I shot my gaze over to Raphael, feeling a little betrayed that he’d told them that much, but he was standing there, merely watching the exchange, emotionless.
Grady rested his hand between my shoulder blades to reassure me, so I took a deep breath before replying to the powerful witch. “If anyone lays a hand on him, I’ll take that as an act of attack and respond accordingly. I will be well within my rights to defend him.” I may not have had much interaction with the Conclave myself, but I’d learned our laws at a young age, and today, I’d been grilling Isiah and Raphael on any changes to these laws, especially those that protected Grady. According to them, if anyone hurt my soul-pledged, I was within my rights to maim, injure, or even kill them. If I issued a warning now, hopefully the Conclave delegacy would stay away from him.
“Very well,” she said. “We heed your warning, Mr. Bloodgood, not that we needed one.” She sent me another one of those eerie smiles. “We are here to help protect you. Both of you. And hopefully catch Claudette Rathmore and put her acts of terror to rest once and for all. May we come in to speak tactics with you all? My guards are setting up the perimeter now, and once we’re seated, I will introduce you to your guards.”
“Our guards?” I asked.
She inclined her head. “We will be leaving several guards with you. They will stay with you and Mr. Shaw at all times until the threat is eliminated.”
My brow furrowed. Why would they want to protect us? Weren’t they only doing this to get back at Claudette Rathmore? Wasn’t that all they wanted?
Grady stepped closer to me, a solid presence at my back, and Raphie leaned over to whisper, “They’re the good guys, runt. They want to keep everyone safe, and they feel that they failed you already, so they’ll take extra care to be sure you and Grady are well protected.”
My eyes shot to my brother’s for a moment, before focusing on Norea Malum’s again. She sent me a smile and a small nod, saying, “He speaks the truth.” My eyebrows shot up because Raphie had been whispering, so I had no idea how she’d even heard him. After I nodded in surprise, she asked, “Do you have the globe you were trapped in? I would like my people to look at it to see if we can find Claudette Rathmore’s magical residue.”
Before I could answer, Raphie said, “No, the globe disintegrated when its cage was finally broken.”
I kept my face stoic even though I was shocked. Why had he lied to her like that, especially after telling me to trust the safety of my soul-pledged to them? Did he not fully trust her? I would have to ask him when we were in private because there was no way I would risk it in front of the powerful witch. Raphie had to have a reason for the lie, and I wasn’t about to expose him on it.
“Alright, we can talk in the back,” I said. Grady had already given me permission to use the breakroom, so I knew it was alright to offer this.
“As you wish. Thank you, Mr. Bloodgood.”
Five hours after the leaders of the Conclave arrived, they were finally leaving. There had been so much talk about strategies I knew nothing of since I’d only trained alone and not in a big group that I’d found myself watching Grady the majority of the time. Since there were so many of us, we’d had to buy some chairs from Laz’s store so everyone would have somewhere to sit, and at one point our fearless leader—she was truly terrifying in her own right—ordered a ton of food so everyone could eat to their heart’s content while debating.
But now, there was a plan in place, so we were finally able to go home. The plan was basically to guard Grady and me in case Claudette attacked, and to continue doing research on ways to attract her attention and get her to come out of hiding.
So basically, they spent five hours bickering to only decide they were guarding us. Which we had already known they were going to do before we ever stepped foot inside the breakroom. The delegacy of the Conclave was not very efficient.
After everyone was inside their vehicles—Grady driving Laz, Isiah, Raphael, myself, and our familiars, with our new guards following behind in their own car—we headed toward home.
Isiah groaned. “That was the most pointless meeting I’ve ever been to.”
Raphie agreed, “That was annoying as hell. Why couldn’t they at least decide on one fucking thing?”
“No clue,” Isiah muttered.
I turned in my seat and finally asked the question that had been burning on my tongue for hours. “Why did you lie to Norea Malum and tell her the globe disintegrated?”
Raphie sighed. “I know you’re not ready to show anyone yet.”
“Do you not trust her? Should I be worried?”
“No, it’s not that. I trust Norea with my life. I’ve known her a long time and she’s true, fair, and honest. But I don’t want anyone else getting their hands on the globe. I don’t know the others well, and while I’m sure they’re fine, it only takes one person’s betrayal to wind up dead or imprisoned again. I’m not risking you, not until we know for sure we can trust them all, not until we know for sure that no one can lock you or anyone else inside there again.”
I held his serious gaze for a moment longer before turning and nodding. “Okay.” His statement made sense, but it didn’t exactly fill me with confidence in protection.
Grady reached over, setting his hand on my thigh, so I covered his hand with my own and squeezed his fingers. Under my palm, he flipped his hand over to lace our fingers together. Holding his hand felt intimate and sweet, and I was more than happy to oblige. The past couple of days, Grady had been touching me more and more often. I didn’t hate it, that was for sure. In fact, I loved it. Every touch sent sparks shooting through me in the most glorious of ways.
The rest of the drive and subsequent walk into the house was done in silence, everyone lost in their own thoughts. Once we were inside, I wanted to climb the stairs and straight into bed, but I didn’t since Laz, Raphie, and Isiah were still there.
Tiberius hopped from my shoulder to Grady’s as he asked them, “Are you guys all staying tonight?”
Isiah asked me, “Would that be okay with you? I’d like to stay, but only if you’re comfortable. We can always make the guards come inside, but… we would both feel better if we were here as well.”
“I don’t mind,” I whispered, and he shot me a smile.
Grady asked Laz, “Do you want to take the couch?”
Laz nodded. “Yeah.”
“You okay?” Grady asked.
“I’m fine. Still adjusting, and now with all the… needing guards stuff, I don’t particularly want to be by myself tonight.”
I said, “I think that’s a wise decision. I don’t think you should be alone, either.”
Grady nodded. “At least you have a guard, too.”
I glanced at him. “They gave Laz a guard as well?”
Grady snorted and smirked. “I knew you weren’t paying attention. Yes, they gave him a guard since anyone that might’ve been spying would know he was close to us, and since he was inside during their visit, they might assume he knows everything.” His eyes darkened a little. “Humans are easier to break, apparently.”
Laz said, “Yeah, let’s not talk about that right now. I’m going to plop on the couch to watch a little TV before I go to sleep. Anyone is welcome to join me if you’re not ready for sleep or whatever.”
Grady pulled Laz into a big hug, careful not to dislodge Tib, and kissed his cheek. “Good night, Laz. Come get me if you need anything.”
“Thanks, but I’m good.”
Grady nodded, then turned to me but said to the rest of the group, “We’re going to bed. Good night, guys.” As everyone muttered their goodnights, Grady grabbed my hand, pulled me up the stairs, and straight into the bedroom where Tib flew over to his perch. He pushed me to the bed and took my boots and jeans off for me, then swung my legs up onto the bed and tucked me under the blankets. “You need to get some sleep.”
“So do you.” I snagged his hand and pulled him toward me.
“Let me get my shoes off, and I�
��ll climb right in.”
Releasing him, I smiled as he took off his shoes and jeans, then exchanged his nice shirt for a t-shirt as I watched him. My mouth watered at the sight of his skin as I soaked in every inch of him, but I didn’t move from my spot on the bed.
He caught me watching and winked at me before throwing the t-shirt on and asking, “Do you want a t-shirt so you’re more comfortable?”
“You don’t have to get me one.”
He eyed me before walking over to his second dresser—the one he’d insisted he was giving me to fill with my clothes—and pulled out a shirt, then walked back over and surprised me by pulling me up to sit and unbuttoning my shirt for me. When he began pulling it off me, I whispered, “I can do it.”
He smiled at me and leaned in to press a quick kiss to my lips. “I like taking care of you.” Searching his eyes, I could see that was true, so I let him finish helping me before I slipped my new shirt over my head. Grady turned off the light, then climbed into bed with me, settling half on top of me with his face pressed into my neck. He kissed my neck and nuzzled my skin, murmuring, “You smell good, like my soap.” He kissed my skin again. “But like you too.”
I tilted my head to allow more access and whispered, “What do I smell like?”
He continued nuzzling and kissing my neck as he spoke. “I don’t know how to explain it. Like the air before a snowstorm.”
“And that’s good?”
“Mhm… very good.” He suddenly stopped his ministrations and pulled back to look at me, resting his head on his palm. “Can I ask you something?”
“Yes. Of course.”
He smiled, his fingertips lightly rubbing the stubble on my jaw. “I know you…” He huffed out a little breath. “Are you okay with kissing and everything? Like… is this bothering you?”
It took me a moment to understand what he meant, and when I did, I cupped his cheek. “I love kissing you, and I love everything you’ve been doing, holding hands, cuddling, everything. And I loved what we did the other night.” My cheeks heated, then a horrible thought crossed my mind. “Am I frustrating you?”
He shook his head without hesitation. “Not at all. I’m perfectly content with anything you want to do, even if it’s only this most of the time; I love being close to you, being in your arms.”
“What we did the other night was fun, too.”
He smirked. “It was.” He kissed my cheek. “But I wanted to be sure having me attach myself to your neck like a leech wasn’t making you uncomfortable.” I snorted out a laugh and shook my head. “Good.” He snuggled back into my neck. “Then I’ll be staying right here all night.” He kissed my neck and managed to scoot closer to me, draping himself over me. “All you have to do is tell me if I’m doing something that’s making you uncomfortable.”
“I know, dove.”
Another kiss to my neck. “Good.” His fingers rubbed my cheek as he kissed me a few more times, then pressed his face tight to me. “This is my favorite spot. I’m so glad I met you, Alaric… I was so damn lonely before you came into my life.”
I kissed his forehead and squeezed him in my arms, but he was lightly snoring before I could respond. I closed my eyes with a smile on my face.
Chapter 23
Alaric
ONE MONTH LATER
It took some getting used to, but Grady and I were now accustomed to being surrounded by other people. Constantly. Our guards were with us everywhere we went, to the point that we’d even had to set up a temporary headquarters with beds and everything in Grady’s—no, our—basement. Raphie and Isiah were no longer staying with us because they’d rented a house down the street, and Laz was back at his house, which was right next door to theirs. Raphie and Izzy had been taking turns staying with Laz, along with Laz’s own guards. No one had expected Claudette to stay in hiding this long, so everyone was antsy and frustrated with the situation.
As for me, I was frustrated with the lack of privacy, but I hardly noticed because I was too happy about my freedom and my life with Grady. Our soul-pledge bond grew stronger every day, and the more time we spent together, the more I was convinced he was my destined long before he bonded himself to me. Perhaps that was the reason his soul had attached to mine so easily.
Whatever the reason, I was grateful.
Because Grady was the best thing that had ever happened to me.
And I loved him with all of my heart.
I hadn’t told him yet because I was waiting for the perfect moment, but I was beginning to see that maybe there never would be a perfect moment.
“Hey, baby,” Grady said as he walked into the kitchen freshly showered.
“Good morning,” I said as I flipped a pancake with a spatula. Grady had been teaching me to cook, and while I wasn’t nearly as talented as he was, I could now hold my own. Or at least, Grady pretended my food tasted good. His was always better, but at least mine was edible.
He kissed the back of my neck, then walked to the back door, opened it, and whistled. Tiberius came flying to him a moment later, and Grady chuckled as he caught the bird against his chest and started petting and playing with him. I smiled at the sight, happy they got along so well.
Grady shut the door and continued petting and snuggling with Tiberius as he made his way to the table to sit, and he asked, “Are you ready for today?”
I sighed and shook my head, putting food on our plates. “No, not entirely.”
“It’s going to be okay.”
Walking to the table, I watched Tiberius rubbing his head on Grady’s cheek and sighed. “What if he’s mad I didn’t show him sooner?”
“He might… be mad at first, but I think he’ll understand.”
“I sure hope he does.” I grumpily took a bite of my bacon and decided to change the subject. “What’s our schedule this week?”
Grady eyed me for a moment before accepting the subject change. “Off today and work tomorrow through Saturday, then off Sunday and Monday next week.”
I nodded. It sounded like a typical work week for us. I’d been sticking to the same schedule as Grady. He made the schedule so at least that worked out for us. “Sounds good. I’m glad we have today off.” I sent him a smile that he returned.
As we were finishing our breakfast, there was a loud knock on the door that I got up to answer. When I swung my door open, I was shocked to see Laz standing between my brother and Isiah. I shouldn’t have been surprised since the two of them had been watching my soul-pledge’s best friend like a hawk since they arrived, but I hadn’t known he was coming, too.
“Heya, runt,” my brother said before he stepped through the doorway and pulled me into a back-slapping hug that made his cat familiar jump off his shoulder and trot away.
Isiah made me fist-bump him before his crow Nadia flew to the perch in the corner of the living room, and Laz nodded at me as he walked inside. I shut the door behind him before we all settled in the living room. Grady called from the kitchen, “Be out in a minute! Just need to get the dishes put away!”
“Okay,” I called back.
The guards—Regan, Zoey, and Kamila—came up from the basement and greeted the others before heading out the front door. As long as we had Raphie or Isiah with us, they were “allowed” to leave us here. But that meant we were Raphie and Izzy’s responsibility until the others came back. We needed to have privacy for today, though, so I’d arranged it ahead of time.
The three men sat in a row on the couch, and I didn’t think it would be possible to look more uncomfortable. They were trying very hard to keep from touching one another, but it wasn’t a huge couch, so they were right on top of each other with Laz in the middle. It would’ve been comical if I didn’t notice how withdrawn Isiah seemed. His hair was a tad on the messy side, his skin was a little paler than usual, and he had dark circles under his eyes.
Leaning closer to him, I quietly asked, “Are you feeling alright, Izzy?” I’d taken to using my brother’s nickname for him.
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sp; He jerked back as if I’d surprised him and stared with wide eyes. “Yes, of course. I’m fine.” He brushed invisible fluff off his shirt, then sent me a scowl and made a face like he was asking me to drop the issue. So I did. I shouldn’t have, I should’ve demanded he tell me what was wrong, but something in his eyes told me he wasn’t ready to talk to me yet. Or maybe it wasn’t me he wanted to talk to about it. Maybe Grady should try.
Laz sent him a frown, then sighed and sank back on the couch further with his head tilted up, and Raphie, he didn’t bother to look at Izzy at all. In fact, he was sitting up ramrod straight—something he never did—and purposefully looking everywhere but at Izzy.
They must’ve had a fight. And it seemed that poor Laz was stuck in the middle somehow.
“Do you have to work today, Laz?” I asked, changing the subject.
He shook his head. “Nope. I made sure I had off today for your and Grady’s… thing.”
Grady came out and sat on the armrest of the armchair I was sitting on. “Hey, guys. What’s up?”
Raphie said, “You tell us.”
Grady shot me a look, a silent question of why they were acting strangely, and all I could do was shrug in answer. He turned back with a drawn out, “Oooookay.” He huffed and nudged me. “Alaric has something to tell you guys.”
With a deep inhale, I said, “I want to give you the snow globe.”
Raphie’s eyes widened before a big grin spread across his face. “That’s wonderful, runt.”
“Maybe it will help find her, or maybe draw her out of hiding,” Isiah added.
I nodded, then said, “There’s something else.” I cleared my throat, trying to dislodge the nerves there. “I have our grimoire… the Bloodgood grimoire.”
Wishing on a Dream Page 18
