Page 52 of Witches Be Damned

“You know Aaliyah and Castor?” I asked. “They visited the other day.”

“Sure do.” Steele cracked the lid on another beer. “Castor’s kind of my boss. Wait until you meet Slade, the president. He’s even bigger than me.”

Raze and Steele were six feet eight easily. That put Slade at six feet nine or taller. A damn giant. Poor Aaliyah. No wonder her belly was so huge. She was probably giving birth to giants.

My wolf came to sit beside me, lifting my legs up over his, rubbing them. I moaned a little since they were sore from roaming all the hills of the sanctuary. We didn’t get much cardio practice on inclines in the Guardians.

I brushed his hair from his forehead. “Think you might want to be a biker? That’d be hot.”

“We’d have him as a member.” Steele tossed Raze a cold beer.

“Really?” Raze’s can fizzled, and he licked at the frothy liquid.

“Sure, you can be our prospect,” Steele replied.

I snorted and tickled my mate’s jaw. “Can’t he be the enforcer?”

“We’ve already got one.” Steele surprised me with how chatty he could be. I definitely got the wrong impression of him. “He’s my sister’s mate.”

“What other positions do you have?” My wolf deserved a more senior role.

“Secretary,” Steele teased.

It was Raze’s time to snort. “I’m no good with money.”

True. He used to give all his earnings to his mother and former tribe.

“Sergeant at Arms?” Yeah, I knew my ranks because I read enough MC romance to be familiar with them.

“We could do with a SAA.” Steele tipped up his beer with a smile.

“Now weapons, I can do.” Raze grinned, and we all laughed at him for misinterpreting the rank because of the name. “What?”

“A Sergeant at Arms has multiple roles,” Steele clarified. “Enforcing, logistics and planning, communicating to members, conflict resolution among some.”

“I’m good at those.” Raze sipped at his beer.

Poking fun at each other reminded me of fun times with my harem, where we played cards, told stories, or just hung out, enjoying each other’s company. My chest stung with longing for my three other men, and I wished they were here with us, enjoying the festivities.

Raze really wanted me and my harem to come and live with him on the commune after our release. I could already tell they’d get along with Heather and Steele and fit right in here. Who knew what our future held, though. Maybe we’d all have separate places. Maybe we’d share. Maybe we’d live off planet in one of the gantii worlds. The possibilities were endless, and my chest thrummed with excitement to explore them.

Flames crawled over the wood, blackening it, and I admired the start of our bonfire and new relationships. Cheers to that. Cheers to many more barbecues, parties, and social gatherings. And cheers to my and my men’s freedom to create it.

CHAPTER 18 - ASTRA

Day six of my mini vacay away from the prison, and I could stay here forever. Wrapped in my mate’s arms, snuggled to his chest, enjoying the rise and fall of his breath and his soft rumbles, delighting in every caress and kiss. Oh, and never tiring of the endless lovemaking by the freestanding wood fireplace, getting hot and sweaty, taking a shower to rinse off, and coming back to do it all again. Yeah, this was the life.

But it wasn’t my life, was it? This was a fantasy from one of my books that couldn’t last forever. Any time now, Luna would call on me to arrange a time to take me back to the Guardians. So far, Raze and I avoided the topic, except for one brief conversation where we put the matter to rest until we were ready to tackle it.

While I enjoyed lounging about with my mate, hiking, fishing, painting, and kicking back with a beer with Heather and Steele, some part of me craved more. Magick, adventure, science, danger, even. And three more bad boys that my heart belonged to. I longed for us all to be together, and that wouldn’t happen when Raze and I were idle.

My wolf played with my hand, tracing the lines in it, reading my story like a fortune teller. The motion relaxed me and made me sleepy.

When he finished, he reclined me on the sofa and set my legs over his lap, massaging my thighs, calves, and feet, which were sore from lots of hiking. On the plus side, I was getting fitter than ever, my cardio at its peak.

My wolf kneaded my foot harder to loosen the knot, and I kicked my leg, warning him to go easier. “Is that sore?” He lifted my leg and kissed it.

“Very sore. More kisses.” I swept dark hair from his forehead.

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