Page 16 of Of Poison & Pumpkins (Of Witches & Men #3)

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Rynn

“C an you drive any faster?” I beg Elias while I stare at Porter’s trance-like expression.

“I’m not getting pulled over.” There’s a tick in Elias’s jaw. “This zombie-guy would be a lot to explain to the cops.”

The traffic fills the narrow roads around the buildings downtown.

When pedestrians cross the street lazily, I want to shake their shoulders to make sure they’re aware the world is falling apart.

Or at least my world. No Fuzer was ever supposed to be cursed.

Not only did this Alexandra bitch steal my paint and try to frame me for poisoning people, now she’s broken the rules.

My magic’s purpose was always intended to help Fuzers, not make them suffer, or in this case, suck out their souls.

I text Tinsley quickly, not caring about the typos that don’t autocorrect. She responds immediately, updating me that the store has been dead all day.

“Shit,” I mutter.

“What is it?” Elias weaves around a truck.

“Everybody must be scared of my store. We’ve barely had any customers,” I say while keeping my attention on Porter’s sluggish posture. He stares out the window like his brain is in a fog. I follow his gaze to the line of auburn trees whizzing by.

“Their paranoia will pass in a couple of days.” Elias glances at me in his rear-view mirror, dark eyes set on mine.

My fingers tap to the beeping rhythm of the crosswalk sign outside the car. How am I supposed to heal Porter without the ingredients for the antidote? Should I collect those before I find Alexandra?

I need to think of something positive, like how good it felt to be close to Elias during the poetry slam.

Not only that, he held me when I cried, with patience and acceptance.

There hadn’t been one ounce of judgment in his expression after their poems poked a hole through the strong dam I’ve spent years building.

“Uh, Rynn, we have a problem.”

Pink glitter showers onto his windshield, which could only mean one thing.

The cops are here. I suck in a steadying breath, ready to confront the authorities.

Blocking the street outside my shop and apartment, five unicorns stand in a row, each carrying a glaring officer.

In town, I’m a well-known unicorn advocate.

I even petitioned for bulletproof vests for them, but the council denied my request. These precious animals deserve a better life than being forced into service.

“Should I reverse?” Elias asks hesitantly, as they divert the car ahead of us onto a detour route.

“No, they’ve already seen me,” I say, stepping out of the car. When the car door slams shut, it cuts off Elias’s voice.

“Rynnlee Pozinne of twenty-two Blake Street?” An officer slides off his purple unicorn, the saddle slipping slightly under his heavy weight. He straightens his glasses that fell askew on his dismount.

“Yes, Hudson. You’ve been to my place before, cut the crap.”

“You’re under arrest for misuse of magic, Order Four, Section B that states?—”

“You have no evidence. I didn’t do anything.”

He sighs, then pushes his glasses up to the ridge of his nose again. “Three minors at Oakmar High succumbed to the Dazed epidemic earlier this afternoon. They each had one of these in their possession.” He pulls out palates of purple eyeshadow. “You sell these, correct, Miss Pozinne?”

“Yes, but maybe they each got food poisoning from something at the cafeteria at school.” Behind my back, I try to wave Elias away, hoping he leaves before Hudson catches sight of Porter hunched in the backseat.

“Food poisoning?” Hudson shakes his head and reaches for the cuffs on his belt. “Come on, Rynn. No one’s going to hurt you,” he says, gesturing to the growing number of onlookers. “This is simple policy.”

The rumbling of Elias’s car quiets, which sends a warm wave of relief through my blood. Good. There’s no point in his name being dragged through the mud with mine. Technically this mess is my fault.

“Do you have an alibi for your whereabouts at 12:10?”

“Yeah, I was at Raven Slam.”

The murmurs of the crowd double. Raven Slam hasn’t always been on the friendly side of Nergs. The owner only hires Fuzers as staff, which caused an uproar in the community a few years back.

Hudson drops his head. “Can anyone vouch for you?”

Footsteps clomp behind me, and without turning, I already know it’s Elias. He still has the same easy going saunter, like there’s no rush to arrive at his destination.

“She was with me,” Elias says. I feel his hand around my waist. “We were there for over an hour, and at least two staff members saw us.”

Where’s Porter? Where’s the car? My heart rate triples and sweat slides down my back. I’m unsure if it’s from Hudson’s scrutinizing glare or Elias’s closeness. Maybe both.

Hudson crosses his arms, then lowers his chin. “Well, we’re going to have to confiscate all your cosmetic products until this gets sorted out. Send them for testing.”

“Fine. Do you want me to show you where they are?”

“I think I’m qualified to find makeup on my own.” He rolls his eyes. “Rynnlee, you need to be careful. This doesn’t look good for you.”

“What do you recommend I do? I can’t close my shop. It’ll put me out of business and then Maya won’t have?—”

Hudson holds up a hand. “The shop can remain open but stay nearby. Don’t leave your home or Palooza until you’ve heard from me.” The warning in his eyes couldn’t be any more serious. “Do you understand?”

“Yes,” I say, knowing I won’t be following that order.

Once he turns away from me and the other officers disperse on their unicorns, I finally let out the breath I’d been holding. A light squeeze tugs at my hand. When I look down, Elias’s hand is holding mine. When had that happened? Did he grab mine or did I lock onto him like a security blanket?

“Thank you,” I whisper to Elias as I watch the cops dip into my empty shop. “But you should’ve stayed with Porter.”

“Zee is hauling him up to your place already. Come on.”

Elias’s eyes dart to mine for only a moment before he pulls me around the back side of the building, past his parked car.

My mind is racing as I let Elias guide me up the stairs to my apartment, as if I have full trust in him.

Is that true? A sharp point, small as a needle, jabs me when I grapple with that question.

As far as I know, Elias has never lied or cheated or kept major secrets.

Would it be bad to rely on him a little?

Inside my studio, the scent of a vanilla candle spreads towards us.

I breathe in deeply, wanting to feel comfortable in my home, but suspicious officers lurking one floor below doesn’t make that possible.

Will I not feel safe for the next month until this spell runs out?

What if I can’t find Alexandra? Could they arrest me without proof?

Over by the couch, Zanther flops Porter down like a ragdoll.

He must have troll strength to carry a six-foot man up a flight of stairs.

My ex stares at the ceiling and the brothers whisper to each other in the corner.

Occasionally, Elias smacks Zanther’s shoulder and hisses for him to ‘ shut up .’ It must be nice having a close sibling.

Speaking of demons reincarnated, AKA siblings, my phone vibrates with Orion’s face on the screen. I hit ignore and wait until the voicemail picks up my brother’s message.

“Hey there. You okay?” Elias’s baritone from my dreams pulls me out of my spiral.

“Um, no, not really,” I say. But when I drown in his dark, charismatic eyes, it’s like swimming in his soul.

The apartment and my conflicts fade away. All I focus on is this man. It’s not even fair how many things I like about Elias. How he makes snappy choices. Or how he displays affection with constant miniature touches.

Zanther waves with a cheery grin as he slides out my door, closing me and the two men within. One from my past. And one is my possible future. What would a relationship with Elias look like?

“I have an idea.” Elias gently rubs my elbow while maintaining a safe distance. “We could shove sleeping meds down Porter’s throat.” Elias sounds like he’s joking, but his brows are pinched. “That way, when we report him, it’ll seem like an overdose.”

“Elias!”

“Fine.” He shifts on his feet nervously. “Oh my Goddess, Rynn, I need to know one thing, or I’ll go insane.” He shoves his palms into his eyes. “No, I won’t ask. I can’t know. I can’t.”

“Just say it, Lord Trondle!”

“Of all the nicknames, you put me in the category with a vampire from TruDeath? Epic. I accept.”

He’s seen my favorite show? “It’s your nickname because that character drives me insane.”

Elias licks his lips, moves a step closer, and cradles both of my elbows in his large hands. His skin feels so good against mine that it should be illegal.

“Just ask me.”

He squeezes his eyes shut tightly and points to Porter. “Was he the man you slept with last week?”

My body heats like a thousand suns. Shit.

I pray for him to keep his eyes closed so he won’t see my panicked expression.

I gulp, count to three, take a deep breath, then step closer.

I can’t believe I’m about to admit this to him.

Rising on my tiptoes, I wrap a hand around Elias’s neck and slowly pull him close.

With my mouth by his ear, I whisper, “There’s only one man in this room I want inside me.”

Elias’s eyes snap open, full of fire. His hand wraps around my waist. We’re moving in tandem, like a duo dancing, until my back hits a wall.

“Say that again,” he practically growls, “and use my name.”

I’ve never been so fuckin turned on in my damned life.

With one hand braced on the wall over my head, he’s doing ‘ the move’ —the one reserved for faerie gods in fantasy books.

And he has mastered it to perfection. The angle of our bodies is dead-on exquisite.

I may be having a heart attack or some other life-ending episode because I can’t breathe.

Of all the times I fantasized about Elias kissing me, I never expected it’d come true.

Now he’s pinning me against the wall, his lips inches from mine.

“You’re the only man in this room that I want inside me, Elias.” I barely get the words out before his lips are on my neck.

I may have gone to the Kingdom of Angels because holy Sols, holy Stars, holy Luna, this man’s mouth is not mortal. He licks, sucks, and teases my neck gently, so atrociously taunting that I’m not sure what’s real anymore.

“This ok?” he whispers.

“Mhm.”

I want his lips on mine. Need to taste him. The need to claim him outweighs anything else. So, obviously to protect myself, I make one solid rule and beg, “But don’t kiss my lips.”

“Okay,” he murmurs, voice heavy, “I promise. Not till you’re ready.”

Then my phone rings again. I push the button through my pocket as Elias dips to kiss my chest. The vibration starts again. What if it’s a damned emergency? I groan. Of course that would happen the one time Elias is mine.

I gently push his chest away. “Damn it,” I hiss, then pull my phone out. “Hello?”

Orion is on the other end, speaking a mile a minute, and I can barely understand a word. The intensity and urgency in my brother’s voice set me on edge.

“She did WHAT ?”

From the bits and pieces I gather during Orion’s rambling, my little sister apparently eloped.

I’m not concerned about her new husband’s age, even though he’s forty-seven and Brooke is only twenty-five.

What infuriates me is that my new brother-in-law is a Fuzer.

It doesn’t make sense. Our whole lives, Brooke has hated me for my magical gene. Why would she marry a Fuzer?

It feels like shadows curl around my heart and squeeze the life out of me.

The best plan of action right now is to do nothing, hide away in my apartment, avoid texts, call in sick to work, and get lost under Elias.

Something small has shifted inside me as I consider waking up next to this man and trusting him. Would he keep my heart safe?