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“It was successful,” Shobha said. “I cannot feel Juneau’s magic anymore. It is bound deep inside her.”
Hazel released the breath she’d been holding and exchanged a glance with Merle, whose mouth was pressed into a tight line.
“If you don’t mind,” Sophie said, helping Juneau to her feet, “I need to take care of my mother now. She needs rest.”
“Of course.” Shobha inclined her head. “Be sure to get in touch with us about your trial for a place on the council.”
Now that Sophie was head of her family, she was eligible to become an Elder, too. If she did succeed, it would be the first time after the war that a Laroche would sit on the council again. Hazel had quite a few mixed feelings about that, and a quick check on Merle told her she wasn’t the only one. Merle’s ginger brows were drawn into a scowl, her resentment of the Laroche family clearly on display.
“Sure, yeah, I will.” Sophie’s voice trembled, a note of anxiety in her aura. “Please excuse us. I trust you can find your way out?”
Before any of them could answer, Sophie had already left the room, her arm tight around her mother’s shoulders.
Merle caught Hazel’s gaze and raised her brows but didn’t say anything. She fell into step next to Hazel as they followed the other witches through the meandering hallways back to the front door, Shobha leading the way. Apparently, the head of the Gupta family really was familiar enough with the Laroche manor to navigate its labyrinthine interior. Which made sense—she was almost as old as Juneau and had likely spent a lot of time here over the years, back when the witch community had still been a cohesive whole.
Lingering by the cars until the other witches had left, Hazel then turned to Merle. “That went surprisingly smoothly.”
“I know.” A line of worry creased Merle’s forehead. “I fully expected something to go wrong. Like, I was waiting for us to be ambushed by a horde of Laroches. I am honestly shocked at how well Juneau cooperated.”
“Yeah.” Hazel swallowed, an uncomfortable lump in her throat. “I know what you mean. I had this feeling…like something’s off. But I couldn’t put my finger on it. It all went the way we’d planned it. But…”
Merle chewed her lower lip. “But it feels like now we’re waiting for the other shoe to drop?”
Hazel’s stomach cramped with anxiety. “Something like that.”
Merle blew out a breath and rubbed her lower back.
Hazel’s attention snapped to the gesture. “Are you sure you’re okay? You were working pretty hard in there. Maybe I should drive you home.”
“No, really, I’m fine.” One side of her mouth tipped up. “You know, I thought I’d love everyone fussing over me when I’m pregnant, but I’ve gotta tell you, I can’t wait until people don’t treat me like I’m a balloon about to burst anymore.”
Hazel chuckled, then hugged her friend goodbye.
CHAPTER 34
“Try this one,” Tallak said and picked up one of the many different tapas spread out over the table in the Murrays’ breakfast nook.
Instead of letting Hazel take it, he brought the little ball of fried, spicy goodness to her mouth, watching her with a hunger that had nothing to do with food. Her lips closed around his fingers, and the sensation went straight down to his cock.
From how she perched on his lap, she had to feel exactly what it did to him when she gently sucked on his thumb.
He’d brought her food again today, dinner this time, after not having seen her for two whole days. She’d been busy with witch stuff, and then he’d had a double shift at Nine Circles, covering for Phoebe.
The pure, unadulterated rush of happiness when he’d seen her again had almost knocked him off his feet. With the house empty except for the two of them, since Basil had gone on an extended trip to Faerie with Isa, and Rose was out shopping, he’d easily roped her into dinner with him, and now she sat sideways on his lap after he’d pulled her over to him from her seat, her luscious curves right where they should be—pressed against his body.
The primal demon side in him delighted in the fact that she let him hand-feed her, satisfying some deep-rooted instinct to provide for his mate. She groaned at the taste of the tapa, and the sheer eroticism of the sound only made the situation in his pants worse.
“Keep doing that,” he rumbled, “and I’ll have to bend you over the island again.”
Her eyes flashed with mischief, her mouth twitching up at the corners as she delicately chewed and swallowed.
He grabbed her around the neck and kissed her, stealing the taste of the spices right from her lips. With a small moan, she melted against him, her fingers tunneling into his hair.
The sound of the front door opening and closing made them both freeze.
“I’m home,” Rose called out from the foyer.
With a gasp, Hazel pulled away, her eyes wide. She hurried to slide off his lap, righted her clothes, and moved away from him, far enough that no one would suspect she’d just been plastered to his front, her lips locked with his.
