Page 42 of The Witch’s Daughter

Charles swatted me away playfully, but I saw the gleam of relief in his eyes. “Will you be at the gathering tonight?”

“The bonfire?” I asked, looking over to where the structure was being re-erected for what seemed like would be a nightly event.

“No, not that,” he lowered his voice to a conspiratorial whisper. “After. A special gathering just for fun.”

“Oh.” I blinked, trying not to look as ignorant as I was. “I guess I didn’t get the invite.”

“Consider this your invite,” he said. “Meet me in the woods at midnight. I’ll make you a special wine.”

This is not a good idea, my wolf cautioned.

What are you talking about? I bit into a hunk of biscuit as I walked. This was too good to be true. Fate was on my side. Why else would Charles be put in my path? A secret gathering of witches in the moonlit forest sounded like my kind of night.

You’re hearing yourself, right?

You should be excited. You’ll get that nap after all.

*

“There you are.” Jaxon growled as I stood, zipping up my tent.

I arched a brow as I stared at him. “Why are you acting like that? You’re a wolf shifter. It’s not like I was hiding. You could smell and sense me in there.”

He absentmindedly rubbed his chest. The action made me touch my chest too. That stupid, ever present ache.

“Are you okay?” Jaxon’s voice softened. “You slept all afternoon.”

“Did I?” I glanced at the setting sun. It’d been a long night, but I was so excited to see if this Charles character could help me that I hadn’t thought I’d be able to close my eyes.

Now they were wide open and Jaxon was freshly showered. His wet hair dried in the golden hour of the sun and his white shirt was open just enough to reveal the smooth, bronzed muscles of his chest. He smelled like home. Like comfort and warmth and happiness. All the things I wanted in life.

Stop it. Jaxon Cadejo wasn’t mine.

He could be…

I shut her up with a growl.

Jaxon watched me patiently. I squirmed under the intensity of his gaze. When I didn’t elaborate, he broke the awkward silence.

“What was all that about this morning?” he asked. “I thought Meg told you to steer clear of Vincent until Alec and Alpha Kera returned.”

“Meg isn’t my Alpha.” I pushed past him.

“No, but your Alpha would want you to stay away from Vincent too.” Jaxon stormed up beside me.

I resisted the childish urge to stick my fingers in my ears. “Can all of you just stop worrying about me for five minutes and let me live my life?”

“This again?” He growled as his frustration broke through his calm façade.

Good. The sooner he cracked, the sooner he’d realize I was a lost cause that didn’t need him to save me.

“Since you didn’t hear me the first hundred times I told you,” I said. “Let me make this clear. I am not your problem.”

I crossed my arms over my chest as I walked faster, hating how long his stupid legs were and how easily they kept up with mine.

“Stop.” He grabbed me by the elbows, spinning me toward him until I was forced to look up, to see the pain etched on his face. “Stop saying that.”

“It’s true.” I growled again, not sure why my body was arching closer to his when all I wanted to do was run away. “I. Am. Not. Your. Problem.”