Sassy Ever After: Kissing Sassy (Kindle Worlds Novella) (3 page)

Cajun

Olivia’s tears upset not only Cajun’s wolf, but the man too. Without giving any thought to his actions, he lifted her from the chair and sat, settling her in his lap. He hugged her against his chest, offering consolation the only way he knew how. He freed the loose knot he’d made of her hair, and proceeded to comb his fingers through the silky locks. The loose strands were cool satin against his skin, while her scent served as an aphrodisiac thickening his cock, but of course he wouldn’t act upon his desire.

Looking at his aunt over Olivia’s head, he noticed her genuine worry by the way she scrunched her features. Concern wasn’t unusual for her maternal instincts, and she mother-henned those she cared the most about.

He’d pegged Olivia as a strong woman from the get-go, figuring no one in the backstabbing industry she thrived in could be weak for even a second. She’d been tough as nails, even fought off two attackers today, but she’d succumbed to tears the moment she mentioned the bastard killing her dog. Only then had she fallen apart.

“Sorry,” Olivia said, lifting her head from his shoulder and fingering his shirt. “I got your shirt wet.”

Her tears darkened the green of her eyes, and he wiped them away with his thumbs. “It’s okay, catin.”

She stiffened. “I’m not a whore.”

“I didn’t call you one. In Cajun French and most French cultures, catin means doll or baby doll. How many languages do you know?”

“None officially. I’m self-taught.”

He elevated his eyebrows, letting the unspoken question linger between them. When she didn’t elaborate, he offered, “I’ll show you to the bathroom so you can freshen up.”

That’s when she must’ve realized she reclined on his lap with an audience because she stiffened, and her gaze shot to Aunt B. Standing with her in his arms, he reluctantly settled Olivia on her feet. He laced their fingers together, a liberty he shouldn’t be taking this soon in their fragile relationship. But she offered no protest, so he maintained his grip as he led her to the bathroom.

Aunt Barbara pounced the moment he returned to the kitchen. “She’s perfect for you, and I feel how she settles your wolf’s wildness.”

“You
were
matchmaking when you sent her to Sassy Wolfe?”

“No.” Pleased crinkles fanned outward from her eyes, and she preened on her chair as if she sat on a pedestal above him. “This worked out better than I could’ve schemed. She’s lonely, you’re lonely, and you’ll heal each other.”

He wished life were as simple and as vibrant as his Aunt B believed. He’d known she’d worried about him for a long while now, and he couldn’t blame her. He’d spent too much time in his fur as a kid, running through the bayou like a wild heathen, stalking game for the fun of it. That ‘fun’ skill made it easier for the government to turn him into a ghost with the military, training him to hunt down and assassinate national security threats. He’d personally taken out the third most wanted U.S.A. terrorist. There were days he struggled to acclimate with normal everyday life. He loved inking skin, but his wolf loved to prowl and loved the hunt. On his bad days, they fought to reach a cohesive middle ground.

His Aunt B criticized his parents for his remote and undisciplined upbringing, but it wasn’t that they didn’t care. Letting Cajun be himself was their style of parenting. They believed forcing him to conform to society’s standards crushed his individualism.

“She’s a human.” Cajun thought that’d explain everything, but he should’ve known his objection to her race wouldn’t deter his aunt.

“She understands enough about shifters.”

“She’s a celebrity and not for our world.” Even as he spoke the words, he realized his wolf wouldn’t allow her to just walk out of his life without a fight. Neither could he see himself living in the concrete jungle.

“If it’ll help, I’ll talk to her, explain things so she can understand. You boys aren’t so good with words.”

He wasn’t ten and could handle his own romance. “No thanks. I’ve got this.”

“Don’t be stubborn.”

“I’m not. Just being realistic, Aunt B. Everything doesn’t have a happy ending.”

“You know I only want what’s best for you, and Olivia
is
what’s best for you. If you want to talk or need advice, I’m here for you.”

Cajun nodded, and sipped on the drink she’d poured. Aunt B made the best lemonade. Advice would be great, especially when it came to dealing with a human, but he didn’t have a clue what to ask. “Thanks. That means a lot.”

“He screwed up.” Jake entered the kitchen unannounced and ratted Cajun out. “He told Olivia to fuck off—”

“I
never
told her to ‘fuck off’.”

Barbara had already made up her mind though and was glaring at him when he glanced her way, but Jake didn’t stop there. Oh, hell no. Instead, his cousin finished hammering the nails into Cajun’s coffin.
So much for cousinly love
.

“Thanks to him, Olivia was attacked in the parking lot of Sassy Wolfe.”

His aunt gasped. “Theodore Gustav Wolfe, I’m disappointed in you.”

No shit, he got that loud and clear when she used his given name. Jesus, he hated his name.

“Sniffing her out as my mate had me off guard, and I wasn’t thinking clearly.” It sucked as an excuse, but it was the truth.

“No wolf is prepared to meet their mate,” his aunt scoffed.

“That wasn’t the problem. My mate is a human and not a shifter. I don’t get along with humans. They’re too irritating, too needy, and I don’t have the patience for that.”

“He apologized.”

His head snapped up, and his attention shifted to Olivia at her unexpected comment. Christ on a stick, how much worse could things get? Cajun hadn’t even known she’d returned to the kitchen. Any other time, he would’ve smelled her approach, but her scent was so strong, filling his nostrils and marinating in his lungs, it’d been like she was already in the room with him even when she’d been down the hall.
Great time to lose my best strength.
His nose and tracking abilities were why he had excelled in the military. And her tread had been silent, as skilled as an assassin, so his hearing had failed him too.

In the doorway, Olivia stood, her focus laser locked on him like the red beam of a gun. Curiosity burned in her eyes. She’d cleaned up, all dirt washed from her face and body, and she’d apparently located her bag he’d brought in because she’d changed her clothes. The woman was hot in a dress and stilettos. But she destroyed him in ragged jeans, a plain green shirt, and denim-colored sneakers.

“I’m a sorceress. Not human.” Olivia elevated her hand, and a blue orb burst to life in her palm, hissing and spitting as if crackling with energy. Fisting her hand, she snuffed out the ball. “Didn’t expect that to work. Interesting. Anyway, I’ve guarded that secret, so I’m trusting you all with it.”

“It’s safe with us,” Aunt Barbara promised.

Acknowledging the promise, Olivia sent her a weak smile, her scent turning metallic. It was enough to let Cajun know she didn’t totally trust any of them.

“Why didn’t you use your magic on Jessie or the wolves that attacked you today?” Jake moved across the room to pour a glass of tea.

“Who’s Jessie?”

Jake gave his mother the lowdown while Cajun watched Olivia watch him. He’d known her eyes were too green to be fully human. Now he understood why. Nudging the chair beside him with his toe, he patted the seat. “Come sit, catin.”

Jake cleared his throat when Cajun and Olivia continued to stare at one another.

“So, back to my question… why didn’t you use your magic on them all?” his cousin prodded. “Heads up, Olivia.” He tossed the keys to her Mercedes and she caught them.

“Wolf shifters eliminate my magic.” She gave a negligent shrug and leaned against the doorjamb. “I could hit you with my magical ball, but it wouldn’t affect you.”

Without warning one of her electrical spheres nailed Cajun in the chest. He tensed, waiting for pain or something to tear across his body, but all he felt was a tickle as it impacted with his chest and disseminated along his senses. The flavor of
her
hit his tongue and scratched across his skin, but other than rousing the playful side of his animal, he felt no injury.

Olivia gave Cajun a saucy grin. “See? It hurts as much as feathers being thrown at you.”

Her teasing was an infectious side of her personality he wouldn’t mind indulging in. “What other paranormal creatures are resistant to your magic?”

She sighed, and her grin died out. “Just wolves. I’m actually surprised I could even do that to you. With Jessie and the wolves today, my magic was depleted, and I couldn’t channel it, not even that much. It shouldn’t be working with you all present. I can peel the skin off a vampire from a mile away, but put a wolf shifter in my path, and I might as well be human.”

“Your parents didn’t tell you anything?” Cajun patted the chair again because he wanted her nearer. Maybe if she were next to him it’d mollify his animal because he wanted her close enough to touch.

She shook her head at his offer. “They died in a car accident when I was five.”

Inside he winced, but pressed on. “What of other family?”

“I have none as far as I know.”

“I thought all magical paranormals had covens.” Their friend Lael thought of her fellow witches as family, right?

“I wouldn’t know. I was raised in foster homes until I ran off and came to America at seventeen.”

“What of witches?”

Her gaze slid to Jake long enough to ask, “What of them?” before leveling on Cajun once more.

“Can’t they shed some light on this wolf enigma?” Jaked asked.

A slight quirk to one corner of her mouth and Cajun had to fight his wolf from leaping across the room and kissing her. For the love of God, what made her so hot when she was being feisty?

“That cowardly bunch runs the other way when I bump into them. Aside from my magic being useless against your species, what does my problem have to do with witches?”

“We’ve got a witch friend. Thought she might be able to help with your questions. And she’s a gifted seer.”

“No offense, Jake, but given my experience with witches, I probably wouldn’t trust anything she said.”

Olivia

“She’s a good person.” Cajun’s loyalty irritated her.

“I’m sure.” Good person or not, Olivia’d never met a witch she didn’t frighten… or one she trusted. Deciding what information to trust the Wolfes with and what to withhold was tricky business. Giving them too much information about her could put them in danger too.

A month before leaving for America, she’d been attacked by two sorceri. She’d put them on their asses with a low-watt spell and camouflaged herself with an incantation. In the beginning, sometimes her wards would drop, and it’d been frustrating. With time, she’d learned to control the power, and her disguise never crashed now. It was why Cajun hadn’t marked her as a paranormal creature.

“Lael wouldn’t lead you wrong.”

That her so-called mate defended the witch rankled. A peculiarity since Olivia hadn’t decided if she wanted to pursue this whole mating thing, because it was a much bigger deal in her sorceress world.
If
she was his mate—given her strong pull to him, it was a likelihood—that meant he was her siren song. If they went through with the mating, she would also serenade him with her siren song, weaving her magic into him, binding their souls. He’d die without her.

What a conversation to walk in on though. It’d been clear he thought she was his mate, but he’d been unhappy by that. It was a conversation she’d been totally unprepared for. Just like he’d been at the bar apparently. Hearing about his unease caused by her humanity had spurred her into admitting she was a sorceress. But that pull to him was also why she’d stuck up for Cajun, letting Barbara know he’d apologized for his earlier behavior. She could understand his reaction in the bar if he’d been taken off guard as much as she had been by the news.

“Jake, did you question the shifter I Tased?” She crossed her arms beneath her breasts, taking care not to touch her tender nipples.
Damn Cajun for that
!

“Yeah.” Jake ran his fingers across his forehead, a move she interpreted as stalling.

Probably won’t like what he has to say
. “What’d he tell you?”

“Spill it, Jake.” Wearing a scowl, Cajun drummed his fingers on the table.

“He squealed fast and pissed his jeans.” Jake grimaced, but she focused on Cajun from the corner of her eye, while her friend kept talking. “He said Jessie’s in town, and he’s got your scent. They were hired to bring you to him.”

Cajun fisted his hand, and his wolf ringed his eyes. A heartbeat passed before his fingers eased up, and the glow of the wolf left his eyes.

“He’s made some unsavory promises to the one who captures you and brings you to him.”

The two that’d ganged up on her at Sassy Wolfe had mentioned fucking her ass. She’d recharge her Taser and strap on a knife, promising to fry or gut any bastard that thought he’d defile her in any fashion.

“Y’all should be able to spot an out-of-towner easily enough.” Cajun dragged his nails across his dark stubble, while his voice sounded like gravel.

“Nate’s setting up something with the jean-pisser to lure Jessie out. Just keep Olivia safe, and everything should be over in a day or two.”

Olivia attempted to thank them for their help, but Barbara shushed her. “We look out for family.” As Olivia struggled for a reply, the Wolfe matriarch tugged on her arm. “Come along, dear, and I’ll show you to your bedroom.”