by AJ Renee
“Volark? How the hell did she end up on his radar?” Xander asked, chuckling in disbelief as he sized Brandy once again.
Ryan respected him well enough, but he didn’t like that someone who was meant to help them wasn’t taking the threat seriously.
Peter narrowed his eyes at his beta and spoke to Brandy. “Babycakes, would you like to explain to Xander why Volark cares, by showing him what you can do?”
She looked at Ryan. “You’ve got this,” he told her with a kiss on her temple and stepped aside.
Xander relaxed his arms at his sides, amusement fading from his eyes as her hands became engulfed in flames again. She tossed a fireball at the werewolf beta, who stepped aside faster than she expected. Ryan smirked at the frustration on her face. Her lower lip pinched between her teeth before she lifted him and held him in midair. She let Xander land on his feet, but before he could do more, she froze him but released his head.
“What the hell?” Xander muttered, his eyes darting around the room.
“Doesn’t feel great, does it?” Serena asked quietly.
Ryan tilted his head, curious to see what else Brandy had up her sleeve, when she lifted her palm to her lips and blew. No longer frozen, Xander flew backward with a strong gust of wind. An outline of his body formed when his back struck the wall. Half a ring of fire appeared around him, too close to escape.
“Enough!” Peter roared.
Brandy flicked her fingers, and water poured over the werewolf, putting out the flames and soaking him in the process.
“Damn it, babycakes! You’re ruining my place,” Peter snapped.
A sheepish look crossed her face as Xander stared daggers from his drenched state. With another quick blow, she dried the were and the remaining water.
“Sorry about the wall, Peter. Give me some time, and I’ll figure out how to patch it up,” Brandy said and slipped her arm around Ryan’s waist.
Annoyed, Xander ran a hand through his hair as he returned to his alpha. “Now I see why Volark is looking for her.”
“Next time, don’t underestimate someone because they have tits,” Serena told Xander before her eyes fell on Brandy. “Are you going to challenge my position?”
“What?” Brandy asked, her brows knitting together with confusion.
“You’re more powerful than her. You can challenge her and, if you win, take over the coven.” Xander explained about the hierarchy, which was similar to the werewolves’. Anyone could challenge Peter for his spot as alpha, something everyone expected Xander to do, only he hadn’t.
Brandy guffawed. “Nope. You can keep your coven. Although…”
“What?” Serena asked as she studied Brandy.
“I’d love to meet more witches,” Brandy whispered, nerves flashing in her eyes.
Serena smiled and nodded. “That we can do.”
“One more thing,” Peter said to the group, and Ryan stood straighter at the unease he heard. “If the tubar I… found early this morning wasn’t lying…”
Ryan smirked. The tubar Peter tortured was more likely the case.
“What’d he say?” Ryan asked after a pregnant pause.
Peter’s eyes landed on Brandy with sorrow. “Volark wants her so he can open the portal and release Damian.”
“Fuck,” Ryan muttered under his breath.
“Who’s Damian?” Brandy asked.
“Someone we want kept locked up and off our plane.”
“Oh…” she muttered.
Serena cut through the circle and walked toward the front door. “It’s been fun. Thanks for the heads-up, Peter.” She paused and spun on her heel. Her finger wagged back and forth between Ryan and Brandy. “Your mating wasn’t an accident. I suggest you two study your families a little deeper.”
Before he could question her, she was gone. They needed to handle things one at a time, and their family’s genealogy, while interesting, did not trump the fact Volark wanted Brandy, and it sure as hell didn’t rate higher than Brandy being pregnant.
***
“Bran, you need to call him back,” Ethan told her for the hundredth time since they left Peter’s place.
She did not bother glancing up at her brother, or Ryan, or even down the aisle at Peter and Xander standing sentry. After Serena had left, Peter spent the next five minutes barking orders at Xander. Brandy figured it was as good a time as any to go to the pharmacy she had spotted on her walk and buy a pregnancy test or three.
“I’ll call him later,” she told Ethan again.
She grabbed a box with three tests and took two steps before snatching two more boxes and walking down the aisle in Peter’s direction. His brow raised, and his lips twitched with amusement.
“Not one word.”
Peter raised his hands, telling her he was done trying. For the entire walk to the pharmacy, the men had been adamant the test would show negative. Not enough time had passed. “Don’t trust my accuracy,” Peter said a third time.
Xander only chuckled before explaining male werewolves knew the moment their women were pregnant. Something about a hormonal shift in their body chemistry made them smell sweeter.
Ryan refused to let her pay for the tests. He grabbed the bag, wrapped his free hand around her waist, and led her out into the open. Peter signaled to them the moment no one was around, and Ryan cast the cloaking spell over himself, Brandy, and Ethan. To any stranger walking past, there were only two attractive males walking down the sidewalk.
Ethan walked on her opposite side. “Seriously, Bran. If you don’t call him when we get back, you’re going to make things worse.”
“E, it’s better he stays away.”
Ethan sighed. “I agree with you—”
“Then it’s settled. I ignore Junior, and we keep him out of it.”
Ethan looked past her at Ryan. “You don’t know our brother. Talk some sense into her.”
Brandy stopped in her tracks at the sight ahead of them. Junior leaned one foot against the building, his arms crossed over his chest. “Shit!” she hissed.
Peter glanced back, his eyes just over her head since he couldn’t see her. To Junior, it would only look like he stopped to look down the street.
“Peter Rawly?” Junior asked, pushing off the wall.
Ryan raised a brow as Ethan shot her an I-told-you-so look. Peter tightened with tension. She was not sure if he’d been paying attention to their sibling bickering or not.
“Who’s asking?” His voice, deeper than normal, was threatening. There was an edge of violence to it she had never heard.
Junior was not a small man by any means. He enjoyed working out, and you could tell. It was how he’d met his wife, Debbie. Junior narrowed his gaze as he took in Peter. “You’re the owner of Alumbra Fitness?”
Peter gave him a short nod as Xander stood stock still. The beta would attack at the slightest wrong move, no hesitation at all. “Again, who’s asking?”
“I’m looking for one of your workers. A Ryan Palfrey?”
Peter’s nostrils flared as he sniffed Junior. Seemingly satisfied with the scent, he stepped toward the building and Junior snapped, “Where are you going? He has my si—”
“Z, make sure no one follows us in and then head back to the gym. Let the family know,” Peter told him pointedly.
Ryan hurried them into the building, staying on Junior’s heels. Ethan trailed behind her, and she noticed the way Junior kept glancing over his shoulder.
“I think he can feel us behind him,” she told Ryan.
“I noticed that too,” he told her.
Once they reached Peter’s floor, Brandy wondered how they would all squeeze in the door without further raising Junior’s suspicions. Her question was answered when Peter opened the door and ushered Junior in. Brandy, Ryan, and Ethan shuffled inside as Junior took in his surroundings.
“Let’s go to the living room where we’ll be more comfortable,” Peter told Junior as he opened his mouth to say something.
“I s
mell her. She’s been here,” Junior said, turning toward Peter quickly.
The two were nearly chest to chest, raging testosterone as they both aimed to protect her.
Peter’s nose flared as he tried to rein in his wolf. “You need to step back.”
Brandy rolled her eyes at the display of aggression. Shrugging Ryan’s arm off her shoulders, she stepped up to the men. “Drop the shield now!” she snapped and placed a hand on Junior’s chest.
He jumped as his eyes rounded. “What the—”
“Why didn’t you just listen to Ethan?” Her annoyance grew as she thought about the many times and ways Ethan had told him she was okay.
“Where… Where did you—” Junior stuttered. His eyes were as big as saucers as he took them all in.
Ryan offered his hand. “Nice to meet you. I’m Ryan.”
Junior stared at the outstretched hand for a moment before shaking it. “Where did you—I thought I smelled you. Were you behind me on the stairs? Who was the other guy?” Junior asked, shooting question after question at them.
Chapter 26
Ryan enjoyed watching the large man turn into a blubbering idiot. Once they were able to shut him up, Brandy suggested they sit and have a chat. He sat back while Brandy and Ethan told Junior their family secret. Ryan figured it would be an easier pill to swallow that way.
Twenty minutes later, Peter walked back in the room as he hung up with whoever had called. “They tell him everything?”
“Sure.” Ryan nodded. Minus one little detail, he thought with a smirk. After a lifetime as friends, Ryan knew Peter could gather that something important had been left out.
Junior leaned forward, put his elbows to his knees, and stared at Brandy. “Come home with me. I have the house rigged with cameras, and we can keep you safe.”
Part of Ryan wanted to laugh, but the other wanted to sock his future brother-in-law in the jaw. Ryan coughed and scrubbed his face—his attempt to let Brandy handle the situation. Peter crossed his arms over his chest and stared at Junior with amusement.
“Junior, no—”
Junior turned toward her and grabbed her free hand in his. “Come on, baby girl,” he pleaded, and Ryan felt the man’s magic instantly. “I’m sure these two mean well, but I’d feel much better if you were at my place with Debbie. She would love—”
“Wow…” Ryan muttered and raised his palm toward Junior.
Brandy tried lowering his hand. “What are you doing?” she asked, panicked.
“Junior, can you say something else you think will make her change her mind?” he asked gently, and Brandy’s posture changed.
“What?” Junior asked, both annoyed and confused.
“Humor us. Why should I go to your place and not stay here?” Brandy asked.
Junior looked around a moment and noticed their serious faces. “Umm… Brandy, you know I have experience in security. I’m sure Peter and Ryan are trying their hardest to keep you safe, but—”
“Holy shit!” Brandy jumped up from the couch. Her wide eyes studied him as if it were her first time seeing him. “You too?”
“I felt it too,” Ethan said, rubbing his cheek as he considered the new information.
“Do you think the others might have magic as well?” Peter asked Ryan.
Ryan shook his head. “No idea. We’d have to test each of them.”
“I never noticed anything before,” Ethan told Brandy.
She shook her head slowly as her eyes met Junior’s again. “Me either.”
“You didn’t know what to look for before,” Ryan told them.
Junior stood and turned around, looking at everyone. “What the hell are you talking about?”
Brandy stepped forward and grabbed his hand. “You also have magic!”
“What the hell are you talking about? No, I don’t. I’ve never done any of the stuff Brandy can do.”
“Yeah, the thing about magic is we can sense it. You do security stuff, so you understand forensics. When magic is used, a fingerprint of sorts is left or emitted. The more you wanted Brandy to come stay with you, the more magic you pushed out. Let me ask you this: In your line of work, when you try to ask or persuade someone to do something, do they do it?”
“Um…”
Ethan stood and asked, “Better yet, can you think of a time where they didn’t do something you asked?”
Ryan nodded, liking the way Ethan was going. They gave Junior a minute as he stared into space.
Grabbing the back of his neck, he studied the ceiling as he released a frustrated groan. “No.”
“My guess? You have the power of suggestion,” Ryan said. “I haven’t actually met a person with it, but I’ve heard of people who’ve harnessed it. It’s a tricky power though.”
Brandy wrapped her arms around Junior’s waist and consoled him the best she could. The simple action made him think of the baby growing inside her. He had screwed the pooch by getting her pregnant, especially before figuring out how to remove the curse. He would get his fill of her body while he could because when the baby came, he would do everything possible to not get her pregnant again.
The idea of becoming a father had changed drastically for him since meeting Brandy. Ryan had not lied when he told her he didn’t want to force their magical life and ties onto a child. Now, he considered how Brandy’s parents had gifted her with normalcy by binding her powers. Unlike her parents, he would make sure the child knew it would happen. Brandy’s parents left her as a sitting duck, especially with what a remarkable witch she turned out to be. He doubted she had tapped into the extent of her power yet.
“Excuse me?” Junior asked.
Ryan must have missed something important.
Peter sighed. “I said… we understand you want to protect her, but she needs to stay with us. You can’t protect her like we can.”
Junior was in Peter’s face before anyone blinked. “What makes you think you can do a better job than the people who love her and would give up their lives for her?”
Ryan did not take offense to Junior’s words. His loyalty and love came from a good place. The only problem was he continued running his mouth.
“What makes a gym owner and her boyfriend better at protecting her? Especially one whose clientele straddles the law? A bunch of criminals—”
Peter’s growl reverberated through the room. His need to protect his pack and stand up to anyone who dared challenge them trumped anything else. Peter’s glowing eyes were the icing on the cake.
Ryan pulled Brandy toward him, away from the danger. Junior stared, slack-jawed at what was obviously something outside his comfort zone.
“You only get one warning, and you can thank your sister for it. My business and clientele have nothing to do with you. As far as Brandy?” Peter released a deadly growl, never losing sight of Junior’s eyes. “I will protect her and her baby with my life…”
Brandy squeaked and tore her attention from the two men. Her fingers dug into Ryan.
Junior snapped out of Peter’s terror-inducing haze and faced them. “Baby?”
Chapter 27
“I thought you were going to rip him to shreds!” Brandy yelled at Peter, who merely picked up the controller as his game started.
“Babycakes, he disrespected me and my pack. I needed to—”
“Mark your territory?”
Peter cocked his head to the side in thoughtful consideration and smiled. “Well, yeah. It’s part of my DNA.”
Brandy shook her head with a chuckle at his double meaning. It had taken them quite a bit to defuse the situation about the baby. Once Peter’s status as a werewolf, the alpha of his pack at that, and another round of information were explained, Junior finally relented that she was indeed safer at Peter’s. The only thing she had left out was the damn curse. He was still trying to wrap his head around the fact she was pregnant.
Hell, she was still trying to process it too. If she was honest with herself, she’d admit she was in denial. Not a
hell of a lot of time had passed for her to think on it since Peter had sniffed her out.
Peter paused his game, and his serious eyes met hers. “You think you kept him safe from ‘being ripped to shreds’? Hurting Junior would have hurt you. I hope the rest of your brothers aren’t as much of an asshole as he is. I like Ethan. I hope they’re more like him.” He un-paused the game and shot someone in the face. The screen splattered in crimson.
Dismissed, she grabbed a water bottle and went to her quiet room. Ryan had left with Ethan, mentioning he needed to see Serena. It didn’t sit well in her stomach since he’d admitted to sleeping with the witch in the past.
Brandy crawled in bed, swallowing her jealousy. She lost track of how much time she had been away from the café. Luckily, she had enough of a mind to talk Junior into speaking to Edward.
She loved her job at the café. Her workers were wonderful, and for the exception of some caffeine-deprived assholes, she enjoyed the customers who came through. She also loved her boss… Edward.
The third oldest brother had found the corner store and turned it into a gem, one he’d handed off to Brandy. Since then, he mostly kept out of the business. Only one or two people at the café knew that the owner and her were related. She wanted her workers to be loyal to her because she was a good manager, not because she was the head honcho’s baby sister.
Junior’s power had caught them all by surprise. She wondered if Max, Edward, Carter, or James had been gifted with anything. If they had, how were they able to remain under the radar? Since the moment her powers had come in, she had not been able to avoid tubars or any other chaos linked to the supernatural.
Too tired to get up, she used her magic to bring the grimoire to the bed. She stared at the language on the front and wondered what Custodes Pacis, terra, aer, ignis, aqua, and spiritus meant. She pulled up the browser on her phone and was relieved to find the information easily enough.
Guardians of Peace.
Earth, air, fire, water, and spirit
Brandy woke to pain in her arm. When she opened her eyes, she found the large leather-bound book digging into her flesh. She must have fallen asleep soon after her translation. The bedroom door squeaked, drawing her attention from the grimoire.
