Page 23 of The Fang Arrangement (Celestial Witches #2)

I only started dreaming when Ember joined my bed. Of course, her presence in my bed isn’t in the capacity I wish it was. But as an eternal being, I have limitless patience with the witch who’s fated to be mine.

Right now, my dream is a delectable sense of delirium. The scent of her blood is faint, nearly nonexistent, but just enough for my mouth to water. My tongue burns with the need to taste her, claim her, show her that she belongs to me.

In my sleep I reach for her, and she’s nowhere to be found. Is she safe? She has to be safe in this room. In my room. But what if she isn’t?

The lack of blood is making me slow, it’s hard to wake from my sleep, but I persevere, groaning as I rise from the bed and blink at my surroundings.

“You’re awake,” her melodic voice says and I can’t help the grin that takes over my face. My sweet Ember is safe, and that’s all that matters.

“Did you miss our foreplay-like-banter all day long, sunshine?” I ask her.

The raccoon makes a snorting noise and Ember rolls her eyes.

“More like I was bored to death. I can’t stay in this room forever,” she says.

“No, unfortunately, you are far too bright to hide from the world forever. Hopefully we find the Slayer tonight and the merry band of the undead will fuck off out of my house.”

“Then what, Warin?”

She asked me the same question last night, my answer is the same, but I know she doesn’t want to hear it.

Her tone is deeply suspicious, and I tilt my head and assess her. She’s had access to my quarters all day. What did the little witch find that has her on edge?

“Whatever you wish. Despite what you may think, I’m not your captor.”

Her fist is under her chin as she blinks at me like I’m an idiot, before rolling her eyes. All I can do is smile at her as I lean back on the pillows.

“Are you still upset?” I ask.

Wrong fucking thing to stay.

She stands, her hands on her hips as she laughs sardonically.

“Am I still upset? Which part, Warin? Am I upset that you tricked me into this arrangement, for reasons I don’t understand? Or am I upset that I’m potentially being hunted by a vampire slayer? Oh! Or maybe it’s the fact that I am, in fact, a prisoner in your house filled with vampires.”

“Did Samantha give you the items you need for your condition? Is that what this is about?”

Again, the wrong fucking thing to say. Before I can even read her expression, her wand is out and items start flying right at my face.

I catch two books, before a metal globe hits me square in the fucking nose, breaking it, as blood gushes down my face.

“Fuck,” I hiss, grabbing a pillow and placing it on my face.

“Oh, Hecate, I thought you’d catch everything,” Ember says, coming to sit next to me on the bed.

It doesn’t hurt, I can feel the cartilage and bone piecing back together, the loss of blood is an issue, but she doesn’t need to know that.

She pulls the pillow back, glancing at the blood and swallowing thickly.

“Sorry,” she whispers, holding my chin, and inspecting the wound. Her eyes are glassy and there’s clear guilt on her face.

“I’m old enough to know the mention of a woman’s period isn’t something you bring up,” I reply, taking the blame. I shouldn’t bait her when she’s already upset.

“Regardless, I didn’t mean to hurt you,” she says, her wand out and ready to heal my nose.

I place my hand over hers.

“No need. It’s already healed.”

She doesn’t pull her hand away from me immediately, and I consider that progress.

“I’m not one to sit idle. I need to get out of this room, out of this house. I can’t miss the full moon.”

“I will make it happen. Whether we find the Slayer tonight or not, I promise you that you will not be trapped in here forever.”

She looks skeptical, and I take a risk, touching her warm hand again, rubbing my thumb against her smooth soft skin.

“I promise, Ember. The last thing I want is for you to be displeased with me.”

She looks at me curiously and sighs.

I stand, letting the sheets fall away from me. I’m slightly lightheaded, but ignore the feeling as I grab my shirt from the waist and tug it over my head.

“What are you doing?” she says in a choked voice, though she doesn’t look away from my shirtless chest.

At least I know the witch is attracted to me; I don’t think she would have been able to fake the night before if she wasn’t.

“Showering. Would you like to join me?” I ask with a smile.

“I’m not showering with you,” she says like she’s scandalized, yet, her gaze doesn’t leave my half-undressed form.

“Because of your period?”

She raises her wand again and I place my hands placatingly in the air.

“Please don’t break my nose again.”

“I won’t if you stop bringing up my condition .”

“Don’t be embarrassed, Ember. I love being edged with what I can’t have,” I tell her, turning on my heel and heading into the shower.

After my shower, I throw on some sweatpants and consider going back to the room without a shirt on. Wanting to not piss Ember off anymore than I already have, I throw a shirt on.

When I’m back in the room, she’s lying on the bed, bored, braiding a piece of her pink hair.

As an immortal being I know a thing or two about boredom.

“Is your nose okay?” she asks, and the sick part of me wants to pretend it hurts so she’ll make it all better; she clearly feels guilty. I find her temper endlessly cute.

“It’s fine, my own doing. How about some Gin Rummy before I have to go?” I ask her, grabbing the card deck out of the top drawer.

She sits up in the bed, skeptical but eager to do something other than sit around. “What are we going to bet with?” she questions and I smirk.

“What do you want if you win?”

She licks her lips, scooting on the bed, crossing her legs and I sit on the edge of the bed, shuffling the cards with speed.

“Another secret. What do you want if you win?” she asks.

I could be crass, could irritate her even more, but instead I ask for something I know she’d be willing to give. “I’d also like to know a secret.”

She squints at me, but nods. “I can do that.”

Her raccoon familiar is absolutely snooping the entire time we play, but he’s quiet, letting us play our game. When it’s my turn I grab from the discard pile and Ember curses under her breath.

“How do I know you aren’t using your vampire speed to cheat?” she asks.

“How do I know you aren’t using your magic,” I retort and she clicks her tongue.

“A promise that neither of us will cheat.” She holds out her hand and I take it in mine, squeezing her soft hand for a moment.

She looks down at where our skin touches and I rub my thumb over her skin.

“You feel it don’t you?” I ask her.

Her breath hitches and she slowly tugs her hand away from mine, looking back down at her drawn hand.

We go back and forth, running through the deck until the end of the game and we have to lie down our cards and count points.

The witch wins.

“Yes,” she hisses as we count the totals. Alright, so my witch is a little competitive, I like it.

“What secret would you like?” I ask her, hoping to fuck it’s an easy one.

I hand her the cards for her to be the dealer and she shuffles them with magic, the cards floating in the air, leafing between one another.

“What did you want to be when you grew up?”

I blink at her. I was expecting something cutthroat, like how many people have I killed, or if I have bodies buried in the backyard, or even worse, why I tricked her into this arrangement in the first place.

I don’t think she’s ready for the truth and I can’t risk losing her.

“Things were a little different when I was a boy. We didn’t dream big, you know? Becoming a part of Oz’s night crew was the first time I ever let myself think that I could be more than a farmer or a rum runner. But…”

“But what,” she asks, leaning closer, the cards now in her hands.

“But I thought airplanes were fascinating. I think if I wasn’t some poor boy from the swamps of Louisiana, I’d want to be a pilot.”

Ember smiles at me, not saying anything about my dreams as a boy as she deals the cards. She seems lighter the more that we play. I win this round, and she seems irritated from losing but waves her hand in a way to show it’s my turn to ask for a secret.

“What is the worst thing you got in trouble for while growing up?” I ask her.

Her cheeks tint and she bites her lip and shakes her head.

“I do believe a very beautiful, smart witch told me the pillar of friendship is honesty.”

She gives me a look with no heat as she bites her lip.

“This stays between us?” she asks.

“I’ll pinky swear it,” I say, holding out my pinky finger. She laughs, but wraps her pinky in mine, before huffing a breath.

“I set the town church on fire,” Ember says under her breath.

“I’m sorry, what was that?”

“I was twelve, and I didn’t do it on purpose. Iris and I spent a lot of time around town escaping our homes, her mom had just passed and my mom and grandma aren’t easy to deal with.”

“Why are your mom and grandma difficult?” I ask.

“They just don’t get me,” she says sadly, shaking her head.

“But that wasn’t the secret you won. Anyway, we went to the church at night that everyone said was haunted.

My elemental magic was pretty fickle then.

I thought I saw a ghost orb and well, fire just kind of slipped out, lighting the drapes behind the pulpit on fire,” she says with a grimace.

“Gorgeous and an arsonist, a woman after my own heart.” She shoves my shoulder and I don’t know what possesses me, but I poke her side and she immediately laughs.

“Oh no. No no no,” she says and I tickle her side more, her head is thrown back, her laugh is wild and she looks free, happy even.

Our eyes lock, and it’s almost like she can’t believe she’s having fun with me. The moment is broken with a knock on the door.

“Goon squad is ready to go, War. Hurry the fuck up,” Samantha says.

I stare down at Ember and she looks up at me, not in disgust but in curiosity.

“I should go,” I say, even though it’s the last thing I want to do.

Ember’s breaths are fast as she licks her lips, her gaze going to my mouth. Would the witch want to kiss me?

I can’t help it as I place a finger on her bottom lip rubbing the flesh.

Her soft lips part and her pupils dilate as she looks at me.

I can smell her arousal, and I’m so close to leaning down, kissing her and seeing what it feels like, when Samantha pounds on the door three more times. “Don’t keep them waiting.”

Ember shakes her head, like she’s been broken out of a spell and my hand falls.

“Right, yeah. Thanks for playing,” she says, gathering the cards acting shy.

“I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

“Just take care of the Slayer and get rid of the council,” she says, sitting next to her raccoon, who I swear is raising an eyebrow at me as I leave the room.

“How was I supposed to know you were having a moment with your witch? Soundproof, remember?” Samantha hisses at me as we wait outside.

Sebastian seems on edge, like he wants this to be over with just as badly as I do. I don’t know if the Slayer or the council is the bigger threat, but I want them both gone. What if once all the threats are to the wayside I can have more moments with Ember like I did tonight?

I crave it. The way she smiled, that she confided in me. Whatever I have to do to get more moments like that with her, I’ll do it.

“Let’s end this tonight. I need to feed and this town is dripping with other paranormals I have no interest in running into. I have no idea how you stand it, Warin,” Sebastian complains.

“Did you not smell the witch through the walls this morning? I understand wholly. Are you sure you don’t share? I’m willing to pay whatever price,” Justin says.

I roll my eyes, acting indifferent, while deep down I want to pick up the largest rock in the forest and bash Justin’s head in ten times over. Instead, I give him a glittering smile.

“I’m sure you find it very difficult to get any woman to willingly let you feed off of them.”

He snarls at me, an unmanicured finger pointed in my face. “You little?—”

His words are cut off by Joyce. “Are we sure Warin is feeding on the witch? I scented his blood this evening. What’s to say it isn’t the other way around, that the witch is using his blood.”

I roll my eyes. “Just say you’re boring in bed, Joyce.”

She scoffs, looking like she wants to fight me as Magnus rolls his eyes.

“Enough, children. Let us find the Slayer and be done with this.”

Sebastian pushes his hands in his pockets. “Samantha and I will search the main town. Magnus and Warin will search the perimeter of the home. Everyone else will have other areas to check.”

I glance at Samantha, who doesn’t seem to be put out about working with Sebastian. I don’t like it one bit, but I bite my tongue as we dash through the woods, searching for the Slayer’s scent.

Yet again, he goes undetected.