Palm Haven Shifters: Complete Five-Part Series Page 13

  Sarah’s face fell and she stared at her hands in dismay.

  Ashley knew that look. When she’d been a teenager unable to control her powers or help her best friend, she’d looked at her hands the same way. That way that clearly conveyed what a curse magic could be. How heartbreaking it could be to be at war with yourself. Her heart clenched and she rested her hand over top Sarah’s.

  “It’s okay. I’ll help you,” she said, squeezing Sarah’s fingers.

  They joined both hands and Ashley instructed her to close her eyes, clear her mind, and focus on the thrumming river of magic rushing below them.

  In her mind’s eye, Ashley guided Sarah to wade in the rushing flow of energy. Sarah’s whole body trembled with the force. It would be too easy to be washed up in the current, to take in too much at once and burn out. But Ashley wouldn’t let that happen.

  “Imagine yourself as a faucet. You have this raging river and only you can control how much comes through the pipes.”

  Sarah’s voice shook. “It’s all over the place. A hundred rivers, not just one.” Her forehead wrinkled and Ashley felt Sarah’s palms grow damp.

  “That’s okay,” Ashley soothed. “Focus on one at a time. Pick a little stream, guide it back to the main line.”

  Ashley didn’t know exactly how to do this either, but magic was ninety percent will power. If Sarah willed something to happen and had the magic available, it was possible. The stream wriggled and squirmed as Sarah tried to usher it into place. It slipped from her grasp like a freshly caught fish and she grunted in frustration.

  “I can’t,” she sighed in defeat, her eyes opening, shimmering with tears.

  Ashley gave her what she hoped was a stern look, “Nonsense. You’re the Guardian. This is what you’re meant to do. Believe in yourself and the energy will respect your authority.”

  Sarah frowned and Ashley knew she probably sounded a bit insane to someone that wasn’t as familiar with magic. She’d never exactly taught someone from the ground up before — surely she’d glossed over some of the important bits that she assumed all witches knew. But there was no time for a basic lesson, anymore. They were on a schedule.

  “Okay,” the librarian said, a new resolve sparkling in her blue eyes.

  Ashley nodded and took her hands again, offering her own magic to help Sarah.

  Slowly, she eased and nudged the wayward stream of energy back to its rightful place in the Ley Line. Sarah’s eyes shot open and a huge grin spread across her face.

  “I did it!”

  Ashley nodded, “You did. Now that you know how, this is a priority. Restoring order to the lines will make it easier to control the flow.”

  She let her hands fall from Sarah’s and felt suddenly run-down. She’d used up a lot of her stores to help the new witch and now her magic barely fizzled when she called on it when it should crackle and spark instead.

  Training Sarah was worth using her magic, but she certainly couldn’t face the Coven with empty stores. The stress of their ultimatum, of training an inexperienced Guardian, of being alone… Well, the last one was more her fault, but it still got to her. If she wanted to have any hope of helping Sarah face Sage the next day, she was going to need a boost.

  But there was one more thing before she left the library: Sloan.

  The tiger shifter skulked in the shadows of the bookshelves, his eyes gleaming in the darkness with feline reflectiveness.

  “You keep practicing,” Ashley said, “and you’ll be fine tomorrow.”

  “Tomorrow?” Sarah said, turning with her eyes wide with surprise.

  Ashley nodded and patted her on the shoulder as she walked over to Sloan. “You’ll be fine. I’ll be there, too.”

  Sarah worried her bottom lip, but nodded, trusting Ashley’s word. She had no reason not to. Hopefully everything would go as well as Ashley led her to believe.

  “What’s going on?” Sloan asked as she met him in the stacks out of earshot of his mate.

  Ashley shuffled on her feet — Sloan was harmless enough, but he was still a lethal predator if he wanted to be. And here she was delivering bad news.

  “The Coven wants to meet Sarah. They’re concerned about leaving the Ley Lines in her custody.”

  Sloan’s eyes burned with green fire and his jaw tightened as he shook his head emphatically, “Absolutely not,” he growled.

  If Ashley didn’t know better, she may have been frightened of him in that moment. In the fierce glower he gave her. But Ashley knew that Sloan would never hurt her — for multiple reasons. In honor of Dana’s memory. Because his mate needed a mentor. And he simply wasn’t the type.

  “That would be like sending her straight to the wolves’ den. You know what happens to her if she loses the Ley Lines?”

  Ashley faltered; of course she knew. It wasn’t anger in his eyes after all; it was worry.

  “Yes, I—”

  “There would be nothing left of her. She’d be an empty hollow shell of a person with no light inside of her. I’m not going to let that happen because your Coven is full of control freaks.”

  Ashley puffed out a heavy breath and dragged her hand over her face. He had a point. Of course he did. If it were Ashley’s loved one, she wouldn’t want them facing Sage either.

  “It’s not really a request,” she said more firmly than she meant to.

  Sloan’s expression hardened another degree and his jaw ticced with the force he exerted clenching his teeth.

  She continued, not wanting to give him an opportunity for rebuttal. “Our kind have our own laws just as you do yours,” she said with a tone of finality. Shifter laws had been the end of her friend Dana and Sloan’s eyes darkened at the painful reminder.

  “There’s nothing you can do about this, I’m sorry.”

  His hands clenched and unclenched at his sides and Ashley saw the danger in his eyes — his animal so close to the surface, ready to protect its mate at all costs. She should know it would be impossible to reason with a tiger. He looked like he had more arguments to add, but Ashley just didn’t have the energy to discuss it anymore. She held up a hand to silence the words on his lips.

  “I’ve prepared her the best I can. Do your part to make sure her stores are full and we’ll have to hope for the best.”

  “Hope for the best?” Sloan hissed, looking over Ashley’s shoulder to where Sarah still sat in the armchair, her eyes closed, an aura of shimmering magic surrounding her.

  Even Ashley had to admit she was beautiful.

  She shrugged, “That’s the best I can offer. My magic is on the line here, too, now. I’m not going to let her fail if I can help it.”

  That seemed to satisfy him a hair more and he nodded, dismissing her from the conversation. Finally.

  As Ashley left the library, the sun was beginning its daily descent and she felt her eyelids grow heavier with each step she took towards her car. Once she was driving away and she left the influence of the Ley Lines, she felt emptier than ever. She’d never stand a chance in front of Sage tomorrow if she didn’t have any magic. Neither would Sarah.

  In the back of her mind, she heard her friend Monica telling her she knew what she needed to do. Monica had precisely zero qualms about fucking strangers for magic. Ashley had enough qualms for the both of them. Monica never really seemed to understand why Ashley was so prudish about refilling her stores, but Ashley couldn’t just hook up with a random guy.

  Could she?

  She drove on autopilot, feeling drained and more than a little braindead. Without realizing where she was going, she’d followed the faint neon glow that graced a local seedy bar.

  She parked on the street and took a deep breath to steady herself.

  “Okay, you can do this. It’s for your magic. For Sarah. For the surprised look on Sage’s wrinkled old face.”

  She gripped the steering wheel, staring off down the street. There was no guarantee that she’d even find someone willing to join her for a quick tete a tete. Maybe she’d w
alk in and the whole place would be empty. Or full of women.

  That made her snicker. Monica wouldn’t let that stop her from filling up her magic.

  With a final sigh, Ashley turned off the car and stepped into the damp evening air, “This one’s for you, Mon.”

  Chapter 4

  CALLAN

  The moment the creaky door opened, Callan felt like he was hit by a train. Her scent found him first — sweet and alluring, unmistakable after their earlier encounter. His bear roared to life and Callan found himself clenching his pint glass with enough force to nearly break it.

  How she didn’t turn every head in the bar, Callan would never understand. She was a fucking bombshell: curves for days, honey blonde hair in a bouncy ponytail and green eyes, far too vivid to be real life. He took a deep pull from his beer before she caught him staring.

  She arched an eyebrow at him and he watched as recognition pulled her lips into a little smirk. His heart thundered in his chest and the insistent ursine inside of him begged for release.

  By the time he set his glass back on the coaster, she was heading toward him, a fire evident in those verdant eyes even across a dimly lit smoky dive bar. What the hell was she doing in a dodgy place like this?

  She slid onto the barstool next to him and Callan’s bear nearly burst forth, unable to resist the siren call of this beauty. The beast roared and Callan had to grit his teeth to maintain his tenuous grip on control.

  Play it cool, Fredricks, you got this, he told himself, hardly believing it for a moment.

  “Fancy seeing you here,” she said, her voice warm and sensual — a silk lasso, drawing him in, holding on tight, pinning him in place.

  Callan shoved the baying bear down even further. The furry asshole was going to ruin everything if he couldn’t get a grip.

  “What’ll you have?” The grizzled bartender asked while absently wiping a cloudy glass.

  A low growl rumbled from Callan’s chest. How dare this man talk to her. Look at her.

  Get a grip, he roared inwardly.

  “Long island?” She ordered, toying with a stray hair that had fallen in her eyes. Those crazy green eyes that Callan still couldn’t believe were real.

  He drained the rest of his beer, afraid of what sound might come out if he tried to respond. Electricity arced in the air between them, making everything feel staticky and alive with energy. Surely she felt it too, right? Or was he losing his mind?

  The bartender slid her cocktail towards her and absconded with Callan’s mug to get him a refill. She took a dainty little sip through the straw before making a face and stirring the concoction around a bit.

  Her drink was half gone when she finally spoke again.

  “I’m Ashley,” she said without looking at him.

  His heart thundered in response and Callan had to shove down the sudden lump in his throat before he was able to answer.

  “Callan,” he managed around his heavy tongue. He’d never been so awestruck by a woman before — any woman — but then again, he’d never met a woman quite as… womanly as Ashley.

  That’s the kind of eloquence that’ll sweep her off her feet, he chided himself. The bear clamored for his shot, determined that he’d make less of a mess of this than Callan himself was doing.

  Ashley turned to look at him now, her eyes sparkling with something mischievous. She seemed to see so much more than just what was in front of her. Could she see how he was starting to sweat at the temples or how he nervously shook his foot, hoping to not make a fool of himself?

  “Nice to meet you,” she said.

  “I never got a chance to see if you were alright after… earlier,” he muttered. “I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

  The sound of her laughter was mesmerizing. A soft musical ring that made his heart feel like a rapidly expanding balloon. What was this feeling? He never wanted it to go away.

  “No, I’m fine,” she said, stirring the ice around her glass. Callan noticed the flush in her cheeks now and realized how quickly she downed her drink. “Thank you again,” she said, casting her eyes downward.

  He shrugged. “Don’t mention it. Falling on top of you was maybe the best thing that happened to me today… until you walked through that door, at least.”

  Atta boy, turn on the charm. If he wasn’t trying to maintain his neutral expression, Callan would’ve laughed at that thought. Him? Charming? Not exactly.

  She laughed again and something inside of him melted a little.

  “That’s cute. I’m sure you’re very charming and, given enough time, I have no doubt you’d be able to sweep me off my feet and straight into your bed, but I don’t really have that kind of time…”

  Callan froze, his blood turning to ice as he tried to process her words. Was she rejecting his advances? Or just his method? He decided to take another stab in the dark.

  “Well, I live right around the corner if you want to skip ahead,” his voice sounded low and husky even to his own ears and Ashley’s answering flush spurred him onward. He slid a hand over her knee, every nerve ending in his entire body coming alive with the contact. He was already rock hard and wanting her and that impish grin she gave him was doing nothing to quell those desires.

  Ashley eyed his hand on her knee and Callan stroked the inside of her thigh with the pad of his thumb. Her sly grin melted into a huge smile and she tossed back the last watered-down dregs of her drink.

  “I’m all yours.”

  Those three words had his bear roaring with satisfaction. She didn’t mean it like that though. Not really. But both he and his bear wished she had.

  Chapter 5

  ASHLEY

  She couldn’t believe that had worked. She couldn’t believe any of this was happening. As Ashley and Callan walked hand-in-hand down the quiet streets, her mind reeled with the events of the last few minutes.

  Who was this girl that picked up random men from bars? It certainly wasn’t her. Hell, not just any man, but a man like Callan — rough, burly, sexy man incarnate. Just being near him made her magic fizz to life, expanding, bubbling, rushing through her veins and making her fingers twitch.

  Ashley wasn’t exactly inexperienced. She’d been with a few men before — even a couple for the express purposes of refilling her magic — but none of them had made her feel this way. None of the other men had ever made her magic come alive. No one had ever made her feel so hot, so stifled in her own clothing. She couldn’t wait to strip it all off, run her fingers over Callan’s hot muscled flesh…

  She blushed at that thought and giggled a little as she wobbled. She drank her drink a little too quickly, but she needed the liquid courage to do this. There was no doubt that she wanted Callan — as much if not more than she wanted her magic refilled — but she wasn’t Monica. She didn’t have the sassy confidence and raw sex appeal of her best friend. She couldn’t just waltz into a random bar and pick someone up in five minutes.

  Except that’s exactly what had just happened.

  She’d spent all of five minutes talking to this man before deciding to go back to his home with him. What was she thinking? She didn’t know the first thing about him!

  Well, that wasn’t true. She knew his name. And she knew he worked construction. She knew how his weight felt on top of her and how the gentle brush of his fingertips made her magic surge to life. She knew how he made her feel inside. Maybe that was enough.

  Her magic certainly seemed to think so. It refused to be cowed or resisted. Frankly, Ashley didn’t want to resist the pull of her powers or the draw of Callan. She didn’t fully understand it, but she wanted to embrace it.

  “Here we are,” he said, unlocking the door to the tiny corner house. His voice sounded strained; was he nervous too? Had they both jumped into this too quickly?

  She stepped through the threshold, sandaled feet meeting polished wood floors. Everything was exactly as she’d imagined it: small, rustic, and cozy. Callan was a man of simple pleasures. A television played the news in t
he background, his bed was covered in a pile of faded homemade quilts and wooden carvings of various animals were the only decorations in his minimalistic decor.

  Her eyes found the wood shavings by the window sill and she saw the gleam of a knife in the streetlights that filtered through the blinds, but then his hand was on her hip, pulling her close and she forgot all about her surroundings.

  Callan splayed his hand over Ashley’s lower back, warm and strong, promising to support her if her knees happened to buckle beneath her.

  Their eyes met for a moment and before either of them could voice their worries, he dipped in for a kiss.

  What a kiss it was.

  His lips found hers, warm and firm. Ashley sucked in a breath before she sighed and melted against him. Callan held her in place while his expert lips drew another contented sigh from her lungs and sent lightning straight to her toes.

  She slipped her hands over his chest, around his shoulders until her fingers linked behind his neck, pulling him in deeper as she moaned. His tongue teased the corners of her mouth until she parted for him, granting him entrance with a hunger she’d never felt before.

  Ashley was drowning in him. In the feel of his warm body pressed against her, the rumbling growls coming from his chest, the way his tongue stroked hers expertly. Callan’s lips, tongue and hands worked in concert, moving with a slick friction that made her feel as if she’d combust at any moment.

  And it fed her magic. The energy buzzed beneath her skin like a mass of swarming bees. It searched for him, demanding more, practically begging for it.

  His hands slipped over her ass and Ashley felt his hardness pressed against her through their clothes. She moaned, the TV flickering to snow for a moment as she lost control of her magic. Reining it in became more difficult as Callan’s calloused hands slid under her shirt, caressing her sides before he took one of her breasts into his palm.