Page 39 of The Witch & the Hound
"You did more than that. You stayed calm. You talked to Ethan like he mattered. You let Sarah hug you even though you looked terrified."
"I was terrified," he admitted. "I've never been hugged by that many people at once."
"Welcome to gratitude. It's very physical."
He smiled, small but real. "I noticed."
I pulled my knees up, balancing my pizza plate on them. "Can I ask you something?"
"Always."
"When Ethan asked for help, did you hesitate?"
He set his pizza down, considering. "No. A child was missing. There was no question."
"But you could've said no. Let the deputies handle it. Stayed out of it."
"I could have," he agreed. "But then I wouldn't be able to live with myself." He looked at me. "Is that what you're asking? Whether I helped because I wanted to or because I felt obligated?"
"I guess I'm asking why you helped."
He was quiet for a moment, tail making a slow curl. "When I first came through, after the Convergence, I was lost. Literally and figuratively. I didn't know where I was, didn't understand your world, couldn't read your language or your customs. Everything was strange and frightening, and I had no idea how to survive."
I waited, giving him space to continue.
"A woman found me," he said. "Human. She worked at an integration center, helping creatures like me figure out how to exist in this world. She didn't have to help. I wasn't her problem. But she did anyway. Got me registered, found me temporary housing, taught me enough English to get by. She's the reason I'm here. The reason I work at the SuperMart."
"What was her name?"
"Patricia Mohan. She died six months after I met her. Heart attack. Sudden." His voice went rough. "I never got to thank herproperly. Never got to show her that her help mattered, that I'd survived, that I'd found something like a life."
My throat tightened.
"So when Ethan asked for help," Bram continued, "when his mother looked at me like I was her last hope, there was no question. Because someone helped me when they didn't have to. And that's the only thing that matters. Helping. When you can. However you can."
I set my pizza plate aside, no longer hungry. "You're a good man, Bram."
He looked uncomfortable with the compliment. "I'm just—"
"You're a good man," I repeated firmly. "Accept the compliment."
I took his plate out of his hand and climbed onto his lap, straddling him.
His mouth quirked. "Yes, ma'am."
Looking at Bram, tall and slim, it was easy to forget how big he was. My knees on either side of his thighs reminded my muscles. I looped my arms around his neck and kissed him.
His hands came to my hips, cool, sure, possessive. He pulled me closer in one smooth motion, letting me feel the shape of him beneath me. Hard. Ready. Mine.
I kissed him first, slow, coaxing, and he let me have the lead for a moment. Let me taste him. Let me press him back into the cushions. But it didn’t last.
He caught my mouth in a deeper kiss, one that made my whole body arch toward him. His hand splayed across my lower back, holding me there, holding mestill, while his tongue swept across mine.
“Fuck,” he breathed against my mouth. “You’re going to ruin me.”
“You said that last time,” I whispered. “I think you liked it.”
“I did.” His grip on my hips tightened, rocking me into him, slow and deliberate. “I still do.”
