12

“I’m sorry I didn’t get to finish giving instructions for you and Spike,” I muttered to Kelton about twenty minutes later as I sipped my hot tea.

“He got the gist and promised me he had it,” he replied. “I can feel it. Thank you for what you did. I’m so sorry it hurt you, Bev.”

I shrugged. “Live and learn. It didn’t feel taxing until it was too much. I didn’t realize I used a lot of magic to do that since I’ve just done it sporadically and not for years.”

“Plus, you don’t have a familiar to warn you when you’re getting too close to the edge,” Wyatt added, giving me a curious look. “Will you take one now that you’re away from your parents?”

“No.” I didn’t even have to think about it, but I knew my answer would shock them all besides Tracey, and sure enough they all looked at me like I was nuts. I shrugged. “Most of what I can do is because I don’t have one. How can I ever piggyback on your bond with Quinn and read it if I have a bond with a familiar clouding my every move? How could I help as many as I do with my products—”

“If you have a familiar that will want all of that attention and distracts you,” Tracey said for me. “It’s shocking because few witches would be that selfless. Yes, we turned it into a business, but all you’ve ever wanted to do was help ever since you were a wee little thing. Henry said the moment you realized what you could do you kept trying to make things from nature for familiars and it almost got you caught.”

I winced. “Several times. I thought my family might love me and not try to sacrifice me to give my power to Alex if their familiars loved me. Grandfather didn’t know about the sacrificing, but that I knew they would take my power.”

“There aren’t any ways to take power other than sacrificing, foxy,” Sergey said gently. “I told you that before, so I think you’re missing something—”

“He knew,” I whispered in horror. “I never told him, but if that’s the only way, he knew if they would sacrifice me for Alex, the child he lost wasn’t an accident.” Tears fell when several people nodded. “I never wanted him to have that burden. I’m such an idiot that I didn’t—”

“Bev, Henry was really powerful,” Tracey said gently as she moved in front of me and squatted down. “ Really powerful.”

My eyes went wide as her meaning sunk in. “He would never be part of sacrificing or—”

“No, not ever. That wasn’t what I meant,” she clarified, giving me a moment to calm down. “He would have noticed if he left on a trip and his son was at one power level and then suddenly it significantly jumped when he got back and his other child had an ‘accident.’ That wouldn’t have gotten past Henry no matter their stories and lies. He knew the monster he mated.”

I nodded but then frowned. “I don’t get… I’m missing more, aren’t I?”

“Yes, and he told me this himself, so I know he knew your grandmother is the devil,” she said gently. “Henry mated into the Shaw family. The heirs are always the eldest males. How was your grand mother the one who had the main family for your father to be heir?”

I opened my mouth but then closed it. I blinked at her a few times and then shrugged. “I don’t know actually. All that family history stuff was only for the real family, not the defective, useless, ugly brat who came last and messed everything up.”

“Is that—who spoke of you like that?” Mrs. Rose asked in horror.

“My whole family and most of the staff which is why they bullied me because my family didn’t love me and mostly didn’t care what others did to me,” I admitted. My exhausted brain finally caught up to what Tracey was implying. “She took out her own brother? Or more than one?”

“Two,” Tracey confirmed. “She had two brothers and two sisters, but she was the eldest female, so only the males were threats, and she took them out. Henry was already mated to her when one of them died and she could take over. He knew the truth, and she bragged about it to him as he could never betray her as her mate. He knew the monsters of that family more than you did.”

“She killed two siblings and her own child for power,” I mumbled, feeling cold down to my soul. “She’s never going to let me go. None of them will.” I looked up and met Kelton’s gaze. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry, but I won’t let—”

“Don’t, don’t say it,” he whispered. “Bev, not like this and not because you’re scared. I really like you and I’m not a coward. I’ll listen to you and stay off the radar, but even as your friend I could be someone they use against you, and I won’t let those fuckers win and keep you all alone.”

“And it’s not a choice you should make for him,” Mrs. Rose chastised gently. “He’s a grown man who can make the right choices for himself. He’s a man of taste as you’re clearly someone special, Bevin. You want to help people and do good with your power. That’s someone who should be protected, not abandoned.”

“I agree, and this is the time you let the adults be adults and step in to help you,” Nina added. “But we still have matters to discuss. You want to do brushes? Why is this a discussion I’m needed on?”

“Right, first, do you have the energy to choose?” Tracey asked as she stood. She patted my hand and picked up something on the other side of the table on the terrace. We’d come back to the house after they’d healed me so they could baby and tend to me better. She set two bags on the table and I hurried to dive in, totally excited we were to this point. “Wait, it’s her process.”

“Just be careful,” Wyatt warned even as he sat across from me to watch.

I went through several of the wood-handled brush options, ruling out all but two fast. I sighed when I couldn’t choose between the two. “I need to recharge before I can decide.”

“Interesting that they both have leather straps,” Tracey muttered. “I wouldn’t have figured that, and I almost ruled them out.”

“No, that’s important to transfer energy from the witch or warlock into their familiar. It’s like the brush has to have some of their hair. I need to do something to the leather and the wood. That’s all I can tell right now.”

“Something to the wood?” Nina pushed.

I shrugged. “I think stain it. I infuse my magic in materials when I work with them. That’s what makes the toys. I think this will be the same. Maybe paint the leather and different colors are for different animal types.” I knew I was right the moment I said it. It clicked with me, and I nodded to Tracey to let her know that was part of the answer.

“And on that note, we’d like to offer you a position as Sergey says you’re an excellent woodworker with vast experience,” Tracey took over, always on point with business. “Brushes for familiars won’t be as interesting as custom banisters, but we’re also not rat bastards, and we pay our employees well.”

“I cannot. Sergey’s schooling is paid for as part of—”

“They wouldn’t verify you for single mother financial aid since they were keeping you beholden to them with that money. We will, and you’d be more than able to afford the rest with what we’re offering,” Tracey promised as Jasmine handed Nina a folder. “Plus, a relocation fee, and we’re willing to help you get a house with a workshop and your own equipment you’ll need if you sign a five-year contract.”

Her eyes were bug wide as she accepted the folder and looked inside the contents. “Why? Why would you do this for brushes? Anyone can make brushes.”

“Handcrafted and special order isn’t what just anyone can do and needs a manager-type position to manage all of that, and we’ll have you get them to customers as well. It will be your department,” Tracey explained. “But mostly because you were there for Bev when you thought she had no one and had nothing at her back. You were willing to extend the hand to help a witch in a bad spot. We’re offering you the same, Nina.”

“Oh, Mama,” Sergey whispered as he went over to her when she started silently crying. He hugged the woman who was about the same size as him which amused me. He’d grown enough where they could take care of each other, not her only helping him, and for some reason, seeing it like that was beautiful.

Not to say it wouldn’t have been if she was a shorter woman, but the symmetry was perfect for the moment.

“How long until you start this spa and you’re hiring?” Rita asked Tracey quietly.

“Ma!” Kevin and Kelton exclaimed at the same time, but Kevin went on. “You don’t even know the full details of the job and you have years in at your place and management—”

“And I clean up after assholes,” she huffed. “Most of our clients are assholes and the owners let them be. I kept a lot of that from you both so you didn’t worry, but this is a chance for me to reach my dream of being a healer, something I’ve always wanted , and spending five years to help familiars to get it is time wonderfully spent.”

Tracey shrugged. “A couple of weeks? We can start finding properties for Bev to get the feeling of today. We don’t need the full operation going to open.”

“That’s true,” I muttered as we shared a look, including Jasmine in it which was nice since we never did Ramon. “We want the High Council to invest, so start with their people, and that’s a nice group to get feedback from as well. Depending on how good of a property we find, it could take me at least six months before it was used for harvesting, but the rest we can build up as we go.”

“Not as risky of an investment if you’re reinvesting in the project in stages,” Jasmine agreed. “That’s smart business.”

“ Memberships ,” Winter coughed. He smiled when we all looked at him. “Sell memberships that discount the packages, one a month, but you have guaranteed income and they get access to something else. People love to save money and brag they’re special. Do only so many to start, and with your current client list, I bet you’d sell them in a day.”

Tracey eyed him over. “Keep him. Seriously, keep the one who doesn’t have family that can be used against him and comes up with the good ideas.” She didn’t even flinch at how harsh that was. “Do you have plans for after graduation?”

He chuckled. “I told little sexy that the place she was thinking of would be my dream job. I’m a manager now for Student Union Delivery, so I come with experience.”

“Keep him,” Tracey and Jasmine said together.

I expected that from Tracey, but I shot Jasmine a surprised look.

She simply shrugged. “It’s tough to get the gig to be the manager for a university at that company. I couldn’t get it when I went to Morrigan and I busted my ass.”

Winter winced. “From what I heard, that was sexism and some well-timed rumors you were sleeping with customers.”

She frowned at him. “We’ve met?”

“No, well, probably in passing as I started working freshman year and you were still there, but I only heard rumors about what they did to a Jasmine who wanted to be manager. That can’t be someone else.”

“No, I was the only one and yeah, they were sexist.” She blew out a harsh breath. “Aren’t all the companies in our world?”

I snorted. “Not mine. Women rule in mine.” I might have said more, but I was plucked out of my chair and spun around. Soft lips mashed to mine as Sergey’s arm slid under my butt to hold me to him. He kissed me in a way that was not suitable for an audience and especially in front of Kelton’s family. I ducked him when I realized that and tried to hide. “Um, huh?”

“Thank you, foxy,” he murmured against my hair. “Thank you for setting us free.”

“I didn’t do it.” I shook my head when he snorted. “I’m not involved with employees and salaries. I just told Tracey we knew a woodworker and I wanted to do brushes. The rest was her and your mom.”

“Fine, I’ll kiss Tracey then and—”

“I would lay you out if you even tried, little boy,” Tracey drawled.

She would too, which was why I laughed so much harder than everyone else there. They thought she was merely being funny, but I’d seen her lay someone out who got handsy with her.

Our society might be ridiculously sexist, but she always said that didn’t mean she had to accept it and wouldn’t. Amen, Sister.

I sighed when we all calmed down, Sergey rubbing my back as if asking what was wrong. “I keep missing my runs and my long runs. I won’t be able to run from anyone if I don’t keep up with that. I was looking forward to a long run here with Woodchuck, Loki, and Quinn. Maybe Bubba now that he sorta likes me.”

“Loki would run circles around you,” Link chuckled. “He does me.”

I smirked at him. “And you’re the standard? He’ll beat me on speed, but I grew up around horses, and most don’t want to run thirty miles with me on my long runs. They get tired and bored if not trained for that.”

His eyes flashed shock. “He’d love someone to run that long with, but most pretty horses for top-tier families aren’t run like that. They’re spoiled and beautiful but never risked running around real terrain where they could break an ankle.”

“Yes, exactly that,” I drawled. The horses my family owned were stuck up, lazy prisses that annoyed me. Even their horses were full of themselves like the family and staff. Geez. I glanced over at Wyatt. “We could start coming Wednesday after classes. Quinn hates how lazy you are.”

His jaw fell open and it was hard to not burst out laughing. “I am not lazy . I hit the gym three or four times a week, but it wasn’t easy getting to professor level at my age. I worked my ass off at—”

“Familiars don’t understand all the nuances of stuff, simply you sit on your ass too much to him.”

“Fair enough,” he accepted, but there was promised retribution in his eyes.

Yeah, yeah, he’d probably spank me. I bit back a shiver. I hated that I liked it so much and wanted more of him after he’d been a dick. One who had apologized and was behaving at the moment, but… There were still issues to address for sure.

Sergey snuck another kiss and then sat me back down when his mom called him over. Nina accepted and the others were talking about expansion ideas while I drifted off.

I didn’t realize I had until I woke snuggled on Kelton’s lap. I blinked up at him as if asking what happened.

“You zonked out in your seat and started falling out of it,” he explained. “I caught you before you cracked your head open on the terrace, so I got to keep you on my lap.”

“Thanks. I didn’t realize I was even fading.”

Tracey snorted. “That was obvious from the way your head thunked against the table and you started to drop off the chair. You feeling better?”

“A bit. So one a day until I get my sea legs. I can work from there?”

“Yes, that would be best, and you need a stronger, more consistent influx of magic with as much work as you’re doing,” Wyatt added.

“You need more fuel and then I think a nap,” Kelton murmured against my hair. “You have leftovers in your fridge, right?”

“Yeah, really nummy Chinese food. Perfect. Sorry to cut this all short.”

“Nonsense,” Jasmine replied. “We’re going to stay a bit longer and let our familiars enjoy the land as you wanted. I’m having the first relaxing Sunday in… I can’t even remember.”

Several people snorted as if saying the same, so at least I didn’t bomb that part.

“Stay with your family and let your familiar run,” Wyatt told Kelton as he took me from the other man. “I can sneak her into her room and get her settled. I’ll be back after and take you all to school with your familiars.”

I didn’t argue, so that was what we did. He reheated food and diligently tended to me before I passed out in bed again. The last thing I saw was his concerned eyes as he pushed my hair off my forehead.

Maybe he really did care and I wasn’t an easy fuck for him.

Maybe he didn’t know how to show me more.

Wasn’t that something most of us struggled with? I knew I did with my messed-up background.