Witch, Please (Not Your Basic Witch Book 1)

by A. J. Macey

  His encouragement was the final push, my body following his heated command as pleasure rolled through me like a tidal wave. He continued pumping his fingers while my body pulsed around him, shaking with the intensity of my release. Holy hellsticks, that was amazing.

  Wrapping his hands around my waist, he pulled me with him as he rolled. Knowing what he needed, I sat up, positioning myself over him before slowly sinking down. We both moaned as he filled me, my body already sensitive from his previous ministrations. Moving over him, I loved how powerful and sexy this position made me feel. His fingers moved over my body, teasing my nipples as he watched me fuck him. Leaning forward slightly, I braced my hands on his chest as I moved faster, hitting the perfect spot.

  He took over as my movements faltered, gripping my hips as he guided me, throwing me into a second orgasm. Torryn thrust up into me in a frenzy before he tensed underneath me, his muscles rippling as he came. Neither of us spoke for a moment, reveling in the sensation of coming down from the high before I moved off him. I’d barely started to catch my breath before he sat up and pulled me with him to the adjoining bathroom, fiddling with the knobs quickly.

  “Let’s clean you up, so I can make you dirty all over again,” he teased, pulling me into the hot shower he’d prepared for us.

  How could I refuse an offer like that?

  October 31st

  Thursday Afternoon

  Aris

  I hummed as I put on my black lipstick, using a glittery gloss over the top to complete my Samhain look. The dress I bought at the market the other night fit perfectly, the skirt flaring out with a layer of pale pink tulle lining the bottom. It matched the pale pink dreamcatcher design that adorned the top. I loved the cheesy, traditional design of the dress.

  With one last look in the mirror, I was finally happy with the look. The others were once again waiting on me, but they didn’t seem to mind. I’m a lucky girl. After a perfect evening with Torryn, I couldn’t keep the happy grin off my face.

  “The council hall courtyard is where they hold the harvest dance and main celebration. We need to get there early if we want any chance of getting close enough to enjoy it,” Kye reminded us, already heading for the door, holding it open.

  “True, and the vendors are still out, so we’ll have something to do to pass the time,” Drayce agreed as he picked up the map from the counter.

  “I just want to show off that we have the hottest witch in the entire city,” Caspian said proudly, checking me out, ending his perusal with a smirk.

  “I can’t argue with that,” Xan said, pulling me close as he walked by, kissing me with enough passion to leave me weak in the knees. Seeing him let loose more since that dinner was even more satisfying. Knowing the positivity we brought into his life was a stronger force than his parents’ negative one was gratifying.

  “Before we go, we got you something,” Kye said, the others grinning stupidly, which only had me bouncing on my toes in excitement. Extending his open hand, a small pink box with a white bow on top rested in his palm. I snatched it from him with a squeal, untying the bow and ripping it open. Resting on a small bed of satin fabric was a rose gold necklace with a small pumpkin charm dangling from the dainty chain.

  “Guys! I love this so much!” The small necklace was perfect, a symbol to remind me of my first Samhain with the guys. I pulled it out of the box and put it on, my eyes getting blurry with tears before I blinked them away again.

  “We couldn’t resist,” Xan said with a smile, looking down proudly at the jewelry they’d chosen.

  The fact they were able to choose it together and get along perfectly meant more to me than anything.

  “Alright, alright, let’s go!” Kye grumbled, though I could see how happy he was under his broody mask. We hurried through town, the crowds already thick, holding our familiars, so they didn’t get lost in the crush of people. Just as we reached the entrance to the courtyard, I reached up to touch my charm, only to find the necklace empty.

  “My charm!” I cried out, letting go of Caspian’s hand and slipping into the crowd, my eyes trained on the ground as I retraced my steps. I heard the guys calling my name, but they’d have to wait, my mind solely focused on finding my gift as tears threatened to fall. The little golden pumpkin sparkled in the sun, the crowd parting just enough for it to catch on my fallen trinket. With a relieved gasp, I dove forward and snatched it up, reattaching it quickly, making sure it was secure this time.

  When I finally looked up at the crowd passing me, I realized I was on the edge of an alley, not one of my guys in sight. Just as I stepped forward to find them in the courtyard, rough hands yanked me backward, my head smacking sharply against the stone wall behind me. As I groaned and turned, a painful blast hit me in the back of the head, my vision fading as I was plunged into darkness.

  Not again…

  October 31st

  Thursday Night

  Aris

  Everything hurt, my limbs alternating between painful tingles and numbness. When I tried to move them, I found I couldn’t, and the pain only grew as I pulled. Groaning slightly, I peeked my eyes open. What the hellsticks happened?

  “What the…” I murmured, the two whispered words rough and accompanied by pain. A wall of tears filled my vision from the sharp pain, but I pushed it away until I could see around me. It was dark, save for the small flickers of candlelight that danced across the ceiling, illuminating the cobwebs and dust that coated the corners and walls. Turning my head slowly, in an attempt not to aggravate the thudding in my head, I looked left to right, finding myself secured to a large black stone. When my eyes focused on what was holding me to the cold surface, I realized they were chains which had a spike on each chain. Every time I moved, the spike dug a little more into the inside of my wrists and ankles. Adrenaline flooded my body along with the quickly increasing thudding that echoed through my head. The pain was only overshadowed by the adrenaline starting to surge, triggering my fight-or-flight instincts.

  “Aris Calisto,” a soft girly voice called out in the darkened room, but no matter how much I looked around, I couldn’t see who was speaking. “Daughter of a well-off elemental family and yet, somehow, just a Mixta. A disappointment.”

  “Who are you? Show yourself!” I whispered as loud as my voice would allow. Something definitely burned my throat, but I’ll be damned if I let whoever this is see me cry. I need to try to figure out what the hellsticks is happening.

  “I wasn’t finished talking!” The voice hardened, whipping sharp and fast through the room. “As I was saying, a Mixta with no successful affinity and yet, somehow, manages to land the attention of several male witches, including Torryn Callahan Kersey.”

  Tilting my head back, I finally spotted who was talking.

  Delilah.

  “What?” I mumbled, my brain short-circuiting from all the questions floating around my mind, and instead of asking one of the ones that might prolong whatever plans she had or give me answers, I went with ‘What?’ Why am I like this?

  “Goddess, you are so stupid sometimes. I don’t know how you ever caught Torry’s attention,” she hissed, looking at me with disgust.

  Torry? Is she serious right now?

  “Is that what this is about? Torryn?” I asked, finally relaxing slightly against the stone as she sauntered around the stone slab. Despite being scared, my limbs trembled slightly with the dump of adrenaline. I kept my face flat, unwilling to show her any emotion.

  “Don’t say his name!” she screamed, her eyes widening as she snarled at me. In her anger, her normal light blue eyes tinted red. “You don’t get to say his name, you little useless Mixta!” she ranted. Fear overpowered the adrenaline, and it took everything in my power to keep myself from trying to yank my arms and legs from the makeshift bear traps they were locked in.

  “Alright,” I soothed, “I won’t. But are you going to tell me what this is about?”

  After a few tense moments, she seemed to get a grip of hersel
f, her demeanor changing like a flip of a switch, and suddenly, I was looking at the Delilah I knew from my classes.

  “I suppose I should. It’s not going to matter much longer, anyway.” She gave a disinterested shrug, continuing circling down to my feet.

  Her words iced my veins, and my eyes darted around, trying to find any possible way out of this.

  “Well, why should a useless witch like yourself catch the attention of a man such as Torry? He deserves someone who is on the same level of intelligence and power, someone who can not only warm his bed but also hold more of a conversation with him than a dimwit like you.”

  She opened her mouth to continue when I heard a familiar little screech sound from the corner of the room. My head snapped up, my vision dimming slightly at the jarring movement before I saw my familiar crammed into a dingy metal cage, hunched into a little ball to fit. Mr. Stripes’ screeching only got louder as our connection flared. I saw red when I realized he must have been knocked out as well.

  If she hurt my baby, I’m going to give her a taste of her own medicine.

  With that thought, I tried to pull forward my elemental magic, but the clasps around my wrists and ankles flared bright red, the heated metal searing my skin. I couldn’t hold back my scream as I involuntarily tried to flail away from the contraptions and accidentally dug the spikes further into my sensitive, burned skin.

  “Tsk, tsk,” she cooed, shaking her head as a concerned mother would. “Trying to use your powers on me is a big no-no, Aris. I suggest you don’t do that again… Damn it all to hex with you, you infuriating fleabag,” she snapped at Mr. Stripes who had started to scream again. Kicking out, she smacked the cage into the wall, the metal rattling as it collided with the broken plaster and back onto the ground.

  “No!” I called out, my voice barely audible against my lemur’s whimpers. “I’ll get him to be quiet,” I pleaded. She glanced over at me with a pensive expression and pursed lips before finally nodding with a wave of her hand toward the cage.

  “By all means, please do, I can’t stand to listen to that infernal screaming.”

  I almost cried with relief. Looking over at Mr. Stripes, I tried as hard as I could to mentally convey he needed to stay quiet. As if he understood, he dipped his furry head and stopped making noise. I breathed a sigh of relief as I relaxed against the stone. Now that was handled, time to figure out how to get the bat out of hell.

  “Now, that better be the last interruption,” she huffed haughtily, tossing her hair over her shoulder. “You, Aris, stole Torry from me.”

  I wasn’t sure if it was slowly impending unconsciousness, hysteria, or straight up stupidity like she said, but I laughed—so hard and loud, my laughing was no longer audible, and tears streamed freely from my eyes. Torry. Oh, my broomsticks, to see Tor’s face if she called him that…

  “Shut up!” she raged, and finally, unable to handle my chortling, she strode over to my left side and smashed the spike into my wrist.

  My chuckles turned to silent screams as I felt the metal pierce my skin and embed in bone. Warm, deep red rivulets poured freely from my wrist onto the stone, the dark surface illuminating in glowing red runes as soon as my blood touched the material.

  “Ah, there we go, the whole reason we’re here.”

  “What… are you… doing to… me?” I barely breathed out, my mind suddenly growing foggy, my eyelids slowly closing as if I wanted to sleep for a million years. I forced myself to stay awake, envisioning my guys’ faces, chanting their names in my mind, trying to stay grounded.

  “Well, if my love wants to toss around with you instead of me, then I’ll just become you,” she exclaimed simply with a cocky smile. “I might look like a Mixta, but I’ll still have my powers. Moving things with my mind certainly wouldn’t hurt either,” she hummed, proud of herself as she pulled an athame from under her ugly, pink argyle sweater and eyed my restrained form with a blood-red gleam and unrestrained delight.

  Oh, fuck.

  Torryn

  The festival was in full swing, witches singing, dancing, and overall, extremely cheery. While I’d finally had a taste of Aris, all I wanted was more. Fuck that she’s my student or I’m a teacher, she means more to me than a magical bond or the tenuous situation of me maintaining a professional image. She was my girl, and all I wanted at that moment was her soft skin under me, her lips locked with mine, and my cock buried in her perfect pussy. Ugh, I groaned, discreetly adjusting myself as blood rushed between my legs, hardening in less than a second thinking about Aris spread out in front of me.

  Ruby perked up, her little head swiveling back-and-forth, which immediately put me on edge. There had only been one other time this had happened, and it had turned out Aris had been hexed. She bounced up and down on my shoulder, nudging my head to the left where I saw the rest of the group collecting at the edge of the crowded city square.

  “What’s going on?” I questioned when I reached them, my voice low to not draw attention. They all looked as panicked as I felt, our familiars nudging us in a specific direction until suddenly they stopped.

  “I think it’s safe to assume something is happening to Aris. Wasn’t she with you guys? Who was the last to see her?” I questioned in anger. I can’t believe they lost Aris. How hard is it to keep track of a witch with pink hair!

  “She pulled back from me just a few minutes ago, something about her charm necklace. We’ve been trying to find her in this crowd,” Caspian explained, his eyes wide with fear. Biting back the urge to snap at him, I looked toward our familiars.

  “Well, clearly, something is wrong, so we split up and find an official guardsman,” I commanded. “Xan, you take Caspian and Drayce. Kye, you’re with me. Meet back here in ten minutes if the animals don’t pick up another trail.”

  Splitting up, we scoured the crowds, but no matter how hard Kye and I looked, we couldn’t find a guardsman in the crush of people. Glancing at the clock, a wave of panic filled me as we neared the ten-minute mark, but before we started back to the meeting spot, Ruby and Raptor started up again. Please let the others have found some sort of help. I pushed through the crowd in the direction the familiars led us. It only took a few minutes for all of us reach it, Xan leading a set of four guardsmen, but the relief was short-lived because as soon as we entered the house, a manic laughter reached our ears.

  I darted down the hall, my only focus on getting Aris, and when I burst into the room, my instincts took over. Shouting a binding spell, I threw my hand out toward the figure standing next to a large slab in the center of the room. Time slowed as my brain processed what I was seeing—Aris unconscious and bleeding out onto a rune-carved altar and a disfigured Delilah Thana bound and lying on the floor screaming. I had to swallow the bile I felt rising in my throat when I realized the reason she looked so disfigured was half of her face had started to look like Aris’, and half of her messy brown hair turned into a cotton candy pink.

  The guardsmen darted forward, two going to Delilah, securing a pair of power-dampening handcuffs on her while the other two safely maneuvered Aris off the stone slab. Mr. Stripes’ screeching filled the space, and Caspian ran around the room to where Aris’ lemur was caged. Grating metal sounds filled the space until I saw the fluffy black-and-white striped tail puff up into the air. Before going to Aris as I expected, he scurried over to Delilah and pounced on her, clawing at her face with a blood-curdling scream.

  My lips curled into a smug smirk, leisurely walking over to the crazed lemur before pulling him off her, not caring in the slightest her face was now back to normal, albeit cut up. I noticed the guards didn’t move to stop him, either.

  “Come on, let’s go see Aris,” I cooed softly, my nerves rattled and frayed, but I stayed grounded as I stepped up to our girl. “Here you go, Mr. Stripes.” He gingerly crawled up onto her chest, his little hands patting her cheeks, but she remained unconscious as the healers I hadn’t seen arrive loaded her up onto a wheeled cot.

  “What in the hel
ls bells and tarot tells was going on here?” Kye asked quietly, eyeing the table and the discarded potion bottle on the floor. “These are some very dark runes, and I only recognize one or two.”

  “She was trying to morph herself into Aris,” Drayce explained, his upper lip curling back in disgust as he pointed to the glass bottle. “Even used a Flame’s Ignition potion, for what, I’m not sure, but that’s a nasty piece of work to use on someone.”

  “It looks like she used it to burn her throat,” one of the healers explained as she looked in Aris’ mouth in a brief assessment. One of the other healers was checking her arms and legs, bandaging and healing the visible injuries as well as they could.

  “Why?” Caspian huffed, running his hand through his hair as he actively avoided looking at her injuries. Couldn’t say I blamed him; I could barely look at them without fear of destroying the house in a rocky earthquake.

  “Can’t call out for help if you can’t talk,” the healer whispered, her eyes filled with haunted shadows as she closed Aris’ jaw. “Don’t worry,” she reassured when she saw our shocked and angry expressions. “She’ll be alright. There was no major internal damage picked up by our scans. We’re going to wait until she’s awake before we do more in-depth healing. I promise, she’ll heal and be back to her old self soon enough.” With that, she left, followed by two healers who rolled the cot out of the house into the front area. Taking a steadying breath, I followed, relief pouring through me at the news.

  Thank the Goddess we found her in time.

  Aris

  Everything was a blur, mumbles and sounds mixing together as I tried to look around, my eyes refusing to focus on the flurry of activity around me. All I knew was I was half a numb blob and still felt like I was sitting directly in a fire. Weird sensations filled me, my body and mind slowly coming back to me as I realized there was a large group of people fluttering and shouting around me. I was laid on something soft, and someone was holding my hand.