~

 

Not if I see you first, Detective, that’s what I should have said, but instead, I smiled like a girlie and let him walk with me to the door. I escaped back down the hallway after closing the door on a man that, no matter what I tried to tell myself, still made my pulse race and other things.

I turned my back towards the wall and put my hot sweaty palms against the refreshing coolness. I considered turning and rolling my hot cheeks against it when I overheard Ross talking to my Gran in the greenhouse.

It wasn’t like I was listening for it, but I wasn’t going to ignore it either. If Gran had reached out to Ross, then I had to assume that, just like with the vampire being around, she wanted his blood.

It was strange that I wasn’t more wary of Ross and his newfound ability to catch his own food, but I’d known the man all my life, and I truly believed that Ross was a gentle soul. I wouldn’t say that he couldn’t hurt a fly because we all had that killer instinct within us given the right circumstances, but I didn’t fear the man’s intentions when it came to my family or me.

Of course, Ross’ alter ego was a different beast entirely, forgive the pun, I just didn’t know how much control Ross had over his wolf side. It wasn’t like I was going to adopt the beastie as the family pet – either Ross or his wolf, that slot seemed to be filled by Mac-Vampy – but I’d still trust Ross with my life.

“Your grandfather was a good man,” Gran said, “but when he lost your Gran he went a little cuckoo.” Way to go, Gran, she couldn’t have been subtle if she tried. “The same thing with your father. A wolf mates for life, and while you can’t foresee what will happen in the future – you can choose wisely and make sure she’s your mate.”

“How do I know?”

“You’ll be drawn to her. You’ll practically tingle with excitement whenever you’re near her, and not in a randy dog way.”

I couldn’t help but chuckle at that one. Trust Gran to come out with that. I heard Ross groan.

“Your thinking brain will want to mate with her, and not just your little brain.”

Ross groaned again, and I sniggered into my hand. Poor Ross; it was akin to my Gran sitting him down and having the birds and the bees talk with him. And there was him, a big, grown man with more notches on his bedpost than a sailor on shore leave.

You had to pity the man.

I swear, if she started talking about safe sex, I think I was going to howl with laughter, pun intended.

“You’re a randy beast, Ross, it’s in your DNA,” she said, and I snorted a chuckle. “You’ve been sowing your wild oats, but now that your wolf side is out there, you’ll be wanting your mate.”

“So, you’re saying I should leave the Isle and look for my mate?” Ross sounded confused, like when Moira added something extra to his breakfast order, and it took him a moment to figure out what was different.

“Are you daft, man?” Gran chuckled. “She’s right here.”

My ears pricked up at that one. I willed Gran on, edging towards the doorway and stupidly catching the wall with the heel of my shoe.

“Who is she?”

“Maggie!” Gran announced, and I almost legged it out of there. The only thing that stopped me what that my whole body froze in place.

Me?

Ross and me? Dear sweet Goddess but I hadn’t seen that one coming.

“Maggie!” Ross exclaimed, and it sounded as if he was as shocked as I was.

“Stop eavesdropping and get in here,” Gran berated me.

I bit down on a curse. The last place I wanted to be was in there with Ross.

I didn’t even care that I’d been busted, I just needed to escape.

But I was a grown woman. I put my best shaky foot forward and pushed into the room. Ross looked at me with a lot of confusion and swallowed his tongue a few times.

“My mate?” Ross said, and I rushed to denial, but gran roared with laughter.

“What are you, daft man? T’is nae Maggie, it’s Moira!” she announced, and I’m not sure who was more relieved, Ross or I, we both gulped in a huge breath, and chuckled with embarrassment.

“That’s good,” Ross chuckled, and I had to agree. Ross had always felt like a big brother to me, and now he was.

That’s if Moira played ball.

“Why?” I asked, putting my hands on my hips and fixing him with my best scowl.

“What now?” Ross said, tilting his head to one side and obviously playing for time as his brain rushed to find an answer.

“Why good, Ross MacNabbie, what’s wrong with me?” I demanded, and Ross flicked a pleading look towards gran as he swallowed hard again.

“Well, you’re … you, Maggie,” he was reaching for an answer, the poor eejit.

“I can see I’m me, Ross, but why would you be so relieved that I wasn’t your mate? Not good enough for you?”

I heard Gran chuckle, and Ross flicked a rather desperate look in her direction. I knew Gran, and her eyes were sparkling with amusement. She loved watching him squirm on the hook as much as I did and let’s call it payback for all the teasing he’d shown me over the years.

“No!” he rushed out, his voice pitching higher. He cleared his throat and tried again. “No, Maggie. I would be honored to have you as my mate…”

“Would you now?”

“Aye,” he half nodded, and half shook his head.

“Then why did you look pig sick about it?”

“I did nae.”

“You did.”

“I did nae.”

“So, you did.”

“Nope.” He managed to shake his head that time. Poor Ross, but that man had always teased me mercilessly.

“Do you want to change the subject?”

“More than words can say, Maggie McFae.”

“Oh, leave the poor lad alone. He has Moira to deal with for the rest of his life, is that not punishment enough?” Gran chuckled.

“She has a point, Maggie,” Ross said.

“Oh, does she!” Moira announced.

I know I cringed, I saw Ross’ lower jaw practically hit his chest, and as my sister clomped into the room on high heels, her hands on her hips, and a flash of murderous intent in her eyes, I have to say, I pitied Ross, and did feel guilty for leading him into the path of her wrath.

“Well, that’ll be me for the escape hatch,” I said, and Ross’ pleading eyes snapped to me, begging me for help. “Gran, let’s go.”

I wasn’t good at lifelines, and if Moira was his mate, then he’d better learn the art of grovel and duck.

 

~

 

“What did you tell Detective Jack?” Gran asked as she made me hot chocolate.

I could pretty much mainline chocolate in any shape or form, so when she offered it I thought; she wants something, and then I decided that the lure of the hot chocolate was just too good to turn down.

She knows me too well.

“Meh, he’s still a mushroom,” I said, as my dad walked in and cocked a curious eyebrow at me.

“Mushroom?” he asked.

“Kept in the dark and fed on shi…”

“We get it,” Gran said. “He seems like a good man, pity he’s a policeman.”

Only my Gran could rally someone up and then beat them right back down again on the same breath.

“Gran,” I chuckled as she pulled a face.

She was still smarting from our own Constable Dougie pulling her over for reckless driving last summer. She still swears it was a ninja sheep that jumped out and made her overtake four caravan’s in a row. Needless to say, after arguing with Dougie for forty minutes and threatening to call his Gran, he let her go with a – nice and polite – warning.

“Now, you know they have their uses,” Dad said.

“Aye, herding cattle off the road,” Gran bit back.

“Ninja sheep too,” I muttered, and she shot me a quick glare.

“So, he’s none the wiser then?” Gran asked, holding my cup to ransom.

“Dumb as an ox.”

“And he’ll stay that way?”

“He’ll not hear it from me,” I said reaching for the cup.

“You like him,” Gran said, eyeing me with her hawk’s eyes and sharp senses.

“Not so much,” I lied, and snatched the cup from her hand, getting burning hot chocolate over my fingers. I swapped hands and licked it off as I made my getaway from the kitchen.

Mmm, it was worth the burn.

 

~

 

I thought upstairs would be a safe zone. The perfect place to escape all the goings on and drama that was taking place in our family at the moment.

How wrong could one girl be? 

Was there something in the air tonight? Aside from dark magic that seemed to be stalking us that is.

I could hear voices coming from Eileen’s bedroom, and getting a foot in the door in there was like getting a letter from the Queen, it didn’t happen often. But that wasn’t the perplexing bit, the fact that the second voice was male – now, that was a bloody shocker.

Not only that, but that melodic tone belonged to none other than our very own boy-band lookalike vampire, and what was he doing in Eileen’s room? Did she need rescuing?

“You’re not how I’d thought a vampire would be…” she said.

“Not brooding and serious enough for you?”

“I … thought there’d be more…” she went all quiet, and I wished my heart wasn’t beating so loudly in my ears.

“Bloodlusting,” he said, and I snorted. I’d have thought that as well.

“You’re sort of…” she stopped again, and I wished she’d spit out a whole sentence for once. Geez!

“Sexy as hell and tempting as a hot chocolate?”

My first reaction was to screw up my face in disgust, but then my brain kicked into gear, and my eyes snapped down to the cup in my hands, and I grimaced.

Busted!

I pulled a sour face and started to creep down the hallway to my room. There was definitely something in the air or the water.

I stopped and eyed my hot chocolate – what if there was? I certainly didn’t want to catch the love bug … what if Gran had spelled everyone?

I eyed that cup in my hands like it held the devil’s essence.

Three steps more and I was in my room with the door closed behind me and a sigh on my lips. The scent of chocolate wafted up at me and made my taste buds beg for more.

More – yep, I’d already licked it from my fingers.

It took about another three second of my need clawing within me to give into temptation. Whatever – I was probably already doomed.