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

“Raven, are you okay? Are you hurt?”

Denn’s was so close that she could feel the heat of his breath on her skin. His magick reached out for hers, threading around her and entwining with her own power. “Stop, Denn. I’m fine. Those bastards were rough but I’m okay. You need to give me some space.”

“What’s wrong? Denn, is she hurt?” Jake asked from the driver's seat.

Denn settled back on his seat. “She’s fine. She just needs a minute to catch her breath. We can bandage her up as soon as we get home. Although, if she had thought about what the hell she was doing, we wouldn’t be in this situation.”

Unwilling to rise to the bait she didn’t make a move or a sound until he started rustling around the small space. She cracked open an eye, looking to see what he was up to. When he flipped open his phone she wondered who the hell he needed to call in the middle of all this.

“Charlie, our ETA is ten minutes, be ready.”

Denn closed his phone and eased his head back against the seat, his anger simmering just below the surface. There was so much to process and not enough time to do it. Once back at the house he suspected all hell would be breaking loose. Between the magickal reinforcements he had called in to the fact that both Jake and Raven had some seriously explaining to do…

The acid in his stomach churned. He looked into the rearview mirror and caught Jake watching him. Fear shone there. Definitely not a good sign.

When the magick that had been used against his allowed Raven to escape the house, he’d been powerless to stop her from leaving. Not a good feeling when he knew there’d be people after her. But when Jake had come to him confessing to know how to find her, he’d had that “Oh shit, here it comes” feeling. When he demanded to know the details of Jake’s unusual, he’d only gotten a “We don’t have time to get into this right now, you have to trust me” answer.

Now he had half a mind to drop them both off at the corner and walk away. Lies and secrets were not his way, and the two of them needed to learn that lesson and learn it right now. Not that he could really turn his back on them and allow Scott to do his worst. He’d seen some of his uncle’s worst and it still gave him nightmares sometimes. The man had a knack for torture if that’s what it took to get what he wanted. No… He glanced first at Raven and then at Jake. His two errant lovers first had some explaining to do before he could decide on a fitting punishment. If he survived the news.

Chapter Seven

Exhausted, Denn walked into his living room to find Raven huddled on one corner of the couch, looking down with her knees tucked under her chin. Jake stood at the window watching the storm rage outside. Denn wondered how much of this storm had to do with Raven and her dark mood. Even in her injured state she’d helped the team replace the wards on the house, making the protection even stronger than before. Whatever had gotten through before wouldn’t have it so easy next time. And Denn knew in his gut that there would be a next time, and probably sooner than he’d like. In the meantime, he wanted answers.

“The two of you can’t keep hiding from me. It’s past time to tell me what is going on here.” He walked into the center of the room and waited. “Jake? Are you going to tell me how you knew how to find Raven as soon as she disappeared?”

Raven’s head shot up, looking first at Jake and then settling on Denn.

“What are you talking about?” She stood and walked to the window. “You knew where to find me? But that’s not possible, I wasn’t followed at all, unless… No!” Her eyes widened. “There is only one other way.”

On a long sigh, Jake turned his back on the window, straightening his shoulders and looking Denn straight in the eye. “I work for Scott Cunningham. Have for months now.”

The silence in the room was deafening as Denn processed not only what Jake said but what it meant. Fury coursed through him as his magick rose and fell with his attempts to control his anger. Surprisingly there was a lot of power left over from the casting he’d done earlier. Tired of always holding back and doing the right thing, he unleashed it.

Fuck it.

The glass vase on the mantel flew across the room, crashing against the wall next to him, and wind blew through the room. Energy crackled along his skin, raising the fine hairs on his body as he recited a familiar chant.

“Denn, stop, if you hurt him we won't get any answers. I work for Scott too and that didn’t stop you from fucking me.” The anger he saw in her eyes only fueled his emotions.

“As if you’re any better.” He turned on her, transferring some of his rage her way. “You high-tailed it out of here as soon as you got your magick back. Do you have a death wish or are you just stupid?” Raven’s mouth dropped in surprise, and she took a step back from Denn and his trembling magick. He already regretted attacking her like that, but damn, he was surrounded by betrayal and these two were directly responsible.

“Denn, will you listen to me? I can’t take back what I’ve done, but I can at least tell you why and then I’ll leave. You deserve that much.” He looked into Jake’s eyes and saw pain and anguish there. Jake looked how he felt. He turned away from them both, reigning in his power once again and taking a few minutes to regain control. He really didn’t want to listen, didn’t