Page 10

Seth

Hazel’s request to meet Little Bit was a good surprise, even though it had clearly been an attempt to move the topic away from threesomes.

I’d worried about how she’d feel about reptiles and snakes but found that she had a healthy curiosity.

Little Bit had been sunning herself on the rock under the heat lamp, so after a quick round of hand sanitizer so we no longer smelled like bacon, I got her out and into Hazel’s lap.

A ball python was a strange choice for a familiar, but Little Bit was great at her job.

I’d still been trying to hide the fact that I was dabbling in witchcraft when I’d gotten Little Bit, and as I’d expected, no one had been the wiser.

Usually people chose cats, or birds, or some other more common pet as familiars.

Little Bit had just enough IQ in that tiny head of hers to understand when she was working, basking in my magic like a heat lamp.

Currently, she was attempting to crawl in Hazel's shirt right between the boobs where it was the warmest. She clearly had her priorities straight, and I was proud of her.

“I’m glad you’re not scared of snakes,” I said when she finally handed Little Bit back to me.

“Not little ones like Little Bit. I used to go out with my dad into the woods, and we’d look for frogs and lizards and snakes.”

It was the first time she’d offered anything about her life.

“Is he still around?” I asked, putting Little Bit back under her heat lamp and locking her back in her enclosure. “Your dad, I mean.”

Hazel shook her head. “No. He passed away when I was only a teenager.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Me too. He would be happy with the person I’ve become.”

“Your mother isn’t?”

She hesitated. “Look, I’m only talking because you told me about your life.

My parents used to fight a lot. I didn’t know what it was about when I was younger, but now I know that it was about Darlington.

We left when I was only a kid. I forgot about Darlington completely until I inherited my grandparents’ home. ”

“The Wall?” I guessed.

“Yeah. They raised me as a normal girl. Growing up, Mom didn’t even like it when I read books with magic in them, like somehow they would jog my memory or something.”

“It must’ve been hard for them to keep magic from you if you were born here,” Liam said.

She nodded. “They fought a lot. I think Dad missed magic and Darlington a lot, but I didn’t know back then. I just thought he was sad all the time. And Mom would get upset that he was sad, like it was proof that she wasn’t enough.”

“Did you ever find out why they left?” I asked.

She was quiet for so long that I thought maybe I’d asked too much.

But then she said, “Chief said my mom pissed off a witch. The witch cursed my mother with an unhappy life if she didn’t apologize.

Mom doubled down and called her a bitch.

It was a self-fulfilling prophecy. Mom insisted on leaving Darlington and the witch behind.

Dad did it because he loved her, even though it made him miserable.

“Chief knew my grandparents well; my granddad was on the force. It was tough for him to lose his son and me. According to Chief, my grandparents called and wrote all the time, but I never got any of their letters.

“When I got the letter about the house and asked Mom about it, she told me never to call her again.”

“Shit. I’m sorry.”

“No big loss.” She shook her head. “I don’t even know why I’m telling you this.”

“Because it’s been a tough twenty-four hours, and you feel safe around me?” I waggled my brows. “And it’s the whole recovering-from-the-magic-hangover thing. It makes you prone to seek connection. Don’t feel self-conscious. It’s normal. Your life story is safe with us.”

“Did you know the first time Seth admitted he loved me was during a magic hangover?” Liam offered.

“Oh really?” Hazel raised a brow.

“Yep! So feel free to offload about your life. Seth turns into a total needy bitch.”

That had Hazel chuckling.

“Guilty as charged,” I said. “Now, let’s go grab your clothes and laptop.”