Page 69 of Which Witch is Willing?
Little Violet bounced off her mom’s arm and fell toward the floor. Tierra gasped and lunged toward her daughter.
But Violet didn’t land hard like Claire had feared.
Instead, little white wings fluttered out from behind her. She giggled as she rose once again to her mother’s height. Tierra, with her face as white as morning mist, snatched her out of the air.
Claire glanced from guest to guest, finding all the women with wide eyes or open mouths.Oh, shit.
“Unnatural,” someone whispered.
“Can’t be good,” said another.
Then the chaos began. The coven witches squawked and pushed in their attempts to leave the parlor and escape before the house came down upon them and the abomination who lived there.
Aerin nearly flew to the door and jerked it open as their guests rushed outside into the fresh air and supposed safety. Claire brought up the rear, following Gwen, who paused just outside the door. “This kind of evil can’t be allowed to exist,” she hissed.
Claire snorted. “If that little baby is anything, she’s an angel.”
Gwen straightened. “Try to hide it all you like, but I saw her steal Justine’s soul. Nothing you can say will convince me otherwise. I shouldn’t need to remind you, but angels don’t steal souls.”
“Fuck off,” Aerin said and promptly closed the door in Gwen’s face.
33
With the last of the guests gone, Claire and Aerin turned toward the parlor just as Moira hurried down the stairs as fast as she could considering she had a full-size basketball in her stomach. “What in the hell just happened? The vibrations I was getting upstairs were muddier than a crawdad’s poop chute.”
Aerin shrugged. “Overall, I think things went rather well. The party ended right on time.”
She strode into the parlor, and Claire and Moira were quick to follow.
Tierra hugged little Violet tightly to her chest as tears streamed down her face. Aunt Justine soothingly patted her back. “It will be okay. They’ll get over it.”
Moira put hands on both her hips. Her ocean-blue tank slid higher up her abdomen until her belly completely poked out, and she glared at her sisters. “From the looks of Tierra, I’d say things didn’t go right at all.”
Aerin lifted a brow and regarded Moira’s exposed tummy. “I know times are tough, but I bet we could shop for maternity clothes somewhere online.”
Moira glanced down at her protruding stomach. “Why? It would be a waste since I’m fixin’ to push this puppy out any day. And stop tryin’ to change the subject. I wanna know what happened.”
“The shower was a big, freakin’ disaster,” Claire said, and Tierra cried harder.
Aunt Justine shot a look of reproach toward them. “You’re not helping.”
Tierra drew a knuckle beneath her eye, wiping away tears. “They hate Violet. They called her an abomination.”
Moira gasped and then looked from Claire to Aerin and back again. “Say it ain’t so.”
Claire sighed. “We had a few issues. A few, slightly problematic issues. It seems Violet has taken after her father and can steal souls.”
“Took Aunt Justine’s right in the middle of the party,” Aerin added.
Moira’s eyes grew wide, even as a smirk creased one side of her mouth. “You don’t say.”
Aunt Justine chided them with a grunt. “She didn’t really. That was a joke.”
Claire snorted and shook her head. “It was no joke. She had you swirling around the ceiling.”
Aerin nodded to confirm. “You don’t remember any of it?”
Aunt Justine put a hand to her throat. “I…I… Oh, my stars. I do remember feeling lightheaded and like the room was spinning, but the same thing happens when I stand up too fast.”
