Page 32 of Dream Weaver (Spellbound in Sedona #3)

ABBY

Four weeks later…

“Go home, Roscoe.” I shooed the dog gently away. “Go home.”

He whined and paced in place.

“I’ll be back soon. Go home.” I pointed sternly.

He returned to the porch, watching me go with a weak wag of his tail.

I walked a few steps, glancing at the striking sunset colors, then back at the house, where colored lights flashed, framing the windows and door. Christmas wasn’t far off, and we’d gone all out.

Correction — Cooper had gone all out. He blamed it on Ingo and Nash, who’d set a standard by decorating their homes. I blamed it on Pippa, who’d kicked off the whole arms race in the first place. The ranch looked like a strip mall with all those blinking lights.

I grinned. It was pretty nice, actually. Really nice. My Christmas cheer had never extended to decorating anything but the actual tree. But this year…

Well, there was a lot to be cheerful about.

Like the sound of Claire’s laughter, coming from the living room. Cooper was reading her a story — something about mermaids, from the sound of it — and I closed my eyes, listening to the low rumble of his voice.

In a few months, he would be off fighting fires, and that would be hard, but we would figure it out. We had to, because firefighting was important to him — not to mention to the crew and the communities depending on them. Besides, Cooper didn’t hold me back. In fact, he set me free. So, I would do the same for him.

Set me free… a voice whispered eagerly in my mind.

“Just a second,” I whispered, walking toward the mesa.

There was a boulder there where I’d first shifted into bear form, three weeks earlier, and I’d been going there to shift each time since. I was still a novice, and anything that helped me make the transition was a plus.

In the distance, a door creaked then slammed shut. Pippa had offered to stay with Claire while Cooper and I went out, so she was on her way over to my house, while Cooper had given me a head start.

“See you soon,” Pippa called to Ingo, then strode toward the main house. Spotting me, she waved. “I’m on my way over to Claire now.”

“Thanks a lot.” I waved back.

One day, I hoped to pay her back if — no, when — she and Ingo had kids. And the way those two carried on, kids couldn’t be too far off in the future.

I walked on toward that special rock. The one directly below “my” vortex, farther upslope.

My vortex, like Erin’s and Pippa’s, had been strangely quiet for a while. We’d worried that Liselle might have inflicted permanent damage on Sedona’s hidden hot spots, but the ADMSA had sent a committee of experienced witches to investigate around town, and Ingo had shown us their report.

Tests conducted at all known vortexes demonstrated normal energy levels. The outlets that are currently dormant represent fluctuations in a natural cycle and do not reflect any impact caused by human or supernatural interference.

So, whew. The next part of the report had been more startling, though.

Our data supports that of the 1972 Watkins study, which suggests that Sedona’s vortexes are not discrete entities, but rather, one interconnected system originating at a single source. The hunt for that source, however, must continue.

One source…like the ranch? Pippa had asked when we’d first read the report.

We weren’t sure, and we didn’t want to find out. More importantly, we didn’t want anyone to find out, especially if that single source turned out to be beneath our ranch.

So far, we’d managed to keep our vortexes — and our magical abilities — out of the ADMSA’s official reports. We hoped it would stay that way, too. Happily, Ingo agreed.

And as for magic… Well, I was finally embracing who and what I was — a hephaestid, named for the blacksmith to the Greek gods. My ability to control metal came from my father, and my affinity for fire came from my dragon shifter mother.

But I was me, not them, and I could be damn proud of that.

I’d finally agreed to lessons from Mike and Greg to better control my abilities — just in case. I didn’t want to inadvertently make another lucky ax — or a lucky anything , for that matter — that could be used for ill means.

As for my own father… I hadn’t heard from Ed since he’d visited the shop that day, so hopefully he’d gotten the message. I had to give him one thing, though — he’d been right about the Edelweiss Corporation, though neither of us could have predicted how personal that danger had been.

Nobody would have predicted the news we’d recently received either.

Entrepreneur Harlon Greene found dead at his residence while released on bail pending trial for racketeering, fraud, and embezzlement, the headlines had said. Authorities suspected foul play, but so far, the perpetrator hadn’t been found.

It was Erin who’d come up with the most plausible explanation. If he managed to make enemies of us, he must have made lots of other enemies. Really dangerous ones, like mafia guys…

Vampires… Pippa added grimly.

Shifters … I threw in.

Or other warlocks, Erin finished.

Well, whoever did it, we all agreed that Harlon had it coming — and that we would never have to look over our shoulders again as far as he was concerned.

So, whew. That was all behind us now, and I was living my best life. A new life with a wonderful, loving partner.

I glanced back, eager for Cooper to join me. But story time came first, so he would be a few minutes yet.

When I reached my special boulder, it was still warm from the sunny day that had just faded to an end. I took a deep breath to concentrate on shifting. I shook out my hand, picturing paws instead. I rolled my neck, knowing it would soon grow thick. Layer by layer, I peeled off my clothes and tossed them onto the boulder. The chilly evening air made my skin prickle.

Warm. Help me stay warm, I asked my second self.

Coming, a cheery voice rumbled. My bear side.

I hunched and sank to my knees. I barely registered the bite of gravel, because the shift was already underway.

Set me free… my inner bear mumbled.

“Doing my best,” I grumbled. Really grumbled, which meant—

Opening my eyes, I spotted fur. Paws. Claws.

Yippee! my grizzly cheered, dancing in place.

It — er, I — gave myself a hearty shake, settling my fur in place. Then I looked down my long, dark nose and sniffed the air.

A barrage of scents flooded my nose, making me sneeze. I’d never considered the ranch a place particularly rich in odors — except maybe the manure pile out beyond the corral — but my sensitive bear nose amplified every scent, from acrid manure to sharp pine and the dry, sweet odor of prickly pear cacti.

I shook myself again, startled, as always, by the heavy mantle of my fur and the flop of my ears. Then I set off toward the creek, where Cooper and I had agreed to meet. Taking advantage of my time alone, I tried out my paces, going from walk to trot to sprint, because coordinating four feet still didn’t come naturally.

Just leave it to me, my grizzly reminded me cheerily.

My bear side, as it turned out, was more like Claire than me — all upbeat and happy. Or maybe it was a better version of myself, without the emotional baggage. Either way, I liked the new me. A lot.

But thinking made me stumble, so I went back to concentrating on my feet.

Just switch off and leave this to me, my bear said.

I made it to the creek without further incident, even running at an exhilarating clip for a while. Then I hastily hit the brakes before I slammed into a tree and covered up by roaring, as if the tree were at fault.

Very impressive, Cooper said, appearing behind me.

Actually, he growled, because he was also in grizzly form. But I was fluent in bear-talk now and pretty damn good at reading my lover’s mind — a handy side effect of the mating bite.

I whirled, rearing to my back legs to look ferocious, because ferocious was always good.

Cooper’s eyes sparkled. Even more impressive.

I waved my front paws for good measure, but oops. That threw off my balance, and I toppled backward.

I rolled in the dirt, a little chagrined. Not so impressive after all.

Cooper hurried over to snuffle me. Are you all right?

I assured him he was, but his sniffs of concern tickled, and I laughed.

Hey, I’m trying to be ferocious here, all right?

You don’t have to try to be ferocious, he assured me. You just are.

My insides went all warm. For years, I’d thought I would be single forever. Now, I had the world’s sweetest mate. How had I gotten so lucky?

Destiny, Cooper reminded me, nudging me to my feet.

As soon as I was on all fours, he nuzzled me, long and hard. Enough to make me topple again.

I cursed, falling over.

Cooper lunged forward, catching me with his body, then gently nosing me to my feet. The fur of his muzzle was baby-soft, like his human beard when stroked in the right direction. The thick layer of fur around his neck was coarser, but equally good for nuzzling.

So much for ferocious, I sighed.

You’ll get it. You’ve already learned so much, so fast, he said.

I had — and not just about being a bear. I’d learned how deeply Cooper slept in the off-season. How gentle his touch was. He much he loved me, and how much love I was capable of too.

And then there was the icing on the cake: the dream weaving part. I’d finally figured it out.

For years, I’d dreamed of living a normal life with loving parents who were there for me and cared. Well, I had that now — in Mike and Greg, if not my mother or Ed.

I’d dreamed of happy days in a stable home and being part of a family.

I inhaled, savoring every sweet, familiar scent of the ranch. Home. Happiness. Family.

Check, check, check.

I’d given up on dreams of ever finding true love, but then Cooper had come along and rekindled them.

My eyes misted as I added another check to my list.

All those dreams had come true — and more.

So, had I learned to weave dreams? Yes and no.

I could. I had. But not with magic, and not overnight. That wasn’t how it worked, I’d come to realize.

Now, I knew how. Bit by bit, over many years, I’d been slowly weaving my dreams. All those hard hours, earning respect in the metal shop. All those endless nights with baby Claire, who had turned out to be a great kid. All the mistakes I’d learned from — and the few smart decisions I’d made…they all wove together into what I had now.

My dreams had come true. I was living my very own happy ending.

And that wasn’t a magic power only certain special people had. It was something anyone could do with persistence, drive, and determination. A sprinkle of luck didn’t hurt, but the foundation of my dreams was mostly hope and hard work.

Nothing magical about that.

Cooper bumped his shoulder against mine. Are you okay?

I nuzzled him, hiding my misty eyes, and rumbled my reply.

Doing great, my love.

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