by Fiona Starr
Over Hexed
Society of Ancient Magic, Book Two
Fiona Starr
FS Romance Press
Over Hexed: Society of Ancient Magic, Book Two
Copyright © 2020 by Fiona Starr
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Cover by: Raquel Lyon, Crooked Sixpence
Created with Vellum
Society of Ancient Magic
Three wolf shifters tormented by a deadly secret.
Two worlds torn by a twisted legacy.
One girl determined to choose her own fate.
Fall in love with Joely and her men!
Book 1 - Dark Arts
Book 2 - Over Hexed
Book 3 - Witch Wars
Dear Reader,
Fall into the world of Joely and her men…
and fall in love! xx
Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
About Fiona Starr
Also by Fiona Starr
Chapter One
JOELY
If I really tried, perhaps I’d be able to pretend this was just a normal breakfast with my new boyfriend. It wouldn’t be that hard to fool myself, would it? It could be like squinting at the view to make the details less obvious, softening the edges of the harsh reality and making it easier on the eyes. But just like it’s impossible to unsee a thing once it’s been burned into the brain, I can’t unknow the fact that Angus and his two brothers are part of an ancient prophecy which foretold the demise of great darkness that had taken over the world. I also can’t unknow that I am as much a part of this prophecy as they are, even if we don’t fully understand yet how my arrival in their lives changes the mystery they’ve been working on for the better part of a century.
Speaking of which, another thing I can’t unknow is the fact that Angus and his brothers, while they may look like ridiculously handsome men in their mid-twenties, are actually over two hundred years old. Apparently, their dire wolf nature already makes them live longer than a normal person, but it was their brush with some vampires that seems to have frozen them at their current age. Not that I’m complaining, because Angus is amazing, and every single time he touches me my entire body lights up.
I’m sitting at the table on Angus's back porch, trying to admire the view of the yard, but I’m distracted by the sound of him singing softly to himself as he cooks. The old Van Morrison song is mellow and smooth in his husky voice, and it captures the lazy feel of the morning perfectly.
The table is set for four. Though it’s just the two of us at the moment, Angus's two brothers also live here, and judging from the amount of food on the table, he’s expecting them to join us. The thought of seeing Marco or Van right now makes my face go hot. It’s no secret that Angus and I have been seeing each other these past few weeks, but this is the first time I’ve spent the night and I… well… I guess it’s just going to be a little awkward at first.
“Almost done.” Angus slides a platter piled high with French toast onto the table and takes advantage of the angle to kiss me. “Mmm.” He pulls away and smiles, brushing his sandy hair off his face. The sun makes his blue eyes sparkle. “Be right back.”
“I’ll be here,” I say, following him with my eyes as he walks back inside, his navy sweatpants sitting low on his hips. He’s got a body built for touching—all muscles and tanned skin, and even though I’ve explored all of him already, I can’t wait to go back for more.
“Morning,” Marco says to Angus from the kitchen. When he appears in the door to the porch he stops, his face puffy from sleep and his hair standing up in the back. “Hey, Joely. I didn’t know you were here.” His cheeks redden as he smiles at me.
“Good morning, Marco,” I say, trying to ignore the wave of awkwardness washing over me at the strange intimacy of being here when we all just woke up. I thread my fingers through my hair, wondering if I have bed head after the night I spent with Angus where we didn’t get very much sleep. At all.
I realize I’m relieved that it’s Marco who has arrived first. He’s always so sweet to me, never cold or brash the way Van is. I don’t get why Van is always so angry. Even the first time we met, when I literally bumped into Van a month ago… he was polite, yes, but almost overly so, like he was forcing himself to go through the motions because our interaction was distasteful. And in the class we have together, Magical Self-Defense, he’s helpful when we get paired up for sparring, but he’s just more than distant whenever we interact.
Marco passes the table and walks over to the top of the wide staircase that leads to the lawn. He stops there, stretching in the sun, arms up over his head, hands reaching into the air. His tee shirt rises up to reveal a few inches of his torso above his basketball shorts. I catch a glimpse of a black tattoo on his hip as he turns and takes the seat across from me.
Like Angus, Marco is impossibly good looking. All three of the brothers are over six feet tall, but where Angus has fair skin, blue eyes, and blond hair, Marco is olive-skinned, with hazel eyes, dark brown hair and a broad body. He’s built like a linebacker with wide shoulders and a thick chest.
The three of them call themselves brothers, but I’ve learned that this isn’t exactly true. Angus, Marco, and Van, are wolf shifters born in the same pack. Angus mentioned that although they don’t live as a pack anymore, the three of them have always been and will always be family. I don’t really understand what that means—to live as a pack, and any time the conversation has inched in this direction I’ve held back my questions; it’s clear that it isn’t something they are interested in talking about.
Angus returns, sits in the chair next to me and pours me a cup of coffee. He fills Marco’s mug and then his own. “All right. Dig in.”
“Any word from Van?” Marco stabs a pile of French toast and loads up his plate.
Angus's hand brushes against mine as we both reach for the coffee creamer. He wraps his fingers through mine and gives me a little squeeze before letting me go with a wink. “Not yet,” he says. “He said something’s going on. Underwood’s all riled up the past few weeks.”
Marco looks from Angus to me and then goes back to his breakfast.
“Is something going on at the Cottage?” I ask, referring to the mansion a few blocks off campus where the Society of Ancient Magic is headquartered. When they both stop eating and look at me, I add, “I mean, something new?”
Angus shrugs. “At this point, your guess is as good as mine. Van’s the only one who has access to Underwood’s office, and whenever he’s had a chance to go snooping, Daria’s always around.”
Marco shrugs. “Well, she’s Underwood’s number two. Of course she’s going to
be there.”
Daria North is the woman who arrived at my house a month ago to tell me I’d been accepted into the Society of Ancient Magic. At the time, I’d had my magic for only a few hours and I was panicked about how to tell my parents. I never thought of anything more coming after my magic had sparked, let alone an invitation like that.
Being invited to the Society of Ancient Magic is more than just an acceptance letter to a really good college. It’s an all-expense paid ticket to the exclusive Blakeborne University, a private room in the fanciest dorm imaginable, and includes everything else a new student might need when attending events like galas and dinner parties at the mansion, like a new wardrobe and a personal stylist. It’s beyond a dream come true… except for the parts that aren’t so perfect.
“You think we’ll figure out what happened to Mel?” A shiver runs over my skin as I remember that night when I saw my friend’s body in the Society house. I’d actually seen her ghost, of all things, and I followed it upstairs where it led me to her body. Underwood and Daria were there. They knew what was going on. I would have been caught, had Van not been there to save me.
“I don’t know,” Angus says. “Van thinks it’s got something to do with the Vessel of Truth, but he hasn’t been able to figure it out.”
Van appears in the doorway. “I know the disappearances are connected to the Vessel. If I could get close enough to it without Underwood or Daria around, I might be able to learn something.” He crosses his arms and shoots an annoyed glare my way. “What are you doing here, Joely?”
“She’s my guest, Van. Back off.” Angus doesn’t even look at his brother.
Van sighs loudly as he steps outside. He undoes his tie and he drops into his chair.
“Long night?” Marco asks.
I realize that he does look tired. His face is pale and his beard is more than a five o’clock shadow. And the circles under his eyes are begging for sleep.
Van fills his plate with French toast and fruit and shoves a forkful into his mouth. Then he downs a swig of black coffee before he replies. “Underwood left town last night. He’s in Moscow for a few days.”
“What’s in Moscow?” Angus asks.
Van shakes his head. “No idea. But I stuck around until I was sure he actually went there. He called Daria this morning from Sheremetyevo International Airport. She’s terrible about using speakerphone when they talk. I could hear the Russian announcements in the background while they spoke, so I am sure he is there as of fifteen minutes ago.” Van eyes Marco and Angus with a meaningful stare as if waiting for them to pick up on what he’s trying to say. Finally, Van says, “Master Damon is five thousand miles away, boys.”
Marco drops his fork. “Oh man, can we?”
A smile spreads across Angus's face and he looks so happy that I can’t help but smile too.
“What?” I ask, looking at each of them in turn.
“Nothing,” Van says, as he stabs a pile of fruit and continues eating.
Angus leans back in his chair and crosses his arms. “Van, come on.”
Van looks at me and then at Angus. “You know that’s not an option.”
“What I know is that you’re not in charge. There’s three of us here. Four with Joely, and I think she should get a say.”
The look that passes over Van’s face makes his face so fierce that I have to look away.
I raise my hands in surrender. “It’s all right. Look, I shouldn’t be here.” I stand up and push out my chair.
Angus grabs my wrist. “Joely, wait.” He slides his hand into mine and squeezes my fingers, his way of telling me he wants me to be here.
“Angus is right,” Marco says.
“What the fuck, Mar?” Van flinches as if he’s been slapped.
Marco sticks a finger in Van’s face. “Angus is right. Joely is one of us, in more ways than just that damned prophecy. You know it as well as I do. If it isn’t today, it will be another time. Why not now?”
Van rubs his face. “Are you serious? When we are this close? You’re willing to risk everything?”
Marco leans forward and gets in close to Van’s face. “You said yourself that she’s here to stay. What is the point of keeping anything from her?”
Marco’s words ripple over my skin and land like a rock in my belly. Here to stay? What in the ever-loving hell does that mean? I’ll admit that I’m so into Angus right now that I don’t want to think about anything else, but nobody is talking about forever…
I slide my hand out of Angus's until our fingertips are the only things touching. I don’t want to force myself into whatever they’re planning if one of them doesn’t want me. I smile at Angus and get to my feet. “I’ll call you later, okay?”
Angus stands up, and glares at Van before nodding and joining me. “I’ll walk you home.” The disappointment in his voice isn’t an act.
“Damn it,” Van whispers. “Wait.” His voice is as stern and serious as ever, and it makes my feet stop moving. Van blows out his breath and pinches the bridge of his nose. If it wasn’t already crystal clear that I am a complete annoyance to him, it is now.
But even so, I can’t deny my curiosity. If there’s a chance he’ll agree to let me join them, I really, really want to find out what they’re going to do. I shove my hands onto my hips and give him the eye. “Yes, Van?”
He doesn’t look at me. Instead he whispers something that I can’t make out.
I lean in. “I’m sorry. I didn’t hear you. What did you say?”
He flexes his jaw, the muscles bunching at the corners. “I said you can come with us, if you like.”
I have to tamp down my excitement and play it cool, though I really want to clap my hands with glee. “Really? And where exactly are we going?”
“Fuck yeah!” Marco claps his hands together and lets out a whoop.
I turn to Angus, who is smiling ear to ear.
“Well?” I ask.
He hooks his finger into my jeans and pulls me close, his smile like a little kid on Christmas morning. “You’ll see.”
Chapter Two
JOELY
Half an hour later we’re on the road and I have my arms around Angus as his motorcycle winds through the mountains. Van and Marco ride alongside and ahead of us, and though it’s hard to see over Angus's shoulder, I’ve been here before and I can tell we’ve entered the national park.
We ride for another fifteen minutes before they all pull into a dirt road. I hop off and hand Angus my helmet then wait as the three of them back their bikes into the trees until they are barely visible.
Then, like it’s the most normal thing in the world, the three of them get undressed. They do it slowly, methodically, and completely in the open. The brothers fold their clothes and tuck them into the leather saddlebags on their bikes. I notice they are all wearing the same heavy gold chain around their necks. I’d commented on Angus's when I first noticed it because it’s very heavy and he never takes it off.
I’d never noticed Van and Marco wore one just like it, and now the three of them take their chains off as well.
The sight of them standing naked before me is beyond stunning.
Angus smiles at me, looking sheepish. I’m already so familiar with his body, and still, seeing him like this sends a jolt of desire through me.
Marco looks even bigger without any clothes on. He’s got tattoos all over his body, starting at his waist and moving up across his chest and shoulders, and down his left arm in a sleeve. His legs are thick and muscular like the rest of him, and his cock…
Fuck! What are the rules when three men are standing naked in front of me and one of them is my boyfriend?
Van’s skin is unmarked, his chest is bare and his muscles are so well defined it’s hard to look away. His back is the perfect wedge, angling down toward his waist. I let my eyes follow his perfect lines downward, taking in every amazing inch of him.
The three of them are built like gods. I swallow and realize my mouth has gone
dry.
Van watches me admiring him and doesn’t turn away. “I’ve said this before, but I mean it. Joely, you can’t speak about this to anyone.”
I shake my head. “Of course. I…” I realize I have no idea what’s about to happen, but he’s been through it all with me before. I can’t tell anyone about seeing Mel’s body at the Cottage. I can’t talk about the prophecy. I can’t tell anyone that they are shifters…
Then it dawns on me.
“Oh, wow… You’re going to shift right now, aren’t you?” I take an involuntary step backward, unsure what will happen once three wolves are standing here instead of these men.
“There’s nothing to be afraid of, Joely,” Angus takes my hand. “You can ride on my back if you like.”
“Ride? On your…” I try to picture sitting on the back of a wolf.
“You’ll never keep up otherwise,” Marco says.
“Ready?” Angus asks.
Behind him, Van disappears in a flash and in the place where he was standing is a gigantic white wolf. I’m at least ten feet away and I have to look up to see his face. He’s the size of a very big horse, and his bright blue eyes—the same eyes as human Van—watch me intently.
I freeze as he moves toward me, his paws soundless on the ground. He leans down and pushes his snout into my hair, his breath warm on my ear. Then he takes off into the trees.
