Page 46 of The Bookseller and the Alpha (Witch Twins #1)

Calypso

“What’s this?” Luc’s voice was muffled as he wriggled back out from under the bed.

The motion showcased his tight ass and I licked my lips, suddenly hot.

No more orgasms. Remember . I dragged my eyes off his ass, turning to Pompy, who was wiggling her cute little body in joy, wanting to be let down from the bed to greet her new favourite person.

I let her down and she jumped onto Luc, who handed me the shoe box.

He sat on the floor, cuddling Pompy in one arm as if she was a baby.

Her little bulldog eyes were half closed in bliss.

Picking up something from his lap, he waved it at me.

“Did you lose a book? It was jammed in the corner and the shoebox was snagged on it.”

“Let me see.” I took the book from his outstretched hand, avoiding touching his fingers.

Plain cover. I flicked it open to see pages and pages of densely handwritten text.

Completely meaningless jumbles of letters.

My breath caught. “I remember this.” I looked at Luc.

“This came in the crate of books that arrived in my shop before the break-in. I took it home to see if I could make any sense out of it.”

“And?”

“And nothing. I think I fell asleep looking at it and when I woke up to the phone the next morning I forgot about it. Must have fallen under the bed.”

Luc’s eyes sharpened with interest and I handed the book back to him. He flipped through the pages. Pompy snored gently in his arms. “It’s all like this?”

I nodded. “I figured out that it’s a code. I think I understand how it could be reversed but I don’t have the power or the training to do it.”

“Me neither.” Luc’s brown eyes, showing that the man was in control rather than the beast, met mine. “But I know someone who can help.”

That was good. Luc would follow up inquiries about the book.

I would go to the shop. I would tell him firmly that I was going.

Even better, I could dive into my texts on Shifter behaviour.

And while I was there, away from the temptation he presented, maybe I could talk myself out of the bad decisions that would likely follow when I was alone with him at night. Hormonal Caly sighed with regret.

“I would like to apologise,” Luc said, his voice low. “I didn’t mean to imply that your business is unimportant. I understand what it represents to you.”

Okay. That was a promising start. “I need to open the store.”

“Is there anyone else who can do it instead?”

“I want to do it.” I was going to dig in my heels. I needed some time apart and he needed to respect my priorities.

“I understand, sweetheart.” Somehow one of my hands was now held in Luc’s bigger one and his thumb was rubbing gentle circles on my skin.

My eyes wanted to close, just like Pompy’s.

Dammit. It was insane how a simple touch from him affected me.

Luc continued speaking and I forced myself to listen.

“I know that your business is important and I apologise if I made it sound as if I didn’t care.

I’m fucking proud of you, baby. But I’m fighting my instincts to lock you away in the Palace to keep you safe until the threat passes.

Someone used magic to get into your shop.

You were injured while you were under my protection. ”

“That wasn’t your fault.” I didn’t want him to feel guilty about that.

I sensed Luc shaking his head. “I should have put two guards on you from the beginning. It was my fault. I haven’t been able to function properly apart. I need you by my side.” His voice dropped and he nuzzled my cheek. “The mating pull is making me a little crazy.”

Wow. That was a good apology. I swallowed, feeling my pulse flutter in my neck. It was hard to hold onto my anger when he put it that way. I did have someone I could ask. Rachel usually worked for me on Saturdays, but I knew she was always happy to take on extra work.

I shifted to the floor beside him. Luc turned his head to me and I looked at him.

Really looked. I saw his clenched jaw. His tight shoulders.

The narrowing of his eyes. Vulnerability.

Worry. This was important to him. I was important to him.

I squeezed the hand that still held mine.

He responded by lifting our joined hands, wrapping his arm behind my neck and tucking me in against his side.

His scent, dark and delicious, filled my lungs.

He smelled like all my dreams come true.

Tucked in against his body, I fitted against him perfectly.

Like a puzzle piece slotted into place. And I realised that if I was his mate, or at least if he thought I was his mate, I had to review our argument from his perspective.

I was human. Luc wasn’t. Luc was a Shifter, an Alpha Shifter, who thought he’d found his fated mate.

He had Declared his Intent, but we wouldn’t be mated unless I said yes.

By old Shifter tradition this was a period of courtship, where a Shifter would show his intended that he would make a good mate.

He would pursue me, woo me and protect me.

Even in a normal courting, where the intended mate wasn’t being threatened, Alpha Shifters were particularly aggressive and on-edge during the early phase of the courting period.

The Alpha used the courting period to show his intended that he would be a caring mate and a good provider.

And an even better lover. A potential mate could refuse their Intended if they didn’t satisfy their needs.

Which meant that an Alpha’s hormone levels were through the roof in the courting phase.

And that, in turn, meant their sex drive was stronger and they were extra aggressive until they had the certainty provided by a bond.

Or until their Intended had rejected them.

Until then, Luc would be on edge that I might say no, or that I could be stolen by an Alpha with a competing claim.

He was naturally going to be aggressive, sexually demanding, and insanely protective.

To the point of paranoia. There would be no harmless flirting with my favourite barista unless I wanted Luc to rip their arms off.

And nothing I could say would change his mind.

Taking another deep breath, I let go of my anger.

He had apologised and explained. He had said he was proud of me.

His eyes had been sincere when he’d said it.

It was important to me that he’d said that.

Even if this… thing… between us didn’t work out, I’d remember his words for the rest of my life.

To have someone acknowledge my hard work was rare.

“Yes, I have someone who can mind the shop. What do you want us to do today?”

His arm tightened around my shoulders and he brushed a kiss against my hair.

“Thank you,” he murmured. “We’re going to visit someone who can hopefully break the spell on the journal.

” In one smooth motion, Luc stood, pulling me up with him, Pompy still held in the crook of one elbow.

“Put your boots on. I’ll ask Mrs S if she can mind Pompy.

I’ll meet you at the door in a few minutes. ”

Five minutes later, I walked through my apartment.

Luc stood just in the front doorway his eyes running up and down my body appreciatively.

My face heated. “It’s cold. You’ll need a coat,” he said.

He turned, pulling his coat off the hook by the door where he’d hung it on top of mine.

“Spin around sweetheart. I’ll help you into yours.

” I shivered. This bossiness was something I could get used to.

I swivelled, holding my arms out for him.

A heavy warm weight dropped onto my shoulders and arms. My coat didn’t feel like this.

I looked down. I saw a stunning wool coat in a vivid shade of raspberry. I stood like an idiot, staring at it.

“Do you like it?” Luc asked, his voice quiet, uncharacteristically vulnerable in the silence.

Was he kidding? Of course I liked it. I liked it so much my throat clogged with tears I didn’t want to shed.

Silently, I nodded my head. I loved it. It was the same colour as the shirt I’d worn on the day I met him.

I was touched that he’d noticed and chosen a colour he hoped I would like.

But, more importantly, he’d seen that my coat was old.

Too thin. Rather than buy me extravagant jewellery or designer dresses, his gifts for me were practical.

Thoughtful. I felt seen. Cherished. It was the most special gift anyone had ever given me.

***

Shortly afterwards I was once again in Luc’s car, sitting beside him as he drove.

I’d called Rachel and she had jumped at the chance to work.

We had stopped by the shop so that I could disarm the wards.

The journal was tucked in my purse, on my lap.

Unlike the last time I’d been in his car, I was fully conscious and aware of the intimacy in the quiet vehicle.

He had made a couple of calls to his team after we left Rachel at the store, filing them in about our discovery, and then he just drove, but the silence between us was comfortable…

safe even. There was something about just being near this man that soothed me.

I didn’t mind the silence. Didn’t feel a need to fill it.

After the stress of that last couple of days, this was like taking a deep breath.

The city traffic was heavy and Luc had to concentrate on steering the car through the crowded streets and out to the city fringe.

But from time to time, he would reach out to squeeze my fingers.

Almost as though he was reassuring himself that I was still there.

Or was he reassuring me that everything would be all right? I had no idea.