Page 46 of The Magic of Discovery
“There, that should help with the chill,” he assured, moving in front of me. I pulled the robe closed, feeling more secure now that I wasn’t in danger of giving this sweet man an unexpected nip slip.
“Thank you.” I smiled. Unsure what to do next, I shifted my weight back and forth from leg to leg. Freckle cutie was just standing there.Hmm, this is awkward. He must’ve realized it because he jerked himself straight and started rambling again.
“It’s just about dinner time. If you’re hungry, you can join us. Do you need to see a healer, though? I’m concerned that you don’t recall why you’re here or even where you are. Are you injured?” His eyes widened at the thought that I might be, and he stepped forward quickly, reaching for my hands. “Did a rogue hurt you, my lady?”
The moment our hands touched, I sucked in a breath, both of us freezing, his amber eyes searching the depths of my green ones. Fire raced through my veins, and I whimpered at the same time a groan reverberated from his chest.
“It can’t be,” he breathed.
I didn’t know what the fuck that meant, but I couldn’t drop my hands from his. We were two magnets slamming together, and the force of that vibrated through my bones right down to my soul. Suddenly, the vision before me started rippling like the waves on a lake. This dream was about to be over.
“Don’t go, please,” he begged, his eyes pained. I didn’t want to leave him, and that was the strangest damn thing, especially considering I had three men in the real world.
“I’m sorry,”I whispered, though I doubted he’d heard it...
My eyes snapped open, and I flew upright in bed, my heart racing. Patting down my arms and chest, there was no green velvet robe. Maven did not appreciate being jostled from his slumber, and he growled, also needing a moment to take in his surroundings. I searched my room, but I didn’t see any sign of the beautiful man with the pained amber eyes even though I could still feel the whisper of his warm skin against mine. Throwing myself back on my pillow, I stared up at the ceiling. The dream had felt so damn real, and as much as that was screwing with my head right now, I’d take that over those creepy ass shadow demons any day. Luckily, I hadn’t been visited by them since they’d shown up in my room on Friday morning.
It was Sunday, and the guys were coming over this afternoon to hang out. Not in the mood to analyze my bizarre dream, I pushed thoughts of the red-haired dream man away and focused on my mages. The real, flesh and blood ones that looked at me with heat every time we were in the same room. The very ones who would be here soon. My inner witch gave me a mental high-five before she strutted around like a model on the catwalk.Dating three hot as sin dudes will do wonders for your self-esteem, in case any of you are needing a boost.
All three of them had been texting me since Friday night. Kai with his usual flirty banter that I lived for and Cam being a total Daddy, inquiring about my wellbeing every chance he got while promising sweet, sweet punishments when I got sassy with him. Fischer, my sweet guppy, had video called me last night, and we talked about anything and everything. Favorite books, foods, television shows. His smiles were addictive, and as much as he was enjoying trying to win me over without his powers, I was getting just as much out of seeing the stress and weight he carried vanish when we were talking.
Kai had told me that yesterday they’d been doing some work during the day, checking out that warehouse that was for sale again.Maybe if Radical purchases it, the guys could relocate here?I tried not to go down that rabbit hole, but it was hard not to. The thought of them leaving had my stomach feeling like I’d swallowed a pile of rocks, so I was content to just pretend that it wasn’t something that would ever happen. As Gran always said, “She who looks at the world with the eye of a newt will see a newt-like world.”Yeah, I don’t know what the fuck that means either, but this seems like the first appropriate situation I’ve had to use it.
It was still hard to believe it had only been just over a week since they’d blown into town and my very normal and uneventful life. Funny how you got so used to your life that you didn’t realize what you were missing until the stars smacked you in the head with four hotties. Suddenly, your old life seemed monotonous in comparison.
Hauling myself up and out of bed, Mave jumped down with me, his feet padding softly behind. Opening my bedroom door, he flew past me down the steps.Good morning to you too, dude.Scrolling through my phone as I moseyed my way into the bathroom, I read a few messages from Miranda. I’d been making an effort to talk to her daily to see how she was holding up; it seemed the moonstone she’d gotten was helping. We hadn’t gotten the chance to have our hangout yet, but she was living vicariously through my dating life and was one hundred percent supportive of my unconventional relationship.
While she was all for this arrangement, we lived in a little blip of a town, and there was no telling how the members of my community would react to such a thing.Ha. Yeah, right. As soon as Roberta and Matilda got their hands on this information, it would be all over town. I mean, the whole town was still talking about that time Mr. Peterson cheated on his wife with another teacher. Imagine the splash a quad relationship would cause! It was likely to wind up in the town history books to live on forever, shocking future generations to come.
I refused to be ashamed or embarrassed, though. My guys were good, and it was like Gran always told me: “You don’t let the good ones get away, especially if they’re romantic and know how to wield their magic sticks.” Direct quote. She had a point. Dressing quickly, I bounded down the steps, heading for my beloved coffee and finding Gran ready and waiting.
“Morning, Gran,” I said, enveloping her in a hug as she filled our coffee mugs to the brim. My heart squeezed looking at her. She was too good to me. Some people my age might not appreciate their grandmother being around pretty much all the time, but I did. She was my best friend, my mentor, and I was pumped that my guys were going to be here in a few hours to meet her.
Gran and I had talked in detail yesterday about what Sloane had discovered during his investigation, and I was hoping that today wouldn’t turn into an interrogation, but one never knew what was up Gran’s sleeves.
Gran returned my hug, her grip surprisingly strong. “Morning, did you sleep well?”
“Decent. I had some dreams though,” I confessed, popping a shoulder.
“Not about those beasts, I hope?”
“No, thank the gods. Nothing demon-related, no need to worry,” I assured her, attempting to keep her calm. Warm amber eyes flashed in my mind, and my skin warmed when I recalled the connection I’d felt when our skin touched.
We fell into a comfortable silence, sipping our coffees, and scrolling through our phones. Mornings like this were perfect, and I enjoyed the peace. The way my life had been going lately, they’d become a rarity. Determined to savor it, I created a group text with the guys, except Sloane. He hadn’t asked for my number again since the first time when I’d told him to eat a bag of dicks. One of the others could fill him in on the details for the day.
Me: Let’s plan on one for today. It’s going to be hot, but I’m hoping Kai might spoil me with some more of his grilling talents? We have steaks in the freezer that I can get out.
I added the fingers crossed emoji and hit send. Gran and I both laughed when my phone started pinging out of control.
Kai: Sprout, I will spoil you with anything you desire. Just tell me your wishes and I will grant them.
Cam: You are nothing but a butt kisser, K.
Kai: Okay, but have you seen her butt?
Fish: He’s got a point. It’s a really, reallllly nice butt.
My face went up in flames, and Gran gave me a knowing smirk before she tsked and lifted her mug like she was the Queen of fucking England, pinky finger out, and took a small sip before placing it back on the table and using her hand to fan her face.
