Page 3 of Moonlit Bonds

I usher her over to the other end of the bar, far enough away from Q and Rico that they can see me but only give me thumbs up and not interfere. I wave a bartender over and growl at another man who gives Sera an assessing glance.

Mine.

You can tell a lot about a woman by her drink order. If she orders a whiskey and coke, she’s ready to listen to anything Ihave to offer; a fruity drink, then she’ll need some warming up, a bit of attention paid to all the right subjects. But a shot, any sort of shot means one thing—she’s ready to get down to business.It’ll be a night with no rules, no commitments, and fun.

“Shot of whiskey for me,” she tells the man behind the counter, and my head perks up.

Things just got interesting. “Make that two.”

Seraphina slides onto one of the stools and takes the shot glass the moment the bartender puts it down in front of her, waiting for me to lift mine. “Cheers.”

With that, I catch a whiff of magic, a brief tickle under my nose. It makes me pause for a second, but the strange gunpowder and lilac scent is gone before I can be sure it was there to begin with.

Strange. But I guess there might be spellcasters here. There are a few witches in town, a local coven that’s harmless but forbidden for our kind to meddle with. Wolves and witches do not mix. It’s one of the cardinal rules of the pack and a cardinal sin if broken.

As long as they don’t mess with me and my wolves, I don’t need to worry about them. Tonight is all about having fun.

I clink my glass to hers. “Cheers.”

She tosses her drink back as I down mine. The liquor burns a straight trail of fire down my throat. Again her nose crinkles, but this time it’s like the whiskey’s a bit too strong.

“Not a whiskey drinker?” I ask.

“I am tonight. I promised my sister we were here to try new things.”

“Interesting. Me too.”

I half expect her to ask for something to mitigate the whiskey, but she powers through and gestures for the bartender to pour another before turning back to me with a smile.

She raises her glass and my expectations in one smooth move. “Here’s to trying new things.”

I can’t agree with her more.

2

SERAPHINA

After Kieran whispers my name like a prayer, I am ready for next-day regrets. He’s grown up so much since high school, but then again, doesn’t everyone? At least he filled out in the best way. His shoulders are broad and muscled beneath his shirt, the angles of his face sharper than they used to be. A thin layer of scruff decorates his lower jaw and those lips—god, those lips.

They’re begging for a kiss.

So are his eyes. The heat in them is unmistakable.

Can I really do this?

The longer he stares at me, the more heat curls in my lower abdomen. Oh, I can so do this. And who knows? There might not be any regrets to have.

One shot leads to three more, and the next thing I know, I’m inviting Kieran Merek, pack alpha and forbidden territory to me and my kind, back to my place and leaving my sister on her own at the bar.

She gives me a serious side-eye when she sees me on Kieran’s arm. Like most witches, she doesn’t approve of witches andshifters breaking the so-called rules, and she, like me, knows just who I’m taking home. This town is too small to not know who he is.

Does he know whoIam?

Tonight, I don’t care. Kieran has certainly matured from that boy I barely knew in high school to this gorgeous man who only has eyes on me tonight. So what if he’s a wolf and is off limits? I’m getting tired of limits. They’re no fun and they only squash you into a box.

Of course, my place is the closest and offers us privacy that the bar can’t. Not to mention, having him back at my apartment means I’ll have the home court advantage. Witch’s prerogative. Kieran will be the one to traverse the walk of shame once the sun rises.

The logic sounds right in my head, anyway.

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