Page 40 of Fated

Turns out I needed some normalcy too. Anna’s smile is truly happy and I love it.

Some guy with short black hair comes up to me but I quickly shut him down. He moves over to Anna who rolls her eyes.

“I’m not interested in being a second choice,” she tells him.

This is when he shows his asshole nature. Apparently, being shot down once was okay, but twice was too much. He latches on to Anna, grinding himself into her.

“It’s okay, I know you want me,” he says.

I know the guys see what’s happening, Jeremy is on his way to deal with this guy. Anna handles it first.

She flips the guy over her shoulder, making him land on the ground, hard. He’s wheezing and holding his stomach.

It was bad ass and I love that she defended herself, but that was a feat of insane strength. People are staring at us, and we are drawing a crowd.

The guys quickly wrangle us up, and we head out the door. People part for us like we’re diseased.

Once we are out of ear shot of anyone, Nic starts ranting, “Anna that was reckless! You can’t use your strength like that in public! We have to stay under the radar.”

“Nic,” I start, but he just keeps going.

“Have we not made it clear? We have to stay hidden! We are in hiding!”

“Man, you’re overreacting,” Kiran tries but Nicoli isn’t listening.

“Nic!” I shout and finally he stops and looks at me. “She was scared. A guy was pushing himself on her, it was a reaction. One you would appreciate if it was me and some random guy.”

That shuts Nicoli up real quick. He knows I’m right and I can feel his guilt through the bond.

He turns to Anna and surprises even me by giving her a hug. “I’m sorry Anna. This is on that guy, he deserved worse. I’m sorry none of us were there for you.”

Anna looks shocked. I know she’s feeling guilty for using her strength so publicly, I’m guessing she thinks she deserves it.

“Thanks Nic. I really am sorry, it was instinct.”

Grabbing her hand, I squeeze it before pulling us along. I want to get back to the house.

“It was dark in there, I doubt anyone got a good look at our features,” Jay says.

“I agree,” Jax adds.

I’m not one hundred percent sure I agree with that but if it helps us feel better, I’m okay with saying it.

“I cast a confusion spell on the bar, it should stop anyone from remembering too well,” Nic says.

Oh good. I tap into our bond and see his magic is somewhat low.

Still keeping hold of Anna, I reach over and grab Nic’s hand too. I send some energy down the bond just to help even him out.

He gives me a small smile but I know he’s beating himself up over how he went at Anna.

We get back to the house and everyone stands around awkwardly. It’s a little early for bed and I don’t think anyone wants to end on this note.

“We should watch Big House! I never got to finish the season,” I say, looking at Anna.

“PJs and pizza?” She asks hopefully.

I immediately agree. “Of course, I’ll order pepperoni and ham right away.”

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