Page 20 of Woven Souls

“Fredrick emailed me back!” Her squeal of surprise is followed up with a fist of victory that shoots up and nearly smashes into my nose.

“Wonderful.” I lean away from the fist as I glare at it. “What does he say?”

Willow leans forward and reads the message quickly.

“He wants to meet for dinner on…” She looks down at the little date stamp at the bottom of the screen. “Shit, he wants to meet tonight at some restaurant called,Bleu Nui.” Her fingers fly over the keyboard, and a little window pops up. “Damn, it’s a super fancy restaurant. I don’t have anything to wear to a place likethat.”

I sigh.

“We could be walking into a trap, even with it being in public.” I frown. “On top of that, we’ll have to keep a look out for monsters and demons that will inevitably find us outside these walls.” I glance over at Theodon, who seems deep in thought. He nods, looking from me to Willow.

“It’s a big risk leaving this houseandhoping that this warlock is willing to remove your curse without some sort of trade. It’s not like we’re dealing with a rational person here,” Theodon agrees. “And I bet he’ll ask for the book back.”

Willow doesn’t look up from the computer. “Well, maybe we can give it back to him on the stipulation that he uncurse us.”

“No,” Theodon and I answer in unison.

“We won’t really give it back to him, guys.” Willow rolls her eyes.

I let out a huff. “Willow, this isn’t some sort of game. He may insist upon it.”

Willow meets my gaze only so that I can’t miss how she rolls her eyes at me.

“Well, why don’t we find out exactly what he wants before we just jump to conclusions? I’ll go to talk to him while you guys keep the nasty creatures off of me.”

Before either Theodon or I can object once again to her idiotic plan, Kwil comes storming in.

“The hell we aren’t joining you!”

Willow jumps in surprise as Theodon and I part for our brother, dressed simply in a tee shirt and jeans, to join us. I’m surprised to see Willow’s not recoiling from the man.I’veseen him in all his monstrous glory many times over the years. But to show Willow? I look over at her. She’s glaring at him, unfazed by his appearance.

“It’s not up for debate,” she tells him before returning her attention to the computer screen.

“Yes, it is!”

His fervor surprises me. When he told us Willow was his mate, I had my doubts. But maybe… If he’s been suppressing his reaction when he was around her for the sake of sticking to our vows, maybe it’s possible I never really saw how much he adored the woman sitting in the rolling chair before me.

“I heard your declaration to the others about taking charge, Willow. I’m fine with that. You deserve a chance to be heard and to lead, but when it comes to your safety, we get to have a say. And before you object,” Kwil says quickly as Willow opens her mouth, “remember, it’s not just your life you’re willing to risk in meeting this guy. We’re all connected, in one way or another, so we need to proceed with caution.”

Willow shuts her mouth. My brows fly upwards.

“Are you speechless right now?” There’s no waythatshut her up. “I’ll have to learn this neat trick that—”

“One of us can go in with you,” Theo suggests, cutting me off with a glare, “while the rest of us stay nearby but out of sight to watch the restaurant. We’ll be close enough if you need us, but out of sight from the warlock.”

“I’m good with that.” Kwil nods sharply as he glares at Willow, daring her to object.

When Theo looks over at me, I shrug. “Sounds fair enough.”

Willow rolls her eyes.

“Fine, I guess that’s reasonable. I’ll take Jonah—”

“Not Jonah,” I butt in quickly. “The horns and tails will draw the attention of humans.”

Willow shakes her head. “Okay, who wants to come?”

I’m inclined to suggest Theodon. He would be able to analyze the warlock and direct the conversation where it needs to go. He was born a diplomat. This would be in his realm of expertise to be sure. I open my mouth to throw his name into the hat, but Theodon turns to look at me.

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