Page 15 of Wedding the Werepanther
Dead silence and a roomful of shocked expressions greet me. Then everyone begins to talk at once. “What?” “You can’t be serious!” “Married!” “OMG, what a meet cute! It’s so romantic.”
That last comes from Skye, who gets a dreamy look on her face.
“Meet cute?” I huff. “It’s not the first time we met, and being locked up together until we gave in to her demands isn’t cute!”Especially when you have issues with having your agency taken away.
“Stop being so literal.” The librarian points at me with her cupcake. “You know what I meant.”
“At least your magic is amazing,” Violeta says, bumping me with her elbow. “The tulips and pumpkins, the flying hearts, and now a sentient house!”
“Can you animate anything?” Naomi leans backward and scoops up a book to hold it out to me. “What happens if you do it to this? Will it read itself out loud?”
“I don’t know.” I take the book and set it down on a side table. “I’m not sure I wanna practice either, because once I animate something, it’salive, and that’s… kinda a responsibility, you know?” My shoulder jerks in an awkward shrug.
“Makes sense. But it’s too bad you can’t practice your magic.”
“Actually, I think I’ve been using it a lot. I bet I’ve been pumping power into Victoria for the past year. I simply didn’t realize it.” I nibble on the buttercream frosting of my cupcake, enjoying the jolt of sweetness. “The thing I need to work on isnotusing it, not making anything else alive by mistake.”
“Hey, don’t talk like that.” Hannah reaches over and gives my forearm a little shake. “Nothing you’ve done is a mistake. I don’t think Ferndale Falls would feel like home without the tulips running around the town green. And anything that can make my husband smile is a good thing.”
“Yeah, it’s not like you’re doing it tons,” Violeta says. “Just imagine how many things you touch every single day that you’renotbringing to life.”
Everyone murmurs agreement, and I’m once again pleasantly surprised by their support.
“Thanks, guys.” My anxiety fades, and I offer them a smile. “I think what I really need to focus on is finding a way to dissolve the marriage contract with Shadow.”
Naomi leans forward. “What I find interesting is that even though your type of magic made the house sentient, its magic seems like a completely different set of powers.”
“It even blocked Shadow’s access to the shadow roads.” I spread my hands. “Sure as shit not something I can do.”
“It’s not completely unprecedented,” Skye adds. “As far as I know, Kayla can’t fly, but the paper hearts do.”
“Yeah, true.”
“I can ask Severin if he knows how to break magical contracts,” Hannah says.
“I’ll do research in Luke’s library,” Skye adds. “See if I can find anything on dissolving magical contracts or dealing with sentient buildings.”
Silence falls for a bit, and Violeta glances at everyone. “Is that it? No more ideas?”
“Even if we don’t find anything, won’t the marriage contract end in a month as long as you and Shadow don’t smash?” Jasmine says with a knowing glint in her eye. “Unlessthat’sthe problem?”
I drain the last of my drink instead of answering, but my body flushes with mortification, my cheeks hot enough to set off a fire alarm.
“Look at that blush.” Violeta points at my face. “She wants him!”
“He keeps getting naked!” My hands fly up. It’s a good thing I finished my drink, or I would have tossed it all over Violeta. But I can’t help it! The gorgeous werepanther is so frustrating! “He’s been living in my house for less than twenty-four flipping hours, and he’s already been naked!”
“You say that like it’s a bad thing. Trust me, girl.” Jasmine leans forward and squeezes my knee. “I’ve seen all of Shadow, and he is one fine man.”
“Remember when he rode a unicorn down Main Street naked?” Violeta sighs. “Good times.”
Everybody nods.
“Oh, god,” I groan, balancing my cupcake and empty cup on my thighs. “Is there anyone who hasn’t seen him naked?”
They all shake their heads, and I bury my face in my hands.
“Hey, it’s okay,” Autumn says. “Shifters like Shadow and Rune don’t think of nudity as anything taboo.”
