Page 117 of Dragon Charmed

“What about him?” Tessa sat back.

Lina chuckled. “You just put on your model face. You can’t hide the truth from me. You have feelings for him. And the way he was watching you, the feelings are mutual.”

Where did she even begin? “It’s complicated.”

“Because he’s a dragon?”

Tessa shot to her feet. “Seriously! How do you know that?”

“Well, it wasn’t that difficult. I told you I sensed powers at the house. Since you all confirmed it wasn’t a coven, dragons made the most sense.”

Tessa’s head hurt. “Of course it did.”

“There goes that attitude.”

She took a breath. “Mom. Can you please tell me what you know about witches?”

Lina patted the seat, and Tessa plopped down again onto the couch. Her legs weren’t all that stable at this point anyway. How many revelations were too much for one person to handle? At the rate things were going, she was going to lock herself in the closet and not come out again.

“I don’t know much about being a witch. Your grandmother could cast some spells, but nothing that made her by any means powerful. In the past witches came into their powers early, which is why she tested me when I was so young. She did tell me that powers were fading with each generation. And she was bitter about it, as was her mother before her. I asked her once why magic was dying, and she said it was because of dragons. That they were evil and our sworn enemies.”

“So you understand why it’s complicated?”

“Not really. You obviously care for one another. What does an old vendetta have to do with anything?”

Another deep breath. “Because witches are still trying to destroy dragons, and now the dragons are preparing to fight back if they have to.”

“And that’s why we left so quickly? Because they threw us out?”

Tessa shook her head. “No. They wouldn’t do that. But other dragons in their clan might.”

“So you left because someone might have a problem with you being a witch? Even though you didn’t know you were a witch until yesterday?”

Okay, listening to her say it that way made it sound silly. “I don’t want Adam or anyone else to have to defend me being there.”

Lina tilted her head again and gave her the laser-eye, I-can-read-your-mind mom look. “Isn’t that their decision to make? They all seemed like kind people, except maybe that grump security chief, Marcus.”

Tessa stood up again and started to pace. “It was a lot to take in, okay. I mean, I’m a witch! And I need to understand what it means.”

“I get that, sweetheart. I wish I could tell you more about the history of witches, but I can’t. And your grandmother didn’t pass anything to me to help you learn about it either. I can’t think of anyone who would be able to tell you more about it.”

Tessa stopped pacing. “No. But I think I can. Are you okay with me going out for a bit?”

“Of course. I can entertain myself.”

Tessa kissed her mom on the head and grabbed her bag and phone. Forty minutes later she pulled down the dusty drive and parked in front of the cabin. Before she could even take a step toward the house, the door opened and John walked out onto the porch, wiping his hands on a dish towel. “Why do you keep showing up unannounced?”

“Because you would probably hide if I told you I was coming.”

“True. Why are you here?”

She took a step closer, hoping he wouldn’t shut her down. “I need you to tell me about witches.”

John frowned. “Why?”

“Because I just found out I am one.”

John’s eyes widened. “The hits just keep on coming.”