‘Your name is Julia, right?’ he asked, looking calmer.
‘Yes.’
‘How did you know that I was in Scotland?’
‘Please, stop it, Nathaniel. I can’t talk to you right now. You don’t understand what is going on,’ I said, swallowing my tears.
He ran his hands through his sandy hair and then shoved his hands into his pockets. ‘I don’t do relationships, so I can’t imagine being with you. An elf? I'm a businessman and I fuck for pleasure, but I do find your scent intoxicating.’
This was the real Nathaniel, cold and unbreakable, the one who didn’t want to commit to anyone, but he still recognised my scent.
Then Porter came back to the office with someone else. His companion was a wizard. He was tall, dressed in a blue uniform, with bushy eyebrows and a black beard. I gasped with relief. Porter lifted his hand to silence Nathaniel, who was just about to say something.
‘Mr. Brown here practised dark magic and he can remove the spell,’ announced Porter.
‘Porter, you don’t believe…’
Porter cut him off. ‘Nathaniel, please calm down, and let Mr. Brown take care of this.’
I wasn’t going to stay in the office and wait until Nathaniel recognised me. I had humiliated myself enough. When the wizard lifted his magic wand, I was out of there. My emotions, the energy, and anger overwhelmed me. I couldn’t face Nathaniel; it wasn’t his fault he was spelled, but I couldn’t break down in front of him. The lift arrived and I rushed inside, passing Emily, who was staring at me, disoriented. When the door closed, I howled, tears streaming down my cheeks. I broke down in pieces.
Downstairs, Todd tried to stop me, but my taxi was waiting for me. Nathaniel was probably already back to himself. I told the taxi driver to take me home. I cried and howled all the way. Then I locked myself in my apartment and curled up in my bed. I had some sleeping tablets. I wanted to doze off forever and forget.
***
The loud noise stirred me back to reality. It was still dark outside and someone was banging on my door. I covered my ears with my pillow, but the noise didn’t stop. My head was heavy, my throat dry, and I was still half asleep. I dragged myself out of bed and went to the door. Without thinking, I unlocked it. Strong firm hands embraced me with a tight hug and I was lost in the fragrance of lemons and mint leaves. His lips were kissing mine, and then my neck, my collarbone. His hands brushed over my stomach to my breasts. His warm skin reminded me of our happy times together. I must have still been dreaming because he couldn’t be here.
‘Oh God, Julia, it so good to have you in my arms,’ he whispered in my ear. He was holding me, pulling me closer to his body.
It’s not a dream; he is here with me.
His hands on my cheeks, his hazel eyes met mine for the first time in what seemed like eons. The old Nathaniel was back, and I didn’t care that he was hurting me. The wound on my neck throbbed with pain and I gasped.
‘Nathaniel, please, come inside and close the door,’ I said. I rubbed my eyes and glanced at the time. Only two hours had passed since I’d left La Caz Corporation and now he was here. Mr. Brown did a great job removing Jasper’s spell.
In the living room, Nathaniel’s eyes moved to my neck and the bandage that covered my legs. He was beside me, and before I could protest, he removed the dressing from my neck.
‘Vampire bites?’ he asked and tightened his jaw. He slammed his fists together, his knuckles white. The colour drained from his face as he scanned mine.
‘It’s a long story, Nathaniel. I'm fine now; this will heal,’ I said, barely opening my mouth. There was so much that I had to tell him.
‘What about your legs? What the hell happened to you, Julia?’ he demanded.
‘There was a fire at the agency. I managed to get away,’ I explained, sitting back. He knelt beside me, kissing my knees and thighs, running his hand over my arms.
‘When that wizard uncast that spell in my office, I finally remembered, but Porter said that you were already gone. I went to Scotland as I told you, but I don’t remember what happened there.’
‘It was Jasper. He probably followed you. I told you he is very good with dark magic. He probably cast the spell before you realised what was going on,’ I added and then explained everything that happened during that horrid night at the club.
Nathaniel didn’t take it well. He smashed his fist into my wall, roaring with rage. He was like a murderous beast ready to slaughter. Then I had to tell him about Caleb and the fire at the agency, and about how I’d heard Carter’s thoughts in his office.
‘I didn’t understand why you hadn’t tried to call me or visit me. I was sure you were back,’ I sobbed, cuddling to his chest. He wouldn’t hurt me and I wasn’t afraid. His body was tense and he was so angry. He wrapped his arms around me, and pulled me as close to him as he could get me. His heart was beating fiercely in his chest. I lifted my chin to look at his hazel eyes. They were wild, unrecognisable, as if he didn’t want me to see how he really felt, that he was losing control.
‘Julia, I'm sorry. I should have protected you better. I should have known it was Caleb.’
‘It’s not your fault.’
‘I’m going to find him and kill him,’ he said. ‘And then I'm going to rip the guts out of that vampire who dared to drink from you, dared to touch your precious blood.’
‘Please, stop it. My father is already looking for Caleb and Daniel is in prison,’ I said, pulling him to me.
‘I’m sorry, Julia. You nearly died because you were with me. I'm not good for you, but as long as I stay away from you, you will be safe,’ he said and kissed me hard with passion, bringing back all the memories, few though they were, of our precious times together. My brain registered some of his words and I pushed him away, breathing heavily.
‘What are you talking about?’
‘I’m not good for you,’ he yelled. He ran his hand through his hair and added, his voice breaking, ‘As long as I stay away, you will be safe. We can’t be together. I told you that I don’t do relationships.’
‘So you are going to just leave me now, after all this?’ I choked.
This was just a nightmare; this wasn’t happening again. He can’t go.
‘Julia, I don’t want to hurt you more. You’re a big girl; you understand. I'm a businessman and a vampire. You said it yourself, there is no future…’
‘Don’t give me that cliché bullshit about protection. I was nearly kidnapped; I was bitten and I suffered severe burns because of you and now you are just going to walk away from me, after what I’ve been through?’
‘Don’t be so melodramatic. I can’t give you what you want. You said it yourself, this is not who I'm,’ he shouted.
‘Fuck you, Nathaniel!’ I shouted back, getting up. My whole body started shaking and anger stormed through me. I had no magic left inside me, but my fingertips inflamed for a few seconds. I wanted to explode, to cast the most powerful spell to get rid of him, hurt him. ‘Get out of my house, you coward!’
‘My firecracker, please understand, I don’t want to hurt you more,’ he pleaded.
I couldn’t look at him, so I did the only thing that felt right. I ran to my bathroom and slammed the door behind me. I was expecting him to come to me and tell me that he wasn’t serious and that he would stay with me—but when I heard the main door close, I knew he was gone.
Nathaniel La Caz left me and he wasn’t coming back. I crawled on the floor and sobbed. After a long moment, I felt pathetic so I stood and wiped away my tears. I was stronger than this, better than him. I promised myself I wasn’t going to cry.
It’s better that he is gone, Julia. You would never be happy with him anyway.
The End of Volume 1
Past the Witching Hour
(Paranormal Personnel Saga #2)
by
Joanna Mazurkiewicz
Table of Contents
Chapter one
Chapter two
Chapter th
ree
Chapter four
Chapter five
Chapter six
Chapter seven
Chapter eight
Chapter nine
Chapter ten
Chapter eleven
Chapter twelve
Chapter thirteen
Chapter fourteen
Chapter fifteen
Chapter sixteen
Chapter seventeen
Chapter eighteen
Chapter nineteen
Chapter twenty
Chapter twenty-one
Chapter twenty-two
Chapter twenty-three
Chapter twenty-four
Chapter twenty-five
Chapter twenty-six
Chapter twenty-seven
Chapter twenty-eight
Chapter twenty-nine
Chapter thirty
Chapter thirty-one
Chapter thirty-two
Chapter thirty-three
Chapter thirty-four
Chapter thirty-five
Chapter thirty-six
Chapter thirty-seven
Chapter thirty-eight
Chapter thirty-nine
Chapter forty
Chapter forty-one
Chapter forty-two
Chapter forty-three
Chapter forty-four
Chapter forty-five
Chapter forty-six
Chapter one
First of all, Nathaniel La Caz was never yours; second of all... he’s still an arse.
‘Would you like more wine?’
I lifted my sleepy eyes and blinked twice, seeing the elf in front of me who was pointing at the half empty bottle of white wine. I pasted a lazy smile on my face and nodded, realising that he was talking to me. This date was far from perfect and I was trying not to fall asleep. I’d stopped counting how many glasses of wine I had since we sat down.
‘Go on, you’re being terribly generous today.’ I giggled. My head was spinning and I hiccupped, heightening my embarrassment. I knew I’d had way too much, as the alcohol stirred the magic inside me. I needed to get rid of it fast, otherwise I was going to lose control.
You are missing his touch.
‘You’re funny,’ he said, beaming. I smiled back and took a generous sip of the wine, ignoring the voice in my head. Loony was a nice guy after all. My friend Nicky had set me up on a blind date with him; I needed to remember to punch her for that once I sobered up.
On a Saturday night Central London was buzzing with people. It was hard to get a table in the restaurant, which only opened last week, but Loony sorted everything out with no problem at all. He told me later that he knew the manager, and I pulled out an impressed face. Despite not paying much attention to what he was saying, I also learned that he had an investment portfolio in Scotland, he was excellent with spells, and I found out that he twisted his ankle fifty times in the past year while playing tennis. He was going on and on about dull and uninteresting stuff, so I acquainted myself with the bottle of wine on the table. We both knew that this wasn’t going to go anywhere. I certainly tried to give him that impression, but for some reason he wasn’t getting the hint.
‘Earth to Julia, is anyone there?’
Oh shit—he was talking to me. God, woman, focus!
‘Pardon me, I missed what you said,’ I mumbled, once again putting a smile on my face. We were done with dinner. Now I just had to get through dessert and coffee. I met his clear blue eyes, nodding again. He looked like a typical elf, although his eye colour was more intense, delicious, and vibrant blue. His baby blond hair was cut short. I had to give him points—he was handsome with an obviously toned chest, muscular arms, and a scent that could seduce a troll. He pressed his palms together and smiled, revealing an incredibly white, perfect set of teeth.
‘I asked what sort of music do you prefer to listen to?’
‘To be honest, I’m not that into music; I hardly listen to anything,’ I responded.
‘Oh, well, that’s too bad, but I’m sure that I can con—’
I couldn’t concentrate on what he was saying; to be truthful, I couldn’t care less. It had been exactly thirty-one days since my vampire ended our relationship and I was doing everything possible to get back to normality.
I work for Paranormal Personnel, a recruitment firm for paranormal creatures that live among humans in central London. A few months ago I managed to win the contract with a La Caz Corporation, and that was how I met Nathaniel La Caz: half vampire, half human, who apparently couldn’t stay away from me. We dated briefly, the closeness only caused problems, and things blew up when he was near. We were perfect for each other and, yet, he couldn’t give me an exclusive relationship. Since then, my life went downhill.
First of all, Nathaniel La Caz was never yours; second of all... he is still an arse.
Yep, my subconscious constantly reminded me that I was still single. The vampire was out of my life and there was nothing I could do about that. I fought as much as I could with those unsettled emotions, but I was losing the battle; the memories of our time together were slowly driving me up the wall.
A loud cracking sound startled me and I snapped back to reality, realising that the wine glass I was holding had exploded in my hand. My palm was bleeding, the sharp edges digging into my flesh. The red liquid dripped to my wrist and shooting pain ran down my arm. I was lucky the bits of glass didn’t splatter on my face; at least my protection charm was working well. I moaned and stood up, taking deep pulls of air into my lungs.
‘Oh my, Julia, are you all right?’ Loony asked, staring at me in shock, his pupils dilated at seeing my blood dripping on the table.
I shouldn’t have been drinking when I couldn’t control my magic. My unbalanced power could do more damage than good. I glanced around, finding that everyone in the restaurant was staring at me while I was trying to hold my balance and not scream. Humans didn’t know about the magic; all paranormal creatures co-existed and we kept to ourselves. Through centuries we adapted and, so far, no one complained.
Loony swirled around the table to help me stand.
‘Sorry, Loony, would you give me a hand to the ladies’ room?’ I asked.
The waiter passed me a napkin as Loony took me by the elbow. He was over six foot two and obviously knew how to handle a drunken elf. I was going to burn something if I stayed here. I didn’t give a flying fuck that I had become the centre of attention. I was too drunk to focus on anything but keeping myself under control.
Loony was doing his best to maneuver me to the toilet, but I couldn’t even walk straight.
‘Do you want me to stay with you?’ he asked, panic plain in his voice, though he was doing well to cover it.
‘No ... I’m good, ta.’
I wasn’t sure how, but I got to the loo without losing my balance. Lucky for me the toilet was empty. I glanced at the mirror and caught my reflection—I looked worse than I expected. My mascara was smudged, my cheeks were bright red, and my lips were swollen.
It’s all your fucking fault, La Caz!
I clenched my teeth and washed my face, trying to ignore the thoughts about my ex-boyfriend. He already ruined my good mood, and my evening, but he wasn’t going to ruin my life. We shouldn’t have even gotten together in the first place because everyone knew that relationships between vampires and elves would never work. At the time I wanted to show ‘those’ people (including my father) that they were wrong. In the end, though, I realised they were right.
I took care of my bleeding hand, which hurt like hell, and left the bathroom. Loony was waiting for me outside, looking slightly pale, pacing up and down.
‘Julia! Are you sure you’re all right?’
‘I’ll survive.’
‘Let me see. I’m great with healing spells,’ he suggested, staring at the large cut.
Oh yeah... you mentioned that throughout dinner, like, twenty times.
In normal circumstances, I would have just told him that this
wasn’t a good idea, but, right now, I was out of line, lost, and unsure what was happening to me.
He whispered something really fast and moved his hand; the cut disappeared within a blink of an eye.
‘Good, now you can take me home?’ I asked, yawning. I don’t remember much from what happened later on. Loony probably helped me get to his car and took me home. I must have dozed off for a few minutes in the front seat because I woke up outside my flat.
‘Julia, I had a really great time. Should I walk with you?’
Me, too, although I haven’t listened to you at all. The wine was good though.
‘Nah, I’m fine. Say hi to Nicky from me.’
That was that. I didn’t acknowledge the fact that he paid for the meal, or that he patched up my cut with his magic. I just left him without saying a proper goodbye and without a kiss. Then without turning back, I walked through my door and took off my heels. I had a pulsing headache and needed my bed. I didn’t even have the energy to get rid of my clothes. As soon as my head touched the pillow, I was out.
***
The next day I opened my eyes and moaned, covering my face with a pillow; my head felt as if it was about to explode. The bright morning light was like a newly discovered disaster. I groaned, trying to find my mobile phone to check the time, but it wasn’t in its usual spot. I tried to gather my thoughts about the previous night and then moaned again, remembering that I behaved like a fool. Suddenly I recalled how I treated my date. Loony was probably a very nice guy and, as it turned out, I was his worst date in history. I stood, feeling lightheaded and nauseous. I stumbled over my high heels and cursed, massaging my toe. After doing my business in the bathroom, I looked around; my apartment looked like a shit tip. On a positive note, I looked even worst.
Chapter two
Well Gran, if you must know, then—yes, I was involved with him. The sex was unbelievable, but he couldn’t commit.
Paranormal Personnel Saga Box Set - Books 1-3 Page 24
