Midnight Magic, page 54
He had to finish this now.
One strand of magic grounded, then another, and another. A hundred more strands. And then another hundred.
And then nothing.
Julian reached for more dark magic to untangle it from the evil wave that threatened his mate, but it was gone. He looked down and saw the salt had turned black, absorbing the corruption as the magic was cleansed.
It was done. Nora was safe.
For now.
CHAPTER 8
Nora wished she could learn some fucking magic. She watched as Julian meticulously plucked at the dark wave of evil that whirled around her living room and couldn’t help but feel wonder. How was he doing that?
The miasma of darkness disappeared as if it had never been there, and she looked down to see that the salt she’d laid had turned black.
Was her salt evil now? Was she going to need some sort of magical hazmat to dump it?
She’d ask her witch.
No. Not her witch.
Though the longer he stayed in her apartment, the more it felt like he belonged to her. She was going crazy.
Julian stumbled and Nora was across the room in a blink, her arms around him and propping him up. He’d lost color, his normal pale face now ghost white. There was blood around his fingernails, and he was lighter than he should have been.
“Don’t die.” The command came out rough, as if she could control magic with only the power of her voice. Inside, her wolf raged. Julian had to be okay.
Nora dragged him back to the couch and sat him down. For a moment, he was propped up against the cushions before slumping to his side.
Shit!
But his chest rose and fell. He was sleeping, not dead.
Nora considered picking him back up and ushering him into her bedroom. Something about having him in her bed satisfied her on a primal level. Instead, she slid his shoes off and raised his feet onto the couch cushions, laying him out as much as she could without disturbing his sleep.
She found a blanket and laid it over him.
Then she sat on the ottoman and stared at him, her mind whirring and still caught on what it was like to watch him pour his soul into his magic. She didn’t know that much about witches, but she was learning. And Julian hadn’t been that powerful a month ago. He’d done something to access more power, had risked something.
All to keep her safe.
The apartment looked like a tornado had ripped through it. Now would be the perfect time to clean things up. Not to mention that cleaning had been one of the last things on her mind in the last month.
But Nora stayed where she was. She feared that if she looked away for even a second, Julian’s chest would stop rising and falling, his spirit stolen away between one breath and the next. She considered calling Audra Palmer and demanding to know if anything was wrong with Julian, but finding her phone meant getting up from her vigil.
What if he died while she was gone?
But already her fears were beginning to ease. His ghostly pale skin was now only as white as a sheet of paper. He had dark circles under his eyes, but they were fainter. His body was healing rapidly while he slept.
It happened to shapeshifters sometimes. Changing forms too many times in close succession could take a lot of energy out of a person. They passed out and let their bodies fix the damage.
It seemed the same thing happened with witches.
“I could kill you for scaring me like this,” she muttered. And then she reached out and took his hand, lacing their fingers together.
Julian squeezed her palm. “If you’re going to do it, make it quick.” He didn’t open his eyes, but his lips murmured the response.
She wanted to kiss him. She wanted to lie down next to him, hold him in her arms, and make sure he never did anything that stupid ever again. Her emotions were swinging wildly and Nora hated it. But she couldn’t stop it.
“Just get better,” she said. She barely recognized her own voice.
“I’ll be fine by morning. We gotta follow the magic.” His grip on her hand loosened as he fell into a deeper sleep.
She didn’t know what he meant by that, but it sounded like Julian didn’t plan to leave anymore. Nora’s wolf was satisfied, and she couldn’t find it in the human half of herself to push him away. He’d just risked his life for her. He’d saved her life twice over in the span of an hour.
Maybe she was better off with him at her side.
Nora only realized she was asleep as she started to wake up, the smell of burning sausage assaulting her nose. She cracked her eyes open, surprised to see that she was on the floor, a blanket haphazardly lying across her lap.
The couch was empty.
Which sort of explained the sausage.
She climbed to her feet, wincing at the aches in her muscles from sleeping on the hard floor. They’d fade in a minute, but she was too old for camping on hardwood.
Julian stood in her kitchen, hand gripping a spatula and a look of intense concentration on his face as he flipped the sausages. She heard the oil in the pan pop, and Julian flinched.
“Some mighty warrior you are,” she teased. He only wore an undershirt, and she tried not to stare at the defined muscles of his arms. But damn, the man had nice arms.
“Fair warning, I’m only wearing boxer briefs,” he said before she fully came around the counter to see for herself.
Nora couldn’t resist. And his ass was even better than his arms. She had to snap her gaze up before she did something crazy. “I didn’t realize this was a pajama party.”
Julian shrugged and then glared at the pan as more oil popped. “I had to cleanse my clothing of any residual magic. Should have done it as soon as the ritual was over, but I passed out. I’ll scan your couch to make sure it’s fine after breakfast.” He poked his spatula at the pan.
“I can smell it from here, the sausage is cooked. You can take it off the heat.” She feared it would taste like charcoal.
“Are you sure?” He peered at the pan as if it held the secrets of the universe.
Nora walked up behind him and careened around to look. “He’s dead, Jim.”
“I’m giving her all she’s got, captain!” he responded in a mangled accent that might have been Scottish.
She didn’t care that he responded with the wrong character. It took all of her resistance not to lean in and kiss him right then.
She saw he’d also made toast and had eggs sitting out. “I’ll make the eggs. Put your clothes on. If they’re not clean yet, I think Enrique left some sweats here a while ago. They should be sitting on the dryer in the laundry room.”
“Why is Enrique leaving clothes at your place?” There was a bit of grit to his words, and it made Nora want to shiver.
This was nuts. He didn’t have the right to be jealous. And she certainly wasn’t going to find that hot. Apparently her body didn’t get the message. She kissed his cheek, her lips brushing against stubble. “He’s a pack member, and my employee. We all keep changes of clothes at each other’s houses in case of emergency. That’s how packs work.”
Julian spun around and pinned her against the counter, his arms blocking her in. She could have fought it. In a match of physical strength, shifter beat witch.
But she didn’t want to move.
Their eyes locked, and Nora knew he was going to kiss her. She wanted him to kiss her so bad it hurt. She waited there, wondering if he would draw it out or put them both out of their misery.
He leaned in, eyes locked on her lips.
And then the deafening pulse of the smoke detector nearly made her ears bleed. They broke apart. Nora turned off the heat and covered the smoking sausage with a lid.
“Open a window!” She wanted to clamp her hands over her ears and whimper. Smoke detectors weren’t kind to shapeshifter senses.
Julian was already moving across the room, intent on the nearest window.
Nora grabbed the broom from beside the refrigerator and poked at the nearest smoke detector, trying to turn it off. She nearly smashed the thing to smithereens before it finally stopped screeching at them.
She and Julian looked at each other for a moment before they both burst out laughing.
“Too hot for you?” he asked with a leering grin.
She rolled her eyes. “Put your clothes on, lover boy. And stay out of my kitchen.”
She saved the sausage, though it was pretty far gone. And she didn’t burn the eggs. She also put on a pot of coffee. By the time Julian was dressed, something she was determined not to be disappointed about, everything was on plates and ready.
They sat at her small kitchen table, their feet not quite brushing. Nora took a valiant bite of the sausage. It could have been worse. “Thank you for making me breakfast,” she said. She hadn’t realized how hungry she was, but she scarfed it down like she hadn’t eaten in months.
Then again, she hadn’t been eating much over the last month. The curse had caused nausea, and she’d been eating in fits and starts.
“Sorry I almost burned down your kitchen.” Julian ate slower, savoring every bite. Nora gave up on trying not to stare. Everything about the man fascinated her, and she couldn’t stop looking.
He didn’t seem to mind.
When he’d finished half his meal, he brought up the thing he must have been thinking of all night. “I’ll like to take you to Audra. She’s a better witch than I’ll ever be, and she can make sure the curse is completely gone. More importantly, she might have some insight into that attack last night. I’ve lifted curses before, and nothing like that has ever happened.”
“You can talk to Audra all you like, I’ve got work.” And she was already late. The sun was high in the sky, and it was well after nine. Nora didn’t sleep that late. Ever. But she would give herself a break considering the situation.
“You’re not going into work.”
“You say that like you have a say. I have to go into work. It’s my business.” And she’d been slacking for the last month. She had to see how much she’d screwed up and what needed to be fixed.
Julian slid her cell phone towards her. “Check your texts.”
“Were you snooping on my phone? How did you get my password?” The nerve of the witch.
“No, I spoke with Estelle while you were asleep. She was the one that called me last night and asked me to check on you. I wanted her to know you were still alive. She said you should take the next week off to recover. She and the others are more than capable of handling things.” He was unrepentant in the managing of her life.
Nora wanted to be angry, but shame niggled at the edges of her mind. Estelle had been bugging her for weeks to get help, and she’d been too proud to do so. She looked at the text.
Take the week off or I’ll challenge you publicly. I want an alpha at full strength. :D
Nora scowled at the message. Was the emoticon really necessary? But she’d pushed her pack to the limit. She needed to be at full strength, and she couldn’t bring any more bad magic down on them.
“Fine, we’ll go see Audra.”
Julian grinned. “Great!”
CHAPTER 9
They’d been on the train for over an hour when Julian spoke. “We need to make a stop before we get to Audra’s.”
“Where?” Nora had a car and she wished they’d taken it, but they would have been caught in a traffic snarl that never ended if they braved the highways. She didn’t like going into the city. It wasn’t a place meant for wolves.
“My place. My clothes were purified, but they’re filthy, and I don’t want to go before my coven leader looking like this if I can avoid it.” He twisted in his seat, and she could see a dark stain on the side of his shirt and a rip under one of the sleeves.
“You could have borrowed Enrique’s clothing,” she said, and had to clamp her mouth shut to keep from grinning when he glared.
Jealousy had never been a turn on before. She’d walked away from more than one guy who thought he had any say over who she interacted with. But when Julian got jealous, it sent a delicious shiver down her spine.
There were limits, of course. If he actually said something to Enrique or didn’t trust her to be faithful, they would have a heart to heart. But knowing she caused that visceral reaction in him? That was powerful.
Had she decided to keep him?
Inside of her, her wolf was adamant that she should. The human part of her still wasn’t so sure. The train ride was a reminder that Julian’s life was in the city. She wasn’t about to uproot her pack just to be closer to him.
One kiss and that was what she was thinking? She was going crazy.
You know it’s more than a kiss.
“You alright?” Julian asked. He patted her leg, and she covered his hand with her own.
“Fine,” she responded. No need for him to deal with her crazy.
A few stops later, Julian got up and Nora followed. Once they got off the train, he headed for the station exit. “We could transfer to another train and get a bit closer to my place, but it’s only a twenty-minute walk.”
“My legs could do with a stretch.”
The streets weren’t crowded in this part of the Bronx, and Nora could almost enjoy it. But cars and trains rumbled on the streets and her senses were under attack. Give her the forest any day.
Julian lived on the third floor of an old brick building whose hallway smelled like pot. “The college kids two doors down seem to have an endless supply of weed,” he explained. “And Doritos.”
Nora wrinkled her nose. City scents. Really, she could do without them.
Julian unlocked the door and led her in. The place was neat as a pin and tiny as one too. It was a studio, and his bed took up a good portion of the room. He had a small desk in one corner of the room with two computer monitors and a stack of books that looked likely to topple over.
His kitchen was against one wall and was much neater than hers. But in a space this small, a person had to be neat or an avalanche of stuff would bury them.
The smell of pot had faded, and in the room all she smelled was Julian. If she had a bit less discipline, she’d roll around his bed and bury herself in his scent. She might not have liked the city, but there was something undeniably special about being in her mate’s private place.
Julian opened a small closet and pulled out three changes of clothes and a small backpack. He was planning to come back with her. Nora could protest. She could tell him that their time together ended once they were done talking to Audra.
Julian would say the clothes were a precaution, just in case he had to come with her. Just in case she needed more magical protection. She could argue. She liked arguing with him.
But she wanted him back in her place. She wanted him to lie in her bed and cover it with his scent. It was a primal urge and she was sick of resisting it. Let him come back with her. Maybe if she gave into the madness, she would work it out of her system.
Her wolf snorted.
Yeah, that never worked.
But it wouldn’t hurt to try. She could heal from a broken heart. If she never tasted him, she’d regret it forever.
Julian pulled off his shirt, and she must have made a noise. He froze and looked her way. “I can change in the bathroom,” he offered.
Nora stalked towards him and plucked his shirt out of his hands, throwing it towards the bed. “No need.”
He watched her, seeing what she would do. Nora let instinct guide her. This might be her only time in Julian’s private space, and she wanted him to remember her every second he was here. They didn’t have much time. Audra was expecting them.
But the coven leader could wait a little longer.
Nora weaved her fingers through Julian’s hair and pulled him close, sealing their mouths together and moaning as she tasted him. The day before the kiss had been pure madness and she couldn’t remember it as well as she wanted to. This time, though? This time she was making a memory that she’d savor forever.
She opened her mouth and Julian’s tongue surged in, tangling with hers. His hands landed on her hips, pulling her closer. She moved with him and found her back pressed against the wall, Julian’s body caging her.
It was the kind of aggressive, dominant bullshit she’d never put up with from another shifter.
But from her witch? Bring it on.
Her body lit up, pleasure zinging through her at the rightness of the kiss. And each press of his lips, each sweep of his tongue made her want more. Time and responsibility lost its meaning while he held her. The loud sounds of the city outside faded, and they might as well have been in their own little world.
Julian fit his knee between her thighs, and Nora moaned again. She pressed herself against him, trying to eke out every bit of pleasure she could from this moment. His skin was warm against hers, and she wanted to pull off her top and see what he would do if they were both shirtless, but she’d have to stop kissing him to do that.
She was never going to stop kissing him.
His lips feathered along her jaw and down her neck, teeth teasing her with the hint of a love bite that would show everyone what she and Julian were doing. She arched her neck back, giving him better access. She wanted him to bite down hard and leave a permanent mark so everyone would know.
They could stay in this apartment forever. The bed was only two feet away. And now the tiny size was an asset. They’d rarely have to ever move from the bed, and she’d be able to keep her eyes on him wherever he went.
Nora’s wolf wanted it. The woman wanted it too. All they had to do was stumble back.
But Julian pulled away. His lips were red and swollen from the kiss, his eyes dark. And there was something determined, almost predatory, in his gaze.
“This isn’t over,” he promised.
Nora shivered. “You’re confident.”
He grinned. “I am.” Then he stepped back and picked up the clean shirt he’d dropped, pulling it back on. He shoved the rest of his clothes in a bag and slung them over his shoulder. “Come on. We have to go.”
