Sound's Familiar

by Dana Marie Bell

  Carol had finally managed to swallow the first cookie. “Wait. I don’t understand. Why can’t you follow it?”

  Rose sighed. “I’m a full-blooded earth dimen. My parents were from the earth realm, making them earth giants, if you will. I can travel to my realm and track someone there with the right spells. I can even go to some of the other realms, but there are those that are closed to me, such as the water realm or the realm of hellfire.”

  “Okay, I get the water realm. You’d literally become mud.” Carol nibbled her third cookie. “But why the realm of the withers? Why is that closed?”

  “She’d need human blood to enter Terra Noctem, and she has none.” Jonah rubbed his eyes. “Damn it. I hadn’t thought of that.”

  “Created by the gods or the hands of man, it doesn’t matter one little bit. I’m confined by my nature, just as the wither is.” Rose sat back with her teacup cradled in her hands. “I don’t make the rules. Hell, I’m not certain why we’re allowed here but not, say, the wither’s realm.”

  “Because it’s a place of punishment?” Carol tilted her head in her dog-like way. He imagined her nose twitching as if she’d caught a scent.

  “Terra Noctem isn’t inherently bad, but it isn’t good either,” Jonah replied. A lot of people, even those educated in magic, made the mistake of thinking that Terra Noctem was a place of evil. “It is, however, human-oriented. It’s where lost souls, ghosts, poltergeists, withers, shadow men, and wraiths live, all of it covered in ectoplasmic mist. I’ve caught rumors of animal spirits living there as well, but I’m not sure if that’s true or not.”

  “Exactly.” Rose sipped her tea. “And since I’m neither animal nor human, Terra Noctem is closed to me.”

  “Following the wither isn’t a path we can take without paying a price I’m not willing to even consider.” The thought of contacting a realm walker or a necromancer made him shiver with dread. His animus might contact Terra Noctem, but Jonah couldn’t imagine actually visiting the place.

  The people who did were either super courageous or crazy. Probably both.

  He grabbed another cookie. Hell, he might as well enjoy the visit with his old friend. “By the way, Rose is totally in love with me.”

  Carol’s head snapped to him, a snarl forming on her lips.

  Rose rolled her eyes. “When I was five, dickhead. Then I learned what you were really like when you popped Tommy Leary on the nose for no reason whatsoever.” Rose sniffed in disgust.

  There’d been a good reason for it, but he’d never tell Rose what Tommy Leary had said about her to deserve that punch. Rose was as close to him as a sister, and Tommy Leary had been—and still was—a douche. “Yeah, I was a total bad boy when I was young.”

  “I can believe that.” Carol sat forward and gave Rose a sweet, sugary smile. “Tell me more.”

  Rose laughed deeply, that wonderful belly laugh Jonah had come to love. Rose was as much a sister to him as Lessa was. Watching Carol enjoy their talk was worth the humiliation that was about to be heaped upon his head. “I’d be delighted.”

  Or not. Jonah shoved the cookie in his mouth and prepared to be mortified.

  Chapter 15

  Carol was still giggling off and on as Jonah drove them to a restaurant. He had the grumpiest expression on his face, but every now and then his lips would twitch, and she’d catch him trying to stop a laugh with a cough.

  Once she got over her initial jealousy of Rose, she’d found the other woman entertaining as hell. The stories of Jonah’s childhood had made him sound like one tiny hellraiser. The one where he was taking a bath, only to empty a wastebasket to use it to “bail out the leaky boat,” had her holding her sides. Rose had enacted Jonah’s mother’s reaction, making Jonah cover his head in response. Apparently, the words “Go to your room” had never terrified him more.

  Jonah had winced through most of the stories, his cheeks heating in embarrassment as Rose’s stories had gotten more and more enjoyable, at least for the women.

  The cookies had been really good too.

  “Can we visit her again?” Carol batted her lashes at Jonah, trying not to laugh again at his disgruntled face.

  “No.” Jonah pulled into the parking lot of a popular steak house. “She might start telling stories about when I was a teenager.”

  Carol got out of the car, smiling broadly. “Then we definitely need to go.”

  Jonah got out, but he was no longer paying attention to her. Instead, he was scowling at his phone.

  Carol’s amusement immediately fled. “What’s wrong?”

  Jonah muttered something evil-sounding under his breath that she didn’t recognize. “Rose is going to be at dinner on Friday.”

  Carol bit her lip to stop herself from laughing. “Does your mother like her?”

  “My mom adores her.” Jonah offered his arm, and Carol took it. “Rose helped set up her garden.”

  “Did she help with yours?” Carol opened the door to the restaurant before Jonah could do so.

  “Nope. Rose was busy with her business by then. My mom and I did mine.” Jonah was grumbling again, but he strode ahead of her to where the hostess stand was. “Sound, party of two.” Jonah led her to the benches along the wall. He had one of those flasher things restaurants gave out. He handed it to her and pulled out his phone. “I need to send Paul a text about the serpent symbol we found on the victim.”

  Carol nodded and sat patiently, waiting for their flasher to go off.

  Jonah took a deep breath and let it out softly. “Paul’s worried about the combination of dimenic runes and the serpent symbol.”

  Carol shook her head. “Trust me, the dimenic runes were nonsense. The serpent was the important one.”

  This was one of those teaching moments he’d been expecting. “My gut says you’re right, but it’s better to be thorough than miss something. Neither one of us wants to get our asses chewed out by the boss lady, trust me.” When she nodded her understanding, he continued, “We can have my sister take a look at them. She’s an expert on this kind of thing, and she’ll be discreet.” Jonah took back the flasher and grabbed her hand, folding their fingers together. “We’ll get him, don’t worry.”

  “I’m not.” Carol squeezed his hand, hoping to show her support. Jonah’s determination was almost visible, like a cloak that surrounded him. She had to figure out a way to break him out of his funk. “Speaking of sisters, did you really glue your sister’s pigtails to her pillow?”

  Jonah shot her a horrified glance. “I would never do something like that. No matter how many of my cookies she stole, the little brat.”

  “You’re an evil man.” Carol patted his hand. “I like that about you.”

  He huffed out a laugh. “I like you too. I’m glad you and Rose are getting along.” He seemed a little more relaxed as he crossed his ankle over his knee. “And my mother is going to love you too.”

  Too? It was a little soon for the two of them to be sharing words of love, so he must be talking about Rose. “I think I’ll invite Rose and Debbie out for a girls’ day of shopping.”

  “Have fun. Oh, by the way, I forgot to tell you. You have an account, automatically set up the moment you became my familiar. I’ll get you all of the necessary checkbooks and credit cards associated with it as soon as we get home.”

  She blinked. “How? When did you...? There’s no way it got set up in my name that fast.” It was what, a week since they signed their contract? They’d been busy setting her up as his familiar as well as chasing down leads on several cases. Besides, didn’t he need her signature for all of that stuff?

  He kissed the back of her hand. “It’s done, so don’t worry about it.”

  Jonah really was magic. “So... I can go shopping?”

  “Yup. In fact, I insist on it.” Jonah grinned. “You’ll need to pick up some work clothing. Debbie can help with that if you’re unsure of what to pick up.”

  “I’d appreciate her help.” Carol’s mind was racing with
possibilities, but until she had a handle on her new financial situation, she couldn’t really plan much. “When does the department pay me?”

  “We get paid every other week, so you’ll get your first check in two weeks.” Jonah frowned slightly, biting his lip. He seemed to do that whenever he was thinking. “Yeah, two weeks. They hold one check back.”

  “Huh.” She made a disappointed face. “Guess I have to wait to go shopping.”

  “Nope, you can—” At that moment, the flasher went off, and Jonah tugged her to her feet. “Let’s go eat. I’m starving.”

  “Oh, hell yes.” She’d been smelling steak the entire time they’d been talking and was having a hard time swallowing her drool.

  They were led to their seats and given their menus. With a cursory glance, she decided on her dinner—the medallions and loaded mashed potatoes, with her favorite brown ale. Jonah picked the T-bone with red wine, and they agreed to share a cheese plate appetizer.

  When the drinks came, Carol took a sip and sighed in satisfaction. “Mm, that’s good.”

  Jonah was watching her, his gaze heating up. “Glad you like it. I’ll have to stock some of that in the fridge.”

  “Have you ever tasted this before? It’s a local brewer, really good.” Carol held out her glass.

  Jonah took it, turned it to where her lips had been, and took a sip. He licked a drop off of the glass before handing it back. “It is good.”

  It was almost as good as if his tongue had touched her lips. She cleared her throat, her hand shaking as she put the glass down. “Jonah?”

  “Hmm?” Jonah nodded at the waitress as she placed the cheese plate in front of them. “That looks good, thank you.”

  Carol picked up a piece of cheddar, hoping she’d managed to hide the way she was reacting to his simple yet sensuous action. “Tell me about your previous familiars.” She wanted to understand what had gone wrong with the others and what had been right.

  She couldn’t understand how anyone would want to leave Jonah. The man was so perfect for her that she never wanted to go without his magic sliding across her skin.

  “Mm.” Jonah leaned back, absently toying with his glass. “My first familiar was a guy I was in class with. We both knew it was temporary. More a convenience for both of us while my magic matured and he waited for a good match. It lasted a year and a day.”

  Okay, that made sense. A lot of young mages and familiars did just as Jonah and his friend had. “Were any of them as close to you as I am?” Her eyes went wide as she realized what she’d said. “Magically, I mean.” Crap. She had the uncanny knack of embarrassing herself around this powerful man.

  Jonah shook his head, his gaze boring into her, heating her from the inside out. “Hell. No.” Letting go of the glass, he took her hand in his. His thumb stroked over her knuckles, their magic tingling along the path he stroked. “I told you before that I was lovers with two of them, but again, it wasn’t like this.” He picked up her hand and kissed her knuckles, sending shivers up her arm and straight to her heart, which began to pound in response.

  Her anima began to react to him, reaching out to form that deeper connection they’d been practicing with surprising ease.

  “You think we’ll be lovers?” Her voice came out husky, almost silent. She wanted that so badly her body ached, yet they’d only known each other a week.

  The smile he gave her bordered on sinister. “If I have anything to say about it, you’ll be dessert.” He licked his lips as his gaze drifted to her chest. “You have no idea how badly I want to taste you.”

  Carol clenched her free hand, only then remembering the piece of cheddar she’d picked up. “Oops.”

  Jonah sat back with a soft laugh. “Let’s eat, go home, and...talk. About things.”

  Her gaze was wicked as she licked her lips. “Whatever comes up, huh?”

  This time it was Jonah whose voice came out husky. “You bet.”

  Carol blew out a breath and picked up her beer. “Here’s to interesting conversations.”

  Jonah clinked his glass against hers. “Amen.”

  Chapter 16

  Jonah’s hands were shaking as he drove home. He wanted to bury them in her soft curls and tug while he devoured her mouth. Just the thought of her lips swollen from his kisses had him almost pulling over. He wasn’t sure he could make the drive home without kissing her at least once.

  Her anima had been stroking him all night, a fur-like sensation, warm and soft and driving him insane. From her expression, she was experiencing something similar. Her cheeks were flushed, her pupils dilated. She kept playing with her hands, her fingers dancing across each other.

  “Light’s green,” she muttered, staring straight out the windshield.

  He tore his gaze away from her and began driving again. “Sorry. I’m... You’re a hell of a distraction.” He couldn’t tell her that his dick was so hard he was pretty sure he had zipper marks on it despite wearing boxers.

  She glanced at his lap, her cheeks flaming bright red before she turned to stare out the window. “I guess. I’ve never gotten a reaction to my presence quite like yours though.”

  Just the fact that she understood what she was noticing made him growly. Whose dick had she been eyeing?

  She rolled her eyes. “Are you a virgin?” When he shook his head, she smiled. “I promise not to be jealous over your past love life if you promise me the same.”

  Damn it, that one was going to be harder than his dick. “If I meet any of them, I promise nothing.”

  She thought about that for a moment. “Deal.”

  “And stop growling at Dean Hill. I have no interest in anyone other than a certain redheaded wolf, okay?” He put his hand on her knee and stroked her leg gently. He carefully did not go above mid-thigh, not wanting to go where he wasn’t invited.

  She didn’t push his hand away, a good sign for their coming night. “If she flirts with you, I promise nothing.”

  He bit back a laugh at the low growl in her voice. He firmed his grip on her thigh. “Promise not to bite unless she touches me in any way that’s not professional or friendly, okay?”

  “Hmm.” Carol’s gaze had gone wolf-gold. Her anima wrapped around him, cocooning him. “I’ll think about it.”

  It was the best he was going to get.

  He pulled into his garage and turned off the car. He kept his eyes on the steering wheel, unsure of how she’d react to the question burning through him. “I want you.” When she didn’t answer, he continued. “If you say no, I will go to my room, take the world’s coldest shower, climb into bed, and go to sleep with no hard feelings. I never want you to think you need to—”

  Carol’s lips came down on his, halting any further speech.

  Jonah wasn’t going to ask again. He considered this kiss consent.

  He was proven right when she lifted her lips from his. “Take me to bed, Mr. Sound.”

  “My pleasure.” He started to get out of the car and was immediately halted by his seat belt. “Damn it.”

  She was laughing as she hit the button, freeing him from his nylon prison. He felt like an idiot, but how could he resist her shy smile or the way she tugged insistently on his hands?

  He crawled out after her, all thoughts gone as he allowed her to pull him into the house. She smiled over her shoulder, sending his heart racing a mile a minute. They ascended the stairs in silence, anticipation riding him hard. His cock throbbed behind his zipper as she reached for the doorknob and entered his bedroom.

  She stopped in the middle, turning to him, her gaze uncertain. She bit her lip, looking everywhere but at him.

  Jonah smiled, taking her into his arms. “I’m not doing going to do anything you don’t want me to, remember?”

  She finally looked at him, her hands pressed against his chest, her fingers digging into his shirt. One strawberry curl got caught in her lashes as she blinked up at him. “I know.” She kissed his chin. “Don’t worry, okay?”

  Don’t w
orry? That sounded more like she was concerned for his sake rather than her own.

  Instead of answering, he kissed her, gently at first, soft and sweet, barely breaching her lips. Desire rode him hard, but he held out against it, gentling her against him until she was no longer clinging to his shirt but curled around him, her arms around his neck and her body against his. Jonah opened one eye to make sure the path to the bed was clear, then began walking her toward it. Not once did he remove his lips from hers, even as he eased her down, pushing her back until her legs dangled over the edge and her back was to the mattress. “Scoot up.”

  She did as told, her face flushed and her movements jerky. When her head hit the pillow, she sighed. “Your scent is all over the place.” Her words were slurred, almost as if she were drugged.

  Jonah didn’t care. All he wanted was to taste her, to see her skin against his sheets. He pulled at her T-shirt, kissing her until she lifted her arms and allowed him to remove it. He lapped at the tops of her breasts, salt and warmth and Carol mingling on his tongue. He caressed her stomach, tracing her warm skin with his fingertips.

  Her bra was in the way. He wanted to taste her nipples, suck on them until she writhed beneath him. He lifted it up, pushing it toward her chin, releasing her to his hungry gaze.

  “Wait.” She sat up just enough to undo the hooks, allowing the bra to fall free. “Go ahead.” Her voice was breathless, her gaze glued to him.

  He couldn’t resist her invitation. He drew her into his mouth, sucking at her nipple until her fingers dug into his scalp.

  “Oh, God, Jonah. More.” Her legs spread, cradling him between them as he moved to the other nipple.

  She moaned, rubbing against him, their pants in the way of what he wanted. He reached for her zipper, tugging and pulling until he could reach his hand inside to find her soft curls and the wet nub begging for his attention.