Page 9 of Second Chance By Fate

She smirks lightly, tilting her head back up to look at me. I forgot how I tower over her five-foot-five frame, my sense of protectiveness overcoming me next to her smallness. The urge to wrap her in my arms and consume her in my bear form is almost insurmountable, but I hold back. She’s not powerless, despite her stature. I can’t forget that.

“Well, your brothers probably blocked it,” Violet says, her brilliant hazel eyes locking onto mine.

A familiar shiver of arousal washes through me as she bites on her lower lip, but I don’t look away.

“I don’t think so,” I say. “Maybe your coven?”

“Less likely than your brothers,” she snaps, spinning away. “Assuming you really tried to reach out at all.”

I grab her arm and pull her back toward me, relishing the look of surprise on her face, but ready to release her if she protests. “Are you really accusing me of lying to you?”

She doesn’t pull away, staring up at me. Her heartbeat roars in my ear, her breath inches from my face. “What do you want from me, Jax?”

“Why did you come back, Violet?” I ask huskily. “I’m listening.”

I don’t release her, but she doesn’t pull away, her gaze again locking on me. “Your powers haven’t stabilized, have they? Even though you got rid of me?”

I shake my head.

“So you know I’m not the reason everything went to hell around here?”

My eyes narrow slightly. “Unless you put a curse on us.”

Hurt colors her face, but it’s gone as quickly as it came on.

“Even if that were true,” she growls. “I wouldn’t need to come back to see it through.”

I read between the lines. “Are you saying there is some kind of curse on us?”

Her amber-green irises register fear, but again, she hides her true feelings.

“I’m not saying anything,” she mutters, and my mind whirls with what she’s holding back.

“Let me be blunt, Violet; did you put a curse on us?” I demand. “I’ll believe whatever you tell me.”

Her scowl is so deep, I think she’s going to strike me for a second.

“I can’t believe you’re actually asking me that.” She finally pulls away.

Disappointment wells inside me, my opportunity to kiss her lips evading me.

“Of course I didn’t curse you, even though you probably all deserve it. Maybe I should now, just for good measure.”

She stalks toward the bedroom and flops down on the king bed, avoiding my stare.

“But there is a curse on us,” I press.

“I’m really tired,” she tells me, turning away, and I realize I’ve hit the nail on the head. It’s not something we haven’t already considered.

“Who? Why?” I perch next to her, grabbing her upper arm and forcing her to look at me. “You can’t just waltz in here and?—”

Without warning, her lips crush on mine, ending my sentence midway. I have no illusions that she’s trying to shut me up with my litany of questions, but somehow that doesn’t matter. I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t hoped for this from the second I closed the door behind us. No, longer. From the minute we got the phone call that she was back in Arizona.

Her hands cup my face, drawing me closer, and through the narrow slits of her eyes, I see the familiar violet glow of magic radiating from her irises. Instantly, I’m swept away in that headiness that only Violet can bring me. It’s so unfair she’s not our mate when she drives us all so crazy. I can’t imagine anyone else in the world coming close to doing what Violet can.

I pin her down, throwing my weight on top of her as I pull my head back and growl, “This conversation isn’t over.”

“It is for now,” she demurs playfully, licking her lips. “Unless you don’t want to show me how much you missed me.”

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