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“I’ll stay,” I said. “You two are so drained a gnat could overpower you right now.”
Monty’s smile was a pale echo of its usually robust self. “Only if said gnat has superpowers.”
But he didn’t argue any further. He simply turned and hobbled away. Ashworth hesitated, obviously torn between the need to protect Eli and the knowledge that he wasn’t going to be of much use if the Empusae did hit us again. Common sense prevailed, because he nodded and followed Monty into the trees.
Eli quickly constructed another demon snare, weaving in an exception that would allow the local wildlife to seek its shelter without setting off the trap. Once he’d finished, I said, “Do you want me to lay another concealment spell around it?”
He shook his head. “I doubt the Empusae will come back here—not now that she’s aware we know they’ve been using it. She’s too canny for that.”
I nodded, and we headed out of the clearing. Vita’s essence faded in the opposite direction. I guess her need to recover overran the desire to follow me about.
Once Monty had been dropped off, Eli drove home. As both men walked inside, I jumped into the driver seat and headed back to the café.
Belle was waiting with a reviving potion, a couple of strong painkillers, and the demand I head upstairs and rest. I didn’t argue. I might not have been the one performing the harder magic in that clearing, but I nevertheless felt drained.
It was close to ten the next morning by the time I woke. I grabbed the plastic wrap from the kitchen to protect the bandages from water and then had a quick shower.
Aiden just walked in came Belle’s comment. And he’s not happy.
Feed the man a brownie and tell him I’ll be down in a sec.
I don’t think a brownie is going to cut it.
Meaning he’s probably heard of our little adventure last night.
Probably. I can tell him you’re still sleeping if you can’t be bothered facing questions right now.
Which will only make him more annoyed. Especially given he was well aware that I only overslept when I’d overdone it magically.
I pulled on a sweater to hide the bandage and then slipped on jeans and some shoes. Every movement made my arm ache, but there wasn’t really a lot I could do about that aside from taking more painkillers.
I clattered down the stairs and spotted Aiden waiting at his usual corner table. Though his expression wasn’t giving much away, his aura spoke volumes. As did the untouched brownie slices sitting in front of him. I grimaced and delayed the inevitable confrontation a few seconds longer by first making myself a coffee, then cutting several bits of thick banana and caramel cake. It wasn’t what dietitians might recommend for breakfast, but right then I wasn’t caring.
“Why didn’t you ring me last night?” he said, the minute I sat down.
I squashed the instinctive rise of annoyance and raised the muting spell so those at the nearby table wouldn’t hear our conversation. “Because you would have been a liability.”
“It was my duty—”
“It’s your duty to maintain law and order and to keep both the human and wolf population safe,” I cut in bluntly. “It’s Monty’s duty—and Ashworth’s, while he’s acting reservation witch—to take care of any supernatural nasties that are endangering said population.”
“That doesn’t negate the fact—”
“That you would have been a fucking liability out there. The four of us barely coped, and we were all well prepared and well protected by magic. Having you there—having to expend extra time and energy protecting you—might have gotten one of us killed. So stop with the alpha bullshit, Aiden, because I’m really not in the mood for it this morning.”
He stared at me for several seconds, his expression unreadable, then reached past the plate of brownies and gently took my hand. “How bad did you get hurt?”
I scowled at him. “Why do you always presume it’s me who’s hurt?”
“Because now that I’ve been so rightly told off and have calmed down, I can smell the antiseptic.” He carefully pushed the sweater sleeve up to reveal the bandage. “What happened?”
“The Empusae used her magic to counter my protection spell—something I wasn’t aware was possible. She missed my face, but got my arm.”
His gaze jerked upward and scanned me, searching for wounds that weren’t present. “I’m glad that was all.”
I smiled. “So am I, trust me.”
His fingers tightened on mine, then he leaned across the table and kissed me. It was soft and sweet and filled with caring, and made we wish he could simply take me in his arms and hold me forever. Kiss me forever.
