Until now. “I can’t force her to drink the water.”

“Neither can I, but I did give her a bottle of it on her way out. Let’s hope she drinks it. In the meantime, you’ve got to cool it around her. No shifting outside your house.”

“I promise you, I’m not the panther she saw. It had to be Diego.”

Delaney squinted.

“My brother. He’s staying with me.” Alex’s expression was less than happy. “He’s not the easiest to rein in sometimes. I’ll talk to him. Make sure he knows the deal.”

“Good. Roxy and I have been friends since college. She’s under enough stress with this divorce. She doesn’t need to think she’s hallucinating too.”

“Why not tell her the truth?”

Delaney’s eyes widened slightly. “When Hugh told me he was a vampire, I climbed out a second-story window and ran off into the woods in the dark of night. And I wasn’t under the pressure of a deadline or a controlling ex who wouldn’t sign my divorce papers. I don’t think Roxy needs that kind of reality dumped on her right now.”

“Okay.” He thought for a moment. “You know, I might be able to help with this. But only if Diego gets the bartending job he interviewed for today and gets out of my house at night.”

That perked Delaney up. “If it’s a matter of getting him that job, I can help with that. I assume it’s at Howler’s.”

“Yes.”

“Good. I’ll call Bridget. She’ll do it as a favor, I’m sure. Even if he doesn’t last, maybe she can keep him busy for a week.”

“That should be more than enough time.”

“What are you planning?”

He hesitated, then smiled. “Just a little neighborly get-together.”

By the time Roxy got home, it was so late in the afternoon it was practically dinner time. She unloaded her groceries and, for a moment, wished she was good enough friends with Alex to make use of his hot tub. A soak would be glorious. She rolled her shoulders, trying to release the tightness in them. She might have to take Delaney up on that offer of a spa day.

But as much as Roxy wanted to loaf, the book called. She grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge, set it on her desk in the office, then went to change.

A few minutes later she was in yoga pants and a Lost Boys T-shirt, sitting in front of her computer and staring down at Chapter Two. She put her hands on the keyboard and thought for a moment about what events needed to happen next. Then she dove in.

Marabella tugged against the restraints holding her. For eight long months, she’d suffered at the hands of the druids, imprisoned in this damnable tower and kept from her beloved, Wolfgang. No doubt he thought her dead. She closed her eyes and a prayer escaped her lips that he didn’t think she’d also been the one to betray him.

Did he understand that this was all his brother’s doing? She couldn’t be sure, but Wolfgang was no one’s fool. If anyone could have discovered Ulric’s plan, it was him.

She went very still and listened but the hall beyond her chamber seemed deserted. This might be her only chance. Her captors could return at any time. She closed her eyes and, at long last, summoned the witch’s power she’d been born with.

All these months, the druids had laced her food and drink with herbs meant to destroy her magic. And they nearly had. But the incessant use of them had begun to create an immunity in her. One she’d kept hidden.

One she’d nurtured. And what the druids in Ulric’s control didn’t know was that her magic had almost fully returned to her. In a very short time, she would leave this dank prison behind.

Then she would find her beloved and together they would rain down vengeance upon the head of Ulric and his minions.

She concentrated, calling upon her powers to manifest themselves. The magic curled inside her, aching to be free, almost bursting from—

Roxy’s doorbell rang, and her head came up. How many times had the chime sounded? Once? Three times? She had no idea. A glance at the window told her the sun was just about to set. How long had she been sitting here? She scrambled out of her chair and made it to the foyer as the bell rang again.

She pulled the door open and smiled. “Oh, hey, Alex.”

“Hey. I thought I’d invite you over for some celebratory pizza.” He grinned. “Diego got the bartending job.”

“That is worth celebrating. And I love pizza, even if it’s not really on my diet.”

He gave her a little side eye. “You don’t need to diet.”

She was curvy. She knew that. Thomas never let her forget it. Dieting wasn’t something she did, it was a way of life. “Watch what happens when I don’t. With my job? It’s a constant struggle.”

“Well, I think you look great. And I’m ordering from Salvatore’s. If you haven’t had their pizza yet, you really should. It’s kind of legendary.” He cocked his head. “Or are you sick of hanging out with me?”

That she was not. “No. I’ll come over. One slice won’t kill me. Can I at least make a salad or something?”

“So long as you don’t mind being the only one eating it.” Then he laughed and held his hands up. “I could try some, I guess. So long as there’s a lot of dressing on it. And maybe cheese. And bacon.” He shrugged apologetically. “The Cruz men aren’t really salad eaters.”

“Okay, forget the salad. Are you ordering the pizza now? I’d love to finish this scene I’m working on.”