by Mary Winter
Laura snuggled contentedly against him, already drifting off to sleep. He watched her, and he knew, in spite of their past, in spite of the bitterness he felt toward his brother, he’d fight for her. And damn anyone who got in his way.
Chapter Four
Laura’s mouth went dry as she ascended the stairs to the front porch of the StarMyst house. She clenched her fingers, not wanting to wipe her palms on her jeans. Next to her, Reid had gone silent the closer they’d come to his home, and outside of the heavy falls of his boots against the worn boards, he made no sound. She glanced at him, wondering if he were as nervous as she.
He didn’t knock. Instead, he opened the door and held it so she could enter. “I bet everyone is in the kitchen.”
The restrained words were a far cry from the man who had made love to her so exquisitely last night. Her lussor flared, sated, yet still interested. She tamped it down, not wanting to be so obvious inside his house. At one time she’d worked in these rooms, an angel of hope and mercy. Now she returned, and it was she who needed the help, not Edwin and his family.
As she stepped inside, the smell of a home cooked breakfast filled the air. Ham and eggs, bacon and sausage, her stomach rumbled with the scents. The bitter scent of coffee reminded her that she and Reid had dressed and come over here as soon as they’d awakened. He’d made a passing joke about Te feeding them, but she never expected a spread like this.
She waited for Reid to close the door behind them. With his hand on her back, he propelled her forward into the kitchen.
“Figured you’d show up when we decided to eat,” Te said to his younger foster brother. He turned and looked at Laura. His eyes widened, a hint of a smile crossed his lips. “Laura, what a nice surprise. Come on in and sit down. If I know Reid, he hasn’t fed you.”
Jacy rose to her feet, quickly heaping up a plate and setting it before an empty chair. “Here you go. We’ll let Reid get his own.”
Reid grumbled, but she could tell the joking camaraderie was commonplace around this table. He filled a plate and sat down beside her, a little too close for them to be just friends. Jacy and Te were both sorcerers. Certainly they could feel the lussor sparking between them. If they did, they kindly said nothing.
“Thanks,” Laura replied. She dug into her food, the activities of the prior night reminding her she never did get supper. Soon, the plate was empty, and she found Te and Jacy watching her and Reid with expectant looks on their faces. She battled a heated flush that threatened to creep into her cheeks.
“Well that tells me what I need to know,” Jacy said. “This is about those guys hanging out at Edwin’s funeral, isn’t it?” She scooted closer to Te, almost as if she needed his support. Dark circles showed under the other woman’s puffy eyes, a testament to her grief.
Te reached for Jacy under the table. “I think Reid has a story to tell us.”
“Actually, it’s Laura’s story,” Reid said, giving her thigh a squeeze. “Where’s Cord? This affects him too.”
“He left for a rodeo. Don’t know when he’ll be back,” Te replied.
“And Kade hasn’t returned yet?” Reid asked.
Laura ached at the sadness in Reid’s voice. She’d witnessed the trouble his older brother had caused for StarMyst, had even ordered the boys not to fight in the house while Edwin was ill. That had been the fateful night when Kade had left. She slid her hand over Reid’s.
Reid glanced at her and smiled, though the expression didn’t quite reach his eyes. He tried to fathom what must be going through her mind. Not only was she dealing with Edwin’s loss, but also worrying about her father’s actions. Reid tried to compare the two. Not only had he lost his foster father, but also his brother.
Te shook his head. No words were necessary.
Reid squeezed his eyes closed. When he opened them again, there were no signs of his loss. “Laura needs our help. I’ll let her tell the details about it, but I think it’s something Edwin would have wanted us to do.”
She nodded, trying not to be hurt that he hadn’t said that he wanted to help her. His actions said that he did, even if his words didn’t. After all, he’d fought off her father’s heavies and then they’d raised the lussor. She focused on the two people sitting across the table from her, the two people she would call her closest friends in the world. Taking a deep breath, she wrapped the memories of Edwin’s caring around her and began to speak.
“Edwin offered me sanctuary from my home conclave, Brazos Conclave, when I arrived.”
Jacy gasped.
Te squeezed his lover’s hand.
“Now that Edwin is gone, my father wants me back by any means necessary. I can’t go back. I hate to bring this to your doorstep, especially at a time like this. But my father has his own view of female sorcerers. We’re to breed more sorcerers, preferably with males of whose lineage and powers he approves. That I’m here, and not under his control, makes it all the more important that my father get me back and get me bred off. My mother never gave my father any sons. Until I produce those sons…” Her voice cracked. She took deep breaths.
Reid wrapped his arm around her shoulders.
“I’m sorry.” She dragged air into her lungs and dashed away the hints of tears. “I’ve got to be strong to face my father. I have no right to drag StarMyst into this. I have no idea what my father would do to any Conclave who tries to keep me from him, but it won’t be good. When Edwin was alive, he’d been strong enough to keep my father away. As he got sicker…there had been some sort of gentleman’s agreement between them, I think. I believe my father honestly thought once Edwin was gone that I’d come back without a fuss. He was wrong. He was completely wrong.” She sighed and resisted the urge to lean into Reid’s strength. If she wanted StarMyst to back her, she had to appear strong enough to defy her father.
“I see,” Te said.
Silence fell over the room.
Jacy’s chair scraped across the floor as she stood and started putting away the remnants of breakfast.
Laura watched the other woman, uncertain how to take her silence. Of course Te ran StarMyst now, though Laura thought she and Jacy had grown close over the course of Edwin’s illness. Then again, there was that pesky night she’d slept with Kade. A stupid, foolish decision, one she had regretted the instant it had happened. Could it be that Reid had told Jacy and she disliked Laura because of the strife she’d brought to StarMyst? Did she hate that Laura couldn’t save Edwin? Laura wished she could read minds, though she feared what she’d find.
“StarMyst will support you. I know there’s a history between you and my foster brothers and that’s something you’ll have to work out for yourselves. What I do know is you fought to save Edwin and when we realized this wasn’t a battle you could win, you made him as comfortable as possible to the end. Let me make some phone calls. See what kind of support I can muster among the other Conclaves.” Te didn’t look hopeful.
“Thank you. Do you think the other Conclaves will support us? My father is a very powerful man.” Laura asked. For the first time since seeing her father’s goons lurking at the edges of Edwin’s funeral, she held hope. Reid sat beside her, his strength unwavering. The leader of his Conclave had agreed to help her.
“Sonora Rising probably won’t. They were trying for a take-over bid when Edwin was sick. Sacred Forest might. They’re not that far away and have connections to Chicago’s main conclave. Appalachian Mountain usually keeps to itself. Everglades Heart could help.” Te shrugged. “Then again, they all should have sent representatives to Edwin’s funeral. Their silence may speak louder than anything they may say on the phone. What do you think, Jacy? Edwin kept you more in the loop than he did me.”
Jacy turned from the sink and wiped her hands on a dish towel. She swallowed hard. “I don’t know. You’re right about all those Conclaves and more. We should have a full house, more sorcerers than we know what to do with. It’s just us four. I think that’s all it’s going to be for this fight.” Jacy
crossed the few steps to the table and clutched the back of the chair. “I don’t know what happened in the past and I tried to forget it because you helped Edwin so much and neither Reid nor Kade mentioned it. Seeing him beside you, he looks happier than I’ve seen him in a long time. Whatever we need to do, Laura, we’ll do it.” She rested her hand on Te’s shoulder, a show of strength from StarMyst’s leaders.
Laura blinked back the sting of relieved tears. “Thank you. And you’re right. All those Conclaves should have been here. Don’t call anyone, not yet. We don’t want them to go to my father and alert him that something’s going on. I think we need to go to Brazos.” The moment the words left her mouth she knew they were the right decision.
Reid looked startled, but not as much as Te and Jacy.
“If you go and your father decides to keep you there—” Jacy started.
“I know,” Laura confirmed, cutting off what Jacy was about to say. She refused to say it aloud. If they failed, her father was within his rights to keep her at the Conclave and there was nothing anyone could do about it. Unless…
Laura breathed deeply. She couldn’t force this on Reid. Whatever happened had to be his decision, except, there might be one way to bind her to StarMyst forever.
“If I return to Brazos and bring Reid with me, at least then my father will see that I’m joining with another sorcerer. No, it’s not the one he wants me to join with. But maybe, just maybe, at this stage of the game, my father will be happy to learn that I’m joining with any sorcerer and using Brazos law to do so. It’s a long shot, and I won’t force anyone into a decision, but I think it’s the only chance we got.”
Reid sat stony beside her.
Laura willed him to understand, to see she wasn’t trying to force a decision on him. I know I slept with your brother. I know you may not have forgiven me for that, but you said you’d do anything to help me. This is my chance, our chance. When he said nothing, she reached across the table and laid her hand on his arm.
Reid flinched.
Jacy and Te looked between them.
“And if that doesn’t work?” Te asked.
“Then I’m stuck at Brazos and Reid can return here if he wants.”
“Sounds like you’re making decisions for Reid. I’d like to hear what he has to say,” Te said.
“I don’t know what to say. If that’s what it takes, that’s what it takes.” Reid sounded resigned, not the way she wanted him. But what choice did they have?
“You don’t sound happy about it,” Jacy said with a pointed glance at Laura. “You know we’ll support you, but we want you to be happy.”
“If I don’t go down there, you both know what will happen. Brazos will send those men back, maybe more. There’ll be a sorcerer pissing match the likes of which probably hasn’t been seen since the wars. I don’t want to involve StarMyst in that. As much as I love StarMyst, we’re not strong enough to face that. And if we lose, Brazos would be well within its rights to take us over. And StarMyst would cease to exist. The horses, the barns, our stallion Jazz, everything would just be gone.” Reid turned to Laura. The fatalism she saw in his eyes scared her. A cold, dark emotion completely at odds with the man with whom she’d had sex last night. “I’ll do it.”
“If that’s what you want,” Jacy said.
“It’s what I want.” Reid shoved back his chair. “It’ll take me a minute to pack.” Before anyone could answer, he left, his footfalls heavy on the stairs.
Laura sat there in stunned silence.
“You know, if you hurt him, whatever your father will do to you will pale compared to what I’ll do to you,” Jacy said, her voice ice-cold. “He’s putting his neck out for you. I hope you understand what that means.”
Laura held Jacy’s gaze. “I do,” she said, and knew once she reached her father’s those words would have a completely different meaning.
~* * *~
Reid stormed upstairs, trying hard not to be upset at Laura’s declaration. She had a point. Going to her father gave them the stronger position. Though if he denied her request, there was a good chance he’d bring the wrath of Brazos down on StarMyst. Then once again, Laura would hurt them, just like her actions with his brother hurt him so long ago.
He grabbed his suitcase out of his closet, throwing in clothing. Most of his wardrobe was jeans, boots and shirts. A garment bag held his best suit, and he threw it on the bed too. If they were going to face Brazos, he needed to look his best.
Though neither of them said it, there was one way to join together: a bonding ceremony. Under other circumstances, he would have been overjoyed to be contemplating asking her. He could see it now, the two of them, deeply in love. Him on his knees asking her to bond with him. Jacy and Te hadn’t gone through the ceremony yet, and he hadn’t pressed his fellow Conclave members as to the reason why. He zipped closed the suitcase. Some things, he supposed he was better off not knowing. And maybe that’s why neither he, nor Laura, had suggested a Bonding ceremony.
For some reason, the thought of venturing deep into Brazos territory didn’t bother him. While he may not be a great sorcerer, he wasn’t without power. The lussor hummed. With Laura by his side, he had no doubts he could feed it.
Slinging the garment bag over his shoulder, he carried it and his suitcase downstairs. “Ready?” he called to the kitchen.
Chairs scraped. Laura, followed by Jacy and Te stepped into the foyer. She glanced from him to his bags, the first signs of hesitation showing in her eyes. Too late for that, sweetheart.
“I need to pack and then we can head out,” she said, the bold tone in her voice at odds with the wary look in her eyes.
“Are you sure you don’t want me to make those phone calls?” Te laid a hand on her shoulder. Jacy hovered nearby, concern etched into her features. “I can see what we can do. I hate the thought of you going in there all alone.”
Jealousy blurred his vision and turned it red. The lussor flared, a harsh snap of energy that pulled Jacy’s gaze to him. He stared at where Te touched Laura’s arm. A friendly gesture, one from a Conclave leader to someone who would be joining the Conclave, there was nothing intimate about it. And yet, the sight of the other man’s hand on Laura’s arm incensed him.
“She’ll be fine,” Reid stepped forward with a pointed stare at Te’s hand. “I’ll take care of her.”
“Reid’s right. I’ll be fine. I’m going back home, and then I’m coming back here, to my real family.”
Te looked dubious. “If you need anything, you know where we are, and I’m sure Reid will take good care of you.”
Laura followed Te’s attention to him and the hope in her eyes nearly made his heart break. Whatever she was doing, whatever machinations to get free from her father’s influence, she really trusted him. Such trust punched him in the gut with a right-hook he didn’t see coming.
“Yeah, I will,” he stumbled out then picked up his suitcase before he could say or do something stupid. His head reeled. Not only from the trust Laura had placed in him, but also from the stab of jealousy. Te loved Jacy for Christ’s sake. He had no more designs on Laura than he did on Cord. He sensed her presence behind him as he led her back to the car.
By the time he put his suitcase in the car, Laura had already slid into the passenger seat. It took him only a few moments to slip behind the wheel and pull out of the driveway. The minutes spent driving back to Laura’s place passed in silence. He glanced at the clock. Late afternoon. If she intended him to drive for Texas this evening, they’d be getting a late start. He frowned.
“Everything okay?” she asked as he pulled into the driveway.
Truth time. “Not exactly,” he replied, immediately regretting his words as a shocked expression descended over her features.
“What do you mean ‘not exactly’, Reid?” Her voice wavered and he hated himself for causing it.
His stomach rolled. She’d been the one to sleep with his brother. Sure, he’d thought he was over that. Hell, he’d slep
t with her. Had sex, there was no sleeping involved whatsoever. Mind-blowing, ball-tightening, cock-hardening sex. Even with all of that, he realized, deep in his heart, he hadn’t forgiven her yet.
He turned the key and the engine died.
Kind of like his hopes about there being an easy resolution to this. “You seem to have all the decisions made in this, Laura. You’ve done a lot for Edwin, probably kept him alive a lot longer than he would have on his own. StarMyst owes you for that. But you brought this problem to our door step.” He took a deep breath and dragged his fingers through his hair. The crestfallen look on her face tore at his heart.
Sitting this close to her, in the confines of the car made him painfully aware of her. The rise and fall of her breasts drew his attention. Her lips parted. Her tongue darted out to lick her lips, and all he could think about was tilting her head toward him and kissing the frown off her face.
Focus man, focus. Reid dragged a ragged breath into his lungs. He curled his fingers around the door handle. “Look, let’s talk about this inside.” He opened the door.
Laura frowned. She stepped out, and he could kick himself for bringing this up now. An image of her lying beneath his brother filled his mind. Drawing a deep breath, he helped her inside.
“If there was any way I could make this better, I would,” Laura said, her voice quiet.
Reid stopped.
He looked at her, standing just inside her door. His bags were in the car. It was implied that he would be staying the night here. Could he do that and not let the lussor take over? Drawing a deep breath, he stepped forward.
“Look. I’m sorry. I promised I’d take care of you and I will, regardless of what happened in the past.” He braced his hand against the door, pinning her there. Dipping his head, he forced her gaze to his face. “I won’t say I’m completely comfortable with this, but I’ll do it.” He resigned himself. For Edwin, if not for himself. He wasn’t quite ready yet to give into his own emotions. He cared for her. Deep down, he may not have quite forgiven her yet, but he cared. Damn, did he care.
