Page 27 of Blood Witch

I squinted at them, all sizing me up. So gross. They were actually ogling me, and I had to wonder if they were drunk or stoned.

Did wizards get stoned?

Anyway, they were creeping me out, but Dram just lifted his hands as if in surrender.

“There’s something different about you tonight, Marlow,” he said, shaking his head as if to clear it.

“Dram? The fuck, bro! You’re supposed to insult her,” one of his cronies, a short brunette with acne whose name I did not know, whispered loudly.

“Nah, man. We’re not going to bother her, man. Not Mabe. Not tonight. You have a good one, pretty witch,” Dram said.

He winked and nodded solemnly, like he meant every strange word he’d uttered. He left soon after, his buddies following behind, and I stood there, frozen solid.

Did that really happen?

I was hella confused and looking at my drink curiously.

Maybe we’d all been drugged?

Hmm. That was a possibility. Not an easy one, mind you, but it was possible. I put my cup down on a tree stump loaded with them and frowned harder.

Maybe I should find my friends and ask them how they felt?

Tingles danced up my spine, and I looked around, but I did not see anyone in my direct vicinity. There were people milling about. Couples dancing, canoodling, and making out too.

Every time I felt someone’s eyes on me, I’d give them a warning glance, and sent them running.

Fuck.

Where did all my peeps go?

Being surrounded by people and feeling alone was the worst feeling ever. But I couldn’t blame my roommates for having lives. They had places they belonged, Covens they were a part of, and people who belonged to them. Me and Enid were the odd ones out, but even she made friends easily.

Something was off. My stomach tightened, and I closed my eyes, wishing the hunger would just go away. I felt strange, weird even. The whole night was just plain weird.

“You look hot as hell tonight, feisty, sexy Mabel,” a husky deep voice said from right behind me, and my heart stopped.

“Fin!” I exclaimed, turning around, and launching into his arms.

He caught me easily, as I knew he would, and I crashed my lips to his. Later, I would be embarrassed by my reaction. I mean, it was a bit much, but I felt strangely uninhibited. His eyes glowed like silver moonlight, and I sighed into our kiss.

Fin growled, a deep, gritty, sexy sound as we kissed and he spun me around, moving us behind a stand of trees. Thank the Goddess, he had some restraint and common sense. I was about three seconds from taking all my damn clothes off and jumping the man!

Shit.

This was not me. I didn’t do things like this.

What the heck is wrong with me?

“Stop,” I said, breaking our kiss and pushing against his chest.

“Mabe? Is everything okay?” he asked, releasing me as soon as I asked.

I folded my arms over my chest, sucking in great gulps of air as I paced in front of him. For a moment, I worried he would be mad, call me a tease, and storm away. But I should have known better.

“I don’t know. It’s strange, I mean, I don’t mean to sound conceited, and yes, I know I dressed up, but ever since I got here, it’s like everyone has been staring at me,” I said, half embarrassed and half curious.

“You really look super fucking hot,” he grunted, and the way his silver gaze raked over me from head to toe left shivers in their wake. “But you’re saying this is unusual for you to get this kind of attention?” he asked, and I could tell he was trying to focus.

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