Deadly Morsel: Rosewood Academy of Witches and Mages (Darkly Sweet Book 5)

by Juliann Whicker

  Living arrangements. Also something labeled bedroom stuff. It wasn’t anything too awful, simply that they had to live in the same mile radius, which meant seeing each other a certain number of times which came to once a week except in cases of prolonged absence for business or family emergencies. The bedroom clause was clearly about her not being in other men’s bedrooms, particularly Lester’s. Odd that he’d specified that so clearly. He didn’t mention me. Why was that? He didn’t specify what was to go on in bedrooms except that Penny would direct such goings-on and her husband would comply with her desires. He had no idea how dangerous it was to give her an open clause like that. He knew she was Pitch. Maybe he did know the danger and was looking forward to seeing what madness she came up with. How much of his skin would she burn off? At least I could watch, even if it wasn’t my skin.

  He signed, as I predicted, and I initialed the clauses he’d added. Then it was Penny’s turn.

  She went through, carefully going through all the clauses which she made notes on before initialing then signing, glancing at me before she pressed her pen into the paper, hard enough to cut into my skin. And that was that.

  Penny exhaled and flopped across his bed, putting an arm over her eyes. “That was exhausting. You’ll both probably regret this.”

  Zach poked her in the side. “I’m sure we will. Come on. You’ve missed tech class for a week. My mech suit needs you. Drake, we’ll talk.”

  He gave me a sharp glance with those burning blue eyes, tinged with delirium only Penny could cause. I’d been excused. I caught Penny’s hand, squeezed it instead of biting her knuckles and left. I closed the door behind me, leaning on it for a moment while I organized my thoughts and managed my façade.

  Viney came out of her room in bunny slippers, black ones. She froze when she saw me. Part of me was tempted to walk over and do something seductive that would infuriate Penny and make her heart ache as mine did.

  “Good morning,” I said instead.

  She ran a hand through her hair which only made it stick out in different places. “What are you doing here? Did something happen to her?”

  “Something did, namely that Zach signed her contract. I’m the witness.”

  “How nice for you.”

  “Terribly nice.”

  She frowned at me, thinking deep witch thoughts. “You look like you’re about to break something. You should probably do that somewhere else.”

  Viney was telling me to leave. I was very tempted to do something ungentlemanly. Instead I stepped Throughside and into a commander’s tent. I walked through the Darksiders, brushing against them and hearing their thoughts. They weren’t always in my head, but in close proximity it would take effort to keep it that way. My generals made room for me as they discussed the next attack. I listened and honestly, their planning was really on point.

  I suggested a few things which they immediately took as orders and then I stepped Throughside, back to Huntsman manor where I’d get dressed in something leather before I went back.

  My father came into my room while I was dressing. He could have summoned me to the library or whatever, but he’d bothered to walk all the way here. I tried to ignore him.

  “I sensed a link, a bond to Stoneburrow. Did you marry Zach’s sister when I wasn’t paying attention, and isn’t she already married with three children?”

  “Four. No, I married Zach. I’m the backup husband in case of emergencies. Penny wrote a beautiful contract.”

  “Ah. Did Stoneburrow see the contract?”

  The way he said it, he meant Zach’s father. I shrugged. That was Zach’s problem, not mine. If Zach couldn’t marry her, then I would have to. I frowned then shrugged again. Zach would figure it out. He wasn’t about to let his father’s disapproval change his mind. It would be inconvenient if Zach was disowned, but Zach had his own personal assets. He would soon build up a conglomerate that would challenge the original Stoneburrow.

  “That’s interesting. You’re going to Darkside? Excellent. Our men are fighting under attack from a very strong force. It is possible that our opposition has no idea who they’re fighting against or for.”

  “Naturally. Deception sorcerers do keep one on one’s toes. Anything else?”

  “I heard from Jasper. It was a very mysterious message about watching your debts. There’s a trap in your past that’s about to catch up to you.”

  I stopped dressing as I thought about that. Probably it had something to do with Sooth’s bills. It was possible that someone could arrange a trap back on that first night when we collected the next one. Time shifting could get so confusing.

  “Good to know.”

  “The downward descent of our business is slowing. We may be solvent in a few decades.”

  I laughed and shot him a look. He smiled back. “I’ll be sure to hold off on the helicopter I was going to buy.”

  “You’ll have to get one out of Stoneburrow. If you’re bound to him he’ll have no choice but to negotiate.”

  I rubbed my chin. That had possibilities. “Excellent advice.”

  He grabbed my shoulder and squeezed it. “It’s better than it could have been.”

  He meant the contract, seeing Penny sometimes instead of never. I smiled sharply. “There are certain clauses that will keep me on my toes.”

  But not like Zach would be entertained. He wasn’t a particularly seductive person, but working together, sooner or later her clothes would all catch on fire. Would he make her faint from love? Probably not. At least I had that. I stepped Throughside then back into my bedroom in Rosewood to retrieve my coat steeped in Penny Lane’s love. I’d always have that as well.

  Chapter 16

  Witch

  I went to my classes and fell into life as usual. After class, Ian was in the rehearsal room waiting for me. I hesitated before I approached him then held out a range of lollipops so he could choose his flavor.

  He didn’t even look at them, just stared at me, eyes golden and sparking dangerously.

  “Congratulations on your contract.”

  I smiled and put away the unwanted lollipops. “Thanks.”

  He stepped closer to me, took my bag off my shoulder and led me to the center of the stage as though I wouldn’t understand basic spoken instructions.

  “Sorry about Narcollo,” I said as he put his hands on my shoulders, pushing down before he slid between my shoulder blades, the other hand over my front ribs, adjusting my arch.

  “I would appreciate it if you removed the compulsion spell.”

  “Compulsion?”

  He smiled slightly, a horrible smile that I never wanted to see again. “I am so heavily bound by you that I can’t say much of anything to anyone. I didn’t know that a witch could do that to a mage.”

  Neither did I. I frowned in deep thought. I’d bound him to silence about Narcollo, but it must have bled into everything else.

  “That’s so strange.”

  He slid his hands down to my hips, tugging slightly on my turn-out. A rush of something went through me as he whispered in my ear, “I don’t believe you want to play a game with me, Penny Lane. Or maybe you do.”

  His hands were suddenly all the things I’d automatically shied away from. The scent of something far headier than citrus wafted around me and him, every brush was like sparkling golden light that flickered over my skin and filled me with aching.

  I should have stepped away from him but I had absolutely no desire to do anything other than bury my face in his neck and taste him.

  He tasted like honey, like gold, like dragon and utter uninhibited delight.

  He grabbed my chin with his palm and pushed me away. He held me at arms length and glowered at me. “You could at least try to resist.”

  I shrugged helplessly. “You should see me when Drake gets angry. Completely pathetic. And Teddy when he offers me death and pain, completely helpless. I really didn’t intend to bind you to anything other than a day or two of silence about Missy’s mage.”<
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  He scowled at me for a long time before it softened and he stopped pushing me, crossing his arms instead. “Break it and I won’t seduce you.”

  I bit my lip. “I’d have to touch you. I’m not sure that’s a good idea. You still smell like citrus sandalwood and bacon.”

  His lips twitched. “Bacon? I promise that I won’t let you bite me.” He held out his hand, the one I’d scraped my name into and I took it, swaying in his direction before I got it together.

  I focused on his energy, the swirling pulse of him, so much pulsing. He was still angry and that came out in seduction. I pulled out his anger while I was at it, also some of that seduction energy. He didn’t need it. The mark I’d put on him had been twisted and mangled completely out of shape by someone else. Narcollo probably. How irritating.

  It took me a very long time to unravel the mess of bindings and by the time our practice was over, I was exhausted.

  I shook my head once it released with a snap. I shoved my hair off my sweaty forehead while he rubbed his hand, massaging it. Those fingers, massaging… I took a step away from him.

  “Narcollo must have twisted it, unless there was someone else you saw in Darkside.”

  He studied me. “Interesting. Would it be too much to ask you to touch my bond?”

  I held out my hand and he put his forearm in it. I stood there and tried to find the bond, but it felt healed. What soaked into me instead was pain, but a weird kind, smoky and something else.

  I dropped his arm and studied him. “I can’t feel the bond.”

  He raised his eyebrows. “No? You mean I’m not bound to you anymore?”

  I shrugged. “I don’t feel connected. Do you?”

  He stared at me for a long time. “No. It seems that I don’t need to do what you want any longer.”

  I shrugged. “You weren’t very good at it anyway.” I inhaled deeply and felt a rush of relief. I didn’t need to take care of Ian anymore. Having wolves for pets was exhausting. I turned to head out, but he caught my arm, holding me back.

  “Wait.” He let go of me before I could rip off his fingers and light them on fire.

  I turned and waited.

  He licked his lips. Golden, gleaming Ian was nervous. Maybe he’d been a slave so long he didn’t know what freedom felt like.

  “I knew the bond was healed. I’ve been using you to draw off the dragon’s influence for a few weeks. I’ve tried everything for years, but nothing keeps the lust at bay until I met you.”

  “Wow. Thanks, Ian.”

  He frowned and shook his head. “You don’t know what it’s like. I gave you a taste of what it’s like to be inside my own skin. I can’t focus on anything else. I used to be ambitious, I mean for something other than seducing witches. I want to form an alliance with you. I need your help.”

  I stared at him. There were definite benefits to helping Ian with his dragon issues. First of all, with an Ian wandering around, there was always the possibility that he’d seduce me. That would be gross and humiliating. Secondly, an alliance with Ian would give me another possible check to the tower of madness I was constructing with Drake and Zach.

  “What were your ambitions?”

  “Treaties, politics, public service, like your grandmother was involved in.”

  “What kind of alliance would we have? Could I influence you?”

  He raised his eyebrows as he considered. “What sort of contract do you have with Stoneburrow?”

  I wrinkled my nose. “I have two. A working contract and a marriage contract.”

  “Yes, I am aware. I was referring to the marriage.”

  “Well, it’s kind of complicated. I’m using Drake as backup to keep Zach in line, which makes it extra tricky, but everything is sort of normal. Our assets are kept separate, our—”

  He cut me off. “Drake as backup? What does that mean?”

  “Well it’s like I’m making a contract with both of them where Drake acts as second.”

  “Second husband? So, you’re marrying both of them?”

  “No, not second husband, second mage in case the first husband goes mad and eats our children or something.”

  “Drake is responsible for your health and safety in case Zach doesn’t do his duty. Interesting. How did he like that?”

  “He loved it. He’s really excited for me to marry Zach.” I sounded almost as glum as I felt.

  He smiled sharply. “I see. You probably don’t need another husband. A working alliance would be pleasant. Are you interested in policy and treaties?”

  I squished up my face. “I fell asleep the second you said those two words. It’s fine, but grandmama really used stories of treaties to put me to sleep at night.”

  “You had trouble sleeping?”

  I shrugged and crossed my arms. It was cold in the room, probably from all the energy I’d been using on Ian. “Nightmares. It helps if I have a weasel to cuddle.”

  He nodded. “I’ll talk to Teddy about it.”

  “You will? Hasn’t Drake?”

  “No, Drake’s busy trying to not see Teddy. He dislikes his things being taken, touched, tampered with. You and therefore your weasel fall under that heading. Drake would try to kill Teddy. It would get very messy. That’s nice though. The contract makes it unnecessary for the two of you to find others to hold your bonds. I can’t imagine Drake wanting any witch to own him who wasn’t as delightfully apathetic as you.”

  “I’m not apathetic.”

  “You are. You didn’t even notice that you didn’t have my bond. You didn’t use me for anything that I can remember.”

  “You say that like it’s a bad thing.”

  “It’s nice to be used and appreciated. Everyone knows that. Well, everyone besides you. I will consider what kind of alliance would suit me. You should do the same. I really do need you.”

  “And if I don’t help you, you’ll seduce me.”

  He shrugged and his eyes glimmered. “It isn’t a threat, just a natural consequence. I find you extremely lovely. All that gold hair.”

  I stepped away from him, shivering. “I actually really need to nap. So, yeah, I’ll think about it, and definitely help you with your issues. It would be good for the entire world if you were less under lust’s influence.”

  He smile sharply. “Very good for the world. I’d make a point of it. I’ll walk you to your room.”

  “That’s not necessary,” I said as I started down the aisle towards the door.

  “You look pale, like you might faint. I am the one who took so much of your energy. The least I can do is make sure you get to your bed safely.”

  His eyes flashed at that word. Bed, not safely. I staggered along until I got to my room, walked past Zach and Viney where they sat on the couch playing video games, to my room, my bed, sprawling over it like I hadn’t really slept for a week, you know, because I hadn’t.

  I woke up feeling like I’d been trampled by Henrietta, a Henrietta that some idiot freshman had put cockles on. I squinted my eyes but couldn’t make out anything other than large, darkish shapes. I groaned and rolled over, fell off the bed and onto a hard metal floor.

  “Clang.” That’s the sound pennies make when they fall onto that kind of floor.

  “Funny.” Zach didn’t sound particularly amused.

  I rubbed my eyes and focused on him where he stood in front of a mirrored wall, no a mirrored door. I didn’t have any mirrored doors in my room. Neither did Zach.

  I moved like Ash, smoke, spinning through the air to tackle him to the ground. I had my hands around his throat while he grinned at me. He wasn’t fighting. That probably meant that I should stop strangling him. It wasn’t good for my headache.

  I shifted so my hands were on his wrists, holding them over his head. “Where am I?”

  “Stoneburrow’s island. I flew you here while you were sleeping.”

  “That wasn’t asleep. That was unconscious.”

  He shrugged or tried to. Hard to do while you’re l
aying on the floor beneath someone’s weight. I pushed down harder, grinding his wrists into the floor.

  “I don’t like islands.”

  “This is where my family stays this time of year. It’s in the contract that you need to meet them.”

  “You think we need another Creagh attack here? Or a Scratcher…” I shivered and felt suddenly nauseous, from Pitch probably.

  He sat up and put his arms around me. I let him because I don’t know why. Feeling limp and nauseous and headachy probably.

  “Penny, my adorable little fiancé, we’re here because you asked me to marry you.”

  I hadn’t asked him. I’d offered him a contract. Completely different things. “Don’t call me that.”

  “Adorable?”

  I shoved him away from me and kept my feet, glaring at him. The room was mostly in focus and it was immense with lots of mirrors and metal. Behind all those mirrored doors was probably machinery. I was a little bit curious what he had.

  “Your fiancé. You know the trouble I have with French. You can’t drug me and drag me somewhere anytime you like. I’m putting it in the contract.”

  “You already signed.”

  “As Drake so beautifully demonstrated, it’s meaningless until the ceremony.”

  He frowned at me before he shrugged and crossed his arms. He raised and lowered on his tiptoes while he stared at me.

  “What?” I finally asked.

  “Dinner will be in three hours. You know how cute and adorable you are? Well, here no one is going to believe that I ever asked you to marry me. I’m in love with Pitch. That means you have to dress like Pitch’s hurter-maker. I picked out a few appropriate outfits.”

  He gestured to the wall beside the bed where a few items of ‘clothing’ hung. I had nothing against short skirts, but that was a Band-Aid. And the dress? Like I needed to show off cleavage I didn’t have.

  “You’re funny. I’m not wearing clothes you pick for me. That’s not how this whole thing is going to work.”

  He smirked. “If you’d rather I tell everyone that you’re a magickless witch and that’s why I need to marry you, because otherwise some Darksider will gobble you up, I can do that.”