~

“Vanilla!” Mel screeched, as she waved a hand through the air and backed it up with her magic.

“Garlic!” Kat had the same idea.

“Garlic?” Mel shot her sister curious look. “They’re not vampires.”

“It was the first thing I thought of — so sue me,” Kat snapped back.

“I’d let go of my sister, if I were you,” Mel warned the alpha.

“Well, it’s lucky you’re not me…” He got no further when Paige stomped on his toes with the heel of her boot, and he let out a yelp of surprise and pain.

Parker dropped his arm from around the witch’s waist, and Paige used the opportunity of her newfound freedom to turn in place, and she didn’t hold back as she zapped him a real zinger.

“You were warned,” Mel chuckled.

Grayson was headed into the room, but Kat used her magic to shove the coffee table across the floor in his direction. The edge of the heavy wood hit him in the shins, and he ended up lying face down on the top of the long table with his face embedded in the leftover chocolate cake.

“Shoot and score!” Mel said, fisting the air, and chuckling at the sight of the beta with the delicious cake beard as he pushed up on a growl and brought a dark glare up to her.

“Gloat later, escape now!” Paige exclaimed and launched her sisters into action.

 

~

~

 

“I’m guessing that went well — not,” Raff chuckled at the sight of the witches escaping out of the front door that the beta hadn’t been able to break down.

“I’m kind of wishing I’d been a fly on the wall now,” Dusty chuckled.

“Oh,” Raff lifted her hand and pointed at Grayson and his chocolate beard as he appeared at the front door and eyed the area for the fleeing mates. “Me too.”

“That’s a good look for you, brother,” Dusty called. “I prefer to eat my food, but each to his own.”

“Shut up,” Grayson growled. He had no time for his brother’s stupidity, or the vampire’s. His mate was on the run, and his beast wasn’t happy about it.

The trouble was that the females had taken off in different directions, good for them, not for him. Grayson had to choose.

He started off after Mel on fast feet, just as the alpha came rushing out of the house. It took Parker a split second to note that Grayson had taken off to the right, and the other sister was running to the left; he had no choice — mate or not – he followed Kat.

“This is just so much fun,” Raff offered a devilish grin to Dusty. “Who needs television when you have entertainment like this? I just wish I had popcorn.”

“Well, I wouldn’t have missed it for the world,” Dusty grinned back, unsure which way to look to keep an eye on the action; it was like watching a fast game of tennis as he looked left and right, and left again.

“You can almost feel love blossoming around you,” Raff said. Just then Mel turned and zapped Grayson, and the beta yelped. “You could almost say it’s sparking to life.”

“I didn’t know you were such a romantic,” Dusty chuckled, enjoying the spectacle, and his brothers dismal attempt to woo their mates.

“Get away from my sister!” Paige shrieked as she used her magic to launch a plant pot at the alpha’s head as he closed the ground between him and Kat.

With a direct hit to Parker’s head, the plant pot exploded, and the alpha wobbled for a moment, but he shook it off and kept running.

“These are the moments to treasure in life, Dusty,” Raff chuckled. “Now, is that fair?” He called to Paige, and the meddlesome witch snorted her contempt for him.

“Keep out of this, vampire,” Paige hissed back.

Then she turned her attention to the hearty shriek that came from Mel. The beta had a hand on the scruff of Mel’s collar, and Paige panicked, twisting her hand in the air and backing it up with her magic.

A hearty yelp came from the beta as he flipped back through the air – the only problem was that he still had a hold on Mel and he yanked her back with him.

“Whoops!” Paige bit out on a grimace as Grayson hit the floor and Mel slammed down on top of him.

“See what happens when you meddle,” the vampire said, wagging a finger in her direction, and getting the bird flipped back at him in return. “That’s just plain rude.”

“Very,” Dusty agreed, but he was still chuckling.

“I have a good mind to go over there and give the witch a piece of my mind,” Raff said.

“Allow me,” Dusty chuckled, and he put one foot in front of the other and started toward Paige.

He might have been enjoying watching his brothers fail miserably, but he still felt that the other witch was meddling in things that were between mates. He’d offer a friendly warning and be done with it, which was probably mild compared to Raff’s usual habit of blowing everything out of proportion.

Paige snapped her attention back to the beta that was headed in her direction. Her eyes widened, then narrowed on the man. Over six foot of muscled he-man was headed her way, and the rush of adrenaline swept through her body like wildfire.

She held up a hand to warn him off, but he kept coming.

“Don’t you come near me,” she hissed the warning, but the stupid man didn’t listen. So, she zapped him a good one and watched him crumple to his knees on the grass.

“That went well,” Raff chuckled.

Parker finally caught up with Kat. He reached out, wrapped a hand around her waist, and scooped her up against him.

The witch’s legs were still moving as if her brain hadn’t told her that she wasn’t running anymore — her feet got caught up in Parker’s long legs, and before could do anything about it, they were headed toward the ground.

“Woman!” Dusty growled, as he slowly pushed up to his full height, and snatched Paige’s attention back from the alpha and Kat.

“I suggest you tuck your tail between your legs and walk away,” Paige hissed at the beta.

“I think you’ve got a rude awakening coming,” Dusty growled back.

“Oh, do you?” Paige sneered at him.

“Yeah, I really do,” he growled.

“Well, I think you should go take your head and boil it,” she snapped back.

“Now, honey, that’s really no way to talk to your mate,” Dusty growled. He waited while she took that information onboard — then, there it was, as her eyes widened, her eyebrows travelled up toward her hairline, and her mouth opened with only a small squeak — she raced toward panic.

“Don’t you say it! Don’t you say! Don’t you bloody well say it!” she rushed the warning out, over and over again, as she walked back to the house, one hand held up in front of her to ward him off.

Dusty gave a small growl of satisfaction, he pulled himself ramrod straight, pulled his shoulders back and pushed his chest out. Then he clenched and unclenched his fists at his sides, and all the while a wolfish grin was spreading across his face. He sucked in a breath…

“No — no — no — no!” By the last ‘no’ she was practically begging.

“Mine…” Dusty relished that word.

Paige deflated in front of him. Her shoulders drooped, her body sagged, and her head hung low.

“You had to go and bloody well say it!” She bit out.