The Lycan and His Witch (4 page)

“If witches keep to their kind,
did they wed warlocks?”

“Some did, others didn’t and
just kept their heritage a secret.”

A thick silence fell over them
as Zora avoided Bryce’s gaze.

* * * *

Bryce knew she was hiding
something. That meant she could also be hiding the cure for his
werewolf curse. He flicked his gaze over her face, taking in her
softer skin, her fuller mouth. She was an enigma with her flashes
of beauty in her unpleasant appearance.

She told him she wanted him to
leave in two days. He had until tomorrow to find the truth. Could
she cure him of his curse?

“How did you turn into a
werewolf?” she asked. She was obviously changing the subject.

He didn’t mind. He didn’t really
want to know about her family history, not that he didn’t find her
interesting. He did, Bryce grudgingly admitted to himself. It was
just that he had to deal with more pressing matters.
Such as
his damn werewolf curse, and how he could end it, short of
plunging silver into his heart.

“A pack of werewolves raided my
village one night. They either killed or turned us. They turned
most of my family—mother, father, brother, sisters. My…my wife and
son were killed that night.”

Her expression was horrified.
“I’m so sorry, Bryce.”

His heart warmed at the concern
in her voice. Her tone was husky, sexy, and if he wasn’t looking at
her, he could swear he was talking to a different woman. Her soft
voice belonged to that of a beautiful woman. He froze at his
strange turn of thoughts.

“It was a long time ago. My last
family member died three years ago. My brother. A Lycan hunter
killed him with a silver tipped arrow.”

“And that’s when you had enough
and wanted to end your werewolf curse.”

“Yes. After living all these
centuries, I’ll rid myself of this curse and die as a human, or…or
I will kill myself.”

She gasped. “You’re not
serious!”

“I am.”

A howl in the distance drew her
gaze sharply to her door. Her expression was apologetic when she
looked back at him. “Bryce, I’m sorry. I have to…I have to go out
for a minute.”

He lifted a brow in surprise.
“Now? It’s dark. Can I help with anything?” He watched her rise,
walk to the kitchen area, and pick up a box from the counter.

“No. I…I just have to…to take
care of something. Please stay here and finish your dinner. I’ll be
back shortly and we can continue our conversation.”

Soon after she left, he rose
abruptly. Grim-faced, he followed her.

* * * *

Zora sped through the dark
woods, sorely disappointed she had to cut their conversation short.
She wanted to learn so much more about him.

She heard the crackle and snaps
of twigs behind her, and ignored the sounds. She wasn’t afraid of
the woods. It was her home.

She stopped by the large boulder
beneath the old tree and waited. She heard them coming. They
growled softly as they approached. Zora caught sight of their
gleaming fur in the light of the near full moon. She knew they
smelled the meat in her box and she smiled.

The big wolf, the black one
she’d grown fond of, appeared. She placed the box down and opened
the lid. The rest of the lamb and yesterday’s meat was there. The
black wolf approached steadily on its haunches, snarling as it
crept closer to her.

She’s always thought he
resembled a huge black dog. The sound of a growl behind her drew a
frown on her face and she wondered if this pack had acquired
another member. The black wolf stopped before her and buried its
face in the box, gnawing and gnashing at the food. She giggled and
bent down to rub it behind the ears as its two other members
pounced on the scene. They nudged the black wolf aside and the
three began to eat. She petted them behind their ears and glided
her hand over their rich coats.

The black one growled, snapped
his massive head to her hand, and licked her wrist.

Zora laughed.

* * * *

Bryce’s gut clenched in reaction
to her soft, lilting laugh. He watched the wolves taking a moment
out of their feeding to lick her hand. What…the hell…was happening,
his mind roared?

He stood there in his Lycan form
and could not believe what he was witnessing. The three wolves were
the ones that had attacked him earlier in the day. When he’d seen
the black one approach Zora, he’d growled his turn to his Lycan
form and was ready to vault through the air and pounce on the
animal when, to his utter disbelief, the animal let her pet him as
if it was a…a dog.

Unbelievable, he thought, frozen
where he was standing. She’d befriended three wild animals, animals
that could rip her to shreds—or had she placed them under a spell?
For what purpose, he thought? He was so damned confused, he wanted
to raise his head to the dark night and howl like a madman, but he
refrained. The wolves would hear him and attack him, and he didn’t
want to place Zora in any danger. At the thought of Zora getting
hurt, his heart squeezed.

The wolves stopped eating and
vaulted up into her arms, almost knocking her over. Bryce froze,
his heart nearly stopping. Shocked, he realised the animals were
showing her their affection and thanks. She rubbed their backs,
laughing softly.

Slowly, the wolves drew back and
left.

Bryce couldn’t decide what he
felt—awe, respect, admiration? He’d seen many incredible things in
his three hundred years, but he’d never seen anything like this.
Damn it, he couldn’t befriend those beasts earlier, and he was a
blasted wolf himself!

As she walked towards him, he
felt a thread of tension run up his spine. Something was different
about her. Her silhouette was not the same. It was much slimmer and
he saw a hint of a waist. His gaze narrowed on her breasts as she
approached him and he sucked in a harsh breath. They definitely
appeared higher, firmer, the full breasts of a young woman.

As she walked slowly towards
him, he caught sight of her hair. All the grey was gone. Her golden
hair shone under the moon’s glow, silky and soft.

Astonished, he narrowed his
eyes.

She caught sight of him and
gasped, jerking a gloved hand to her mouth. What was it about those
damn gloves she kept wearing, Bryce thought angrily? He shifted
back to his human form, naked, and gave her startled face a dry
look.

“Can you conjure up a spell to
repair my clothes? I have nothing left to wear,” he said, unable to
take his gaze away from her beautiful golden hair, then lowering it
to her breasts rising and falling sharply with each alarmed
breath.

Zora was now a half beauty, half
hag and Bryce knew instinctively there were dark forces at work
here. He just needed to find out what the devil they were up
to.

Chapter Six

Zora averted her gaze from his
naked loins. This was the second time today she’d seen him naked
and she didn’t think she could handle a third. He was a perfectly
sculpted, raw masculine perfection that threatened her very
resolve. “Bring them back to the house and I’ll fix them,” she said
stiffly.

He wasn’t even in the least bit
embarrassed, standing there with an arrogant lift to his mouth. She
turned on her heels and walked back to the house. She heard his
steps behind her, her back tingling with awareness.

“Can you tell me what the hell
that was all about back there?” he asked abruptly.

Her back tingled from his tone,
but she kept walking, refusing to turn around. “What was
what
all about back there?” she countered, but she knew what
he meant.

“The wolves, dammit! They tried
to kill me earlier and they acted like damn puppies with you.”

“I have a way with animals,
especially wolves,” she replied tightly.

Quickly, she sped up her steps
and went into her home. Without looking at him, she went to the
centuries-old chest on the floor by the fireplace and lifted the
lid. The book of spells was old and dusty and she made a mental
note to wipe it later. She lifted it from the chest and took a deep
breath, having forgotten how heavy it was. Bracing herself, she
turned around and faced him.

Relief flooded through her
veins. He’d taken one of her throw rugs and had wrapped it around
his middle, leaving his tattered clothes on the arm of the
sofa.

He eyed the big dusty book in
her arms. “What is that?”

She hugged it close to her
chest. “This is my book of spells. I usually take a needle and
thread to repair clothes. I try not to use my spells for
everything. I…I want to…to…” her voice trailed at penetrating stare
he gave her.

“To try to live a normal life,”
he said, finishing her statement.

“Yes.” She tore her gaze from
his and put the book down on the table. She opened the cover and
wrinkled her nose at the musky smell that rose from the yellow
pages. She felt his presence behind her and froze. Did he have to
stand so close to her?

Quickly, she flipped through the
pages, numbered and alphabetised…cats, cinder… She breathed a sigh
of relief. There it was.
Clothes.
She scanned the ancient
words and found what she was looking for.
Mothisestrum—
the
spell for mending clothes.

“This book has been handed down
for centuries with each generation adding new spells to its
binding,” she murmured. “Unfortunately, my ancestors weren’t all
great spellers and I hope I pronounce this right.”

This had better work, she
thought. The last thing she needed was Bryce prancing around naked
until he left tomorrow.

She raised her hand and pointed
it towards the clothes.

“
Mothisestrum,”
Zora
whispered and watched a magic mist lift and attach his tattered
clothes.

* * * *

A book of spells, Bryce thought.
He ignored the magic happening with his clothes and stared at the
ancient pages. Was there a spell within this book that could remove
his werewolf curse? Bryce snapped his gaze to her profile and
narrowed his eyes. He still couldn’t believe the changes to her
appearance. Her softer skin, her silky hair, her sensual lips. He
blinked.

He would look at the book when
she was asleep tonight and because it was in alphabetical order,
all he had to do was search for werewolves. After he got what he
came for, he would find out what the hell was happening to her
appearance along with what happened out there in the woods. Bryce
didn’t buy for a moment she had a way with wolves. No human did. He
was certain she was lying.

Another thing Bryce was certain
of was that Zora was unaware of her changing appearance.

She looked up at him,
captivating him with her beautiful eyes. They were the colour of
the sea on a sunny day, deep blue, dazzling…inviting. Damn it! He’d
never met anyone who disturbed him so much.

He heard her say that his
clothes were ready.

He swallowed hard and nodded as
she took the book away and walked to the chest that was on the
floor.

He watched her backside as she
bent and warmth invaded his loins. Lust made his gut clench with
primal need. Annoyed with himself for his lack of self-control, he
went to his clothes. Without a flicker of shame, Bryce dropped the
blanket from his middle and dressed, ignoring the soft gasp behind
him.

He lay in his bed for a long
time, staring at the ceiling, listening to Zora’s breathing in the
next room. This was one time Bryce welcomed his Lycan blood. Since
turning three centuries ago, his senses had amplified and he could
hear and smell things hundreds of paces away.

He heard her soft sigh, his mind
going to her lips.

After a while, her breath came
out slow and regular and he got up.

Zora is asleep.

Without making a sound, Bryce
went into the living area and stopped before the chest. He opened
the lid and took the book to the table, opening it slowly. He ran
his finger over the inside of the spine that was threaded with a
fine, gold thread.

He was at the letter
K
,
and he glanced quickly at the entries.
Kitchen: clean, paint,
repair, circa 700BC, page 1214
.

He heard Zora rustle in her bed
and he stiffened. He had to hurry. He flipped over to the
L’s
and froze.
Love: Curse
,
The touch of death
spell
.
circa 1056, page 2154
. This page was different
from the rest. Newer.

Curious, he read the entry.

Morganna’s female descendants
will find true love with a Lycan and upon their first touch, he
will perish. Only the purest of love can break the curse.

“What are you doing?”

He froze. Slowly, he turned to
the sound of her voice and gently closed the book. “Looking for a
spell that could break the werewolf curse,” he said. He didn’t
think lying would help his cause. Zora marched to him and took the
book from the table. He stared at the gloves she wore.

“And I told you none
exists.”

“Show me,” he said, anger rising
to his surface. Bryce reached for the book she was holding and she
jumped back.

“Stay away from me!” Zora
snapped.

He saw fear rise in her eyes and
he froze. Something at the back of his mind flared and he tried to
ignore the unbelievable implications.

Since meeting her, she’d always
kept her distance from him and she’d always worn her gloves. She
didn’t want him to touch her. Also, where he’d thought she was a
reclusive, old witch, slowly, her appearance was showing him
otherwise.

He frowned, his mind going to
what he’d just read in the book of spells.

Impossible, Bryce thought.
Without thinking, he lunged forward and tried to touch her face,
but she was quick.