Total pages in book: 132
Estimated words: 125083 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 625(@200wpm)___ 500(@250wpm)___ 417(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 125083 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 625(@200wpm)___ 500(@250wpm)___ 417(@300wpm)
Realization flashed on Wynter’s face. “So by telling me to run to Seth, she was hoping you’d then turn away from me in much the same way as you turned away from Lailah.”
That would be Cain’s guess. It wouldn’t have worked, though. He’d have headed to Seth’s Keep and dragged Wynter back to his own. And Seth, being nothing like Abel, would have helped Cain in easing Wynter’s concerns rather than attempt to keep them apart.
“Sneaky, isn’t she?”
“It’s one of her many traits,” said Cain.
“Well, thank you for telling me that story. You didn’t have to. And just so you know, I’d never play one brother off against the other like that.”
“I know. You are nothing like Lailah. In fact, you are unlike any woman I’ve ever met. You’re a singular creature, Wynter. And very much all mine.” Cain slipped one hand between them to possessively cup her breast. “It’s a shame you can’t wear my shirt to work.”
She snorted. “Counting the amount of times you’ve touched me in public, I’d say it’s already pretty clear to the people here that you consider me off-limits to anyone but you.”
That didn’t feel like enough, though. Nothing did. Maybe because so many things had been taken from him that his hold on her always felt precarious. Like she could slip through his fingers at any moment. There was really only one way to guarantee he could always keep her with him, but she’d never go for it.
His monster didn’t believe that, though. It didn’t see why she’d object to staying with them forever. Or why Cain would worry that she’d leave them if she learned the truth. Again, it was that lack of self-awareness at work.
“You’re frowning all of a sudden,” she said. “What’s wrong?”
What was wrong? Nothing. Except that she’d so wholly and unknowingly snagged the interest of a creature that would absolutely terrify her.
Sometimes, Cain felt that Wynter nonetheless could truly accept him and the truth of what he was. Other times … other times he remembered he wasn’t that fucking fortunate.
He could very easily turn his back on someone who rejected him, but he wasn’t sure he could so effortlessly do that with Wynter. And that left him only one choice—never let her learn just what she shared a bed with.
Doing a languid stretch, Wynter glanced at the shelf on the shed wall. She was almost all out of reversal potions. Again. Well, it had been a long day, and she’d had a tricky customer who’d asked her to edit the runes on his dagger four times before he’d been satisfied with the results.
She’d originally thought that people’s interest in enchanting weapons would decrease once the novelty of it wore off. But she still had a steady stream of customers. Some even came with cutlery or jewelry. And once the shapeshifting beings learned that she could also put runes on claws, some had come seeking such a service.
The rest of her crew were doing just as well. Xavier, being such an expert at divination, had plenty of regular clients who liked to have weekly readings. Many people stopped by of a morning to pick up baked goods from Hattie. Anabel’s potions practically flew off the shelves on a daily basis, since she had such a massive selection. And Delilah’s cosmetics remained highly popular—particularly her gift sets.
In sum, their homerun shop was still doing well. Which still supremely irritated many of the local businesses. Some had had the downright gall to attempt to replicate both Anabel and Delilah’s brews, though they’d had little success.
Still, both females were furious that others would try to steal their ideas and products. It had taken Wynter a good fifteen minutes to talk the nutcases out of cooking up their own improved versions of Molotov cocktails for Xavier—who’d happily volunteered his services—to sling through their windows … all while Hattie walked around demanding to know who’d hidden her copy of Fifty Shades of Grey because she still hadn’t yet located it.
Wynter had managed to distract them by relaying Cain’s response to Ishtar’s visit. Delilah had crowed about being right that Ishtar’s actions were motivated by both her hurt ego and how threatened she felt by Wynter’s involvement with Cain. The crew felt uneasy on hearing that he hadn’t addressed the claim Ishtar made that the Aeons had something he wanted. Wynter hadn’t felt too great about it either, but she skirted shit all the time to preserve her own secrets, so she had no right to press him.
Her stomach rumbling, Wynter grabbed her empty mug and set of keys. It was time to lock up and—
An otherworldly breeze slammed into her body, vibrating with urgency and a warning of danger. She heard a heel scuff the floor a mere millisecond before pain lanced through her back and chest. Sucking in a sharp breath, she glanced down. Shock and panic zipped up her spine. No. No, that was not a sword sticking out of her body.