Page 51 of Bait N' Witch

“How many?”

“Unclear. Around ten.”

Boiling cauldrons and pickled pig’s feet. Too many to handle alone.

“Is there anything else I should know?”

“Call upon those you need when the time is right.” With a leap that barely moved her arm, so light was the bird of prey, the gyrfalcon took to the skies, diving back over the cliff from which she’d come.

Now what did she mean by that last comment?

Long after the bird departed, she stared, unseeing, after it. What should she do?

Her first instinct screamed run. With wolf shifters on the warpath, her presence put Grey and the girls in danger. Given the power even a shifter could wield over her, the wolves could force her to hurt them.

She shouldn’t stay. However, stay or not, her scent led the wolves directly to Grey’s house, which meant they remained in peril even if she escaped.

Leaving them, leaving Grey—her heart ached at the prospect, like a thousand pinpricks all at once, leaving her bleeding inside. How had he become important to her in such a short time? No sense lay in the emotions with which she associated him.

She’d call Delilah, call upon the protection the woman, whatever she was, could provide Grey and the girls, not to mention she could bring in Tala and Marrok and their newly combined clan.

Her little family needed protection now.

After that, before the wolf shifters could pounce, Rowan would disappear.

Chapter Nineteen

At a tentative knock, Grey glanced up from his email to find Rowan standing in the doorway.

“I wanted to let you know I was home.”

He leaned back in his chair, taking a moment to absorb how nice the word “home” sounded on her lips, taking in her appearance. She’d already kicked off her shoes. The woman seemed to have something against them. Her adorable toes scrunched into the thin carpet covering the hardwood of his office, like they protested his glance.

He lifted his gaze, trying not to also stare at that stubborn chin, or freckles, or lips that he wanted pressed against his. “Did you enjoy your day?”

“Yes.” Her expression gave away little, but the slight tightening to her lips told him she’d rather not talk about it.

Curious, he let it go, nonetheless. “Good. Have you had dinner?”

Only a slight hesitation. “No.”

“I make a mean spaghetti. Would you like to join me?”

A longer hesitation this time. What was with her all of a sudden? Had dealing with Castor, and the physical toll that took, scared her, made her rethink working for him? His job did have the potential to bring danger, but he’d warded the house against outside threats. The thought of her leaving was as sharply unpleasant as a punch in the nose, making it hard to see straight through the sting.

The same sting her fear of him in the woods had brought. Only that had been worse. The fear in her eyes, the certainty that he’d cause her any harm. But how could he harm someone who’d become as important to him as she had? The girls trusted her, had come to rely on her. So had he. He couldn’t do this without her. What’s more, he didn’t want to. When had that happened?

“That would be nice. Thank you.”

Still recovering from his over-the-top reaction, Greyson glanced at his watch, more as a stalling tactic to gather his wits. He knew the time, as the day had moved in frustrating slowness. This had nothing to do with the witch before him, of course, just irritation with the lack of movement on his case and the strange quiet of an empty house. “Give me about an hour?”

“Do you need any help?”

He shook his head. “It’s your day off.”

A genuine smile lit her eyes. “So it is. I’ll see you in an hour, then.”

A few hours later, Grey poured the last of the wine into both their glasses and led Rowan to the couch in the family room. She walked through the corner of the room beside the fireplace and shivered.

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