Eliza Gayle Witch Bundle (paranormal romance), Eliza Gayle [books suggested by bill gates txt] 📗

She frantically glanced around the yard, searching for somewhere to throw it. Not the garage—her bike still stood in there and it was still their only transportation out of here. Peering down the drive, she saw only an empty street, a few cars, and some small townhomes. Nothing she wanted to destroy. But time was running out and her bindings were wearing thin. She turned back towards the house. It was already partially engulfed in flames, it was her only choice.

Gathering her strength and focus once again, she flung it high and wide. Aimed straight at the house, the ball of fire connected with the roof above the kitchen, exploding on contact. She thought briefly of the scarred wooden table in the kitchen. A table four surly boys had eaten and likely fought at as they’d grown up together. An important piece of their history, and she had just destroyed it. With a heavy sigh she once again remembered why she couldn't be permitted to live in the normal world. No matter her intentions, bad things always happened when she was involved. The smart thing would be to turn back or find a place to hide—alone.

With heavy shoulders to accompany a heavy heart, she swung back around to the garage. Cash was on his knees trying to revive the pretty girl on the ground. Her face was pale with death. Selene could see the streaks on her neck where she had clawed herself in an attempt to get some air in her lungs. Cash's power, whatever it was, had stolen the air right out of her body. A cold shiver snaked down her spine at the thought. She was in over her head with this one.

Cash looked up at her, his eyes cold and distant. “She's breathing, I think she is going to be fine.” He looked at the house and then back to the garage. “There's a small apartment attached to the back of the garage, we can take her in there. I imagine the fire trucks will be here any minute for the house. It would be bad for her to be seen.” As if on cue the faint sound of the shrill fire truck sirens carried in on the wind.

Cash lifted the fallen attacker into his arms with little effort and headed toward the back. Selene saw his hand move but didn't see him reach for a key or the door, but a hidden door slid open and he walked through the doorway, careful not to hurt the woman in his arms. She stepped over the threshold behind him into a surprisingly lush apartment. She'd gathered he came from a wealthy family from the inside of the townhouse, but the décor in here took things to a new level.

What did I say before about the rabbit hole?

From old money antiquities and charm to modern art deco was a huge contrast. Now this looked more like the bachelor pad she would have expected. With leather sofas and recliners placed strategically around a bank of flat screen televisions hanging on the wall, it looked like every man's wet dream. She tried to imagine Cash sitting in here watching the big game with his brothers. Hmmm. Maybe…

He struck her as more of a boxing kind of man versus your typical football and basketball aficionado.

Behind the leather seating area was a small but efficient kitchen area decked out in small, apartment-sized stainless steel appliances and grey marble countertops. The cleanliness surprised her. The kitchen was spotless as if it was rarely used. Cash disappeared through an adjoining door she presumed would be the bedroom.

What the hell were they going to do now? With a heavy sigh, Selene followed him into the bedroom.

“Cash what are—” The sight of him tying the dark haired woman's wrists to eyebolts over the lake-sized bed stopped her cold. He'd laid her out on the bed, even covering her with a thin blanket. “Is that really necessary?”

“What do you think? She wasn’t here to invite us to tea.”

“Yeah, I guess you're right.” She walked closer to peer into the woman's face, trying to not think about the fact that there were hooks in the wall above this bed. Whose room was this? Cash's? Her sex clenched at the idea. He'd struck her as a bit dominating during sex but she hadn't even considered this. “Who is she?”

He lifted her unconscious arm, flipping it over to reveal a small black tattooed symbol on the inside of her wrist. “Do you recognize this?”

"No, what is it?

“Coven marking. One I'm very familiar with. It seems our unwelcome guest was after me, not you.”

“I-I don't understand. Did you say a coven? As in a Wiccan coven?”

“Uhh, sort of. It's a long story.”

Selene sank down into the chair next to the bed. “I think we've got time. Unless I’m mistaken, and this isn't a secure hiding place. Considering all outside noise ceased the minute the hidden door closed behind us, I take it we’re not likely to be found in here.”

“Smart girl. Observant, too. I'm very impressed.”

Her expression didn't change. She sat staring at him, waiting. Inside she might be trembling but he would never see it. Outside she was cold, calm, and collected. It was what she’d been trained to be. “Not in here. Let's go to the other room to talk, there's no telling when she’ll wake up.”

Selene rose, following Cash to the living room. She watched him sit on the leather sofa, draping his muscled torso and arms along the back while stretching his long legs in front of him onto the coffee table. His hands threaded through his wavy locks, a resigned gesture. His body vibrated with gentle waves of power but his eyes expressed fatigue. Watching him try to relax, she longed for something she hadn't dared for in a very long time.

A life.

Swallowing a sigh, she shook herself from her fantasies. Having a normal life was out of the question