Page 25 of Warmongers and Wands
Chapter 9
Bronwyn
I’m not sure how I managed to sleep at all that night. Probably because Hadur stayed in the bed beside me, spooning me and making me feel safer than I’d ever been in my life. Diebin stayed outside, no doubt prowling the perimeter of the circle as a guard. Although I’m pretty sure Hadur would have been instantly awake and ready if someone so much as stepped a toe over the magical boundary of what had become his home.
Something about his nearness—Hadur’s, not Diebin’s—made me stronger, refreshed. It had only been four days since my accident and I had no right to feel as good as I did. Even my leg felt better. Yes, it still gave me sharp twinges of pain, a reminder every time I tried to do something beyond my injured abilities. Yes, I was hobbling around the cabin on uncomfortable, uneven, makeshift crutches, dragging a splinted leg behind me. But I knew that broken bones shouldn’t feel quite this sound four days in. I didn’t even have any Tylenol for Pete’s sake, and I was hopping around like a champ.
The moment I stirred, Hadur kissed my forehead and got up to fix breakfast, apologizing that it would be oatmeal as he’d instructed Diebin to stand guard and not go on a thieving expedition to Walmart. I was more interested in raiding the demon’s very strange collection of clothing that had been acquired by the raccoon over many decades.
“Do you…do you actually wear this?” I asked, holding up a bright purple paisley rayon shirt with the biggest pointed collar I’d ever seen. I looked at the tag, and realized that there was no way Hadur could ever wear this shirt. It was a men’s medium. He’d never get this thing buttoned across his massive chest.
Mmmm. His massive chest. It was so perfect. Just thinking about it made me want to drag him back to bed. Why hadn’t he made any more moves on me since that day with the bath? I mean, the guy seemed to have a perpetual hard-on around me and clearly welcomed every caress and touch of mine, but that was it.
Crap, was I going to have to make the first move here? It wouldn’t be easy with a broken leg, but I’d do it if that’s what it took to get me some action here. A girl could only take so much sexual frustration before she exploded.
“I have not worn that shirt, but I kept it in the thought that I might be able to use it for some purpose eventually.”
“Well, it’s polyester, so you can’t start a fire with it or anything.” I put the shirt on, easily buttoning it down the front. It fit across my chest and midsection with ease. I was stupidly tall for a woman—just a hair over six feet—so the sides barely skimmed my hips and the front came right to my crotch. My ass was still hanging out from behind.
It was silky. And the purple paisley cracked me up. Plus, with the top buttons undone, it looked rather sexy, like I was wearing my boyfriend’s shirt from 1970. “What do you think?” I asked.
He didn’t even look. “I like you better naked.”
“Yes, I know that, but I can’t exactly fight werewolves naked. And if my sisters eventually figure out that I’m missing and show up, I might not want to greet them naked with a splint on my leg.”
He glanced over. “It’s lovely. Especially because your ass is still visible under the hem.”
Yes, that was a problem. It meant I’d be especially motivated to make sure I was facing anyone—werewolf or witch. Or if I really got pissed, I’d turn around and moon them. I can’t think of anything that would send a bunch of attacking werewolves fleeing more than the sight of my naked ass. Except maybe my naked boobs and snatch.
“I wish I had some sweatpants that would go over this splint,” I complained. “Or shorts. Or even underwear. Not the thong kind, though. That would sort of defeat the purpose here.”
“I like you naked,” he repeated.
I rolled my eyes. “We’ve been over this. It’s not like you’re walking around in the buff.”
Hadur looked down at his jeans and t-shirt. I wondered how many pairs Diebin had hauled to the cabin before the raccoon had managed to get the right size?
“Do you want me to walk around naked?”
Yes. Yes, I did.
“This human form has rather sensitive skin,” he continued. “I’d end up scratched, bruised, and bleeding every time I went outside the cabin.”
“That’s my point exactly,” I told him. “Fighting werewolves naked with exposed sensitive skin isn’t wise. And we’re not running a nudist camp here. I don’t want my sisters showing up with us both in the buff. Or Lucien. Crap, Cassie will probably bring Lucien along as well. That guy goes everywhere with her.”
Hadur growled. It was a sexy sound, although I don’t think he intended it to be. “I don’t want Lucien seeing you naked.”
I turned around. “Then you best help me do something about my bare ass.”
It turned out the best solution was to tie a shirt around my waist. I still had to be careful not to flash anyone, but it would do.
Besides, I’d gotten rather fond of the 1970s paisley shirt.
After our oatmeal breakfast, I assembled the items I wanted to enchant on my bed, made myself comfy, and pondered what I wanted to do. Magical Taser? Confusion? Fear? Temporary blindness?
Blinding someone with a fork would be hysterical.
The big challenge with all these was that most of my enchanted objects required contact for the spell to take effect. I wasn’t sure I wanted to be close enough to a werewolf to stab him with a fork for him to be temporarily blind. What I really needed was to enchant these items with a magical word to activate the spell. Abracadabra or something. Basically, I needed to create a wand.
