by AJ Renee
One morning, she woke to severe cramps and blood. A miscarriage. She bore a son almost a year later, even though neither could recall making love. The curse had brought them together in the middle of the night during deep sleeps. Afraid of what would happen next, they moved to separate beds, even going so far as restraining themselves, anything to keep Caitlyn alive. But it only worked for so long. Caitlyn died a year later giving birth to what turned out to be her seventh child. Unbeknownst to them, she had miscarried a set of twins.
“Shit…” Brandy whispered.
“No one could avoid the curse,” Ethan said. He looked at her, and she couldn’t hide her worry from him. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “We’ll figure it out.”
She smiled, a fake one. “Yeah, I can’t see that happening. E, six generations couldn’t figure it out, and you think I’m going to be any different? Caitlyn and her husband strapped themselves to their beds, and she still managed to get pregnant.”
“She wanted that vitamin D pretty badly,” Ethan joked.
“Eww,” she said, bumping her shoulder into his chest.
Ethan laughed, and she joined him. “There’s your smile. Don’t worry, we’ll figure it out. Even if it means I put a hit on lover boy.”
She gasped. “Don’t you dare!”
Ethan shrugged noncommittally. The idea of Ryan being hurt, by any of her brothers at that, made her chest squeeze and bile rise. It was strange how deeply her affection for him ran.
“Don’t you dare what?” Ryan asked from the door.
Brandy jumped, like a child caught doing something naughty. She slammed the grimoire closed and smiled at Ryan.
“I’ll have you killed if we can’t stop the curse,” Ethan blabbed before she could so much as blink.
Ryan’s brows drew together. “What curse?”
Ethan cocked his head and looked at her, a look of disbelief written all over his face. “Really, Bran?”
She bit her lip, unable to look at Ryan.
“What are you keeping from me?” he asked.
Brandy could not answer him with their telepathy either. She shook her head at Ryan and stared at his chest instead.
“Tell me, sweetheart,” he said.
“What’s going on?” Ethan asked, looking from one to the other.
“They’re probably using their mind-talking shit,” Peter said, stepping to Ryan’s side.
“Hey, Peter. Ethan here is going to have me killed if he and Brandy can’t break the curse.” His voice was cold, drawing her attention and finally bringing her eyes to his.
“What curse?” Peter asked as he lazily scratched his belly.
“What mind-talking shit?” Ethan asked.
“Witches who are soul mates can speak telepathically with their mate after cementing the bond,” Peter said, catching Ethan up. “Now, what fucking curse are you two talking about?”
Brandy froze. All the words vanished with the way Ryan watched her. She was afraid of losing him, even after only a few weeks. After reading about what the women in her family had suffered, it scared her more that she was willing to die for her child if she could keep Ryan in her life.
It pissed her off to have her heart tugged toward him without her say, and her logical mind was still reeling from the speed of things. How could this pull be so strong, so fast? Was this the curse or was this from their soul-mate status? She did not know if she could trust herself.
“It seems the women in our families die after giving birth to their seventh child,” Ethan told them.
“Fuck that! Who wants seven kids?” Peter asked.
“Die giving birth?” he asked.
“Y—yes,” she said.
“Can you guys give us a minute please?” Ryan asked, stepping toward her.
When the room cleared, they sat in silence. He linked their hands and drew circles over her skin with his thumb. The silence weighed heavily, forcing her to tell him everything she read, including her mother’s failed attempt at removing the curse. He listened and nodded, deep in his own thoughts.
“I refuse to lose you, Brandy.”
At his words, all the stress became too much, and her tears slipped down her cheeks. She had turned into a blubbering mess this last month, and it seemed it was only becoming worse.
“We’ll figure something out,” he promised and kissed her. “I can live without sex, but I can’t live without you.”
She told him about Caitlyn and her husband, but he did not blink.
“We’ll hire Peter to cock-block me. It’s okay,” he said and winked. Pulling her to her feet, Ryan’s arms encircled her, and he hugged her tightly before walking them to the door where he stopped. “Just for the record, I’m not going anywhere. Sure, I never wanted to be mated, but now that I have you, I’d rather die than be without you.”
He tugged her hand before she could reply. In the living room, they found Peter by himself playing Xbox.
“Where’s Ethan?”
“Said he had to go.” Peter hit pause on his game and looked at her. “We won’t let you die. Next time you leave out that kind of detail, I’ll kick your ass, babycakes.”
Brandy’s heart clenched at the worry in Peter’s eyes. Her affection for the were had been natural once she accepted that not all werewolves were bad. Now she counted him as one of her closest friends.
“Did you tell her?” Peter asked Ryan.
It was Brandy’s turn to be confused. “Tell me what?”
“Shit, you two need to work on your communication skills,” Peter said as he returned to his onscreen battle.
“We need to leave,” Ryan told her.
“Leave? And go where?”
“When I went for my run, I caught the scent I’d smelled in your apartment the night we met. The thing that followed you wasn’t a werewolf, babycakes. It was a lycan. They’re similar to werewolves but can control specific parts of their transformation. Lycans are soldiers to high-level demons. You’re pretty lucky to be alive.”
Her heart sped up at this new piece of information. “Why didn’t you tell me earlier?”
“I wasn’t entirely sure until I caught the scent just past the wards Ryan put up. We need to move before all hell descends on us. There’s another safehouse we can go to until the other cabin is ready.”
“Whoa! How am I supposed to go back to work with all this?” she asked, mentally calculating how much time she had off. Edward may have left her in charge of the café, but he would only look the other way so much, especially when he realized her absence was more about her safety than irresponsibility.
Ryan rubbed the back of his neck, and she saw the answer in his eyes.
“This is worse than we thought, isn’t it?”
“We need to keep you safe while we figure out why they want you so badly,” Ryan whispered.
“The curse and now this? Ugh,” she muttered and took a step toward her room.
Ryan tugged her hand, keeping a hold over their connection. “Where are you going?”
“I need to pack so we can go. The closer these things get to me, the closer they get to you guys. I can’t have that. We need time to figure this out, and we can’t do that if we’re all dead.”
Chapter 19
Ryan watched her disappear into the room and rubbed his palm over his chest. He could feel Peter watching him, but he could not look at his friend.
“You all right?”
“I can’t—” Ryan released a shuddering breath and stepped outside. He sucked in fresh air, hoping it would ease the turmoil raging inside him. Letting the quiet soothe him, he processed everything he knew. He was still missing some element to the information tickling the far recesses of his mind.
He never wanted to be mated, and over time he figured she did not exist. With everything he knew, becoming a father was the last thing he’d wanted. Having powers was not all it was cracked up to be. As he’d told Brandy, he did not want to pass them down to an innocent child.
It w
as not that Ryan did not like children. He did not want to screw them over or for them to learn things really did go bump in the night. Humans walked around effortlessly, unaware of the supernatural beings who liked to stay under the radar.
When Brandy broke through his defenses, he had imagined a little girl with her eyes. He would never admit it to Brandy or to Peter. He would do anything to protect her, including becoming celibate.
It did not matter how long she had been in his life. Their connection ran deeper than any relationship he had witnessed of his friends or family. Even his parents had failed at keeping it together. He would bet all the money he had stored away that his parents were not mates.
The powerful feeling that had rooted deep inside him the moment they made love was indescribable. The act was monumental, it had fused them together. Brandy was an extension of himself. There was no turning back once he had tasted her. She belonged to him, and he refused to let anyone or anything take her from him.
***
Peter refused to let them leave until after another perimeter run. In the meantime, Ryan finally taught her the spell to keep them hidden in plain sight. He hoped it was not one too many spells for her to remember in the short period of time.
After Peter’s return, Ryan left to remove the wards. The problem was that a ward was like a fingerprint. Any supernatural being or witch would sense the remnants of its magic.
He started with the farthest ones and worked his way in, constantly aware of Brandy’s state. The need to be at her side was almost overwhelming.
“How long does the print stay?” Brandy asked when he came back.
“Mine? Probably three to five days.”
“What would make it go away?” she asked, her eyes so bright he could see the wheels of her mind turning.
“A rainstorm or windstorm would disperse it, but I don’t have that kind of magic,” Ryan told her and cocked his head. “What are you thinking?”
She looked down at her bag before meeting his eyes. “Do you mind if I try something?”
The men shared a glance and shrugged. Brandy walked out the sliding door, and they followed her into the meadow where they had made love. He smiled when her gaze paused at the large oak that would always hold a special place in their hearts.
Brandy kneeled and touched the damp ground. Her lids fluttered closed and no one spoke, curious as to what she planned to try. The air around them shuddered, and a breeze blew wisps of hair across her face.
She lifted her face to the sky, and he could feel a calm wash over her. The magic in the air crackled and surged as he watched the strong woman before him. Lost in his awe, he did not notice the sky grow dark around them.
One droplet and then two fell before they were soon soaked through. His eyes grew large, and his lips parted in amazement. Lightning and thunder shook the earth around them, but no one dared move from their spots. After ten minutes of heavy showers, Ryan heard her thank the goddess for letting her control the rain and then she called upon the wind.
Spinning in a circle, Brandy raised her arms to her sides. The wind picked up until she stopped and clapped her hands once. A huge gust blew through the trees in each direction around them, pushing both Ryan and Peter back a step.
His surprise was short lived as Brandy’s body shook, and his stomach clenched. Setting aside his excitement over the extraordinary power she wielded, he darted forward as Brandy’s knees buckled. He scooped her into his arms before she hit the ground, and he held her against his pounding heart.
“Brandy!” Ryan shouted. His heart seized as he held her limp, cold body, and tears slid from his eyes. “Damn it, Brandy!”
Peter drew near, his eyes holding a familiar glow. “Quiet,” he ordered.
Biting down on his lip, Ryan choked back his emotion. Instead he focused on his best friend as he leaned forward. Peter’s nostrils flared before a gush of air was released. “What?” Ryan whimpered.
“I can hear her heart… It’s weak, but I hear it. I can also smell the air she’s exhaling.” Peter gently laid his beefy hand on her brow. “She’s too cold. Can you whip up something?”
Ryan released a shaky breath and nodded. After lowering her to the ground, he adjusted and placed his hand on her cheek before closing his eyes. Muttering a spell under his breath, he transferred his heat to her.
“That’s enough!” Peter growled, ripping Ryan’s hand off her. “I don’t need both of you down.” He felt her skin and nodded. “That’ll do until she can heal.”
Ryan pulled her into his arms and rocked. A tremble of fear rolled through him. He sensed Peter rise to his feet before jogging toward the cabin without a word. Taking in her face, Ryan noted the way her lashes fanned across her soft skin. Lowering his mouth toward hers, he whispered, “Rest, sweetheart. I’ll keep you safe.”
Peter returned with a thick blanket. “Here. Wrap her up. We need to get out of here.” His eyes glowed as he scanned the forest around them. The silence was deafening, but Ryan knew Peter’s hearing was far superior to his own.
With his friend’s help, he stood, doing his best not to jostle her. They moved to the car, and he slipped into the back seat while Peter tossed their bags in the trunk. Within minutes, they were on the road, driving in silence as they each processed the events of the last hour.
Peter met Ryan’s eyes in the rearview mirror. “She’s fucking powerful.”
Ryan studied her sleeping form. “She’s amazing.”
“I’ve never heard of anything like that,” Peter told him.
She had cleared the forest of any trace of his magic, while only leaving the tiniest spark of her own.
“Never in my wildest dreams,” Ryan replied. Now that color had returned to her cheeks, he found himself growing angry. He was pissed she had put herself in danger, and he refused to let her risk herself like that again. His own body was tired from the energy transfer he’d performed. If not for Peter stopping him, there was no telling how far he would have gone for her.
“Do you think she realizes how special she is?” Peter asked.
“No.” Ryan sighed. “Thank you for helping keep her safe. I think we now know why they want her so badly.”
Peter’s growl filled the car, and his eyes met Ryan’s in the rearview mirror. “Not going to fucking happen on my watch.”
Ryan caressed her face and noted the warmth radiating off her skin. The amount of power she’d used must have short-circuited her system. She was bouncing back faster than he’d expected. Releasing another long breath, he closed his eyes and sent the goddess a quick thank-you.
He decided after running different scenarios through his mind that he would leave her in Peter’s capable hands and gather supplies once they arrived. She was depleted of energy, and he could not leave her defenseless, something she would be if her body and mind did not heal quickly.
***
Brandy peered around the room, wondering where she was. She had just awakened from the most beautiful dream, where she had visited with her mother and grandmother. Sitting on a soft blanket in the forest, they shared stories. Stories of what, she could not remember. It had been peaceful, and as the warmth of her mother faded, her eyes filled with tears.
That was how Peter found her. He scooped her up, cradled her in his arms without a word, and pet her head like a child’s. When her tears dried up, he kissed the top of her head.
“Want to talk about it?”
She shook her head, unsure of what to say. She wondered why Peter was the one comforting her and not Ryan. As if Peter knew the path of her thoughts, he said, “Ryan’s on his way back. I’m sure if you reach out to him, he can tell you how much longer he’ll be.”
She nodded. The warmth of his chest pressed against her cheek. “Where are we?”
“At my place. Are you hungry?”
The thought of food made her stomach take notice and growl loudly.
“Call Ryan, and I’ll go make you something to eat.” Peter pointed at one of three
doors in the bedroom. “The bathroom’s through there if you want to freshen up,” he said and settled her on the bed.
She watched him walk out and close the door behind him. The room was decorated in neutral colors. The king-sized bed she was on barely fit in the room. She wondered if it was his bedroom or a guest bedroom.
She hopped down from the comfortable bed and padded to the bathroom. One look in the mirror and she saw how horrendous she looked. Her skin was blotchy, and red, puffy eyes stared back.
Brandy glanced around and spotted folded towels in a basket. She undressed and placed one of the towels on the toilet lid. After setting the shower to hot water, she found her toiletries lined up neatly on the windowsill.
The long hot shower eased some of the tension in her body. She wrapped herself in the fluffy towel and entered the room to find her clothes. Feeling more human, she sat on the bed and closed her eyes.
“Rye?” she called.
“Thank the goddess you’re okay!” he said.
“How long have I been out?” she asked.
Brandy felt his hesitation. It was strange to feel it rather than see him react.
“Over a week…”
“Over a week?” she asked.
“I’m almost home and we can talk,” he said.
“Okay,” she said.
“Sweetheart?” he asked.
“Yeah, honey?” she asked.
“You scared us badly. I’m happy you’re okay,” he said.
She walked out as Peter carried her plate of food from the kitchen. She decided to eat it next to him, rather than by herself at the table. Unsure of what to say, yet again, and knowing Ryan wanted to be a part of whatever discussion was to follow, she ate her food in silence.
She was in the kitchen washing her dishes when the front door opened. Ethan rushed in and hugged her. “Glad you’re awake,” he muttered into her hair.
“Thanks, me—” Her words died on her lips as she stepped back and met Ryan’s gaze. Ethan squeezed her hand and disappeared down the hall, leaving them alone.
