Total pages in book: 134
Estimated words: 125179 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 626(@200wpm)___ 501(@250wpm)___ 417(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 125179 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 626(@200wpm)___ 501(@250wpm)___ 417(@300wpm)
His jaw clenched. “You didn’t mention I could grow a curly tail on the base of my spine.”
“What, like a pig?” Delilah hummed. “Interesting, since you sort of are one. You know, you’re growing some pink hairs on that chinny chin—”
“What?”
“Del,” Wynter quickly cut in, “take him back to the cottage and give him a reversal potion.”
“I’m not taking anything else from her,” he stated.
Delilah grinned. “That’s fine. I think tails are cute. Pink chin hairs? Not so much. But hey, I’m sure your boyfriend will accept you exactly as you are. And I’m sure he won’t ask any questions about how exactly you came to have—”
“Reversal potion it is,” he ground out.
Wynter waved a hand toward the cottage. “Go.” Watching the two walk off, she rubbed at her nape.
“She’s never going to listen to you, you know,” said Anabel. “She’s going to keep ignoring your warnings and doing what she wants.” The blonde shook her head sadly. “Really, she’s her own worst enemy.”
Hattie leaned toward Wynter. “Anabel’s lack of self-awareness is worrying.”
Well, Wynter could say the same regarding the old woman, so . . .
Anabel turned to Xavier, and her eyes went wide. “Ooh, spider, spider, spider!”
Wynter looked and Jesus Christ it was big.
Xavier peeked down at the insect on his shoulder but then frowned. “What spider?”
Anabel jabbed her finger toward it and then stilled. “Wait, I’m seeing things again?”
“Seems like it,” he said.
She gingerly reached toward the moving spider, which promptly crawled onto her hand. “Wow, I swear I can feel little spider feet pattering over my skin. It’s amazing how the imagination just fills in this stuff to make it more realistic for the hallucinator, right?” She smiled at Wynter, who pulled a face.
Realization dawned on Anabel. An almighty squeal erupted from her as she frantically shook her hand to throw off the insect. “Xavier, I am gonna fry you!”
The idiot doubled over with laughter.
Chapter Ten
Wynter was closing her bedroom window at the cottage later that day when she heard footfalls coming from behind her. She turned to find Cain slowly stalking into the space, each step smooth and predatory. Her stomach predictably went all fluttery.
“Well, hello there.” She smiled, surprised to see him. Busy as he was, he didn’t regularly turn up at the cottage. “What brings you here?”
He came straight to her and drew her close. “You,” he said, dipping his head. “Always you.” He took her mouth in a slow, lazy, deep kiss. It held an edge of dominance that made her hormones swoon. He broke the kiss with a satisfied hum. “Needed that.”
Wynter slid her hands up his hard chest. “Since you don’t look in the least bit triumphant, I’m guessing you again had no luck waking Abaddon.”
“You guessed correctly.” He sighed. “If we had, it would have gone a long way to lifting not only my mood but that of the other Ancients.”
She felt her brows knit. “What’s wrong with your mood?”
“It soured a few hours ago when a conduit from Aeon arrived. Adam wanted to speak to all seven Ancients this time. He offered the others a deal—if they surrender both you and me to Adam when he arrives here, he will spare their lives and leave them in peace.”
Wynter felt her mouth drop open. “He’s trying to turn them against you, or make you worry that they will. That motherfucker. Do you think they’ll give him what he wants?”
“Absolutely not. There isn’t a chance that Adam would refrain from trying to lay waste to Devil’s Cradle. Not after what happened to Abel here. The other Ancients know that, just as they know that if they handed you and me over, all they will have done is made themselves more vulnerable to an attack.”
Maybe so, but Wynter wasn’t quite ready to trust that they wouldn’t betray Cain if it came to a point where they felt that there would be no waking Abaddon or escaping their prison. One of the Ancients had betrayed Cain’s trust once before without an issue. Speaking of that particular Ancient . . . “I’ll bet Ishtar suggested they could try to placate Adam by passing me over to him.”
“I thought she might do something along those lines, but she didn’t. She claimed she’s quite aware that giving Adam what he wants wouldn’t change the man’s intentions, and she seemingly has no wish to give our last jailor anything.”
That was a surprise. “Hmm.” Even she heard the doubt in her tone. Wynter knew how much Ishtar hated her; knew that the female Ancient would happily see her gone.
“Yes, I’m just as skeptical. We’ll see how things go.” Cain trailed his finger behind her ear and down the side of her throat. “I heard from one of my hirelings that you came across my mother and the twins at the market. I also heard that you and Rima appeared to get into some sort of argument—he wasn’t close enough to pick up any words that were spoken.”