Chapter Five
The shifter was kissing her.
Shock kept Valerie immobile for all of two seconds, and then her body, well, it reacted. It sort of burned. In a very good way. Not the whole set-on-fire-at-a-stake way.
Heat filled her. Desire pulsed in her blood. Her hands flew up, wrapped around his arms, and held tight. Her mouth opened beneath his. His tongue swept past her lips. She tasted him. Realized that she loved his flavor. Rich, masculine. And the guy could kiss.
Her bare toes were practically curling against the grass.
Her breasts were aching, her nipples tight, and her body arched toward him. His arousal was apparent, heavy and thick, and it pushed against her.
Valerie enjoyed sex. She liked pleasure. Who didn’t? And she had the feeling Griffin Bastien could give her a great deal of pleasure.
If he wasn’t, you know, such a bastard.
He pulled her even closer. Kissed her harder. Made her want him a bit more. A lot more. Her heart thundered in her chest. Her nails scraped over his arms. She—
He let her go. Backed up a step. “Witch.”
Her breath was coming too fast. She didn’t try to speak. Instead, she just waved her hand, as if to say…Um, yeah. Established that.
“You’re trying to bewitch me.”
No, she hadn’t been. “You kissed me.”
His eyes were on her mouth. Doing that glowing/burning thing that she thought meant he wanted her. Badly. “Mistake.”
Her spine straightened. “Do mistakes usually make you feel that good?” Yes, her voice was husky. So what?
“Can’t happen again.”
“Then tell that to yourself. You were the one getting all grabby and kissy.”
“Our mating will end in a month.”
“I’ve heard that story before.”
“We will not kiss again.”
Seriously, someone was protesting too much. “Stop acting like that wasn’t the best kiss of your life.”
His mouth opened. Closed. He…didn’t deny it.
And had his cheeks just flushed?
“Oh, baby…” Now she purred at him. “If you think that was great, I have so much more to show you.”
“Rule four.”
She shook her head. When had they gotten to his rules? Valerie was pretty sure she’d been the one spouting rules.
“No kissing,” Griffin gritted out.
That was just…mean. “No kissing at all? Or just no you kissing me? Can I kiss other shifters?” She needed clarification, right away. “Like sexy ones that I might—”
He growled. Took a fast step toward her. Seemed to catch himself. “You do not kiss another shifter.”
“But I can kiss you?”
His eyes were on her mouth. She knew longing when she saw it. Griffin was so messed up. Valerie gave a sigh. “Why do you keep yourself from having what you want?”
“Because I don’t want you forever.”
That hurt. But like every other hurt she’d ever suffered, she didn’t cry out. Didn’t flinch. Didn’t let him see the pain.
“No kissing,” Griffin said, but his voice was halting. He stared at her, frowning. And then he actually did manage to surprise her. “I…I’m sorry.”
“Sorry for what? Having stupid rules? Being ungrateful to the woman who saved your life? Or just being an all-around asshole?”
“Val—”
“Stop. You’re giving me a headache.” Where was her henchman with the chocolate? “And don’t you have things to do? I mean, you’re the king here. Other kings I’ve dated have needed to complete actual work. They didn’t just hang out by streams all day.”
A line grew between his brows. “You’ve dated other kings?”
“Dude. I’m awesome. Men have literally killed to be with me.” Which made his rejection all the more insulting. “Go do some kingly crap, okay? I want to be on my own for a while.”
“You…won’t work magic.”
She turned her back on him. Of course, she’d do magic. She’d do whatever the hell she wanted. “Maybe you should pass the word about my rules to your people. If they don’t break my rules, then I won’t break the shifters.”
“That isn’t the way it works.”
“No?” She didn’t look at him. Mostly because she wanted to make sure her face didn’t give away any of her emotions. “That’s how it works for me. You heard my rules. I heard yours—”
“I haven’t said them all.”
She almost laughed. “Then I’ll catch them tonight at dinner.” It was a dismissal. Obviously.
Only the guy didn’t go anywhere. “Did I hurt you?” Griffin spoke haltingly.
“If you did, I’ll get you back, times twelve,” she promised.
“Valerie—”
“But how could you have hurt me?” Valerie continued as her hair began to blow. “You don’t mean anything to me. So you don’t want to kiss me again. Big deal. It’s your loss. And for the record, I never asked to be with you forever.” Forever was far too long. Especially since she had plans.
She was going to rule the witches. Destroy their stupid council. Maybe she’d even take over the whole world. Totally just depended on her mood. She didn’t have time to stay forever in shifter land. Valerie didn’t want to stay there.
“I never said I didn’t want to kiss you,” Griffin muttered.
He was still lingering.
“Sometimes, it’s just best not to take what we want.”
Now she laughed. Valerie glanced over her shoulder at him. “Who told you that bunch of crap? Life is fickle, and pain is inevitable. So if you can take something you want in this world—you do. You grab it tight, and you enjoy the hell out of that ride.” Because, sooner or later, the ride would end.
A bitter truth that Valerie had learned when she’d been young.
***
Griffin gazed out of the window, looking for a long, sleek mane of black hair. Valerie hadn’t come back to the castle yet, and, soon, night would be falling.
He shouldn’t have left her alone at the stream.
“So, yes, I’ve asked you the same question five times now, and I’ve gotten no response,” Warren announced. He waved his fingers in front of Griffin’s face. “I was joking before when I asked if she’d enchanted you, but now I’m starting to legitimately worry.”
Griffin grabbed his friend’s hand. Shoved it down. “She could get hurt in the woods.”
Warren’s mouth parted. It seemed to take him a moment to actually form words. Then he managed, “She’s wicked. As in, the most feared witch, ever. Her own people were getting ready to burn her. They don’t burn their own kind on a whim. If the stories are true, she’s murdered without hesitation. Valerie Storm has tortured, stolen, and laughed while she did it all.”
But I think I hurt her feelings today.
“Tell me, again, very, very slowly, how you wound up mated to her.”
Griffin’s gaze darted to the window once more. If she wasn’t back in the next five minutes, he’d hunt her. “We were in the dungeon together.”
“And everyone knows that dungeons are incredibly romantic.” This sarcastic as hell comment didn’t come from Warren. Instead, it came from the bear shifter currently lounging near the door. Elliott Urso gave Griffin a broad smile. “All of those chains, the darkness, and, of course, let’s not forget the delicious smell of death.”
“I was trapped in dragon form,” Griffin snapped. “Valerie said she could help me. For a price.”
Warren whistled. “A mating. Conniving witch. She knew if she was mated to a shifter—the king of shifters—she wouldn’t be put to death.”
“Very smart,” Elliott noted. His golden eyes gleamed, and he sounded admiring. “Good to know she’s as smart as she is sexy. Caught a glimpse of her earlier today. The stories about her beauty are not exaggerations.”
Griffin exhaled very, very slowly. Then he turned to face the bear. “Don’t even think it.”
“What? You said it was a temporary mating. That means, one day, Valerie will be on the market again.”
The hell she would.
But, wait. She would. And that was what he wanted. Didn’t he?
“So if you just don’t fuck her, if the bond doesn’t get sealed by the flesh, then you’re good to go.” Warren clapped his hand on Griffin’s shoulder. “That’s nice and easy. I mean, hell, who would want to screw someone so evil?”
Elliott raised his hand.
Griffin lunged toward him.
***
The raven whispered into Valerie’s ear.
“So if you just don’t fuck her, if the bond doesn’t get sealed by the flesh, then you’re good to go.”
She smiled and stroked the raven’s head. “Well, well, well, my new friend. You just hit the jackpot.”
The raven preened.
“Um…” Rio cleared his throat. “That’s not a shifter, Ms. Valerie. That’s just a bird.”
The raven gave a low, angry caw. “This is not just a bird. He’s my new familiar.” And she’d found him at just the right time. Valerie had been sitting at the stream, her feet in the icy water, and, okay, embarrassingly enough, she’d been moping, when she’d heard the raven’s pain-filled cry.
The poor little fellow had broken his wing.
She’d used a tiny bit of magic to heal him.
After all, she was a rule breaker.
“Go see what else you can learn, darling.” She gave the raven a bit of seed. She’d picked it up just for him in town. She’d be sure to keep some handy as a reward for future tidbits of gossip that he brought her. “Find me later.”
He whispered again to her.
Valerie laughed. “Really? I must meet the bear shifter at the first opportunity.” She extended her arm. The raven flew away. She brushed off her hand and turned to find Rio staring at her with confusion clear on his young face. So much work to be done with that one.
He scratched his neck. “You act like it was talking to you—”
“He. Not it. And he prefers the name Edgar.” What a fun new familiar.
Rio blinked at her.
She smiled back at him. “Edgar was speaking to me.” Her index finger covered her lips, to let him know that she was imparting a secret. “Don’t tell, but I can talk to animals.”
“Can all witches do that?”
Her hand fell. “Certainly not.” Now she was insulted. “Only the very baddest.” It was one of the forbidden powers. And if anything was forbidden, she just had to do it.
“I-I won’t tell.” He grabbed his bag. “And you promise, when you leave, we’ll go together? I won’t…I won’t be alone out there?”
She looped her arm through his. “Henchman, you will never be alone again. Besides, being with the humans is not nearly as bad as you seem to think. I actually quite enjoy them. And they are going to love you.”
He gave her a quick, nervous smile. “Really?”
“Of course. You’re strong, have supernatural reflexes, you’re brave—”
“I—no, I’m not.”
He didn’t think he was. They’d deal with that later. “You’ve got potential. I can see it practically glowing inside of you.” Those words were truer than he probably realized. A secret for another day. “You have all of this without the incredibly unfortunate side effect of sprouting fur and howling at the moon. You, Rio, are what’s called a winner.”
“I want to be a winner.”
“Of course, you—”
“Valerie!”
She sighed. “That man seems to always be bellowing my name.”
“Griffin sounds upset,” Rio mumbled.
“Good. I’m rather upset with him myself.”
“Valerie!” Another roar.
“Oh, for goodness sake!” And she hated goodness. Valerie raised her voice as she called, “We both know you have supernatural senses, Griffin! You can find me easily.”
There was pounding close by. As if something was rushing through the woods. Coming right at her.
Rio moved in front of Valerie.
“Just focus,” Valerie called out, knowing that Griffin was closing in. “And you’ll find me right—”
He burst out of the trees.
She peeked over Rio’s shoulder. “Here.”
Griffin’s breath heaved in and out of his lungs. Was it her imagination, or did he look a little bigger? More muscled in the shoulders and chest? He’d been big before, but now he was—
“You should be home.” He pointed at Valerie. No, maybe he was pointing at Rio. Hard to tell.
Griffin stepped forward.
Rio’s trembling body stiffened. That kid had heart. Hopefully, no one would ever rip it from his chest. She shouldn’t mention to him that very fate had befallen a previous henchman. But Valerie had very kindly put the heart back in the djinn’s chest.
“Valerie…” Griffin seemed to struggle for patience. She knew exactly how he felt. The struggle is real. “You said we’d talk at dinner.”
She had? Valerie totally didn’t remember that promise.
“Darkness is coming. The beasts roam free at night. It’s not safe for you to be out,” Griffin added.
“It’s not? But I thought you told everyone I was off limits.”
“Some of these shifters are…troubled. Too young. If they can’t control their beasts, you could get hurt.”
“Maybe you should have told me that part before.” Was he lying to her? Hard to say. She couldn’t get a good read on him.
“He’s telling the truth,” Rio whispered. As if a whisper would do anything. Griffin would hear him perfectly no matter how low Rio pitched his voice. “When the moon comes out, shifters will shed their skins. And since a lot of them, um, don’t like you—”
Their loss.
Face glum, Rio told her, “You should probably go back to the castle.”
This just sucked. She’d been told not to use magic, but the shifters got to use their claws and fangs? How was that fair?
“Come, Valerie.” Now Griffin sounded too pompous. Probably because he’d gotten his way. “Time to go home.”
The castle wasn’t her home. It was just her resting spot for the next month. But she wasn’t in the mood to argue. She was saving her energy for something bigger. “Let’s go, Rio. We need to make sure you’ve got a good room.” She sashayed around Griffin. Gave him the slant eye as she passed him. “You have given orders that Rio will be given some kind of deluxe suite, right? Because my henchman deserves the best.”
“He…you…” Griffin wasn’t pompous any longer. He squeezed the bridge of his nose. “Fine. Whatever you want. Let’s just get out of these damn woods.”
“Griffin’s beast is pushing him,” Rio said in his too loud whisper. “He probably wants to run wild and free, too.”
Griffin glared at him. “Get to the castle, kid. Go find Elliott. He’ll make sure you have a good room. Just tell him I gave the okay.”
Rio shook his head. “I won’t leave Valerie unprotected.”
That kid…adorable!
Griffin’s eyes became green slits. “She’s not unprotected. She’s got me.”
Rio still didn’t move. Valerie almost rubbed her hands in glee. Such promise. Great potential. But she didn’t want to see that potential ripped to shreds right in front of her, so she patted Rio on the arm. “I’m fine.” Always. “We’ll talk tomorrow. Get settled now. Get dinner. Multiple portions, you got me?” He looked far too thin. “We’ll plot in the morning.”
Rio marched away, but kept glancing back, as if looking for a threat.
She wiggled her fingers at him.
Griffin caught her wiggling fingers. “What in the hell are you doing?”
She tried to ignore the fact that when he touched her, she felt a hot surge of awareness. A tingle that she might enjoy too much. “I’m making friends with the locals.”
“Why are you moving him into my castle? It’s his turn with the baker. He’s supposed to stay there for the next month.”
“Turn?” She played with that word in her mind. “Why don’t I like that?”
“I give Rio a turn with different shifters, trying to let him learn trades, trying to help him find a family that fits with him.”
Rio was gone. “How long have you been doing this?”
Griffin didn’t answer.
So she knew. “His whole life? And he never found anyone that he…fit with?”
“He can’t shift. It makes it hard to bond with the others.”
“No, I think it makes it hard for those jackass others to look past the surface.”
“Valerie…”
“He fits me. He’s going to stay close to me, and when I leave, I’ll be taking the henchman with me.”
Silence.
She started walking, and Griffin immediately fell into step beside her. He wasn’t talking, but she could practically hear the guy thinking. Trying to figure her out. Trying to understand why she was taking the boy.
Griffin didn’t get it. Sometimes, you didn’t need a reason. Sometimes, you just had to act.
Finally, he mumbled, “You…stayed in the woods a long time.”
“I like the woods. There weren’t any big, bad wolves to bother me, so Little Red was just fine.”
His hand brushed hers. Valerie swallowed.
“You think I’m a wolf?” Griffin asked.
“Aren’t you?” She didn’t look at him. When they’d been in the dungeon together, she’d asked him about being a wolf. He hadn’t answered her. Still, a witch had her suspicions. “I know you can shift into the form of a dragon. But I’m guessing your other two forms are something pretty fierce, too. A wolf makes sense. Not that it really matters. Seeing as how you and I aren’t going to be besties or anything.”
“You’re angry.”
Give the man a cookie. “And you’re not too fast on the uptake.” She stopped walking. Spun to face him. “I thought you didn’t want to be around me. If that’s the case, why come looking for me? I could have gotten back to the castle just fine on my own.”
“I told you, I was worried.”
“Bullshit. You gave the order I wasn’t to be hurt, and I don’t buy for a second that the shifters here would go against your order.”
Darkness had begun to stretch across the sky. Did he know that the dark made her more powerful? Probably not. She certainly wasn’t going to tell him.
“I don’t want you hurt. Not in any way.”
He sounded as if he meant those words. Interesting. Considering now, she looped her arm through his.
Griffin immediately stiffened. “What are you doing?”
“Walking. You wanted me to walk, didn’t you?”
“Your…arm.”
Someone needed to work on making full sentences. “It’s wrapped with yours. You know, so I don’t fall or anything. It’s getting dark, and I can’t see in the dark as well as you can.” Total lie. “If I stumble, I thought you’d help steady me. Seeing as how you don’t want me to get hurt and all.”
He kept walking with her. His arm was very tense and strong.
She slanted him a glance from the corner of her eye. “Are you bigger? Or is that my imagination?”
“I was worried, like I said. So my body may have changed a bit.”
He was bigger. “It’s nice of you to worry.”
“I thought we’d established I wasn’t nice.”
He was many different things. “Where will I sleep tonight?”
“At my home.”
Right. The big, medieval castle. The drafty castle, though it did have all of the comforts of a modern home. “I figured that, but where will you be sleeping?”
He kept walking.
“I want to sleep with you,” Valerie told him.
He stumbled. She steadied him.
“Bad idea,” he said. “Very, very bad.”
“I have to confess something to you.” She didn’t like doing it, but oh, well. “I’m a screamer.”
He swore.
“Oh, wait, not that kind of screamer. The sex kind? Is that what you think?” She stopped walking. Then considered the matter. “Actually, yes, I am that kind of screamer. If the pleasure is good enough.”
“Valerie…”
“But I can also scream at night, when I’m dreaming, in a manner unrelated to sex. Quite powerfully. Quite…terrifyingly, I’ve been told.”
“By lovers?”
She didn’t answer him. Instead, Valerie explained, “I may also occasionally do a wee bit of summoning in my sleep.”
“What? What in the hell does that even mean?”
“It means when you play with dark magic, there’s a price. When I’m asleep, sometimes, I pay that price in my dreams.” She’d thought about this all day. “So if you really want to make sure I don’t hurt your precious shifters, you’d better bunk down in the bed with me. And if I start screaming or levitating or opening the gateway to hell, you can wake me up.”
He shook his head. Over and over.
“I take it that’s a yes? We’re on for sleeping together?” Valerie pushed.
He swore.
She gave his hand a soft stroke. “Excellent. Can we start walking again? I find I’m quite famished.”
He didn’t start walking. “All I have to do is wake you up? And you’ll stop whatever the hell you’re doing?”
“Maybe.” She gave an encouraging nod. “We’ll cross our fingers on that one, shall we?”
“You’re bluffing.”
Her heart slammed into her ribs.
He leaned closer to her. Lowered his head. For an instant, Valerie thought he might kiss her again. Instead, he whispered, “Your heart is racing, and your breath is hitching. You’re lying, sweetheart, and I can tell.”
No, he couldn’t.
“You’ll be sleeping on your own tonight. I’ll give orders that no one is to enter your room. Your games aren’t going to work on me.”
She wasn’t playing a game. He’d see that truth for himself.
When the screams started.