A Witch's Love (22 page)

He’d been sure she would awaken but so much time had passed, he was starting to have doubts.

A knock sounded at the door. He rubbed his face before glancing at his watch. Time for her sisters’ visit. He always used this time to check their defenses and run the perimeter.

The demons could still find them, but without a leader to direct them, they were just a harmless threat. Nevertheless, he wanted to make sure they were ready for anything. As Thea and Cara entered the door, Lucas got to his.

“How is she today?” Thea took a seat next to the bed.

“About the same,” he said, wishing he had more progress to report. “Where’s Ella?”

“She went to the lake again,” Cara said as she plopped on the bed. “I think she really likes it there.”

“I’ll check on Ella while I’m out. Call me if there is any sign of Ava waking up. I have my phone on me,” he added as he leaned down to give Ava a kiss, then headed for the door. He almost had the damn thing shut before he heard the girls sobbing.

As he made his way down to the lake, Ella strode toward him. “Any better today?”

He shook his head for fear his voice would give his pain away. His heart went out to Ella. She looked so miserable. Hell, they where all miserable. Ava was in a coma and Maeve was still missing.

“I’ll go to her now,” Ella said, as she moved past him. Good. Ava needed her sisters now, probably more than ever. Their powers would be forever joined together, linking them to each other in a way no other siblings could understand. Maybe only her sisters could help her now.

Ava could hear Lucas’s voice and wanted more than anything to look upon his face and hold him in her arms but her body refused to move. Her sisters were with her now, crying as they always did when they saw her. She wanted to call out to them, tell them to save their tears, tell them she was right there, but her lips refused to move. As the days passed, she became even more frustrated with the situation.

Why couldn’t she open her eyes? She had thought it over and always came back to the same conclusion. Magic. Magic had put her in this situation and she was sure it would help her out of it. She knew her sisters were connected to her magically. She had drawn on their power in the hive to defeat the demons, so why couldn’t she do it again? She needed her sisters now more than ever.

The spell to evoke their powers had helped them defeat the king. She hoped they could do the same again. The only problem was she needed all her sisters and Ella was M.I.A. right now. As another sob escaped Cara, Ava was ready to scream. Just wait until she was awake. All her sisters were going to get a talking to about have more faith in her.

She’d certainly had enough of the pity party. The door closed as Ella’s footsteps filled the silence. Ava counted her blessings and quickly began her chant. Using the magical energy she held within, she concentrated on bringing the power to the surface, expanding it out toward her sisters. She made contact with their powers, then heard her sisters gasp in surprise.

“Do you feel that?” Thea touched Ava’s arm.

“Yes,” Ella said. “Ava, is that you? We are with you. Please come back to us.”

“Please, Ava, we miss you.” Cara ran her fingers through Ava’s hair.

Ava heard her sisters’ pleas but kept up her chant. She needed enough of their magical energy to push through the dark. As a light appeared before her, she knew it was working. The more she chanted, the larger the light became, until she was free of the dark. Her spirit felt renewed and strong. She was ready to join her sisters, ready to be with the love of her life, ready for whatever lay ahead of her.

Lucas had just entered the bedroom when he heard Ava gasp. He rushed to her side, knelt on the floor and took her hand.

“Ava, shit, how?” he whispered as he brought her hand to his mouth. He kissed her soundly.

As she caught her breath, she said, “Thanks for weeping all over me, guys. I thought I was practically drowning in your misery. You could have had more faith in me.”

Thea began to laugh. “Sorry, we just didn’t know what to do and you were—”

“Why don’t we give Lucas and Ava some time alone,” Ella said, interrupting Thea.

Ava smiled at her sister’s words, making Lucas think his heart would explode.

“How about we make your favorite dinner tonight, Ava?” Ella led her — toward the door.

“Yeah, Ava. Are you hungry?” Cara’s smile was from ear to ear.

Ava nodded. “Starved, but are you sure—”

“Don’t worry, we’ll figure it out. It will at least be edible,” Thea said, as they all broke into laughter.

Ava giggled as the door closed behind them, a sound Lucas wasn’t sure he would ever hear again. “Are you truly all right?”

“I’ve never felt better,” she said, wrapping her arms around him.

“I thought I had lost you.” He nuzzled her neck. He could live forever and never tire of the feel of her body against his.

“You almost did,” she whispered, her voice becoming hoarse with emotion. “I was ready to die, if it meant keeping you and my sisters safe.”

He drew back from her. “Don’t ever scare me like that again. Don’t you know I can’t imagine living without you?”

A smile appeared on her face, making his heart warm. “I love you, Lucas Grant,” she said as she fell into his arms. Her lips sought his and he couldn’t resist. He touched her mouth with his, meeting her fire with fire, and soon, the kiss turned savage.

Her hands searched his body, tearing at his clothes. He wanted her now, more than anything, but it was too soon for her.

“Ava, we can’t, you just—”

She silenced him with another searing kiss, then leaned back and slowly met his gaze. “I need you, Lucas, so don’t make me beg.”

“Are you sure?”

She nodded. “I have never been surer of anything in my life.”

He laughed as he hugged her closer, taking hold of her backside. “Well, then, I think we have time before dinner is ready.”

She grinned at his words as he slid her shirt from her body. He kissed her neck, making his way down to her perfect breast, swearing to himself that he was going to take it slow. He was going to relish every kiss, every touch, every tender moment, but as he took her pink bud into his mouth and she called out his name, he realized today was not that day. He stilled, wanting to regain his resolve, when she suddenly turned, rolling him over, pinning him on his back.

“Don’t even think about it,” she said as straddled his hips. He could feel the smile forming on his face as she moved her way down his torso. Unbuttoning his pants, she lifted his hard shaft free of the restraining material. She stroked him slowly, then began kissing him softly. As she took him into her mouth, he decided it wasn’t such a bad thing to lose control with the woman you love.

“So, dinner was . . . interesting,” Ava said, as they all made their way down the path to the lake. She wanted to walk and stretch her legs after being trapped in a bed for days.

“Yeah, it would have been better if the potatoes weren’t crunchy . . . Cara,” Thea said, as she teasingly shoved Cara.

“How was I supposed to know how long potatoes take to cook?” Cara retorted.

Ava began to laugh. “Well, for one thing, the microwave has a button with a picture of a potato on it, and when you push the button it automatically sets the right time.”

Cara shrugged. “Live and learn.”

Ella had been really quiet all through dinner, but when she’d brought up the topic of Maeve, they all agreed that they were going to do all they could to find her. Ava was sure she wasn’t dead.

“Any idea where to start looking for Maeve?” Thea stepped through the brush leading to the lake. It was dusk and the last bit of light shone through the clouds, casting a golden hue over the land.

Ava was sure this place was the most beautiful spot she’d ever been. She shook her head. “I don’t know. Maybe there is a spell or something. I will have to talk about it and come up with a plan.”

“We could start at the house, Ava. Maybe there will be some clues there,” Ella said as they approached the lake.

Ava looked to Lucas, realizing she’d forgotten to tell her sister one very important piece of information. “Umm, about the house, I kind of set it on fire.”

“You what?” Thea shrieked.

“Well, you guys had been kidnapped and Maeve had just disappeared before my eyes. I was distraught.”

“Where are we supposed to live?”

“Here,” Lucas said. “I’ve been thinking about this a lot actually. There’s plenty of room for everyone in the house without being overcrowded and Lake Placid is booming.”

Ava couldn’t help but laugh. “You want to live with four women?”

“Not just any four women,” Lucas said, as he reached into his pocket. As he removed a small box from his coat, he bent a knee to the ground.

Ava gasped as he open the box, revealing a gorgeous sapphire.

“Oh. My. God,” Cara said, as she started to laugh.

Ava was lost to all around her, except the gorgeous man kneeling in front of her, who she loved so much.

“I’ve always lived alone, and I have never thought twice about it, but the moment I met you, I-I knew my life was changed, forever. You showed me what a family is, and now I can’t imagine not having you by my side.”

Ava moved toward him, tears filling her eyes. “Lucas-”

“I can’t promise you we won’t have hard times, or that we won’t ever argue, but what I can promise you is I will stand by your side no matter what. I can promise you,” he said, taking a deep breath, “I will protect and love you, always. Ave Ava Worthington, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife and give me the family I always wanted?”

She’d never thought much about getting married, and had always made fun of the women in movies that started to cry when the man proposed. Yet here she was, tears flowing down her cheeks, smiling ear-to-ear, happier than she had ever been in her whole life.

“Yes, I will marry you,” she said, as a sob escaped her.

Gently, he slid the ring onto her finger and to her surprise, it was a perfect fit. She reached for Lucas when, without warning, her sisters appeared at their side.

“I’m so happy for you guys,” Thea said as she hugged Ava.

“Yeah, let me see the ring,” Cara screeched, reaching for her hand.

“Congratulations,” Ella said.

Ava meet Lucas’s gaze as he gained his feet, his eyes bright and filled with emotion. “Can I hug him now?”

“Oh, sure.” Thea laughed.

As Ava jumped into Lucas’s arms, she had never felt so safe and loved in her whole life.

“I only wish Maeve was here to see this,” she said, wiping the tears from her face.

All of a sudden a warm glow manifested in front of them. Ava gasped and let go of Lucas to behold the sight. As the light began to fade, a lone figure stood facing them.

Twilight had descended, making it hard to see who stood before them, but in her heart, Ava knew.

“Maeve!”

She ran to her, embracing her hard. She heard her sisters’ gasps, and then they joined her in the embrace. “I was here to see your engagement. Lucas is a fine man. He was here to look out for you, all of you, when I could not. I’m so happy for you, Ava. You have been through so much. You deserve all the happiness in the world,” Maeve said, wrapping her arms around them.

“What happened to you, Maeve? Where have you been?” Ava searched Maeve’s face.

“It’s a long story, my darlings, but let’s just say it was my job to help Ava find her destiny and once Lucas came into her life, I knew I wasn’t needed anymore.”

Ava frowned and hugged Maeve tighter. “We will always need you.”

Maeve smiled. “It took me a while to accept that I had done all I could, that the rest was up to you.”

“I thought we lost you,” Ava said, as her eyes filled with tears again.

Maeve started to laugh, a sound Ava had deeply missed. “You never lose the ones you love, Ava. I was always watching over you, all of you.”

Ava smiled as she moved back to Lucas. Wrapping her arms around him, she nuzzled close. “We have so much catching up to do.”

“Yeah, Maeve, you have to stay with us. This is our new home now, since Ava burned down our old one,” Cara said.

Maeve met Lucas’s gaze and raised a brow.

“We have plenty of room, Maeve. You are welcome to stay and make this your home.”

A wide smile stretched across her face. “Well, then, I could go for a cup of tea. How about you girls?” Maeve smiled as they all started up the path leading back to the house.

Ava stopped when she noticed Ella wasn’t with them. Turning, she saw Ella sitting by the lake.

“Hold up, Lucas, I need to speak with Ella.”

Ava made her way to Ella’s side. “You know, for a long time after mom and dad died, I felt guilty when I was happy. I felt like I was dishonoring their memory in some way, but what I realized was Mom and Dad wanted me to live, to be happy. They wanted that for all of us.”

Ella turned to her with tears in her eyes. “It’s just . . . I can’t get over what has been done to us, all of us, including Flynn. I just can’t stand the thought of even one demon wandering the earth.”

“What are you getting at Ella?” Ava wanted to hear the rest of her thoughts.

“I think we were given these powers for a reason, Ava, and I won’t rest until I feel like justice has been served so no one will ever have to go through what we all went through again.”

Ava nodded at her words. Her sister was in pain and giving her a focus might help. Plus, she kind of had a point. Demons where still out there and it may be only a matter of time until a new leader ascended the throne.

“Okay, Ella, let me talk to Lucas. We can iron out the details later, but for now we can focus on planning my wedding. You are, after all, my maid of honor.”