Then again, if we do a contract promise, and he does try to lie to me, I’ll probably end up hating him. Not just because he lied and betrayed me, but also because I’ll end up in so much tremendous pain when he breaks the contract promise.
He nods without a speck of hesitation, and I really, really start to doubt he’s guilty. I need to be positively sure, though, so I slip my hand down to my pocket to grab my wand, only to remember …
“Dammit, that stupid little troll demon broke my wand.”
“That’s okay.” He retrieves his from his back pocket. “We can use mine.”
“But I need to do my own spell to make the contract binding. And then …” I bite down on my lip, feeling awful for what I’m about to say. “And then, after we do that contract, I need to do another promise contract with you.”
His brows pull together. “You need to do two?”
I hesitantly nod. “One for you to promise not to get mad at me for what I’m about to ask, and then one to promise that you’re telling the truth about the answer you give me for the question I have to ask.”
Hurt flashes in his eyes. “You can’t just trust me?”
“I want to—and I really don’t think it’s you—but I need to be positive.” I pause, chewing on my bottom lip, guilt choking me. “I’m sorry. It’s just that … this has to do with my sister.”
If he knows what I’m talking about, he makes no move to acknowledge it. Instead, he slowly nods. “If that’s what you need me to do, then I’ll do it.” He moves his wand between us. “We’re going to have to share my magic in order to create the contracts.”
He’s suggesting sharing magic again? For the second time in one day? What is with him lately!
I nervously nod, wondering how this is going to work out for us since sharing magic can be an intimate experience and Hunter doesn’t see me like that. I, on the other hand, see him like that all the damn time.
What happens if I try to kiss him or something?
I swallow anxiously at the thought and fold my fingers around Hunter’s wand.
“I-I’ve never done this before, so you’re going to have to w-walk me through t-this.” For the love of all wizards, I sound like a nervous wreck.
“You don’t need to be nervous, Eva. It’s just me.” He strokes my side with his his free hand, trying to comfort me. If anything, the gesture makes my nerves bubble more. “And I’ve never done this before, either,” he adds with a trace of a nervous smile. “You get to be my first.”
“I just hope I don’t disappoint you,” I tell him, thinking of my limited magic abilities.
He must take what I say the wrong way, because an artful smirk curves up his face.
“I’m sure you won’t. In fact, I’m betting you’re really good.”
It takes me a handful of glittery seconds to catch on to his meaning, and when I do, I swat his chest.
“Gross, dude.” But so not gross. Not even close. “Since when do you use your dirty lines on me?”
“All the time,” he admits shamelessly. “You usually don’t catch on, though.”
Unsure whether he’s teasing me or being truthful, I clear my throat and focus on making the contract. “So, are we going to do this or what?”
“Nice subject change,” he teases, and then grows serious as he slides his hand upward on his wand, stopping when the sides of our pinkies are touching. “Yeah, let’s do this.”
“Okay.”
“Okay.”
The silence that follows makes me want to bang my head against the truck.
“So … are you going to start?” I ask, worried he’s backing out.
He studies me for a skip of a heartbeat longer before swallowing and nodding.
His edginess immediately makes me more uneasy.
Why is he nervous? Because he really doesn’t want to do this?
Before my thoughts delve too far into that question, his lips move and the spell drips off his tongue like warm, melted chocolate.
I’m not great at memorizing spells, but I know enough that I’m almost positive he’s creating the first promise contract of not hating me when this is all over.
Once he finishes, his intense gaze carries mine. “Now, repeat exactly what I just said.”
I release a shaky breath and nod. “Okay.” Then I shut my eyes and whisper the spell softly.
Unlike Hunter, the words don’t roll off my tongue as easily. I stutter and stammer, yet I miraculously manage to get the entire spell out without too many glitches.
As the last syllable rolls off my tongue, I open my eyes and smile, proud of myself. Then my smile soon vanishes as Hunter’s magic pours through me in a powerful, potent, wonderful wave.
I gasp as the power soars straight into my heart, nearly knocking the breath out of me.
“Oh, my … Wow,” the moan of words that falls from my lips sounds foreign, static, electric, full of power. “Is this what you feel every day?”
Hunter has his eyes shut as he unsteadily nods. “You have … no … idea …” He drops his forehead against mine, taking ravenous breaths as glittery magic and purple, hazy smoke whispers from the end of the wand and circles around us. “Absolutely no idea.”
The air grows quiet as the smoke and glitter evaporate, sealing the contract. I wait for him to move on to the next one, but he makes no indication of doing anything.
Worried that perhaps my wonky spell skills somehow injured him, I lift my free hand and mold my palm against his cheek.
“Hunter, are you okay? I didn’t … I didn’t hurt you, did I?”
He shakes his head from side to side, keeping his forehead against mine. “Not at all.”
“Good.” I let a minute dance by before I press, “Are you going to do the next contract?”
He digs his fingers into my waist. “I forgot there was another one …” He gives a long pause. “Yeah, we’re going to do it.”
I grow more concerned over his strange behavior. “Are you sure you want to do it now? If you want, we can wait until I get a new wand so I can use my own magic?”
“No,” he says firmly then quickly clears his throat. When he speaks again, his voice is steadier. “I mean, I think it’s better if we just get this over with so you can have peace of mind from whatever’s bothering you.”
“Okay.” I wait a beat or two before adding, “You’re going to have to go first since it’s your magic.”
“I know … I just need a few more seconds to calm myself down.” He sucks in a deep breath and frees it, his grip on my waist easing up. “Okay, I’m ready.”
I nod, worry continuing to plague my mind. Why does he seem so hesitant and uneasy? Is it because he’s worried about the promise? Or is sharing magic with me hard for him?
Before I can arrive at a conclusion, he begins uttering the words to the next contract promise. This time, he sounds more in pain, his body rigid, his fingers tense.
Despite all the butterflies fluttering in my stomach and the electric kisses tingling across every inch of my skin, I feel absolutely awful for causing him so much discomfort.
This was a really bad idea.
When he tells me to repeat the spell, I sputter the words as quickly as I can, wanting to ease his discomfort as quickly as possible.
The second the final word falls from my lips, his wand spews a bright sequence of vibrant, sparkling colors all over us and the ground.
My skin begins to warm, delicious heat whipping throughout my body, and a moan escapes me. I’d be totally mortified if Hunter wasn’t gasping so loudly that he probably couldn’t even hear me.
Once the magic simmers down and the air around us darkens once again, Hunter tilts his head away from mine. However, instead of moving backward, he dips his face toward my neck.
I open my mouth to ask him what he’s doing, but then his lips are brushing over my pulse, causing any coherent thought to evacuate my brain.
“Are you okay?” he asks, kissing my pulse again. “Your heart�
��s beating really fast.”
That’s because you’re practically making out with my neck!
“Yeah, I’m fine,” I reply hoarsely. “Are you?” I want to tact on a, why in the holy mother of all vampire fetishes are you making out with my neck? but I don’t have the witch’s balls.
What if this is just some weird aftereffect of sharing magic?
“Yep.” Another touch of his lips, and then he pulls back to look me in the eyes.
He appears exactly like the Hunter I’ve always known: blond hair, blue eyes, an easy smile. I don’t know what I expected after what just went down, but for some stupid reason, I thought he might seem a bit different.
Because I sure feel different.
“Are you ready to ask your question now?” he asks, his voice smooth and even.
I nod, my brain a mushy mess of confusion. “I guess so.” Why are my legs still shaking and my heart still thrashing while he bounced back so quickly?
I internally sigh, realizing the answer. Because I’m magically weaker than him.
“I really am sorry for what I’m about to ask. I need you to know that, okay?” I wait for him to nod, before continuing, “While I was in the cage with that demon, he pointed out that the only way the hybrids could’ve found my sister’s body was if someone told them her location … And the only person, other than me, who knew where her body was is you.” I bite down hard on my lip as hurt floods Hunter’s expression.
I am the worst person ever.
“You think I told them?” he asks, his eyes huge and crammed with shock.
I shake my head in truth. “No … But I had to ask. I’m so sorry.”
His expression hardens. “Well, just for the record, I didn’t do it.”
I wait for pain to vibrate through my body, an indication that he broke the contract and is lying. But I feel absolutely nothing. Well, except shame.
“Happy now?” His glacial tone could cast a thousand freeze spells. “Or are there any other questions you want to ask me?”
“I’m sorry,” I repeat. “I should’ve known better than to ever think you’d lie to me.”
He nods with his jaw set tight. “Yeah, you should’ve.”
I don’t know how it happens, but the next thing I know, I’m lying on the ground, my entire body convulsing with pain. I think I hear Hunter shout my name, but the agony overtakes me as darkness drags me under.
Chapter Four
“Eva, come on; open your eyes.” Hunter’s strained voice clips through the darkness encasing me. “Come on; I know you can hear me.” His breath dusts my cheek. “Fuck, what have I done?”
I want to open my eyes and console him, but my eyelids are glued shut by some unforeseen force.
I’m so sorry I thought you lied to me.
“I’m sorry,” he whispers, his lips kissing my ear. “I have been lying to you … Not about telling the hybrids about where Ryleigh was, but about other things. Not because I don’t trust you, but because I don’t want you getting hurt … And I don’t want to lose you. I can’t ever lose you …”
My eyes pop open, my body giving a harsh jerk as I suck in a sharp breath.
Hunter sits back, his eyes roaming up and down my body, inspecting every inch of me. When his gaze collides with mine, the storm of worry pouring from his eyes is so overpowering that my breath gets lodged in my throat.
“Tell me you’re okay.” His voice cracks.
I bob my head up and down. “I’m fine. I swear.” I start to sit up, but he places a hand on my shoulder and guides me back to the ground.
“Don’t sit up just yet,” he instructs. “I want to examine you and make sure you’re okay.”
“Aren’t we a little too old to play witch doctor?” I give a feeble laugh.
He doesn’t laugh with me, worry still creasing his brow. “I need to make sure the broken contract didn’t cause any permanent damage.”
Worry seizes my throat. “That’s what the pain was?”
He nods, slipping off his jacket. “I’m so sorry. I don’t know what I was thinking when I nodded.”
What the hell does he mean by “when he nodded”?
I’m so lost. And worried. And on edge. Plus, the pulsating headache from the broken spell isn’t helping, either.
“So, you were lying …? About what?”
Cupping the back of my neck, he slips the balled-up jacket beneath my head like a pillow. “You said you should’ve known better than to think I’d ever lie to you and”—he audibly gulps—“I nodded without thinking.”
I stare up at the shooting stars now blazing across the midnight blue sky as I attempt to process what happened before I blacked out. He’s right; the pain only came when I declared he hasn’t ever lied to me, and then he nodded.
“So … you have been lying to me about something else?”
He smashes his lips together and nods. “But I promise that every single one of them is for a good reason.”
My eyes enlarge. “Every single one of them? As in, you’ve been lying to me about more than one thing?” I move to sit up, needing some space, but his fingers splay across my shoulders, securing me in place.
“Eva, I don’t want you getting up until I examine you,” he says, keeping me pinned to the ground. “I want to make sure everything is healed from the contract breaking before you start moving around.”
I rub my aching chest. “You might want to check my heart first, because it hurts the worst.”
“Eva …” A heavy amount of remorse weighs in his tone as his hand finds my cheek. “What I lied about … I did that to protect you. And to protect our friendship. If you knew everything I’ve done … what I’m still doing … you’d probably hate me.”
I shake my head. “The only thing I could hate you for is if you did put my sister in harm’s way. These lies … do they have anything to do with her?”
“Not entirely... But that doesn’t make it any better.” He moves his hand away from my cheek, sits back on his heels, and stares out at the road in the distance. “I’ve been lying to you for years. What kind of friend does that make me?”
“The normal kind, probably.” I turn my head to look at him. He seems so haunted, so broken, so unlike the Hunter I see every day. Does this pain have anything to do with what he’s keeping from me? “Besides, if you can deal with me possibly being a hybrid, then I can get over you telling me a few fibs.”
“Me being able to deal with that is part of the reason I’ve been lying to you,” he admits, turning his head toward me. If possible, his expression conveys even more guilt. The sight sends my heart thundering in my chest.
“What do you mean, it’s part of the reason? Wait … Have you known I might be one?”
He steadily carries my gaze, but his hands tremble. “I have.”
And just like that, my heart goes from being wounded to being completely shattered.
Chapter Five
I don’t know how long I lie there, staring up at the sky, wishing on every single shooting star that what he just said was a lie. Sadly, I think this might be the first time he’s ever been entirely truthful with me.
No wonder he hasn’t mentioned anything about the demon saying I was a hybrid. He already knew!
“How long?” I finally manage to choke out.
He kneels in front of me, his gaze locking with mine. “Before I answer that, I want you to know that our friendship”—he motions between us—“is real.”
“How long?” I repeat, ignoring him.
While I want to believe he’s been my BFF this entire time, I’m unsure what to believe anymore.
He closes his eyes and inhales shakily. “Since the day I met you.”
Quite possibly the worst answer in all of witches’ time.
A lump swells in my throat. “So, from the day you met me, you’ve known that I’m part demon?”
“Not the entire time... There was a while where they weren’t sure what you are.” A drop of panic creeps into his t
one.
I feel like I’ve been punched in the gut. “Wait, just how many people know this about me?”
He hesitates, his eyes skimming the fields around us. “Eva, I really think we should go somewhere private to talk about this.”
“Fine,” I lie. Like hell I’m going anywhere with him, not right now, not ever. “But you have to let me up in order to do that.”
He gives me a suspicious once over. “Fine. But I still need to examine you first.”
“Okay. I’ll wait.”
I lie perfectly still as he taps his wand against his palm, causing the tip to pierce the darkness with a pale orb of light. Then he gradually spotlights the light across my face, down my neck, my chest, my abdomen, and my legs with his head slanted to the side.
Despite how much I want to despise him at the moment, my body reacts to his attention. My skin erupts with blistering heat and restlessness stirs inside me, begging me to move.
Finally, I can’t take it anymore.
“I think that’s enough.” I nudge the wand away from me. “I’m sure I’m fine.”
He studies me momentarily before reluctantly nodding. “Yeah, I think you’re good—”
Without waiting for him to finish, I push him back, roll onto my stomach, and spring to my feet. Then I take off in a mad sprint.
“Eva, don’t!” Hunter shouts, chasing after me.
Quickening my pace, I barrel down the desolate driveway and toward the street. While it’s not that late, not a single vehicle is around, which is typical for this area, since nocturnal creatures mostly populate this side of town.
“Goddammit, Eva! Stop running!” Hunter yells over the sound of his hammering footsteps. “It’s too dangerous for you to be running off on your own, especially around here.”
“How do you know it’s dangerous?” I throw over my shoulder. “Is that part of another one of the lies you’ve been keeping from me?”
When he doesn’t reply, tears sting my eyes. Was anything real? Was everything a lie?
“If you’ll stop, I’ll try to explain what I can,” Hunter pleads as he races after me.
The Secret Life of a Witch 2 (Mystic Willow Bay, Witches Series) Page 3
