Page 49 of Warrior Witch

“I think we need to try a new approach,” Kylen muttered, rubbing his forehead. “Has it occurred to anyone that this could be what we need to do to break the curse? We saw Harlow’s ancestor doppelganger basically vaporize herself when she lost control of her powers. It seems like it might be a good idea to start there with saving her life. Think about it. We all ended up here at the same time. All our powers complement each other. Air, electricity, weather, nature. All of them. It has to be fate.”

“There’s no such thing as fate,” Hendrix muttered.

“Still sticking to that belief even after you found your treasure?” Ranto asked, the challenge clear in his tone.

“Let’s just take a break. I need some air.”

Before anyone else could jump in to argue, I left them to it. It had been days since we had witnessed the death loop, and I still couldn’t talk or think about what had happened. I wasn’t at panic-attack levels of distress anymore, but the reality that I might have witnessed what fate, or whatever, had in store for me was a little too close for comfort.

Despite my claim, I found myself drawn toward my ancestor’s home. Hurrying through the front door to avoid looking at the gardens for fear of seeing the death loop reappear, I took the stairs to the second floor and stalled out in one of the bedrooms. By the silver mirror and glass vials lined up along a vanity table in the corner, I guessed I’d found Levina’s room. A layer of dust coated the contents of the room, and I wondered if they had cast cleaning spells back when there was a family in residence. It seemed like the kind of thing families would have done. Picking up one of the old vials, I caught the faintest whiff of lavender. Perhaps Levina had sleep troubles? I eyed her bed, then, following an impulse I didn’t understand, stripped off the heavy, dusty covers and lay down on the mattress.

Had she known about the curse? I wondered if she had lain in this spot and contemplated her fate like I was now. Or maybe avoidance was a family trait, and she’d ignored the problem. An even worse thought occurred to me. What if she’d thought she could break it, too? Maybe I was destined to go out in a surge of energy regardless of what I did.

“You’re thinking pretty hard in there, Treasure.”

I rolled my head to the side to find Hendrix leaning in the doorway with Ranto right behind him. With a sigh, I sat up and craned my neck to see if anyone else had ignored my need for space.

“Kylen took Lindsay and Addie into the woods to play in the dirt, and Bruin is off somewhere being Bruin. It’s just us.”

“What are you guys doing here?”

His lip ticked up in a small smile as he crossed the room uninvited and sat beside me on the bed. Ranto followed him in and leaned his hip against Levina’s vanity table.

“Can you please take off the Pikachu vest? It’s really hard to take you seriously in it,” I moaned, my hormones confused about whether we were turned on by his sculpted arms while the damn ears bobbed on his hood. He flashed me a wicked grin and reached for the hem.

“If you insist.” He removed the fabric with a flourish, revealing a long, lean torso with defined six pack and divots over his hips that I suddenly wanted to trace with my tongue more than anything.

Whelp, that cleared things up. We were most definitely turned on.

“Keep looking at me like that, mate, and we’re going to need some privacy.”

“Oh, hell no. I’m not going anywhere.” Hendrix shifted closer to me on the bed.

I shot him a smug look, thinking of our conversation and wondering whether he was intent on voyeurism… or joining. A shiver of delight worked its way over my shoulders, and I realized either way I’d enjoy the hell out of the next little while.

Ranto shrugged. “As long as Harlow doesn’t mind, it’s fine with me. As long as you’re okay with sharing.”

I raised my hand as though we were sitting in a classroom.

“I, for one, am very okay with sharing.”

Ranto chuckled but made no move to cross the room. I arched a brow at him, hoping he’d close the distance, but his smile only grew.

“I think we’d better start by getting our mate naked. Wouldn’t you say, gryphon?”

Hendrix hummed low in his throat as he shifted to press his front to my back. His hands squeezed my shoulders, then slid down my arms until he reached the hem of my t-shirt. Running his hands up my sides, he pushed the fabric up and encouraged me to lift my arms while I panted at the sensations his touch evoked in my body. We’d barely started, and I was already so wet I worried I’d leave a stain on the mattress. Sorry great-, great-, whatever grandmother. If she was anything like Melisande, maybe she’d be impressed that the bed was seeing action again after all these years.

I was keeping them both, I decided as my bra was removed and Ranto’s eyes darkened at the sight of my piercings.

“Damn, girl.”

Without an ounce of shame, he reached down and adjusted the impressive tent in his sweats. I licked my lips, tracking the movement as Hendrix reached around and tweaked my nipples.

“Please,” I whimpered, unsure what I wanted, but unwilling to wait for it.

“Pants,” Ranto ordered, his eyes locked on Hendrix’s hand as it slipped down my front to tease the waistband.

Why hadn’t I worn a skirt? Except for the fact I didn’t own one, the easy access would have been super handy right now. Strong hands grasped my hips and encouraged me up off the bed, and rather than waiting for the slow undressing, I decided to take matters into my own hands. In one quick move, I pushed my pants and panties to the floor, bending at the waist to give Hendrix a show. What I hadn’t expected was for him to palm my ass cheeks and lick me from clit to asshole.

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