gave up your mom, the meeting location, everything.”
“Prick,” I muttered.
“Oh, don’t worry, Gabriel messed with his memory,” Jane chirped. “Stephen won’t remember anything from your time together, other than that you were the best thing that ever happened to him, but he let you get away through his own sheer stupidity.”
“Aw, Gabriel, I didn’t know you cared,” I said, nudging his elbow.
If vampires could blush, Gabriel’s face would have been rosy pink. He cleared his throat. “From now on, every time Stephen hears the word ‘tea,’ he will soil himself.”
I marveled. “I’m glad you’re on my side.”
Gabriel mussed my hair while Jed jostled my shoulder. “Always.”
18
