The Cat's Meow (16 page)

I stared at the empty doorway, stunned at this revelation, and slightly curious if this was part of the reason Kale kept secrets. Was his life so entwined with danger and death as a Sentinel that he didn’t think it appropriate to talk about? Could all the answers I needed be wrapped up in the details of his past?

I sighed, dropped down on my pillow, and stared up at my ceiling. Maybe it’d be easier to think of him as a cold-blooded killer instead of a tormented warlock who did sweet things for me. But no matter how I spun this, or how hard I fought to ignore my heart, the idea that Kale hurt bothered me. The thought that he lived the life he said, and the coldness in his voice when he said it, made me cringe.

I’d bared my heart to him and he listened, and he was curious to understand me, which wasn’t something a warlock without a heart did. But the wall of secretive questions remained. The orders he’d given to Bryon and Jace not to identify him still weighed on me. In all truth, I prayed to the Goddess that the worst thing about Kale was that he had a lot of kills behind him. That, I could handle. However, deep down my instincts told me there was something far deeper to the warlock Kale Griffin.

Maybe it was time to do a truth spell on Kale—even long overdue—but I grunted as the thought crossed my mind. I didn’t spellbind for personal reasons and I’d vowed it before the High Priestesses.

Damn you, moral code.

Until Kale wronged me, I had to stick to the plan—keep the Goddess close and keep my guard up. I needed to ignore whatever was going on between us and focus on the secrets, not on the sweet gestures. I hoped the wall against Kale would protect me from the spell he wove on my heart. If that failed, I’d go with my original idea and hex him.

A good witch always had a kick-ass backup plan.

Chapter Fifteen

“Time to wake up, Libby.”

I blinked the sleepy haze from my eyes, finding Kale sitting on the side of my bed. “Already?” I croaked. “Didn’t I just close my eyes?”

Kale stood, staring down at me as the sun beamed in my room, and damn the warlock for looking so good in his black jeans and black tank top. His biceps were quite the sight, but I reminded myself to ignore his muscles…and his intense, shadowy eyes. His hair was damp from a shower, and he had new clothes on, so he must have gone to wherever he stayed—maybe with his mother—and freshened up.

“Witching hour is in a couple hours. I must get ready, and so must you.”

I pushed the blankets off, sat up, and stretched my arms on a yawn. “Did you sleep?”

“Not well,” he grumbled. “Your couch is made for a child.”

I laughed. No, it was made for a normal person, but Kale was tall. I had peeked in on him after I finished my study of the spells and had my shower, and his feet had been sticking off the end of the couch. The blanket hadn’t covered the length of him, either.

But there was no way would I bring him into the bed with me, or so I told myself a thousand times last night until I believed it. My body still forgot I shouldn’t want him. “Oh, it wasn’t so bad.”

“For you,” he grumbled again. “Get up.” He slapped my thigh, bared by my pajama shorts, and the sting simmered through my naked flesh. “I made you something to eat.” Without another word, he strode away.

This, I had to see.

I hurried to get dressed and threw on a pair of yoga pants and a T-shirt, since I figured it was best to be comfy for the fight ahead. After I threw my hair up in a ponytail and put some mascara and blush on, I grabbed the book of spells off my nightstand and headed for the kitchen.

Kale stood at my stove, scooping out an omelet onto a plate. The surprises continued. “You can cook?”

Glancing over his shoulder, he frowned. “I do need to eat.”

“Sure, but the need to eat and actually being able to cook are two different things.” I sat down at the already-set table. “Will it kill me?”

He placed the plate in front of me and grinned. Well, wasn’t he just a bit too comfortable here? And why did I have a stupid smile on my face I couldn’t remove? “That remains to be seen, Ms. Libby.”

Death by eggs—I thought it unlikely, so I grabbed my fork and dived in. Maybe death by delicious eggs was more like it. I hummed as I chewed. The cheese added a wonderful salty taste and I savored the smoothness.

Kale arched an eyebrow. “Good?”

“Perfect.” I nodded. “Thank you.”

His smile was warm, and maybe even a little arrogant. “Excellent.” He made himself a plate, sat down across from me, and proceeded to inhale his breakfast.

After he wiped his mouth with his napkin, he said, “I received a phone call earlier that the Alchemy has arrived in Charleston and will meet us at the cemetery tonight.”

“Who called?” I asked.

Silence.

“Seriously? You won’t even tell me who called to tell you an important bit of information? The question isn’t even about you. You have a serious superiority complex, you know that?”

Kale barked a laugh.

It annoyed me that not only did he not answer my question—again—but I enjoyed hearing him laugh so freely. I shoveled in the last bite of my omelet and swallowed. “So, the rest of your Sentinel buddies are coming?”

“The Alchemy will arrive, yes,” Kale said, smirking at me. “Did the spells show any promise?”

“Sure did.” Heck, I found a lot in those spells, and a whole crapload of confidence, too. Some were protection spells, others were for defense, and one was a spell I’d rather avoid forever. It happened to be the darkest white magic spell I’d ever seen, lingering very close to black magic. But I absorbed the words of each spell…just in case I needed one of them.

Kale stared at me for a long moment. “You don’t plan to tell me what you’ve discovered?”

I wiped my mouth with my napkin, tossed it on the plate, and stared at him dead-on. “Nope.”

His eyes twinkled, even if he didn’t smile. “Why would that be?”

“Doesn’t feel very good to have someone withhold information, does it?” I countered with a tilt of my head.

Now he smiled. “Retribution?”

“Enjoy it,” was my retort.

He threw his head back and laughed. “All right, I can live with that.” He stood and took our plates to the sink. “We’ll clean the mess later.” He turned to me. “Priorities are not dirty dishes.”

The “we’ll” was unsettling, because I had no intention of Kale’s returning to my home, and it surprised me he did. Once again, I shoved it all away. We had bigger problems than the warlock who annoyed me by how much he made me think…hard. I stood up from my seat, pushed my chair under the table, and tucked the book under my arm. “What time are the Sentinels meeting us?”

“Baal will be summoned as soon as we hit the witching hour, so the Sentinels will attack before the warlocks have the chance.” He strode toward the living room, and put his black boots on at the front door. “Since Beltane is upon us, my magic has awakened.”

I skipped a step. Holy crap, I’d forgotten all about that. “O-oh. Oh.” I regained my ability to walk. “Right. Good. It’ll give you a leg up.”

Kale didn’t look any different to me—just the same ol’ sexy warlock—but why would he? I didn’t hold the gift of sensing powers. “So, you have your magic now?” I couldn’t deny that it intrigued me to see what Kale could do. With how he could kick ass, his magic had to be equally impressive, especially since Jace seemed to think highly of him.

Kale shook his head and held out my knee-high leather boots. “We have to make a quick stop before we go to the cemetery.” He sighed, sounding relieved. “Soon, though, my powers will rise again.”

“Gotcha.” I ignored the boots he offered and went for my running shoes. It seemed like a smarter choice in case I needed to run my ass out of there. “Where to, then?”

Kale grunted, dropping my boots to the floor. “Always so full of questions, and so full of doubt.” He gave me a measured look. “Will you trust me for once?”

I wasn’t stupid. I needed Kale…right now. I had an obligation to my coven to see this through. He, a Sentinel, at my side, kept me safe, but this fight was officially over. No matter that my hormones did a little jig around him, my head had been screwed on straight again, and my wall to keep him out was solid.

Once I finished with the laces on my shoes, I stood. “Not a chance in hell.” I brushed past him and exited the house, but he grasped my arm and pulled me back.

“Libby…I…”

“You what, Kale?” I snapped. Under his emotion-packed stare, my strength faltered, and
that
irritated me. My heart clenched as I watched him and witnessed the pain in the depths of his eyes, as well as his dislike of the distance between us, so I closed my eyes to avoid him.

His finger slid across my jaw in a slow caress, tickling all the way through me, and his voice deepened. “Look at me, Libby.”

“I can’t do this, Kale.”

Another swipe of his finger brushed across my face, and his voice dipped even softer. “Look at me.”

I obliged him, because it became a tad awkward to keep my eyes closed, and the second I opened them I wished I had refused. Spellbinding emotion filled his features, and I found myself trapped. “By the end of tonight you’ll have answers, does that comfort you?”

Did it, or did it confuse me more?

With that, my irritation flared—last night he had deepened our connection with his sad story. This warlock weaved a wicked spell over me, one I had tried for a long time—way before Kale—to never allow.

“You know what?” I stepped out of his hold, glaring at him. “I’m tired of this and I don’t give a shit what you do, who you are, or about your secrets. The only thing that matters now is finishing this case and not allowing Baal to be summoned. So stop it. No more.”

“I cannot stop.” He thrust out his chest. “
Will
not stop.”

Oh, this warlock was designed for a one-way ticket straight to hell. “Do you think I care what
you
want? Or think?”

“Yes, Libby.” His chin lifted. “I think you care, very much.” He dropped his hand and strode toward my SUV, as if he thought that was the appropriate thing to say.

It wasn’t.

My fists tightened and without thought, I shoved Kale so hard in the shoulder it knocked him face-first to the grass. On his way down, he groaned and yanked me down with him. Somehow I ended up on my back with him nestled between my thighs.

Shock rippled across his features, as if no one had ever confronted him in this manner, or challenged him. His eyes blazed with hot emotion as a very hard part of his anatomy pressed between my thighs. “Did you just attack me?”

“You deserve worse, you stupid ass.” I squirmed to get away and cause him a serious amount of pain.

His nostrils flared and his gaze scorched into mine, but then slowly the tightness in his posture lessened and he smiled. I gasped, ready to knock this warlock to the moon. “You are
not
smiling?” He nodded, grinning like an utterly sexy fool. “Oh. My. Goddess,” I spat. “You are maddening.”

“You’re right.” He winked. “I am.”

He jumped off me and, before I knew it, I was on my feet. His damn smile never faded. “I’m pleased to see there’s a little fight in you after all. Use that tonight and you’ll do just fine.”

“I hate you,” I shouted.

As he strode toward my SUV, he glanced over his shoulder with an arrogant twinkle in his eyes. “No, Libby. You don’t.”

…

The drive took way too long—I just wanted out of my damn SUV. I stayed silent while Kale hummed with tension next to me. He said himself that I’d soon find out what his secret was, so why wasn’t he telling me now?

I sighed and rubbed my face to shed my thoughts. The Goddess didn’t warn me of any danger in the sense that I should fear for my life…at the moment. But I was so damn tired of this shit.

The SUV slowed and I dropped my hands as Kale pulled up to the side of the forest on the edge of town. The sun was low in the sky, the dark night looming close. Why hadn’t we gone to the cemetery? “What are we doing here?”

“Igniting my magic.”

After he turned off the SUV, he was out in a split second, and I hurried out after him, more than interested. I had zero idea what he needed to do to get his magic. “Where are you going?”

He strode toward the trees with purposeful steps. “Into the forest.” Once he disappeared into the woods, angry dark clouds filled the sky. I rubbed my arms, chilled to my bones. Even Mother Earth knew trouble stirred.

Only a few seconds later, a twig snapped and Kale strode out, dragging a huge branch with him. He took a seat on a rock at the edge of the tree line.

My intrigue couldn’t be withheld; I trotted up to him as he pulled his dagger from his boot. “What in the Goddess are you doing?”

“Awakening my magic.” He slid the knife along the wood and carved it. At my silence, he looked at me. “I’m making my gandr.”

I laughed, incredulous. “Out of a branch?”

“It’s alder, and yes, that’s the wood my gandrs are crafted from.”

So, Kale was a Ward who not only obtained magic through the sabbat and could draw runes, but he also used a wand—powerful indeed. “Your magic only works with the wand?”

His eyebrow lifted, but he continued to carve the wood. “How else would I draw runes, Libby?”

“Well…” I shifted on my feet. “With ash, wax…I don’t know. Most warlocks don’t need wands.”

He shrugged. “Like I said before, there aren’t many of us.”

Now that was true. Most warlocks used rituals and recited sayings, exactly as I did with the book of spells. Magical wands weren’t typically needed, and I sure as shit had never met a warlock who required a wand. “How many are there?”

He smiled. “One.”

“Just you?”

“Just me.”

He was fixated on the branch, and I watched in slight awe. The way his hands moved over the wood was so skilled, and damn was he sexy now. Those hands seemed far too knowledgeable and impressively gentle, but efficient.

I stayed quiet since I didn’t want to disturb him—this was…beautiful. He was so focused on each slide of his knife against the wood. The shavings fluttered down to the ground while some drifted with the wind.

Within ten minutes, Kale had the wood down to a thin wand with a slight right curve on the end. He turned it from side to side, studying it, and then smiled. “Perfect.”

“So it’s ready to use?”

Kale stood, brushing the wood off his jeans, and tucked the dagger back into his pants leg. “Let’s have a look, shall we?”

I held my breath as he put some distance between us. I had to wonder how disconnected Kale would feel without his magic. The Goddess always stayed with me, and I couldn’t imagine her not being there—it’d feel as if a piece of me was gone. It appeared Kale had a similar emptiness, because his expression warmed.

He squatted and ran his hand over the dirt. How could such a simple move look so sensual? The corner of his mouth lifted and exuberance glowed in the depths of his eyes as he pressed the tip of the wand against the ground, whispered something I couldn’t hear, and drew.

The rune was a thin line carved into the dirt, appearing much like an odd
M
. After he finished the two lines near the peaks that enclosed the rune, he stood and glanced down at it. His lips moved, but I couldn’t make out what he said. He had told me he didn’t give thanks for his magic, but I doubted that—the tenderness on his face showed his gratefulness.

He pointed the wand at the rune and sang in a low chant. “Mannaz, mannaz, mannaz.” After that, it was merely humming syllables all blending together. When his mouth shut, blue light cascaded out of the tip of the wand and hit the rune, making it glow. Energy swept across my skin and raised goose bumps.

The sound of wings fluttering in the air came soaring above me, and then an eagle swooped down from the sky and perched on Kale’s arm. He smiled at the eagle, caressed its neck, and spoke in more hushed tones I couldn’t make out.