Total pages in book: 70
Estimated words: 68040 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 340(@200wpm)___ 272(@250wpm)___ 227(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 68040 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 340(@200wpm)___ 272(@250wpm)___ 227(@300wpm)
Finally, when I lay my hand on her shoulder, she blinks and turns to me, confusion in her pretty green eyes.
It’s just like it was the other day when I approached her as the wolf.
“Oh, hi.” She swallows and frowns. “Geez, I’ve been so nauseous lately. Every time I come close to the water. It’s the weirdest thing.”
“What were you looking at out there?”
“Huh?” She blinks up at me and then looks back out at the water. “Oh. I heard the music playing again. Did you hear it?”
“No.” I watch her closely and brush her curly, auburn hair over her shoulder. “No, I didn’t hear it.”
“Odd. I’ve been hearing it a lot lately.”
I don’t like that. Not at all.
And I have some research to do before I talk to her about it because I’m afraid it’ll just scare her, and Lorelei has been afraid enough to last a lifetime.
“What are you up to?” she asks.
“I just came from your mother and Hilda’s house.”
Her eyebrows lift in surprise. “Oh?”
“They invited me over for lunch. And wanted to grill me.”
“About what?” She walks over to a fallen log and sits, gesturing for me to join her. So, I straddle the driftwood and face her.
“About Beltane. I guess they wanted to play therapists and make sure I’m doing okay.”
“That sounds like them.” Lorelei grins and nods her head slowly. “Yeah, that sounds exactly like something they’d do. What did you tell them?”
“That I’m fine.”
She narrows her eyes, examining me. “And are you? Fine?”
I shrug a shoulder and look out at the harbor and the bay beyond. “I will be. Eventually. How are you?”
“Physically, I’m recovered from that day. Have been for a while now.”
“Spiritually? Emotionally?”
She bites her lower lip and fiddles with a piece of tourmaline she’s pulled from her pocket.
I’m glad she’s carrying the protection stone with her.
“I’m still a little bruised, but I think that’s to be expected. I suspect you’re the same.”
“Yeah.” I scoot closer to her on the log and take her hand in mine, the tourmaline pressed between our palms. She stiffens at first but then relaxes and grips my hand in hers. “We’re going to get through this. All of us. And once we’re on the other side, this will all have been a really crappy year that we can be thankful to move on from.”
“You think?”
“I know.”
She tips her head up so she can look me in the eyes. “How do you know? How can you be sure?”
“I’m psychic, remember?”
A smile tickles the sides of her lips. “I am, too, and I can’t see how this plays out. And trust me, that pisses me right off.”
The truth is, neither can I, but my goal is to set her mind at ease…if only for a little while.
“Then just trust me. Everything will be fine.”
“I’m psychic enough to know when you’re placating me, but I’ll play along for now.”
“What are your plans for the rest of the day?” I ask her.
“I finished writing, so I was thinking I’d take some more things I gathered for the tapestry to Breena and then pop into the apothecary to get some vitamin K eye cream to help keep the crow’s feet at bay. And I could use some more sleepytime tincture.”
“You don’t have any crow’s feet.”
She smirks. “Exactly. Vitamin K is a must. What are you doing today?”
“Whatever you’re doing.”
She sighs deeply. “You know, I’ve been pretty mean to you over the past couple of years.”
“Yep.”
“And yet, here you are, insisting on hanging out with me.”
“Yep.”
“Does that make you a masochist?”
“Nope.”
She glances up at me, and I see there is no humor in her eyes. She’s dead serious.
“I cannot leave you unprotected. That doesn’t make you weak. And it doesn’t make me an asshole.”
“You didn’t—” She swallows hard, then shakes her head and pulls away, tugging her hand out of mine.
“I didn’t what?”
“Forget it. It doesn’t matter. You wanna hang around? Fine. I won’t stop you. But when all of this is over, Xander, you need to let me go.”
My throat works on a swallow full of emotion. I don’t want to let her go.
“You need to,” she repeats. “Come on, I want to get to the apothecary before it closes.”
“Wait.” I grab her hand once more and lean in, then cup her cheek and watch as her pupils dilate and her bee-stung lips part in anticipation. “I won’t ever let you go, Lorelei. I won’t pressure you or bother you, but I won’t ever get over you. It’s impossible for me.”
Those lips press together as she closes her eyes and exhales, and then she simply stands and walks toward her cottage.
My heart aches as I watch her walk away.
“Look at these new candles Breena made for my shop,” Lucy says to Lorelei, holding up a glass container filled with wax, flowers, and crystals. Lorelei smells one and gushes over how pretty they are.