Page 64 of Prodigal Son

Her moans gathered and collided as her body tightened. Quick pulses clenched his cock and his seed rushed free, filling her. It was uncensored ecstasy and exactly what he needed. Exactly what they needed. So why did he want more?

His weight sank into her, his head resting on the pillow as he let the moment live a while longer, reveling in each little aftershock that tremored through his bones.

“We forgot a condom.”

He scowled as reality intruded once more. And in such a ridiculous worry. He practically laughed. As if God would ever bless him with children.

CHAPTER 20

“Don’t you walk away from me. I want to talk about this.”

Juniper dodged her aunt’s persistent questioning and went into the bathroom. She didn’t have to pee, but she’d pretended just to escape this ceaseless inquisition. Shutting the door, she sat on the toilet, rubbing her temples.

“Juniper, you can’t just bury your head in the sand like an ostrich and hope this goes away. It’s a required class. Failing means summer school. Is that what you want?”

Frustrated that her aunt assumed she hadn’t already considered how shitty it would be to bake in an air-condition-less building all summer while relearning algebra, which she hated, she flushed the toilet and turned on the sink.

“I don’t see you putting any effort into this. If you need a tutor, we can get you one, but you have to take some accountability and tell me what you need.”

She needed a moment to think. The quiz Aunt Bel was bitching about felt like something she’d taken a lifetime ago. Since then, she’d been silently dumped by her boyfriend, possessed by the spirit, cornered by some Amish blood drinking freak, and possibly broken her teacher’s arm. She couldn’t give two shits about algebra and solving for X when so much other crap was going on.

After brushing her teeth, she spit into the sink and rinsed her mouth. Mabel was scowling on the other side of the door when she exited the bathroom. Juniper walked past her to get to her bedroom.

“Juniper, I want answers.” She followed.

“What do you want me to say? Algebra sucks. My teacher’s a dick. I’m never going to use that sort of math in real life, so what difference does it make?”

“What about college? You can’t have an F on your transcript, June.”

She rubbed her temples, ready to burst into tears or hit something. Overwhelmed, she dropped to the bed and shook her head.

“Hey.” Aunt Bel sat beside her and rubbed her back. “What’s going on with you? You know you can talk to me about anything.”

Not this. She’d been raised by her aunts, right here in their apartment above the store, celebrating sabbats and learning about herbs. While her friends read tabloids, Juniper’s aunts insisted she read the stars. They said witchcraft was in her blood, a birthright that couldn’t be ignored. But as far as magick went, it was all bullshit.

However, it was also their faith and she didn’t want to disrespect their belief system, but she was sick of living on the frays of society. They were always the weird ones at school functions. Sometimes classmates would come into town and visit the store then whisper and gawk at her at school the next day. She just wanted to fit in.

“I don’t want to run the store after graduation,” she blurted.

Aunt Bel didn’t have time to curb her shock which quickly transformed into hurt. “Oh. Well, we can talk about that.”

“I’m sorry. But if I’m really going to college, I want to go for something I can use. I don’t want to take astrology or theology, mysticism, or anything else having to do with the store. I want to take classes I enjoy. I want to figure out what interests me.”

“Of course, you do, sweetie. I want that for you too.” She rubbed a hand down Juniper’s back. “Listen, the store is our livelihood. It’s not who we are.”

She gave her a disbelieving look.

“Fine, it’s a little of who we are. Our family has practiced witchcraft for generations. It’s what we know. Why wouldn’t we capitalize on it in an age when witches are no longer persecuted?”

Aunt Bel’s words reminded her of what the Amish freak had said about telling their secret. Why the hell would they care if he told people they were witches? The burning age was over.

“I just think it would be nice to go away to college and not have this be the first thing people see about me. I want my own identity.”

“Oh, June bug, you do have your own identity.” She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “Honey, the store is a way to make a living. Our faith goes deeper than that. It’s a part of us. Moving to a faraway campus won’t remove that piece of you. You have to accept that the spirit is a part of you.”

Her aunts would often disappear during full moons and come back invigorated, but Juniper never actually saw them do anything cool. Their faith had about as much glue as the binding of any bible. It was all just bottled bullshit, folklore, fairytales, and coincidence. She didn’t have the strength for this debate tonight.

“I guess.” It was a lame and unconvincing surrender flag, but her aunt accepted it.

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