by Wendy Cole
The look he shot me was almost funny. “I’ve seen your mother plenty of times.”
“My mother hasn’t met you.”
Brady sat up slightly. “So, if I meet your mother, then you’ll live with me?”
“Well, she has to like you.”
His eyes widened, but then a cocky expression settled down upon his face. “All women love me, Sweetheart.”
“I don’t know. My mother isn’t fond of men in general.” It was true. Ever since my dad left, she had a natural aversion towards the male gender as a whole. She never dated. I’d never even heard her mention a man in all the years it’d just been us, unless one had managed to piss her off, that is.
Brady stared intently. “And if she doesn’t? Then what?”
I shrugged, my eyebrows lifting in mock challenge. He’s so gullible. As if I would even be capable of letting him go. The way he’s squirming is a little funny, though.
Brady’s eyes flashed. “Amelia?” He leaned down, hovering over me.
I hummed.
“Are you messing with me?”
“No.”
His lip twitched. “Are you lying?”
“No.”
His fingers lightly touched my hip then ran upwards. “Are you sure?”
I nodded, unable to speak past the newly formed lump in my throat.
“I think you’re lying.” Suddenly, he jumped up and straddled me, and his other hand darted to my opposite side.
It wasn’t romantic. It didn’t cause heat, or lust, or passion. No. Brady held me pinned as he proceeded to tickle me in a way that could only be increased by magic. I tried to escape as laughter consumed me, but Brady was merciless.
“Stop!” I shouted out in a high pitch squeal. “No!”
He laughed. “Who’s squirming now, Sweetheart?”
His words sunk in, and my eyes widened. “What do you mean?!” I fought harder, desperate to stop him so I could focus. “Brady!”
Brady’s eyes danced, but he finally stopped and lowered himself down between my legs. “What? You didn’t like that?”
Who’s squirming now? I hadn’t said that out loud. My eyes widened. Can he hear my thoughts?
Brady’s smile was wicked.
He can! He can read my fucking thoughts!
He laughed, then held me pinned as I tried to rise. “You’re adorable.”
You’re a dick!
He laughed again, then silenced my anger with a long languid kiss.
I tried to deny him, but it was too nice, so much more intense now that I’d allowed myself to be zombified. I couldn’t fight him. Instead, my traitorous mouth moved in sync with his. When he finally broke away, I was breathless. “Turn it off!”
“I don’t want to.” He grinned. “I like it in your head.”
“Why can’t I hear yours?” This is unfair. Allow me my privacy, my ass! This is the most invaded my privacy had ever, or could ever be.
Brady’s smile never wavered. “I’m blocking you.”
His words only angered me more. “So, you block me, but refuse to let me do the same. That’s messed up, Brady!”
“I’m not refusing. You could block me if you wanted to.”
“How?” I waited, but judging by his expression, I could tell he wouldn’t help me.
“It’s easy.” He lifted one shoulder, smirk still in place.
“Tell me how to do it then,” I spoke each word pointedly.
“I don’t want to,” he said in the same way, mimicking my pointed speech.
“Then I should be able to hear yours too. Stop blocking me.”
Brady’s smile dulled, and his expression grew thoughtful. “I can do that.” He leaned forward, placing his lips to mine, and a wave of emotions hit me so hard, my breath caught in my throat.
Love. Warmth. Need. All of these things, more intense than what should have been possible, swept over me like a fog, all-consuming, encompassing.
That’s how I feel about you, Sweetheart. That’s how I’ve always felt.
Something about his voice being inside my head made my heart lurch. It was so natural, like I’d been missing it my entire life, and it was only now returned to me.
His kiss deepened, and as it did, scenes began to play out like a film, one right after the other, I saw myself…
Dancing in my room when I thought no one was watching.
Hugging my mother goodbye as I left for college.
Screaming at empty air, flipping a bird in every direction.
Each moment, I felt it, his emotions, his love, his humor, his total devotion to me. It was so beautiful; I couldn’t stop my own emotions from taking over. Tears filled my eyes, spilling over to roll down my temples.
Brady broke the kiss and leaned back to look at me. He reached up, wiping away my tears with an expression I’d never seen on him before. “My entire life, I’ve been told how powerful I am. It was a constant, and I’d be lying if I told you I didn’t let it get to my head. For years, I was conceited, completely uncaring.” He watched me closely as he continued. “Then, when I found you, when I saw you there, so innocent, everything changed. The more I watched you, the more my views shifted. You were shunned by so many, but even alone, despite any of it, you’d still find joy in the simplest of things.” His voice was deep and smooth, his eyes intense yet soft. “All my power meant nothing after that. I’d give it all up, become a beggar if it meant I’d get to bask in your light instead.”
“Brady.” I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him closer.
He kissed the spot just below my ear, then lifted himself back to look at me. “Let’s get dressed and go meet your mother.”
“Right now?”
“Yes. Now. No way am I going to have you sleep anywhere other than right beside me.”
I smiled at the seriousness in which he spoke. The idea of seeing my mother didn’t necessarily bother me either. It felt like ages with everything that had happened, and I was curious to see how she was. Maybe things were better for her now that I was gone.
Brady waved a hand, covering us both, him in a pair of dark slacks and a button-down, and me in jeans and a sweater.
“Do you enjoy picking out my clothes?” I teased as I once again took note of how stylish he always was.
Brady smirked as he lifted himself up then helped me to my feet. “No, Sweetheart. I generally enjoy taking them off.”
A burst of blue cut off my reply.
CHAPTER FORTY-THREE
Brady shot me a wink as we landed outside my childhood home. “Well, Sweetheart. You do the knocking, I’ll plan out what our house is gonna look like.”
I couldn’t stop the wry smile that tilted my lips, but I otherwise ignored his comment and focused on the task at hand. The door was unlocked, so I slowly stepped inside. Brady remained close behind me as I looked around. No lights were on, apart from the faint glow under my mother’s bedroom door, not enough to be a light, but more likely a candle. “Ma?”
A series of muttered words greeted me. Something shattered. Panic set in. Was someone in there with her? Alarm bells went off as a muffled voice answered my question. A man. There was a man in her room. “Ma!” I ran for her door but only made it halfway before Brady jerked me to a stop.
“Yeah…Sweetheart? Let’s maybe give her a minute.”
“I heard a man.” My eyes shot back to the door.
Brady cleared his throat, and when I turned back to him, he looked amused. “I don’t think she minds.”
Just then, my mother stepped out of her room and quickly pulled the door closed behind her. “Amelia? I didn’t know you were coming, baby. Is everything okay?”
I took in her hands as they finished tying the bathrobe around her waist, her disheveled hair, and her– “Is that a hickey?”
Brady snorted.
My mother blushed, her eyes darting embarrassedly to the man behind me. She cleared her throat. “Who is this?”
I looked behind me, only then rememberi
ng that I too had brought a strange man to the house. “Mom, this is Brady. Brady, this is my mom.”
Brady stepped forward and held out a hand. “It’s nice to meet you, ma’am.”
Ma’am?
He winked at me. “I can see where Amelia gets her beauty.”
My mother’s eyes were wide as she took in the massive man before her. For a moment, she simply stood, stunned, mouth opening and closing, making her resemble the goldfish I’d had as a child. “Yes,” she finally spoke. “It’s nice to meet you.” Her eyes found mine. “And you’re Amelia’s?” She let the sentence hang.
“He’s my—”
“I’m her fiancé.”
I choked.
Brady smirked.
My mother still looked like my goldfish, only now a little more like after I’d found it floating. “Fiancé?” Her accusing gaze shot to me.
“That’s why we came,” Brady continued. “I insisted on having your blessing before we made it official.”
My mother’s eyes darted back and forth between the two of us. “I think I need a moment with my daughter if you don’t mind.” She stepped around and linked her arm with mine, then proceeded to drag me into the kitchen.
Brady, thankfully, was smart enough to stay behind.
The moment we were alone, she whisper-hissed. “Who is that man?”
“We’ve been dating.” I took a step back. Regardless of anything I’d survived, my mother was still capable of being the scariest thing in existence. She was either ready to explode, or faint, and since she had never fainted once in my life, it seemed like a great time to take a step back.
“You’ve been dating.” Her look intensified. “And now you’re engaged? You’ve been gone less than a month. How much can you really know this guy? And school. Don’t you have classes tomorrow?”
Oh, well, you see, he’s magical, and now that I’ve received his extraordinary man bits, I can safely say marriage is not so big a step to take. Yeah. That didn’t seem like a good answer, so instead I said, “He’s a great guy. Really.”
“I’m sure he is, honey, but, marriage?” She led me to the table, forced me to sit, then took the spot across from me. “You know how it was for me when your father—”
“That wouldn’t happen.”
“I didn’t think it would either until it did,” she pushed. “Maybe just take some more time—”
“Who’s the man in your bedroom?” I cut her off, successfully killing her insistent lecturing about Brady.
Her face turned white as a sheet, and she studied the floral tablecloth. “What man?”
I snorted. “C’mon, Mom. I heard you in there. Do you have a boyfriend?”
She huffed a breath, then put on her angry mom face. “He’s just a friend. I’ve started taking scuba lessons.”
“Scuba lessons.” I watched her as the reality of the situation worked its way through my brain. My mother had a man in her bed. A genuine man and she’d been doing things with him. I didn’t know whether to cry, laugh, or beg Brady to erase my memory.
“Can I meet him?”
“No! No, no. That’s―It’s nothing serious. He’s just a—”
“Friend?”
“Yes.” She looked away. “It’s been lonely without you here to take care of.”
My heart lurched, and I grabbed her hand. “I know. I’m sorry. I’m happy you’ve found someone.”
She smiled softly. “I missed you so much!” Before I knew it, she’d jumped up and engulfed me into another one of her famous death grips. “It really isn’t serious, darling. If I’d known you were coming, I wouldn’t have invited him over.”
“It’s fine, Mom.” I tried to pull her away, but she clung tighter. “Mom? I love you. Can we talk more about Brady?”
That made her let go. “You can’t marry a man you just met.”
“Get to know him. You’ll love him, I swear.”
“Look, honey. I’m going to be completely honest with you.” She sat back down and leveled me with another look: the I-am-going-to-shove-my-infinite-wisdom-down-your-throat look. “Beautiful men can’t make good husbands. Your father was a ten, and look what happened. That man out there is a solid twenty. I don’t want to see you get hurt.”
I rolled my eyes. “Will you at least try to get to know him?”
She threw her hands up. “Fine. I’ll try. But please, don’t let him hurt you. I like my freedom. Do you want your poor mother to go to jail?”
“You’re not going to jail.”
She didn’t seem convinced. “Call him in here.”
I didn’t need to, because no sooner did she say the words than Brady strolled through the doorway. “Everything okay?” He shot me a look that let me know he’d heard our whole conversation, and the glint in his eyes made me believe he wasn’t put off in the slightest. “I think your friend left. He said he’d call you.”
My mother’s cheeks reddened, but she brushed off the statement. “What do you do for a living? How do you plan to support my daughter? Do you drink? Do you smoke? When was your last doctor’s visit?” She rattled on all of these questions without pausing for him to answer, and currently resembled the world’s first fifty-five-year-old, five-foot-tall bulldog. “Are you a loyal type of man, Brody?”
“It’s Brady, Ma.”
“I understand your concerns,” Brady said, slowly stepping further in her direction. The closer he got, the more mesmerized my mother seemed to become. “But you have nothing to worry about.” His voice changed, taking on that compelling tone. “I love your daughter. She’s safe with me, and you’re very happy about that.”
I gaped at him. “Brady! You can’t just—”
He cut me off, not even bothering to acknowledge I’d spoken. “Do I have your blessing?”
“Of course.” My mother smiled, a genuine smile that wasn’t genuine at all.
“Then it’s settled!” Brady clapped his hands together. “Come on, Sweetheart. We’ve got to practice for the honeymoon.”
“Brady!”
He grinned, then looked at my mother. “I said plan for the wedding.”
My mother smiled warmly, nodding her head as if everything he said was made of gold and fell from the heavens. “You heard him, Amelia. You should get to it. You can never be too prepared.”
I’d never been more mortified.
Brady chuckled. “Yeah, Sweetheart.”
“Oh! You shut up!”
My mother shot me a scolding look. “Amelia! That’s rude! You apologize right this instant!”
I crossed my arms over my chest, then ignored the giant smile and dancing eyes of the man next to me. “I’m sorry.”
Brady boomed, big laughter filled the kitchen and made my traitorous girly bits stand at attention.
You can make it up to me…
Not for a long, long time, Brady.
His smile fell.
“I’m going to head back now, Ma. I love you.” I pulled her in for a hug, shooting Brady an annoyed look over her shoulder. He’d ruined it. He had to know that he couldn’t use magic for everything.
The moment I walked away, Brady took up the place beside me. “Why are you mad?”
“You manipulated my mother.”
“She didn’t like me. I couldn’t let her not like me, could I?”
“She would have come around.”
“Exactly. I just helped her with that a bit.”
We exited the front door and stood for a full minute staring at each other. A part of me was relieved to be done with my mother’s drilling, but another part, a large part, wanted her to like him because of who he was, not because he’d used magic to force her. “I don’t like it.”
“Alright. I’m sorry.” He looked annoyed but resigned. “I’ll take back the spell and kiss her ass until she finds me suitable.”
I smiled up at him. “Good boy. Was that so hard?”
Brady started to smirk but stopped. His eyes darted away from me and around the yard.
I opened my mouth to ask what was wrong but was cut off as he grabbed my shoulders and shoved me behind him. Adrenaline flooded my body as I fought to look around him, to find the threat I knew he’d sensed.
“Don’t worry. I won’t let them hurt you,” Brady said, his voice rougher than I’d ever heard it.
No sooner did the words leave his mouth, bursts of light lit up the front yard, one right after the other until five jinn were lined up in front of us.
Owen stood in the center, eyes flaming red and full of excitement. The other four, I’d never seen before. They varied in coloring, like a rainbow from hell, and Brady stiffened as he took in their numbers.
“This is my mate,” he declared, the words a barely distinguishable growl. “Bonded and tied. The council has approved it.” He directed each word at the surrounding four. “I won’t kill you if you leave now.”
Owen laughed. “You can’t possibly be that conceited. One against five? You stand no chance.”
The other four stepped forward, answering his threat with their unity. They wouldn’t back down.
CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR
More lights burst out of nowhere, popping around the yard like erupting volcanoes. I counted them all, one after the other, and my heart sped up with each new arrival. Twenty, then more still. A small army spread across my mother’s freshly cut grass, too many for one man, magical or not, to take on alone.
Brady knew this, because the moment the odds became too great, he whipped around and grabbed me.
I clung to him, but instead of a bright blue light coming to take us away, a burst of red erupted against his back, sending us both crashing into my mother’s front door.
Brady shielded me, his back taking the full force of the blow, and his arms acting as a barrier between my body and the unforgiving wood behind me. His grimaced, dragging a ragged breath into his lungs that hurt me more than any physical pain could have. His pain was mine, and at that moment, I wished above everything that he’d never found me, that he’d gotten a normal mate, one that wouldn’t cause him all this suffering.
“Brady?” My voice was barely a whisper, unable to make it past the terror inside my chest. The world fell into slow motion as I took in our surroundings, our situation, fighting to remain calm, chanting and envisioning the outcome I wanted inside my mind as if that would somehow make it so.
