Page 90 of Witch Unexpected
“I have a solution for that.”
“You do?”
I smirked at him. “Beanie hat. It’ll work like a charm.”
“Tried it,” he said. “Hats just bring out my cheekbones.”
I stopped and stared at him.
“What?” His lips twitched as he struggled to suppress a smile.
“I’ve just realized you’re arrogant.”
“I am not.” He continued to push the cart, adding zucchini, peppers, and onions to our haul. “I’m accepting of my assets.” He looked back at me and raked me over. “Just as you should be.”
“What do you mean?”
“That knitted monstrosity does nothing for your figure.”
I plucked at the sweater. “Thing is Leif…” I leaned in and whispered, “I don’t care.”
He chuckled again and reached to ruffle my hair. “Yeah, you don’t.”
Whoa, had he just… No… Wait. This was good, because with that one action, he’d propelled us into the friend zone.
Andfriend zoneI could handle.
* * *
We endedup grabbing a ready-made lasagna. I put together a salad, and Leif made garlic bread using part-baked baguettes.
We ate in the lounge, plates balanced on our laps, then Leif lit the hearth, and we settled on the sofa with glasses of single malt whiskey. The sun had just set, but it felt much later. The events of the past few days were catching up to me. What I needed was a good night's sleep, but I was loath to leave Leif’s company just yet.
We sat in silence for long minutes, watching the flames companionably before Leif tsked and shook his head. I recognized the gesture. He’d had a thought and was dismissing it. Maybe a question he wanted to ask?
I twisted to face him. “What?”
He caught his bottom lip between his teeth for a moment and narrowed his eyes. “I have a question.”
“I figured. Go on, ask.”
“What’s the deal between you and Jasper?”
Urgh. “Yeah, maybe don’t ask.”
“I’m sorry,” he said. “It’s just… We’re going to be mated soon, and I’d like to understand what I’m dealing with.”
Insanity. “Don’t worry. Elijah was clear my connection to Jasper won’t affect the seal or the binding.”
“I’m not concerned about the seal. I’m worried about you.”
Oh. Well, I hadn’t expected that. “Jasper won’t hurt me.”
A slight frown sat between his brows. “Really? Then why do you need the amulet?” He rested his arm along the back of the sofa and shifted slightly, so we were face to face. “You can talk to me, Cora. I won’t judge. That’s not who I am.”
My neck heated at the prospect of telling him the truth, but if we were going to be bonded or mated or whatever, if we were going to be friends, then it might be best that he know.
I puffed out my cheeks. “Okay, the truth is Jasper needs to feed off my energy, and he does it through sex.” I held his gaze. “I made a deal to have sex with him to save my friends. It was only meant to be once a month, but then shit happened, and we needed his help, so I agreed to increase the frequency of feedings, and now I’m stuck.”
