The Professor Woos The Witch (Nocturne Falls Book 4) (17 page)

“Hard to do when so much in my life has been upended.”

“And you think Pandora’s going to fix all that?”

“No, but that’s not her job. What if things did work out between us?”

Jack grunted. “All I know is you have a daughter to provide for.”

“I’m well aware of that.” A daughter who wasn’t all that happy with him right now. What else was new? He tried to focus on that and not the burgeoning ache in his chest. He had no right to feel this way about Pandora anyway. They’d kissed a few times. That was all. “I should go talk to Kaley.”

“They seem like good people, but—”

“Dad, I really don’t want to discuss it anymore. It’s late. I need to talk to Kaley, and then I’m going to bed. This house isn’t going to remodel itself.”

Jack held his hands up. “You got it. I’ll be on the couch tonight and out of your hair in the morning.”

“Dad…” Cole took a breath. He didn’t want to leave things like this with his father. “I appreciate you coming down. I’m still not happy about you and Mom not telling me the truth, and I don’t agree at all with your decision not to tell me much now, but I guess I get that you were doing what you thought was right to protect me.”

“You’d do the same for Kaley.”

“Yes, I would.” He took his glasses off and rubbed the bridge of his nose. “I’ll get you a blanket and a pillow.” He headed into the house, his father behind him, and went for the stairs. “Tomorrow morning we can go out for breakfast. There’s a diner in town that looks good. Kaley’s been wanting to go there.”

Jack smiled. “Sounds like a plan. You want me to talk to Kaley?”

“No, but I appreciate the offer. I need her to understand that impulsive decisions can have negative consequences later on. Moving here permanently on a whim…it’d just be…impractical.”

Jack nodded. “She’s a good kid. She’ll understand. Maybe not tonight, but she will.”

“I hope you’re right.” Cole ran upstairs, got his dad a blanket and pillow and tucked them under his arm. He knocked on Kaley’s door.

“Yeah?”

“Can I come in?”

“Yeah.”

He opened the door. She was already in bed. One earbud dangled free while the other was still in her ear. “We’re going to try that diner in town for breakfast tomorrow. Sound good?”

She shrugged and stared at the screen of her iPhone. “I guess.”

He sighed. “I know you’re mad at me.”

No response.

He came in and sat on the edge of her bed. “Kaley, we can’t stay here. I know you like this place, but I have a lot of years invested in my job at home. I can’t just walk away because this place seems like fun.”

She cut her eyes at him. “You could get a teaching job here.”

“There aren’t any colleges in the area. And a high school isn’t going to pay what I’m making now.”

“It’s not all about money, you know.”

He laughed. “You think I found that iPhone in a cereal box? You’re right that money isn’t everything, but it is important. We need a certain amount to pay our bills and eat.”

“What about all the money from selling this house?”

“That will definitely help, but we’re not just going to spend it. A lot of it will go into your college fund.”

She frowned. “Maybe I’m not going to college.”

“We’re not having that discussion.”

She rolled her eyes. “I want to stay here.”

“What about all your friends back home?”

“I’m already making new ones.”

“I’m glad to hear that. But our plan isn’t changing. We’re fixing up the house, selling it and moving back. That’s it. End of discussion.”

She huffed out a breath, her eyes narrowing. “What about Miss Williams?”

The question caught him off guard for a moment. “She’s…she’s going to help me with the house and you with your witch stuff. Nothing’s changed there either.”

Kaley tipped her head, mouth bent in obvious skepticism. “Really?
Nothing’s
changed? She’s totally mad at you.”

“No, she’s not. Everything is fine between us.”

Kaley laughed. “Dad, you have a lot to learn about women.”

He kissed her on the cheek and stood. “On that note, it’s time for you to go to bed. Earbuds out, iPhone off.”

“Fine.” She yanked the other earbud free, then flung the covers over herself.

He hit the light switch on the way out, still shaking his head as he headed downstairs. Kaley was right. Pandora
was
mad at him.

He thought for a moment about going to see her, but it was after ten. She was probably in bed. And probably wouldn’t want to see him. He rolled his shoulders, but the prickly energy from the night’s events was stuck in his bones. He needed to do
something
.

He put the blanket and pillow on the couch. Jack was sitting on the porch. Cole stuck his head out. “You okay?”

“Yep. You?”

“I’m going out for a run. Don’t wait up.”

Jack smiled like he knew what his son was up to. “All right.”

Cole went back upstairs to change into his gear. If Jack thought Cole was going to see Pandora, he was wrong.

Running by her house was
not
the same as going to see her.

Pandora pulled away from Pilcher Manor with one clear thought. She wasn’t ready to go home. She was too wound up from Cole’s revelation, too buzzed on hurt feelings and the disbelief that he thought everything was still hunky dory between them. How the hell was she going to help him with that house and spend time with Kaley and pretend that they were nothing more than friends?

Practical. Not freaking likely.

She needed a drink. And she didn’t want to imbibe alone. That would only put her in a worse state of mind. She needed company. She pulled over and hit Willa’s speed dial.

The fae jeweler answered a couple rings later. “Hey, woman, what’s up?”

“Are you busy? You want to come over for a glass of wine?”

Willa made a disappointed sound. “I’d love to, but Nick and I are watching a movie. How about tomorrow?”

“No, it’s cool, don’t worry about it. I was just in the mood to hang out. Have fun. Tell Nick I said hi.”

“Will do. Talk to you soon.”

Love ruined everything. Pandora hung up and pulled back onto the road. As much as she wanted Willa’s company, the lack of it wasn’t going to stop her from having one drink. And since she still didn’t want to be alone, she made a few turns and five minutes later she was walking into Howler’s. The bar and grill was busy—it was Saturday night, after all—but with kids back in school, there were slightly fewer tourists in town, so the place wasn’t unbearably crowded.

Bridget Merrow, owner of Howler’s and a werewolf, waved at Pandora before she’d reached the bar. “Hey, Pandora! What brings you in?”

“I need a drink.” Pandora wriggled in between two occupied bar stools to lean on the bar.

Bridget’s brows shot up. “That bad?”

“Sort of.”

“Sorry to hear that. What can I get you?”

Pandora glanced to her side. “A seat would be nice. But I’ll settle for a glass of cabernet.”

Bridget grinned. “I can handle both of those.” She leaned forward and jerked her thumb toward the other end of the bar. “Did you see who’s here?”

Pandora turned to look. Sitting at the opposite end of the bar was a stone-faced man with a shaved head, a multitude of tattoos and a bent nose that made a lot of sense in conjunction with his heavily muscled body. He had the kind of tensed look that said he could strike at any moment and when he did, you weren’t going to see it coming.

She grinned. “I didn’t know Van was in town.”

Bridget nodded. “Just got here. Go ahead, I’ll bring your wine.”

“Thanks.” Pandora headed toward the hulk of a man and got two steps away before he saw her.

His face broke out in a huge smile as he slid off his seat and threw his arms wide. “
Kotyonok
! Is good to see you.”

She hugged him and laughed. To have a man who looked like him call you
kitten
was a very unique thing. “You too, Van. How are you?”

“Good, good.” He kissed her on both cheeks, then pulled back and looked her up and down. “I would ask how you are, but I see you are also very good. You look like you are on the prowl. Have you come to pick up men?”

His Russian heritage still accented his words. She shook her head. “Definitely not. In fact, I’m here to drink one out of my head.”

He frowned. “You have man troubles?”

“Sort of, but nothing a few drinks and a good mope won’t cure.”

He looked past her. “You have seat already?”

“No, I just got here. Bridget’s getting my wine.”

He glared at the man on the bar stool next to his. “You. Get up.”

The guy turned to see who was talking to him and paled. He grabbed his beer and vacated.

Van pointed to the empty chair. “You sit by me. Tell me everything.”

Laughing, but knowing there was no point in trying to get the poor man his seat back, she took the chair. Ivan “Van” Tsvetkov wasn’t a man who took no for an answer. He was a dragon shifter, and while he was a resident of Nocturne Falls, he was here only between fights. He made his living on the MMA fight circuit where he was known as The Hammer.

Pandora had first met him when he’d come to town looking for a house. A retreat, really. He’d wanted a place in the mountains where he could recoup between fights and get away from the press and publicity. Nothing on the market had fit his needs, so she’d ended up finding him the perfect piece of land and then being his right hand during the building process.

He’d trusted her implicitly, and she’d gained a friend for life. He’d become almost like an older brother to her, which was fine, because he certainly wasn’t her type romantically.

Sadly, Cole was. The giant poophead.

Bridget showed up with Pandora’s wine. “Ivan, you ready for another beer?”

He nodded. “We need two shots of vodka.”

Pandora held her hand up. There were some things she could say no to. “I can’t do a shot.”

“Why not?” He looked at her. “Do you work tomorrow?”

“No, but…” Really, why not? If there was ever a night to drown her sorrows, it was tonight. “Okay. But only one.”

If Van thought Pandora didn’t see him wink at Bridget, he was wrong. He held up two fingers and nodded. “Vodka.”

Then he sat down and turned to face her. “What man has caused you trouble?”

She sipped her wine. “It’s a long story. With a quick end.” She smiled. “Why don’t you tell me what’s going on with you? How long are you in town for?”

“Not long. A week.” He finished his beer. “I should talk to this man.”

She almost choked on her wine. “No, Van, you should not. I appreciate that, but it’s so over it’s not even funny.”

“You are sure?”

“Positive.”

Bridget returned with their shots. “Here you go, kids. Enjoy.”

They did. Two more rounds later and Pandora had told Van everything about everything. She put her hand on her head. “Ooof. I need to go home. I’m kinda smashed.”

He looked concerned. “Are you all right,
kotyonoko
?”

“Yes. But I probably won’t be tomorrow.” She laughed, even though there was nothing funny about being hungover.

“You cannot drive.” He held out his enormous hand. “Keys.”

“I’m not going to drive. I can walk from here. My car will be okay.”

“But you might not be. I will go with you.” He held up a credit card to Bridget.

She gave him a nod and came to get it.

“Everything,” he said, pointing to his and Pandora’s empty glasses.

“Got it.” She glanced at Pandora. “You okay? You want me to call somebody to take you home?”

“No.” The last thing Pandora wanted was one of her sisters coming to get her and figuring out she’d gotten so plastered because of Cole that she’d needed someone to walk her home. She sat up as straight as she could. “I’m good. A little wasted, but good.”

Van put his hand on the back of her chair and said to Bridget, “I will get her home, don’t worry.”