I blink back tears and hook my arm through Kristy’s. “I love you, you know that, right?”
“I do. But if you want to buy me another cake, I’ll gladly take that as reassurance of your love.”
“I’ll have to go to the Walmart in Paradise Valley so I can pretend I’m buying a cake for my one-year-old daughter again.”
Kristy laughs. “Right. You get a free smash-cake along with it. Paradise Valley isn’t far.”
“I actually haven’t been there in a while.” I sit up and wipe my eyes. Paradise Valley is one of our neighboring towns and is a bit bigger than Thorne Hill. It has a fantastic downtown and lots of good shopping and highly rated restaurants. They have their own small university and have been growing rapidly in the last few years.
It’s a good thing Lucas bought up all those acres of farmland for sale in my beloved Thorne Hill. I rest my head on Kristy’s shoulder, and we sit in silence for a while, drinking our coffee. About fifteen minutes later, Kristy sets her coffee cup down.
“Let’s go in and get some wine.” She gets to her feet and offers me a hand. I take it, and she pulls me into a hug.
“I love you, Cal. I’m here for you, no matter what.”
I blink back tears again, hating that there’s something ominous in her words. Lucas is going to be okay. She’ll be there for that.
“Wine is always good. Though cut me off early. Lucas has drank a lot of my blood, and if I’m being honest, I feel a little weak still.”
“When did you eat last?”
“I had a late breakfast. It’s still on the stove, I think.” Mimosas and the remaining biscuits and gravy sounds amazing, actually. The second the door closes behind us, Eliza speeds forward and puts one hand on my forehead and another on the back of my neck, fingers slipping down under my shirt.
“I missed you, too.” I arch my eyebrows. “What on earth are you doing?”
“Checking your temperature,” she spits out like it’s obvious. She goes over to the stove and sticks her finger in a pot of water. “This is too warm.”
“You’re boiling water?” Kristy asks.
“I need to warm up more blood for Lucas.” She opens the fridge and looks at the different bags of blood, settling on B-negative.
“I’d assume I’m a normal 98.6,” I tell her. “I’m always healthy.”
Kristy feels my forehead with the back of her hand. “Yep. You feel pretty normal to me. Temperature wise, that is.”
“Did he tell you he was hungry?” I ask, knowing Lucas didn’t ask Eliza to heat up more blood.
“No.” She purses her lips. “But he should eat.”
I hold out my hand and take the bag of blood and stick it under my shirt. “Still think me being with a vampire is fine?” I ask Kristy, who just laughs. We go back into the living room and find Tabatha packing up her magical supplies.
“I’ve enchanted this to go along with the binding spell.” Tabatha hands me a carton of eggs. “Crack one every morning and you’ll know if the binding is weakening. The weaker the binding, the stronger the curse, which will rot the yolks.”
“Thank you.” I set the eggs on the TV stand, away from where Scarlet can get them. “For everything.”
“Of course, my dear.” Tabatha brings me in for a hug, and I feel instantly comforted by her arms around me. She’s very much like my mother, having raised me since I was ten. “Evander and I must get back to the Covenstead.”
“Professor Harrison should be here around sunset,” Evander tells me. “I’ve told him to come straight here and to let me know when he’s in Thorne Hill.”
“Thank you, Evander. I know how risky it is to be here, especially with the Grand Coven in town. Have they said anything about me yet?” I internally wince.
“No.” Tabatha snaps the leather bag shut and flicks her eyes to Evander. “As you now know, the trial is over, and the Grand Coven will go back to clerical work. I’m not sure how many papers are ahead of yours, but I can’t image it will be long until they review your petition to leave the coven.”
“Callie won’t get in trouble, will she?” Lucas asks. He’s not afraid of me getting in trouble but more interested in how many people he’ll have to threaten with death—or actually kill—in order to keep me safe.
“She shouldn’t,” Tabatha goes on. “The paperwork she filled out officially renounced her ties with the coven. As far as she is concerned, she is no longer a member of the Grim Gate Coven. Joining a coven is ritualistic, even for those born to parents of the coven. But there are legalities to it as well, abiding by Witch Law.” Tabatha picks up her robe, shakes off the cat fur, and puts it on. “I wouldn’t be surprised if she is questioned to make sure she is leaving of her own free will.”