Page 32 of Witch Unexpected
Fuck. I was such a dick. “I’m sorry. Of course, go. I’ll be fine.”
I was always fine. I’d never been afraid of anything except losing Fee, but this… Being here felt strange, and for the first time in my life, I was uneasy.
Elijah looked torn. Lips pressed together in a manner that I’d come to recognize as his reconsideration face.
Pfft. Pull it together, woman. “Well, get out of the way, dude.” I swung my legs out of the car. “Go do what you got to do and let me get on with this.”
Elijah gently gripped my shoulder as I climbed out. “I’ll be back,” he said softly. “I won’t abandon you, Cora.”
And just like that, the knot was gone. “I should hope not. I’ll see you later.”
I took a deep breath and walked toward the shadows, where Bador was waiting. He was wider up close, tall too. I looked up at his chin—hairless, smooth, and firm—and he looked down his nose at me almost haughtily.
“Okay, big guy. Lead the—”
He grabbed me around the waist and hauled me against his torso. Wren squeaked and shot over my shoulder, arms wrapping around my neck as he hissed menacingly at Bador.
The sound was so unlike my furry friend that it took a moment before I reacted to Bador’s impudence, by which point the gargoyle had a solid grip on me.
I twisted in his grasp and shoved at his chest. “Back up.” It was like trying to move a rock.
He frowned down at me. “Stop squirming. If we’re going to fly, you must be still.”
Fly? Hell no. “Don’t you—”
There was a whoosh, and huge batwings appeared behind him.
“No. I don’t want to—”
My boots left the ground, and Wren shrieked for us both as we cut through the air. Bador’s grip was secure and unrelenting as we shot up into the night at a ninety-degree angle. Okay, maybe this wasn’t so bad. I mean, he had a good grip on me. I wasn’t in any danger, and he was a gargoyle, a guardian, so it was in his interest to make sure I didn’t fall.
I looked down at the tiny car and the tiny figures of Elijah and Bramble. My stomach flipped, and my head swam. Fuck, I hated flying.
“Don’t look down,” Bador warned. “I won’t drop you.”
His voice was a warm rumble and a calm settled over me. I relaxed in his arms and was suddenly very aware of his body, all hard planes and muscle pressed to mine, but he was cold. As cold as stone, which I guess made sense because he was a gargoyle, right?
He tipped forward slightly, and Wren made babbling sounds, choking me in an attempt not to die.
“Fuck, Wren.” I coughed out the words, and he scrambled to adjust his grip.
“Wren sorry.”
“It’s okay, buddy.”
I twisted to look over my shoulder, past Wren’s furry cheek, to the mansion. We were approaching a balcony lit with amber light. Bador picked up speed until we arrived at the balcony, then we straightened up to hover above it.
He descended carefully. My boots kissed the ground, but he didn’t release me. Instead, he studied me for long seconds, his gaze tracking across my face as if he was looking for something.
Wren scooted in between us and hissed at Bador again. I pulled my head back to avoid the mogwai’s butt. His body puffed up, fur standing on end to make him look bigger.
Damn, was he protecting me?
Bador transferred his shiny penny gaze from me to Wren. “I mean her no harm, tiny guardian.”
Wren bristled for a moment longer, but then his fur lay flat and he turned to hug me, rubbing his cheek against the side of my face. “Wren might need to pee again,” he muttered.
His body trembled, and it hit me that my tiny furry friend was frightened of the gargoyle but had stood up to him anyway. Oh god, he was a sweetheart.
