Page 54 of Perfectly Charmed Pixie

“For now, you’ll just have to trust me until you can trust yourself. Now, ease down, Parsnip. You’re scaring Byx.”

I sucked in a gasp, my head flying in the direction of the hall. Byx stood there, brown eyes blown wide, fingers entwined in her shirt, twisting it this way and that. Her eyes shimmered, a reflection of my own tears.

“Oh, I-I’m so sorry. I…” Every ounce of fight fled my body like water from a stream. I slumped, Vander’s hold the only thing keeping me from falling to the floor.

“We’re okay,” Vander reassured Byx. “I’ve got him.”

“You sure, Van?”

“I’m sure. Thanks for checking. Let me get him settled, and I’ll be down. I’ve got a couple of phone calls to make before I head into the shop.”

Byx nodded. “It’s pretty quiet right now. If anyone asks, I’ll take a message and let them know you’ll get back to them.”

“Thanks again.”

Within one blink and the next, Byx was gone.

Uncontrollable tears fell, dripping one by one onto the old linoleum floor.

“Turn around,” Vander ordered.

I thought about refusing but did as told, keeping my head down. Vander wasn’t having it and placed his fingers under my chin, raising it. I couldn’t even begin to imagine what I looked like. Vander’s charm wouldn’t cover up my red, swollen eyes or the snot dripping from my nose.

“Wrap your arms around me.” Another order I couldn’t disregard.

Vander lifted me, hands cradling my ass as he carried me back to his bedroom. The mattress dipped below me as I settled on my side. Blankets covered me again.

Vander didn’t crawl into bed with me. He sat on the edge instead.

“Do you have your phone with you? Maybe in your car?” Vander’s fingers carded through my hair, pushing it out of the way and behind my ear.

I nodded against the pillow. “In the car. I think.” I couldn’t truly remember whether I’d brought it with me. “Keys are in the car too.”

“Okay. I’ll go out and see. I need to call Divia. She’s probably worried about you, and since you’ll be staying here a bit longer, I want to let her know. I assume her number’s in your contacts?”

“It is.”

“Good. I’ll need your passcode to get into your phone.”

I rattled the four numbers off without a second thought.

Vander leaned down, pressing his lips to my forehead. He pulled back enough that I could stare into his eyes as he said, “Listen to me and listen well, Parsnip. What I said last night still stands. You’re safe here. That means all your past, current, and future deeds as well. If you’re looking for someone else to hate you for what you did, then you’re out of luck. I get the feeling you hate yourself enough to make up for the rest of us. We’ll be discussing that later, but for now, get some sleep. Everything’s going to be fine. I’ll make certain.”

Vander leaned in and gave me another kiss. This time, I tilted my head enough that our lips met. It wasn’t the deep, searingly passionate kiss I dreamed of, but it was full of something I needed more—reassurance, care, and the promise that everything Vander Kines said was absolute fact. My brain might not have been certain where we were going last night, but my heart had known enough to lead the way.

ChapterTwenty-One

Vander

I was so pissed I was surprised steam wasn’t rolling out of my ears. Magic crackled around me, responding to my silent fury. Byx wisely kept her distance. The air sparking around me would affect her too, and I was glad she was smart enough to realize my lack of control.

“That bad?” Byx asked while leaning against the doorframe separating the front store from the office in the back.

“Worse. I need to see if Parsnip left his phone in his car.” I paced back and forth, trying to find a measure of calm.

“Let me do it. The way you are now, if you go near that car, it’ll fry all the electronics. I doubt Parsnip’s rental car company will be happy about that.”

I should have protested, but Byx was right, and I nodded. She held out her hand and asked, “Keys?”

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