Magic and Mayhem: Witch and Were (Kindle Worlds Novella) (4 page)

"What the heck? Mick, what is going on?"

"It seems that the stampede of cattle we ran from were actually Shifters."

"Seriously?" I whispered. "There are cow shifters? What next? Skunks?"

Mick smiled and I groaned. Clearly, I had led a sheltered life from much of the paranormal world in Las Vegas.

"I'm ready to get out of this water now. My tits are freezing."

Mick jerked under the water, an apparently involuntary reaction that made me smile.

"I can help you with that," he offered.

"Maybe when there isn't an arena sized audience."

He scooped me into his arms and began walking toward the water's edge. "I'm going to hold you to that."

I didn't tell him that the idea of him touching me like that made my body tingle. Nor did I tell him about the heat gathering between my legs despite the cold water. He'd probably find out soon enough.

When we reached the first of the group, Mick asked if anyone had any spare clothing for them to use.

"Sorry, man. We're naturists."

"Nature what?" I asked. That sounded an awful lot like—

"Nudists, sugar. As in no clothes."

"I know what a nudist is, thanks." This situation was getting freakier by the minute. Cow Shifter naturists. Certainly I had heard it all now.

"Our little cowtown is just beyond that tree line." One of the men pointed to a cluster of trees that didn't look too far away. "We could offer you blankets and warm food and even a bed for the night if you need it."

"That would be great except we left our car at the 99 rest stop."

The man smiled. "No worries. We can have someone drive you back to your car after supper."

"Thanks, we really appreciate that," Mick said, adjusting me in his arms so at least the front of my body was mostly hidden.

We followed the Shifters back to their 'cowtown' and were pleasantly surprised to discover what I would describe as a charming village with all the amenities you could need.

However, as friendly as everyone was to us, I found it difficult to not stare at all the nakedness surrounding me. I don't know why. I mean I'm from Vegas. Women there barely wore clothes half the time. Yet, these peaceful and simple Shifters walking around with their hoo has and log and berries (yes log!) on display with their white socks and running shoes tickled the hell out of me. I mean c'mon. Have you ever seen a bull's balls? Unfortunately, I had at the rodeo and the last thing I wanted to look at were men with balls the size of grapefruit.

Out of respect for their way of life I needed to get the heck out of there before I made a fool of myself.

"Do you think we could go now? I would give anything, I mean ANYTHING, for a pair of yoga pants and a sports bra right about now."

Mick looked thoughtful as if imagining me dressed in said outfit, before nodding his head. "Another promise to hold you to." He grabbed my hand and led me to a car and driver waiting to take us back to my BMW. We climbed inside and I snuggled down in my blanket with my head settled in the crook of Mick's arm.

I found touching him far too easy and the more time we spent together I liked him more and more. I wasn't so sure if that was truly a good thing or not. Francine's ominous thoughts on an upcoming decision had left me uneasy to say the least.

It was time to get back on steady ground and find out what could be done about this mark on my neck.

T
he next morning
I pried my eyes open to find the sun shining through the front window of our motel room and my body curled into Mick's with his arm and leg possessively pinning me in place.

It took me a minute to remember how beat we'd been by the time we found a motel and how that fatigue led to the first night we didn't argue about who slept where.

I slowly eased from Mick's embrace and hurried into the bathroom. When I finished washing up and brushing my teeth I decided to face my reflection and determine if make up could improve the dog tired feeling I felt clear to my bones.

"Oh my Goddess. Are you kidding me? Again?"

Mick stumbled from the bed and hurried into the room. "What's wrong?" He asked, yawning.

"This is what's wrong." I ran my fingers over the white chunks of hair threaded through my brown locks and cringed. "I swear it's worse than last time. At this rate I'll have a full head of this stuff in a few more shifts."

"That does seem to be the pattern. But it looks really good on you. I still don’t get why you don't love it like I do."

I turned back to the mirror and tried to look at myself through Mick's eyes. He kept telling me it looked really cool and I just couldn't see it. An overnight onslaught of old lady hair just bugged the hell out of me.

I turned back to Mick and finally noticed something other than my hair. Like the fact he stood there in nothing but a pair of running shorts that were currently tented in the front.

"Do you always greet people like that or are you just happy to see me?"

A sly grin crossed his face. "It's whatever you want it to be."

"I'm just curious. How many times have you thought about having sex with me since we started this trip?"

Mick scrubbed his face and shook his head. "It would take me too long to add them all up. Why? Are we going to have sex?" He gave me a hungry look.

"I was thinking about it. I mean there you are looking all sexy as sin and ready. It seems a waste to let that go by and do nothing."

His dark eyes smoldered at the same time a growl formed in his throat. I particularly liked it when he got all growly. It was a huge turn on.

"Why don't you come over here and tell me that again. This time while you take off your clothes."

"Pfft. I'm not making it that easy for you."

He stayed across the room assessing me. Probably wasn't sure if he could trust me or not. Not that I blamed him. This could easily be some sort of ruse to lure him in so I could do something heinous to him for marking me like he did.

I'm glad to know I wasn't completely predictable even if the thoughts of what he could do to me with his body were.

"What's wrong, Mick? You're not afraid of me, are you?" This sudden feeling of power in our relationship made me bold. I lifted the T-shirt I wore over my head and dropped it to the floor. Quickly followed by the pajama shorts I'd slept in. Now clad in nothing but a lace thong, I waited to see what he would do.

He didn't disappoint.

Two seconds later he was across the room and pulling me into his arms. He buried his face in my neck and breathed deep. "You are so beautiful. And smell so fucking good. I want you."

"I think you're obsessed with scent."

"Obsessed with your scent. Only you, Patience. Only you."

I swallowed thickly at his words. They sounded so real. Which had to be impossible considering the short amount of time we'd known each other.

A little voice in my head warned me not to be stupid. Things were happening at lightning speed. But if I was already starting to fall for him, it wasn't out of the realm of possibility for him to do the same.

"Do you think you could make me scream?" I asked.

"That sounds like a challenge." He licked and kissed a trail from my neck to my collarbone, his hands tightening around my waist.

"Take it however you'd like," I said, struggling to keep my breathing even with his soft lips working their magic on my sensitive skin.

"Challenge accepted."

He cupped my breasts and ran this thumbs across the nipples sending shivers across my body. When he dipped his head and licked one of them I moaned. His beard both tickled and scratched, adding extra layers of divine pleasure to every move.

My hands went to his stomach, where I trailed my fingers down the hard ridges of his abs. A sharp intake of breath on his part made me smile. Touching him like this was everything I'd imagined and more.

"Careful, sugar. You keep touching me like that and I'm liable to lose control."

"That's okay. I'm ready for more."

"Patience is impatient," he said, smiling that lethal smile.

"Patience hasn't had an orgasm other than by her own hand in a long time," I admitted.

Mick groaned, followed by a low growl. He wrapped his arm around my waist, swung me up into his arms and carried me back to the bed in the other room. He dropped me onto the mattress and came down over me. "I don't think I can wait to be inside you."

"Then don't." I grabbed him around his neck and pulled him down for a mind-melting kiss.

His hands went wild roaming my body, lighting a sizzling fire along my skin in their wake. I couldn't wait either. I reached for his shorts and tugged them below his hips.

He slid his hand underneath the scrap of lace keeping me covered and tore them apart.

"Hey, I liked those."

"I'll buy you new ones," he growled.

I started to say something more when he slid his fingers in the wetness between my legs. I sucked in a sharp breath and went perfectly still. The heat built inside of me until I thought I would combust.

"You're ready for me."

Duh. I wasn't kidding when I told him how impatient I felt. This time I chose to keep my mouth shut and simply spread my legs to give him easier access. The need firing my blood took control as Mick nipped at my flesh and used his fingers to play me like a fine tuned instrument.

More moans slipped from my lips as my eyelids drifted closed, allowing me to focus on nothing but the firestorm of sensations he created inside me.

"Hurry, Mick."

"Say it again," he commanded.

"What?" My eyes blinked open to find him staring intently at my face.

"My name. Say it again."

"Mick." The one simple word made his body jerk and rock against me. Every bit of his hardness against all of my softness. The contrast feeling sublime.

His fingers disappeared as he moved his hips snugly between my legs. "This is mine now." He splayed his fingers across my stomach and moved them slowly up to my neck. "You are mine. Say it."

I was on the verge of coming apart from his touches and his words. I did feel like his. "Less talk, more action, Mick," I pleaded.

He growled his response as he began pushing inside me.

My breath caught in my throat. There was a little bit of pain to go with a whole lot of pleasure, which combined to make me wild.

I grasped his shoulders and dug my fingernails into his flesh. I think my toes even curled. "More, Mick," I begged again.

His deep chuckle vibrated through my body as he did as I asked and gave me more. I marveled at the muscles flexing and bunching under my hands as he took me in long, smooth pleasure filled strokes.

My brain sort of registered that I might be making a mistake, but my body no longer cared. I'd deal with the consequences later. He'd already marked me, so I might as well enjoy the side benefits for as long as I could.

"Still want to scream, baby?" he asked in my ear.

"Hell yes," I panted.

He said nothing more and instead simply picked up speed. With one hand he cupped my bottom and the other he threaded through my hair, giving him some leverage to take me deeper than before.

I tried to say something and failed, the pleasure too intense as he plunged inside me. The sounds of skin slapping against skin filled my head until my entire body trembled with need. I couldn't hold out any longer.

"Eyes on me, Patience. You are mine and I am yours whether or not you are ready to admit it."

I nodded still unable to speak as he drove me over the edge screaming my head off. He slammed into me and held, his whole body shaking against mine. I wrapped my legs around his back wishing I could hold him there for life.

Whatever happened from here on out, I now knew one thing for certain. I had just lost myself to this man—a Shifter—who claimed me as his.

T
he rest
of the trip passed in a blur of driving, arguing, lots of amazing sex and a little sleep thrown in here and there. However, a couple of days of bliss were about to come crashing down as we neared our destination. A sign loomed in front of us that welcomed us to West Virginia, making my already frayed nerves ratchet another notch higher.

I knew very little about this Zelda person other than she was a healer for Shifters and helped many of Mick's friends when they were badly injured from fighting with the honey badgers.

That fact alone had sent me over the edge in a fit of giggling that had taken hours to recover from. I still couldn't picture big strong Mick fighting against what they referred to as their mortal enemies. Just to make sure I wasn't mistaken about what these animals looked like, I had googled them on my cell phone.

Apparently they were more ferocious than they looked on my tiny screen.

I covered my mouth to stifle a giggle as I tried to wrap my head around this again.

"Have you seen these honey badger videos online? They're hilarious." I hit play again and listened to the narrator tell me how honey badgers don't care.

"See." I held up the phone so he could see and hear it too.

"
Honey badger don't care
."

How could I not laugh?

"I don't think this is funny anymore, Patience. Those little shits are seriously dangerous. You shouldn't take those nasty creatures so lightly. They'll attack without provocation and have no qualms with inflicting fatal damage."

I tried looking at him with a serious face, but couldn't hold it. "I'm sorry, I can't help it. It's just so crazy."

"You wouldn't think so if you'd seen what I've seen. I once watched them take down a bear."

I was about to apologize again when another sign caught my attention. I sat up straighter. "Ooh. Look, there's a drug store on the next exit. Let's stop there."

I turned around and began fishing through some of the bags in the back hoping to find my purse.

"What do you need from a drug store?"

Aha! I pulled my purse from between a take out food container and the cooler Mick had packed full of snacks and water. Turning back to the front, I plopped down into my seat and refastened my seat belt.

"Hair color, of course. I can't go see the Whisperer woman looking like this."

He sighed. "I thought we were past this already? No matter how many times you color it, it's going to keep coming back every time you shift."

"I know that. But I'm a witch of a certain age not a Shifter. I need to look presentable when we arrive."

"You look beautiful and you have gorgeous hair. Especially when it's in my lap."

I slapped at his shoulder and tried to ignore the heat of a blush blossoming across my skin. "Okay, Mr. Potty mouth. That's enough out of you or you won't get the pleasure of my head in your lap doing that again."

Mick's laughter filled the car. "You're hardly a prude, Patience. So why is it so hard to just say the words?"

I rolled my eyes at him. "I can say them, it's just sometimes I choose not to."

"Then say it, sugar. I like it when you talk dirty."

"Dream on, foxy man. I don't perform on command." I turned back forward in my seat and pointed to the upcoming turn off. "This is the exit."

Mick drove us to the drug store and I grabbed half a dozen boxes of hair color. Might as well be prepared. After checking out, I went to the restroom and worked the little box of die into my hair.

This process sucked. If this shifting thing didn't stop soon, I might have to take Mick's advice and suck it up already. Maybe even turn it to my advantage and make it my trademark or something. Surely I could come up with something.

By the time I emerged from the bathroom with all chestnut locks once again, I found Mick next door in the diner sucking down a milkshake.

"Feel better?" he asked.

"I guess. While I'm not quite ready to concede, you may have a point about the hair. This coloring thing is a hassle."

"Trust me, sugar." He stood from the stool he occupied. "Your hair could be putrid green and you would still be beautiful."

I scrunched up my face at the image that put in my mind. "That would be disgusting. Can you knock on some wood now? I do not need anymore problems."

Mick shook his head and opened the door for me. "Ready to go meet Zelda?"

"Yeah. How close are we?"

"A few miles give or take."

We climbed into the car and took off in the opposite direction of the highway. The road narrowed and eventually we stopped seeing anything but trees and mountains for miles.

"I thought you said a few miles."

He shrugged. "It's close."

"And this is where you grew up?"

He nodded. "Sure did. Other side of the valley."

"Why'd you leave? It's very pretty here."

He stared out the windshield for a few seconds before he responded. "After my parents passed, the rest of my family began to scatter. I thought about leaving too. Then last winter a friend of mine offered me a lucrative opportunity in Las Vegas and since we were in the midst of one of the worst winters our state had ever seen, I jumped on it. Hard to pass up sunshine and 70 degrees when you're looking at ten feet of snow and 30 below."

"Handyman at a retirement community is lucrative? Wow. I must be in the wrong business."

He laughed again and I felt the vibrations deep in my chest. I swear every time he laughed he worked his way deeper into my heart.

"Nah. I've been helping out a friend there until they can hire someone permanent. I don't often get to work with my hands to fix things and find it's a great stress reliever."

"Mick," I paused. "If you're not a handyman then what is it you do?"

"High tech web security, which is a glorified way of saying that I'm decent on a computer. Together with a friend of mine, we own a conglomerate of web based businesses that now operate out of Vegas. Everything from a dating service to casino app development."

My mouth dropped open as I stared at him. Not in a million years would I have guessed I was dating a computer geek. Although I guess technically we weren't dating. In his eyes we were mated, which sounded like some sort of commitment I was still trying to avoid and for me it was two people together by circumstance having out of this world sex.

Liar.

The little voice in my mind knew better, I just didn't want to admit it.

"Don’t look so surprised. I can still be smart
and
sexy," he teased. "I can certainly make you scream."

There was no denying that. Every single time. I was beginning to believe he wasn't just packing large, he had magic in that thing.

"I don't know why, I just never imagined you as a computer guy. You've barely touched your phone since we've been on this trip. I thought techy guys were attached at the hip to their electronics."

He shrugged. "I'm on vacation. And I have a good team working for me. Although I do have a laptop in my bag in case of emergency."

I sank back against the leather seat and tried to wrap my head around this revelation. He was shaping up to be the perfect man and for some reason that annoyed me. Sexy, smart and from the sound of it, probably rich.

Poop.

"We're here."

I glanced up to see a huge house looming in front of us. An enormous lodge looking thing that could just as easily have been a bed and breakfast. "Is this where we are staying or is this the healer's home?"

"This is Zelda's place. She inherited it from her aunt some time ago."

I was suddenly really happy that I had stopped to color my hair and change into something more presentable than jean shorts and flip-flops.

Mick parked the car in the drive and we headed to the front door where we got in line with a menagerie of animals. Bears, bunnies, deer and more were all lined up to go in and most of them did not look well off.

"What's going on here?" I whispered to Mick.

"Looks like Zelda's got a back up of Shifters in need of her healing touch."

"Is that normal? I know you said she was a Shifter healer, but I wasn't expecting all this."

"The world's a dangerous place to live in these days whether you're a Shifter or not. There is always sick and wounded to deal with. Unfortunately, that means I get zero peace around here."

I whirled at the unfamiliar female voice behind me to find a pretty red head coming up the walkway behind us.

"Zelda!" Mick greeted her with a hug.

"Ugh. You might want to be careful about doing that in public. I have a rep to uphold, plus Mac is one possessive dude. He might take that the wrong way."

"I think I'll take my chances." Mick grinned at her and I got a little irritated over that because that grin was supposed to be for me and me only. Not that I was jealous or anything. That would be absurd.

"You must be the Shifter Whisperer. I'm Patience, we spoke on the phone."

"She prefers Shifter Wanker," a raccoon from the line interjected.

I must have looked confused because Zelda brushed it off. "I don't care what you call me, this place is crazy making anyway."

"Okay," I said. "How about Zelda?"

She shrugged and began circling me. "So a witch who has suddenly begun shifting at the age of fifty. That's quite the conundrum isn't it?"

"I guess. More unnerving if you ask me."

"I'm kind of surprised you didn't go to Baba Yablahblah first. She's supposedly the all powerful one."

"I suggested she come here. I've seen first hand what you can do and you don't like that other one," Mick said.

"You're a good man, Mick. I hope she appreciates you."

"I am right here and of course I am grateful that my
friend
Mick has guided me here. Provided you can help me."

The whisperer woman laughed. "Touchy. I like that. Good for you. Mick needs a challenge."

She turned to all the animals in the line and asked, "Who here is about to die in the next ten minutes?"

No one raised their hands. Although there were a couple that had open wounds that might not realize how close they were.

"Good." She turned back to me. "Lets go downstairs and have a look at you."

I looked between Mick and Zelda and the line of injured animals. "Uhm. I can wait for you to fix them first." My problems didn't seem as urgent after getting a good look at some of the Shifters here.

"No one here is going to die except me because I'm dying of curiosity to see what your problem is. Trust me, these guys aren't going anywhere. I couldn't get rid of them if I tried." She took a step closer and lowered her voice. "I know, because I have tried."

I didn't know what to say. This witch seemed to have a lock on crazy and crazy with a lot of power never boded well for me.

Mick touched my chin and turned my head toward him. "You have to take the Shifter Wanker with a grain of salt, Patience. She may come across as heartless, but trust me she isn't."

"Don't tell her that. I am heartless. And selfish. I don't know why you people don't get that." She stomped away towards the back of the house and Mick dragged me along behind her.

"This better not be some crazy sauce experiment for something nefarious. I may not have much magic, but I make up for it in mean." I rubbed my hands together and prepared to put up a fight if I had to. I was being silly, but I couldn't shake the bad feeling I had as evidenced by the hair now standing up at the nape of my neck.

After walking down the side yard of the property, we entered the building via the basement. Said basement looked every bit as creepy as I feared with cages lining the walls and piles of clothing and water bottles on bare tables across from them.

"If this is some kind of religious cult in which I get locked down here for the rest of my life under the ruse of a coming apocalypse, I'm out. I did not sign on for that."

"What is she rambling about?" Zelda asked.

"I think she watches too much Netflix," a deer from one of the cages said.

It was true. I did. But that was beside the point here.

"For cripes sake, Patience. Don't be such a pussy."

I stood in shock over that little zinger. No wonder they called her the Shifter Wanker. It certainly fit.

They stopped in the center of the room and Zelda turned to face her. "Okay let's see it. Go ahead and shift so I can work my magic. Although if you want to save that expensive suit I suggest you get undressed first. I've seen what shifting does to nice clothes."

"That's not how it works. I don't shift on command." I glanced at Mick from the corner of her eye. "Well, not on your command anyway."

"Whose command does it work for?" she asked.

"It's usually spontaneous and not under my control." I lowered my voice. "Except for one time when Mick was able to make it happen."

"Let me guess. It had something to do with sex. I do happen to have some experience with the potency of an alpha Shifter."

"Goddess no! It did not happen when we were having sex. Ewww. Are you insane?"

"Relax I was just covering the bases. So what is it going to take to get you to shift?"