Total pages in book: 26
Estimated words: 24037 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 120(@200wpm)___ 96(@250wpm)___ 80(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 24037 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 120(@200wpm)___ 96(@250wpm)___ 80(@300wpm)
The silly grin spreading across his face brought with it a chuckle that bordered closely on a fit of giggles.
He did not giggle.
Beside him, Hazel stretched and yawned. Making a face, she put her hand over her mouth. “Gomphmng.”
“What’s the matter?” He knew he still had that grin on his face, but he didn’t care. Besides, she was adorable when she first woke up.
“Nuttin.” Hazel rolled to the edge of the bed and climbed out.
“Wait. Where are you going?”
She turned back to him, smiling, but grimacing just the same. “Morning breath.” Then she disappeared into the bathroom down the hall. Drake chuckled. Stepping inside his own bathroom, Drake brushed his teeth and washed his face before he stopped to look in the mirror. He grinned. His hair was a wild, tangled mess, and his bare chest and shoulders bore red welts -- evidence of the fierce lovemaking of the previous day.
He looked damned good, if he said so himself. Growling, he struck a pose, pectorals and biceps straining with his effort. The sharp, stabbing pain in his left chest muscle reminded him of the workout he’d given it. He winced and grabbed his pec. He was right. He had strained something. Note to self: Hazel gets to be on top more often. The giggling from the other room reminded him that he’d not shut the door.
“Good morning, Hazel. I was just -- um --”
“Yeah.” Hazel walked to him and wrapped her arms around him. “I know what you were just. I think it’s cute.”
Drake pulled back. “Hey, alpha wolves are not cute.”
Standing on tiptoe and kissing his nose, she giggled. “This one is.”
“Oh, you’re so good for my ego.” He rolled his eyes and exhaled through his nose. “What am I going to do with you, little witch?”
“Well, you could announce our partnership to the Witches’ Coven. Since Grandma died before I chose a familiar, I don’t have anyone to do that.”
Drake kissed her gently on the mouth. “Since I’m an alpha wolf, and leader of my pack, they’ll accept my account.”
Hazel cocked her head. “You know how the coven works?”
“Of course. Do you?”
She looked away and sighed. “Not really. My Grandma died just before my twelfth birthday. She never talked about the coven, other than to say she’d had a falling out with them before I was born. All I know is that when she died, none of them took me as their student.” She looked back. “I haven’t seen or heard from them since.”
“Wait a minute.” He held her at arm’s length so he could look into her eyes when he spoke of this. “You haven’t had contact with other witches in this area?”
“Not since Grandma died. She was the only witch I’ve ever actually met.”
“Well, shit.” Drake wanted to be angry that the nosey busybodies had used him in such a way. Instead, he chuckled. They were just looking out for their own, after all, and they’d enlisted the help of the big bad wolf. The more he thought about it, the funnier it seemed and it wasn’t long before he was laughing so hard his eyes watered.
“Did I miss something?” Hazel looked truly perplexed.
Drake wiped tears from his eyes and wrapped Hazel securely in his arms. “Honey, did you ask any of them to teach you?”
“Well, no. Grandma said a witch always chose her pupil, not the other way around. I figured if any of them were interested in teaching me, they’d come to me. Grandma said that a young witch, without a teacher, would attract one to her with her raw power.” She shrugged. “When no one came to me, I assumed that either I wasn’t powerful enough to attract someone to me, or whatever differences my Grandma had with them affected the way the coven felt about me.”
Bringing her hand to his lips, Drake nipped her wrist. Hazel yelped and tried to jerk her hand back, but Drake held fast and licked away the hurt. “Hazel, honey. How long have you known me?”
“That hurt, you ape!”
“It was supposed to. Now, answer the question.” He couldn’t help grinning when he thought how well the Witches’ Coven had manipulated the high and mighty alpha wolf.
“Since Jake and Laura’s wedding. Why?”
“Because, sweetheart, the Witches’ Coven charged me with watching over you since shortly after your grandmother died.” The shock on her face said all he needed to know. “I guess you didn’t know that.”
“I thought whatever had caused them to expel Grandma applied to me, too, since I never heard from anyone.” She looked lost, on the verge of tears. “All this time. Why didn’t they say anything to me?”
“Because --” Drake hugged her close. “-- they were waiting for you to come to them.”
“Talk about not communicating.”
“Yeah.” He chuckled. “But they were looking out for you, making sure you didn’t end up in the clutches of a predatory witch. I’ve had your scent since you were twelve, though I never actually met you until Jake and Laura’s wedding. If anything had happened to put you in danger, I would have known and intervened.”