Page 47 of Cursed Love
“Eww,” she said, bumping her shoulder into his chest.
Ethan laughed, and she joined him. “There’s your smile. Don’t worry, we’ll figure it out. Even if it means I put a hit on lover boy.”
She gasped. “Don’t you dare!”
Ethan shrugged noncommittally. The idea of Ryan being hurt, by any of her brothers at that, made her chest squeeze and bile rise. It was strange how deeply her affection for him ran.
“Don’t you dare what?” Ryan asked from the door.
Brandy jumped, like a child caught doing something naughty. She slammed the grimoire closed and smiled at Ryan.
“I’ll have you killed if we can’t stop the curse,” Ethan blabbed before she could so much as blink.
Ryan’s brows drew together. “What curse?”
Ethan cocked his head and looked at her, a look of disbelief written all over his face. “Really, Bran?”
She bit her lip, unable to look at Ryan.
“What are you keeping from me?”he asked.
Brandy could not answer him with their telepathy either. She shook her head at Ryan and stared at his chest instead.
“Tell me, sweetheart,”he said.
“What’s going on?” Ethan asked, looking from one to the other.
“They’re probably using their mind-talking shit,” Peter said, stepping to Ryan’s side.
“Hey, Peter. Ethan here is going to have me killed if he and Brandy can’t breakthe curse.” His voice was cold, drawing her attention and finally bringing her eyes to his.
“What curse?” Peter asked as he lazily scratched his belly.
“What mind-talking shit?” Ethan asked.
“Witches who are soul mates can speak telepathically with their mate after cementing the bond,” Peter said, catching Ethan up. “Now, what fucking curse are you two talking about?”
Brandy froze. All the words vanished with the way Ryan watched her. She was afraid of losing him, even after only a few weeks. After reading about what the women in her family had suffered, it scared her more that she was willing to die for her child if she could keep Ryan in her life.
It pissed her off to have her heart tugged toward him without her say, and her logical mind was still reeling from the speed of things. How could this pull be so strong, so fast? Was this the curse or was this from their soul-mate status? She did not know if she could trust herself.
“It seems the women in our families die after giving birth to their seventh child,” Ethan told them.
“Fuck that! Who wants seven kids?” Peter asked.
“Die giving birth?”he asked.
“Y—yes,”she said.
“Can you guys give us a minute please?” Ryan asked, stepping toward her.
When the room cleared, they sat in silence. He linked their hands and drew circles over her skin with his thumb. The silence weighed heavily, forcing her to tell him everything she read, including her mother’s failed attempt at removing the curse. He listened and nodded, deep in his own thoughts.
“I refuse to lose you, Brandy.”
At his words, all the stress became too much, and her tears slipped down her cheeks. She had turned into a blubbering mess this last month, and it seemed it was only becoming worse.
“We’ll figure something out,” he promised and kissed her. “I can live without sex, but I can’t live without you.”
