Page 12 of Elora and the Crow

Cece turned around at Jonah’s delighted shout. He’d come out of the kitchen with a ham sandwich in one hand, and Cece shrieked in surprise when he charged toward her and threw his arm around her waist, lifting her and hugging her hard before kissing her forehead.

She squirmed out of his grip and ran across the living room to join Elora behind the altar. She grabbed Elora’s arm. “What the hell? Elora, you’re letting one of your hookups wear my damn pajamas? And how does he know my name?”

“He’s not a hookup,” Elora said.

Cece glanced around the room. “Where’s Lilianna? Why isn’t she trying to pluck out this guy’s eyeballs?”

Elora pointed to Jonah. “He’s Lilianna.”

Cece’s mouth dropped open, and she looked Jonah up and down. “What the fuck?”

“That’s what I said,” Elora said.

Jonah waved at Cece and said, “Hey, girl,” before taking a big bite of his ham sandwich.

He walked over to the large picture window and stared out of it, eating his sandwich in enormous bites and making small sounds of happiness as he chewed. “This,” his voice was muffled, “is a fucking delicious sandwich.”

“Elora,” Cece said, “who is that guy?”

“He’s Lilianna,” Elora said. “I broke the spell. I didn’t think I had because it didn’t work right away. When we went to bed last night, Lilianna was still Lilianna. When we woke up, she was gone, and he was in my bed.”

“How do you know it’s… he could be anyone, Elora. He could have broken into your apartment, murdered Lilianna, and climbed into your bed.” Cece picked up one of the thick candles from the altar and held it like a weapon.

Jonah ate the last bite of his sandwich before walking toward them. Cece raised the candle. “Stay back. And take off my pajamas!”

“Donottake them off,” Elora said when Jonah reached for the shorts.

“Cece, it’s me,” Jonah said in a quiet, placating voice. He inched closer, raising his hands in another ‘I’m harmless’ gesture.’ “I would never hurt you or Elora. You know that.”

“I don’t know you,” Cece spat at him. “Elora, call 9-1-1.”

“A month ago, you had a Tinder date,” Jonah said. “You met him at his place for a ‘hit it and quit it’ situation, only you quit it before you could hit it and came to Elora’s apartment where you got super drunk and then told us the reason you bailed was because the guy called you mommy while you were making out and asked you to pee on him.”

Cece made a strangled sound of surprise as Jonah drifted closer. “You’re an apprentice green witch, you’re addicted to fuzzy peach candy, and two weeks ago, your aunt died in a car accident.”

The cheerful look dropped from his face, and he gently took the candle from Cece’s hand. “I’m sorry about your aunt, sweetheart. I know how much you loved her.”

“Holy fuck,” Cece whispered. “You’re Lilianna.”

“I am,” he said. “It’s nice to finally meet you officially, Cecelia.”

“Nice to meet you, too,” she said faintly before staring at Elora. “He’s Lilianna.”

“He’s Lilianna,” Elora echoed.

CHAPTER5

“Ican skip work and stay with you,” Cece said to Elora.

“No, you can’t. One, you just went back to work yesterday, and two, you can’t afford to take more time off, honey,” Elora said.

Knowing he was the reason Cece was reluctant to leave, Jonah tried to look nonthreatening as he sat on the couch. Truth be told, it hurt a little that Cece didn’t want to leave him alone with Elora, but could he blame her? He might feel like he and Cece were friends, but she didn’t feel the same. Neither did Elora.

His gaze drifted over the little witch as she spoke in low tones to Cece. He was itching to touch her, desperate to feel the softness of her skin under his fingers, but if he did any of that, there was a high probability she’d put a hex or curse on him. And as much as he longed to touch her, he’d had enough of being cursed to last him a fucking lifetime.

He took a deep breath, staring again with delight at his hands, arms… hell, his whole body. His muscles were a bit stiff and sore, and sometimes, when he walked, it felt like he was crossing the deck of a ship in the midst of a storm, but overall, he was surprised by how normal it felt to be back in his human body.

Cece hugged Elora before giving him a half-hearted smile and leaving. Elora leaned against the closed door, studying him silently. Fuck, she was gorgeous. Her dark hair, smooth skin, and slender body were perfect, and he’d give anything to be buried deep inside that perfect body.

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