Page 14 of The Bookseller and the Alpha (Witch Twins #1)

Calypso

I almost choked on my salad. Danger, danger . Luc was going to be in my apartment. Taking up all my space. All the air. Looking alarmed, Billy reached an arm behind to hit me on the back. I waved him away. “I’m okay,” I croaked, when I’d finished coughing.

“Surely you’ve got more important things to do.

” I was grasping at straws. There was no way I’d be able to sleep with Luc in my apartment.

And the idea that he would sleep on my couch was ludicrous.

My couch barely deserved the name. It seated two people, just…

if they were very good friends. Luc was so tall he would barely fit in my bed, let alone on my couch.

Crap. No, I would not think about Luc in my bed.

I would not think about that man in my bed.

My brain paid no attention. I had a flash of how he might look, lounging against the pillows on my bed, shirt open to show his muscled torso and giving me a glimpse of the dark hairs below his navel.

His eyes were hot and hungry. Oh my gods. Yes.

No! I snapped out of the trance, my cheeks burning .

Had I zoned out? Drooled? I had to get over this infatuation and be professional.

Luc was probably used to women throwing themselves at him.

I remembered the mother in the arcade, who’d momentarily forgotten her child’s existence as he walked past. Luc hadn’t even noticed.

This was just a normal day for him; another woman losing her shit at the gorgeous Alpha Shifter.

I wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction.

“Your safety is my priority. This is non-negotiable.” Luc’s voice was a deep rumble, an octave lower than before.

The sound set off the butterflies in my stomach.

Gah. Even when he was being an overbearing jerk my body responded to him.

Some part of me loved the fact that he was taking charge.

I was tired and letting Luc take control sounded like bliss.

But it was dangerous. I had to be strong.

It wasn’t real. This was a job. Just a job.

“I don’t have enough room,” I managed. “The couch is too short even for you, Sam.” I dropped my eyes to my boxed lunch and swirled the salad around with my fork, pretending that the food had my full concentration.

It didn’t. I was just pushing the food around as an avoidance tactic.

Luc’s presence in my store had left me feeling self-conscious so I’d opted for a healthy salad instead of the carb-filled options my tired brain had craved and it held zero appeal.

But the last thing I wanted to do right now was look up and maybe meet his eyes.

I had the absurd feeling that he would be able to read my mind, pluck the image straight out of my brain.

“Calypso. Stop arguing. This is for your safety. You don’t have to like it. I’d appreciate your co-operation, but it’s happening regardless.”

And now he was making me sound like a child having a tantrum. I looked up at Sam. His body language was tight and uncomfortable as he shot me a glance from pleading puppy eyes.

Fuck. All right. I got the message. I was being difficult.

I had to suck it up, for Sam’s sake. Time to change tactics.

“So, what’s the plan for the rest of the day?

I still have a lot of cleaning up to do here,” I waved my hand around, encompassing the unkempt state of my bookshop.

“Have you finished reviewing the footage so you can leave?” I tried to sound as though it was a polite question, but the way Luc raised one of his dark eyebrows said he saw straight through me. Damn.

“In a hurry for me to leave?” His voice was rich and smooth. I wanted to roll around in it. But he wasn’t for me.

In for a penny, in for a pound. I lifted my eyes to meet his. “Actually, yes,” I said, keeping my own voice as level as I could. “My shop’s small and it’s a bit crowded with all of us and your ego in here at the same time.”

Billy let out a sound that I was sure was a snort, although he tried to disguise it as a cough. Sam just stared, head swivelling to Luc like a spectator at a sport game.

Your turn, my eyes said to his.

I don’t think any of us expected the laugh that burst out of Luc.

He flung his head back, baring his tanned neck as he guffawed.

Rich and deep, the sound rolled over me like a tsunami, sending my stomach into a flutter.

I just sat there like an idiot and watched him laugh, lapping up the sensation of his happiness.

It had an almost physical presence, like the sun coming out from behind the clouds.

I didn’t want it to stop. He wiped his eyes and turned toward me.

His smile was devastating and I caught my breath.

If I’d not been sitting down, I might have staggered.

I’d thought he was gorgeous before, when he was dark and intense, but that was nothing compared to him now.

Laugh lines crinkled around the corner of his eyes, softening the hard planes of his face, making him look years younger.

And his eyes glowed. Literally. They were lit like blue lanterns from within. This was his inner Shifter.

Wow. I had to physically stop myself from leaning closer to him.

Sam cleared his throat. “Boss,” he said, in a cautionary tone.

Luc blinked and the blue fire was gone. So was the smile. “In that case, Ms Ferrera,” he said, voice brusque, “Billy and I will be on our way. Sam will stay with you until late tonight. I’ll leave you the car, Sam. I’ll be in contact if I have any new information for you.”

Elegantly, he unfolded himself from the seat, rising to his full height. I stood too, not wanting him to loom over me. Between us, taken by surprise, Billy and Sam each scrambled to their feet, juggling empty lunch cartons and disposable coffee cups.

A few moments later he was gone. The shop suddenly seemed very empty and cold.

***

By the end of the day, I was ready to drop, but we were still nowhere near done. Harold and Marcie had both dropped by to check on me during the afternoon, and Marcie, in particular, had seemed relieved that I wasn’t alone. I flopped onto the couch.

“Sit,” I told Sam. “I’m done. I’ll finish it tomorrow.”

“Thank the gods,” he said as he slumped beside me. Pompy jumped up between us and nuzzled my hand.

“Yes, Pompy, it’s almost time for tea,” I crooned, then groaned.

“What?” asked Sam, coming alert.

“I have to go grocery shopping,” I moaned, dropping my head into my hands. “I’m so fucking tired, but I don’t have any food… not unless you count a tin of tuna.”

“Hmm,” Sam’s voice was thoughtful. “Click and collect on the way home? We could order it now.”

“I walked here. I don’t usually bring the car.”

“Boss man left us a car,” he said. “I’m trained in defensive driving.”

‘What if the danger Elie sensed is because I’m going to be in a car with you? Maybe we’ll be in a car crash.”

Since Electra’s pre-cog manifested, we had figured out a few things about how it worked.

One was that she couldn’t tell what was going to happen.

The second was that if you made a decision to take a certain action that made the danger more likely, she’d feel it.

The third was that you could sometimes improve your chances and reduce or even avoid whatever Electra had sensed.

“Has Electra called back to say the feeling’s getting worse?

” Smart ass. He knew she hadn’t. He smirked at my expression.

“Then it’s not likely to be that, or she’d be on the phone right now.

Let me look after you.” That sounded good.

Honestly, I couldn’t remember the last time someone had offered to take care of me.

Sam could see me weakening. “It’s much more likely that it’s connected to this break-in.

We’re probably improving your odds by travelling in my car.

What if the intruder knows you walk home and is waiting for you on your route home? ”

The thought sent shivers up my spine. I hadn’t thought of that. I hadn’t really thought ahead at all. I still didn’t understand any of this. My shop, my haven, had been invaded and I had no idea why. To add to that, my sister thought I was in danger and she’d never been wrong before.

Sam was right. I needed to be smart. “All right. Let’s order that food and go home.”