The Witch and the Wolf - Complete Read online

  “I don’t know,” Ursula said slowly. “It’s true that we’re stronger as six sisters, but you and Jamie are powerful enough to make up for one missing sister.”

  Magda turned on Ursula. “So you agree with the wolves?”

  “I guess so, if that’s how you want to put it,” Ursula said, standing up straighter. “I would say I agree with your daughter and am willing to help her do what she wishes.”

  “My daughter is young,” Magda spat. “She doesn’t know what she’s saying. It’s our job as elder coven members to guide her in the right direction.”

  “Are you kidding me?” Rory said, mouth open. “I’m far from a child, Mom. I’m making a pretty adult decision right now and I would like your support. Again, I’m asking for your help, but I’m not asking you for permission. I’m going no matter what.”

  Magda pursed her lips. She didn’t say anything, so Rory knew her mother was out of logical arguments. She looked at Jamie, Sara, and Deanne. None of them said anything either.

  “Well, I’m glad that’s settled,” Rory said with a sad smile. “Any spell suggestions?”

  The witches conversed for twenty minutes while the wolves waited. They came up with a plan for alternating covering spells that would culminate with their strongest cast when Rory and Cross reached their destination. They would also cast a spell that would make it look like Rory was still in Cleary. Since it was obvious the coven was in danger, it wouldn’t be hard to say that Rory was at home waiting for things to get better.

  While she was gone, the coven would stay at Jamie’s and Sara’s homes. Sara had small children and couldn’t be away from home for days at a time. She would arrange for her three kids to stay with their grandparents until things were safer at home. The coven and the Moon Brothers would work together to figure out exactly which vampire had targeted Rory and would neutralize the threat. Once all that had been taken care of, Cross and Rory would come home.

  “Okay,” Jamie said. She had finished explaining everything to Grizzly. “Rory needs to go home and grab clothes and then they can leave.”

  “That’s great,” Grizzly said. “We’ll trail them home.”

  “Perfect,” Jamie said. The Moon Brothers left the house. She turned to Rory and hugged her hard. “You be careful, little witch. Don’t overestimate your powers. If you think you’re being followed or have any feeling of unease, you turn right around immediately.”

  “I will,” Rory promised. She said goodbye to Ursula, Sara, and Deanne and then followed Magda to the car. Her mother was unusually quiet the entire ride home. Rory didn’t know what to say.

  Once she was home, she packed as quickly as she could. She didn’t pack much since she would have to carry it all in a backpack. Magda was waiting by the front door. Rory approached slowly.

  “I don’t want to leave with you mad at me,” she told her mom.

  “I’m not mad,” Magda said with a sigh. “I don’t want anything to happen to you. You’ll understand when you have a daughter. It’s my job to protect you and right now I feel like I’m not doing my job.”

  “You’ve done a great job!” Rory said, throwing her arms around her mother. “I’m still alive, aren’t I? And I’m going to stay safe, thanks to the spell you and the sisters cast.”

  “Goddess willing,” Magda said. They went outside to the waiting bikers. There was a truck parked outside now too. The fallen Sun Riders’ bikes were on the back.

  “I should also say that I object to you getting on a motorcycle with a boy I barely know,” Magda said. “Though I guess it’s a little late for that argument.”

  “Ma’am, if I had a daughter, I would put her on the back of Cross’ bike,” Charlie said. “I’m not blowing smoke up the kid’s ass. He’s a good rider and an even better fighter. We didn’t pick him willy-nilly or just because he’s the alpha’s son. Your daughter is in good hands.”

  Cross smirked at the last line. Rory’s stomach flip-flopped. She really was doing this to keep her coven safe. However, the fact that Cross was the one taking her had heavily influenced her decision. Fighting next to him, she had felt a peace in her casting. Having him close made her magic stronger and more stable. Even if they ran into trouble, she knew they would be able to handle it. Maybe she was being cocky, but even if a vampire showed up, she thought she would be able to stop it.

  Still, she hoped Cross didn’t think this trip was an invitation to get in her pants. She wasn’t going to have any of that. Not that she was ruling something romantic out in the future, just not at the present second.

  “That doesn’t put my mind at ease, but thank you,” Magda told Charlie. She hugged Rory one last time. “I love you, Aurora.”

  “I love you too, Mom.” Rory’s eyes swam with tears, but she blinked them away. She didn’t want to worry her mother. She turned to Cross. “So, we headed for the compound first?”

  “Nope.” Cross gestured to the truck behind him. “Pete brought me some stuff. We’re heading straight out.”

  He got on his bike and started the engine.

  “Okay, then,” Rory said, and stared.

  Cross looked at her over his shoulder. “Hop on. Ozzy will hand you your helmet once you’re on.”

  Rory nodded, but didn’t move.

  “Honey, you ride a moped, right?” Grizzly asked.

  “Yeah,” Rory said.

  “Getting on a bike is the same as getting on your moped,” he told her. “Only difference is you gotta swing your leg a little higher.”

  She swallowed and nodded. She had never been on a motorcycle before, but she hadn’t expected to be this intimidated. She came to the side of Cross’ Harley and stood for a second.

  “Just put your hand on his shoulder and hoist yourself up if you need to,” Grizzly instructed.

  Cross was smiling his irritatingly smug smile. It irritated Rory in that moment. How was she supposed to know how to get on a motorcycle? It wasn’t a natural action. She put her hand on his shoulder and put her foot on the spoke. She lifted her body up and over to get onto the bike behind Cross. It was a snug fit. She wished she had listened to her friends and let her mom buy her a car.

  Her thighs were wrapped snuggly around Cross and she put her arms around his waist. She felt pretty secure, but it was going to be a long trip in this position.

  “How long is this going to take?” she asked. She had never even asked the location of the safe house. What if it was more than four days’ ride away?

  “It depends on how often we stop,” Cross told her. “I’m used to riding for long stretches, but I’m guessing you’re going to want to take a break every few hours. And you girls always need to take a lot of bathroom breaks.”

  “I guess I could always piss on you and your bike, if you would prefer to not waste time on bathroom breaks.”

  Cross smiled at her over his shoulder. “I don’t have any problem stopping for you. And you’re going to need to scoot closer. Your mom will kill me if I let you slide off my bike.”

  He reached back, grasped Rory under the knees and pulled her closer to his body. She could feel the heat radiating off his back.

  “We’ll stop at a motel after we’ve reached the next state tonight. We’ll stop again the next night and then we should be at the cabin by the afternoon on the third day,” Cross said.

  “Two days isn’t so bad,” Rory said.

  “Not at all. Now, when we start moving, you can lean forward against me if you need to,” Cross said. “And it’ll help if you lean into any turns with me too.”

  “Alright, I’ll try to remember,” Rory said. Ozzy handed her a helmet and gave her nod of encouragement.

  Cross waved to his dad and brothers and took off. Rory tightened her grip around his waist. It felt like they were going at least 100 miles an hour but she knew they were barely at 30 mph yet. She fought down the fear in her stomach. It was just like riding a moped, she repeated over and over.

  ***

  She was more afraid than he h
ad expected. A moped wasn’t the same as a bike. Not even fucking close, but she should be used to riding in the open air. They had been riding for almost two hours and she was still clinging to him like she was about to fall off any second. He appreciated having her close, but he didn’t want her to be scared. He would try to think of a way to make her more comfortable when they stopped for the night. He couldn’t handle her being this afraid for another day.

  The smell of her fear drove him crazy. His wolf was on high alert and ready to pounce at whatever the threat was. Problem was, there was nothing to fight except for her own head. There was no reason to be scared. Charlie hadn’t been lying when he said Cross was the best rider in the pack. Rory couldn’t have been on the back of a better bike unless she was riding with his dad.

  He was still surprised she had agreed so suddenly. In the span of four hours, he had gone from working to get a date to her willingly riding off into the night with him. He was more than prepared to take full advantage of this little side trip. She might be riding off to keep her family safe, but he had more in mind. There was no way he was going home from this trip without getting between that witch’s legs at least one time. After all, wasn’t the Chinese word for disaster the same as opportunity?

  They were in danger no matter what. There was no way to get away from that fact. And he was going to do everything in his power to keep her safe. But what about after the threat had passed? He needed to secure his spot in her life. Riding with her this close, he was positive she was supposed to be the one bearing his pups one day.

  Once he had slept with her, she would keep coming back for more. He wasn’t being cocky; that was just what history told him. Since he had started sleeping with pretty girls, they always got attached afterward. And he really wanted Rory attached to him.

  He didn’t know why his dad had sent him off with Rory instead of Grimace or Charlie, but he wasn’t going to worry about that. This was his chance. He had as long as it would take the brothers and the coven to take care of this little vampire/Sun Rider problem. That would be more than enough time. Hell, he could probably get her to drop her panties before they even got to the cabin if he played his cards right.

  They crossed the border into Nevada, and Cross started looking for a motel. Night one of his challenge was about to begin.

  Eight

  “This is where we’re gonna stop tonight,” Cross told her. She had had her eyes shut tightly the entire time they had been driving. She hadn’t even realized the bike had stopped. She hoped he couldn’t tell how afraid she was. She didn’t know how she was going to get through another day and a half of riding and the ride back home. It would be very embarrassing, but she was seriously considering asking her mom to come and pick her up in the car when this whole thing was over.

  They were parked outside of a dingy-looking motel. Of course, what other kind was there? It also appeared they were the only people staying for the night.

  “I’m going to go check us in,” Cross said. “Do you want to come with me or wait here?”

  “I’ll wait here!” Rory said quickly.

  “Fine. You’re gonna need to get off first.”

  “Duh,” Rory said, and laughed. She knew that. She was just really enjoying the feeling of not moving. She climbed off and Cross set up his bike’s kickstand and headed for the office.

  She knew why mothers never wanted to let their kids ride on motorcycles. It felt so much more dangerous than her moped. She was riding a tricycle in comparison to this monster. Her legs were already beginning to ache too. She was going to have to stretch for at least twenty minutes tonight.

  “We’re in room 24. I’m going to move the bike closer to the room, but you can just walk over and wait,” Cross said when he got back.

  “How much do I owe you and what room am I in?” Rory asked.

  “We’re both in room 24. I’m not leaving you alone in a room out here in the middle of nowhere. Too big a risk. There are two beds, though. Don’t worry,” Cross reassured her. “And you don’t owe me anything.”

  Cross turned on his bike and drove toward the room before she could argue. It made sense for them to stay in one room, but he should have asked her first. It was only for a few hours. He could pay for everything on the trip if he wanted. She would give his father money once they got home. There was no way he was going to pay her way.

  She walked to the room. It wasn’t bad on the inside. The beds looked clean and they got free cable and wi-fi. She texted her mom to let her know they had stopped for the night and to say goodnight. Magda texted her back right away. She must be worried sick. Rory hoped they got the vampire issue sorted out quickly. She couldn’t think of a single reason they were after her, though.

  She wasn’t even close to the most powerful witch in the coven. She had no special skill that set her apart from the crowd. She had only just been made a member of the coven. It made no sense. There was also the little issue of Elena’s murder to work out. She didn’t know what was happening in her little town.

  They had never had this kind of problem in her lifetime. Once the old werewolf pack had been taken care of, Cleary was a peaceful place. The town didn’t know it, but they had the peaceful presence of the coven to thank for all their good luck. That was rapidly changing.

  “You’re quiet,” Cross said, breaking her melancholy thoughts. “Something on your mind?”

  “Not really,” she lied. She turned to look at him and ducked her head quickly. While she was lost in her head, he had taken off his shirt. His body was ridiculous. He had the same olive complexion as his father, giving him the most gorgeous golden skin. He had a light spattering of black hair across his chest and every inch of him was covered in muscle. Rory had never seen a body like his in person before. She thought that kind of body only came with a subscription to Photoshop or weeks of not eating and cutting carbs. He even had those v-lines that pointed to his happy spot!

  From the little she knew about wolves, he probably didn’t work out at all to maintain that body. He had won the genetic lottery. Thanks to his father’s alpha genes, he was bigger and stronger than most wolves even in human form. It was hard not to look at him. She knew it wasn’t the time or place, but, Goddess, if the internet got hold of a picture of him, Cross would be turning down millions of indecent proposals.

  Because that’s what his body screamed. Sex! Dirty, rough, hair-pulling, screaming-his-name-all-night sex. And he probably knew it too. Damn. It was a wonder he wasn’t more of a cocky bastard. She bet if he would lower those jeans, he would be very well-endowed too. That wasn’t even a bet worth making.

  If he had just taken off his shirt, he could have saved himself a few hundred dollars at the diner. The other waitresses were already telling her what an idiot she was for turning down him down. If they had seen him without a shirt, they would have tied her up and drove her to the restaurant themselves.

  And now she was thinking about Cross tying her up. Doing whatever he wanted with those manly hands and dirty mouth. She shook her head hard. She had to get a grip! This was fear-induced lust. She was far from home and her life was in danger. Of course she would be thinking about comfort sex at a time like this. It didn’t hurt that Cross was an Adonis, but she would be thinking sexy thoughts even if it was Richard Simmons taking her to safety.

  “I’m going to shower first, if you don’t mind,” Cross said.

  “Nope, that’s fine by me,” Rory said with an easy smile. She was going to have to play it cool for the rest of the trip. If that smug wolf had the slightest idea how bad she wanted to jump his bones, he would never let her hear the end of it.

  ***

  Cross smiled to himself as he rinsed off. This was going to be even easier than he thought. All he had to do was take off his shirt and she oozed lust. The smell was driving him wild. He would have stayed in the room tempting her longer, but his dick was getting uncomfortably hard in his pants. He didn’t want her to see just how much she was affecting him yet.
>
  He was going to make her come to him. She knew that he wanted to go out with her already. That would have eventually gotten him somewhere, but he had to speed things up now. The best way to do that was to go completely cold. He had to friend-zone himself, basically. He was going to rely on his good looks alone, and charm. And those were two things he had in spades. There was no way she was going to be able to resist him. She was already starting to think of him as her protector. That was going to get him very far.

  Now if only he could get her to like riding on his bike. He still couldn’t think of a way to relax her while they rode. Hopefully, she would start to get used to it over the next day. Maybe the daylight would help her be less afraid. If not, he would just deal with her pressing her trembling body against him for the entire trip. Which wasn’t a bad thing at all.

  He dried himself off mostly and put on a pair of sweatpants and nothing else. The outline of his cock was clearly visible through the pants. These were actually his favorite pajama pants, but the outline was a great added bonus tonight. He stepped back into the main room rubbing a towel through his hair.

  “You can use the shower if you want now,” he told Rory. “I don’t think it even needs any time to warm back up.”

  “Thanks,” she said and ducked into the bathroom. She was very careful not to let her body touch his as she went past him. It was painfully obvious because she had to contort herself to make her body as small as possible. Cross laughed to himself once she had shut the door. He could hear her heart pounding even with the door closed and the water on. She didn’t stand a chance.

  ***

  Rory turned the water to as cold as she could stand, but it was no use. The dull ache between her legs wasn’t going anywhere. She turned on more hot water and waited for the water temperature to normalize. She could not believe her body. She was in a crisis situation, life or death, and all it wanted to do was get railed by the werewolf.