Epilogue
Ava
I studied the young man sitting across the table from me. He looked vaguely familiar, but I couldn’t place him. Still, he was the only applicant for the manager position, so I couldn’t afford to be choosy.
“Harrison, it says here that you’re a graduate student at UT. What are you studying?”
“Art history,” he replied.
“Do you have any teaching assistantships that will require your time?”
“Not this summer or next semester. After that, I’m not sure.”
I appreciated his honesty, though the way his eyes kept dropping to my breasts might become a problem. I didn’t want to fend off the advances of a horny college student, but I was desperate. I needed someone to keep things running at the store. I would have preferred a witch, but most of the witches I knew considered themselves above making coffee. They would help customers with the books, amulets, and candles, but they would flat out refuse to make a latte.
“I have a question, if you don’t mind,” Harrison said, interrupting my train of thought.
“Of course,” I replied with a smile.
“I see you have a reading room here, what services do you offer?”
My brows lifted in surprise. “Tarot, palmistry, and tea leaves.”
He nodded. “No futures?”
I squinted at him. “No. I don’t currently employ a seer.”
“What about the spell books, candles, and amulets? Do you actually prepare the spells for the customers or do they mostly come in for supplies?”
“Most of the customers prefer to make their own potions and charms, so they buy supplies separately. From time to time, I’ll make them if the customer is having difficulty or doesn’t have the talent necessary. Will that be a problem?”
Harrison shook his head. “No, not at all. It sounds as if you’re running a very responsible business that deals in magic.”
I bit back a smile. “How old are you, Harrison?” I asked him.
“I’ll be forty on my next birthday.”
My eyes widened. “Forty?”
He grinned, revealing sharp canines. “I’m a shifter. We tend to look young until we reach our fifties or sixties.”
My witch’s sense quivered. I hadn’t recognized him for a shifter and he hadn’t set off any alarms within the store. “I’m surprised I didn’t recognize you for what you are,” I commented calmly as my brain whirled, thinking of ways to defend myself.
The shifter lifted a hand. “There is no reason to fear me, Ava,” he stated. “I’m here about the job, but I wanted you to give me a fair chance.”
“So you disarmed my wards and spells and misled me?” I asked. Shifters shouldn’t even have the capability, which meant he had magic in his bloodlines as well. What really ticked me off is that the sneaky bastard had gotten away with it until now. I couldn’t afford to have weaknesses in my security. Not with Rhiannon on the loose.
He sighed. “I wanted to be certain you were using your abilities ethically before I told you what I was.”
“I’m not sure I’ll be able to trust you after this,” I stated, studying him closely.
“I can understand if that’s the case.” He got to his feet. “If I don’t hear from you, I’ll take it as a statement that you’ve decided to hire someone else.” The tone of his voice suggested he wouldn’t care one way or another, which made me like him a little. Damn the hairy pup.
I watched him leave and waited until the door shut behind him. Lifting a hand, I twisted the lock with a quick spell. Something about him unsettled me and it wasn’t just the way he ogled my breasts. But I also liked the idea of having someone who was knowledgeable around so that I wouldn’t have to be. The fact that he understood magic and he was willing to make coffee and serve pastry made him the perfect candidate. Which put me in a difficult position.
I decided to worry about it tomorrow. After a good night’s sleep, I would have a better grasp of the situation. I hoped.
I got up and turned out the lights. I’d kept the shop open later than usual so I could meet Harrison for his interview. Now it was getting late and I was ready to go home, drink a glass of wine, and take a bubble bath before bed.
“Just another night in my glamorous life,” I murmured to myself as I walked through the storeroom to my office.
“Very glamorous indeed.” At the low male voice, I whirled, lifting my hands to defend myself. When I saw who it was, I very nearly zapped him with a good bolt of electricity anyway, just to teach him a lesson.
“What are you doing here?” I asked, lowering my arms. “And how did you get in?”
The vampire was leaning against the wall, his arms crossed over his chest as he watched me. “That little pup disarmed all your wards, even the ones in the back. I decided to wait inside in case you needed my help.”
I scoffed. “Macgrath, the day I need your help is the day hell freezes over.”
“No man is an island, Ava,” he stated. “Or woman in this case.”
I rolled my eyes and gathered my things from my desk. “What does that even mean?” I asked him sarcastically.
“That you can’t do everything alone. No one makes it through life without help from someone, sometime.”
I bit back a sigh. My question had mostly been rhetorical because I did understand the expression well enough. “That’s true,” I agreed. “But there’s nothing in my life that obligates me to taking your help.”
“I’m offering it freely, whether you take it or not.”
He straightened and stalked towards me. Though I wanted to back away, I held my ground. He didn’t intimidate me but he made me feel things that I didn’t want to feel. In close quarters, I couldn’t ignore the way my skin heated or my heart raced.
I would never admit to anyone, much less myself, but Macgrath was sexy as hell. He made my body hum with desire and the bastard knew it.
“If you’re that cheap, I definitely don’t want anything you offer me,” I retorted.
“Why do you fight me on everything?” he asked, his eyes moving over my face.
“Because you kidnapped my best friend!” I cried. “Oh and let’s not forget the years you spent with a psychobitch witch.” I hesitated. Shit, I hadn’t meant to rhyme.
The corners of his mouth twitched. “I’ve made mistakes.”
I shook my head, feeling my ire rise. “Mistakes? You call everything you’ve done mistakes?”
“You don’t understand what it feels like to not know who you are,” he stated gruffly. “To want someone, anyone, to know you and care about you.”
I glared up at him. “I do know what that feels like,” I snapped. “But you don’t see me going around kidnapping people or helping crazy witches.” I realized we were standing mere inches apart and jerked back. “Why are you here?” I asked angrily.
He followed me each time I tried to put space between us until my back bumped the wall. Macgrath leaned over me, placing his palm on the wall above my head, looming over me. “Because I can’t stay away from you,” he answered. He looked as angry about it as I felt. “There is something between us, Ava, a connection. I know you feel it even though you pretend not to.”
“I don’t,” I denied. “And what you’re doing is called stalking.”
“You don’t feel anything for me?”
“I wouldn’t say that,” I shot back. “Though most of the words used to describe my feelings shouldn’t be used in mixed company.”
“That’s not why your heart beats faster. Or why your scent changes. You want me, even though you hate it.”
His body drew closer and I could feel that connection he mentioned as it flared between us. I wanted to touch him and have him touch me, but I resisted.
“I don’t,’ I denied again.
“I’ll prove it,” he said and somehow it sounded like a threat.
Before I could tell him to back off, his head lowered and he kissed me. His mouth was rough and demanding. And delicious.
I made a noise in the back of my throat as I let Macgrath take my weight. Immediately, his arms circled me, dragging me closer to his hard body. When his tongue slid between my lips, I stopped trying to resist and clutched at his waist. His torso was hot and unforgiving as he pressed my back against the wall.
When his palms skimmed over my shoulders and down to my breasts, I moaned, arching against him. My tongue danced with his until it brushed his sharp fang. The slight sting brought me back to my senses and I twisted my head away.
“Stop,” I panted. “Macgrath.”
When I said his name, he rested his forehead against my shoulder as he struggled to control himself. After a few long moments, he stepped back and slowly removed his hands from my body.
I pressed my palms against the wall, using it to hold myself up when my legs were too weak.
Macgrath and I stared at each other in silence. My chest moved quickly as I struggled to slow my breathing and I could see the brilliant gleam of his eyes in the shadows of the storeroom.
“I’ll see you soon,” he whispered as he disappeared in the darkness, the glow of his eyes fading away.
I shivered at the rough sound of his voice.
Because I knew that his words were a promise.
The End
The Blood & Bone series will continue with Ava and Macgrath’s story in Fall 2017.