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I couldn’t hold back my grin any longer. “I used the money I had set aside for my grand debut into the dating world and spent it on something far more important.”

Jen blinked at me, her lips parting slightly. “But... why?”

“Because I ran into Gavin at the bookstore yesterday. He devoured your manuscript in one sitting—said he couldn’t put it down.” I leaned in, lowering my voice just enough to make sure she understood the weight of what I was saying. “And he wants it typed up ASAP so he can personally hand it over to Dean Sinclair.”

The breath stuttered in her throat. Her cheeks flushed, her fingers gripping the edges of the laptop like it might vanish if she let it go.

“Are you serious?” she whispered, her voice barely above a breath.

My smirk softened into something more tender. “Completely.”

Jen sucked in a sharp breath, her eyes glistening with something between disbelief and overwhelming joy. And then, without warning, she launched herself at me.

I barely had time to brace myself before we tumbled backward, her body pressing flush against mine, her arms wrapping tight around my neck. Her lips found mine, urgent and heated, kissing me like I had just handed her the universe itself.

My mate—my wicked, talented, brilliant mate—was well on her way to becoming a bestselling author. And I couldn’t wait to help her craft the filthiest, most deliciously depraved scenes we could possibly dream up.

***

I watched my mate over the top of a novel from her forbidden bookshelf, a deep, molten satisfaction curling through me. Theflickering candlelight cast a warm glow on her, illuminating the way she bit her lower lip between her teeth in pure concentration, her brows knitting as she glanced between her notebook and the computer screen, her fingers moving furiously.

I’d promised Gavin that we’d have a typed copy of her manuscript ready by the end of the week—before we left for Briar Coven.

My stomach twisted at the thought.

I had no doubt they would find her innocent. Hell, with the overwhelming evidence, the recorded testimony, and Lobato’s corroboration of her story, they might not even bother with a trial at all.

But... she had still spent nearly a decade away from them. A decade where her name had been whispered in dark corners, where people she had once considered family might have believed the worst of her.

I exhaled sharply, raking a hand through my hair.

BooDini fluttered weakly down the stairs, its movements sluggish, before settling into the chair beside me with an exaggerated, silent sigh. It raised a tired arm and pointed at the front door before tipping its head back, its little cutout eyes pulling shut as if it had passed out mid-motion.

“That must be the food,” I said to Jen, pushing up to my feet.

After the disaster that had been this morning’s breakfast, I didn’t trust myself to make her another meal without BooDini’s assistance. And BooDini, who had taken on the brunt of entertaining an overenthusiastic little orc all night, was in no fit state to cook, clean, or even stay awake, let alone answer the door.

I reached for the handle and froze.

The air shifted. A soft, distinctly feminine giggle curled around me, heady with the scent of cinnamon and cloves,drowned beneath something far more feral—ozone and charred wood.

My shadows reacted instantly, pooling at my feet, stretching, sensing the presence outside the door. My body tensed, instincts screaming at me to protect, defend, eliminate.

A warning growl rumbled low in my throat as my brain refused to acknowledge that there was something familiar woven into the aggression that was mirroring my own.

“What’s wrong?” Jen’s voice was soft behind me, but I heard the shift in her heartbeat, felt the way her body tensed, already preparing for danger.

I cast her a glance, my mind racing, my body readying to push her behind me, to tell her to run—

And then, without warning, BooDini waved a lazy hand, and the front door swung open.

A swirling mass of black smoke billowed on the porch.

Instinct took over.

My talons punched into the wood-paneled wall as I snapped into a lunge position, teeth bared, shadows writhing, ready to strike—

“Devlin?” a voice called from the darkness.