Bigfoots Don't Do Mini Coopers (Kate Storm Book 1) (21 page)

“
Morgause made sure the truth was never written down.” When I raised my eyebrows at her, she continued. “Nobody likes a bad witch. She killed most of the immortals who knew the truth. Our relatives that lived all died without having children, except your line. Morgause never went after them because they hid really well at first and by the time she found your great- grandmother, she had no clue about her history. That’s why you’ve never known anything about your relatives. The truth was kept secret to keep you alive.”

Looked like I came from a long line of Duck and Dodge witches. Duck, Dodge and Stay Alive.

Go us.

“
So your sister Morgause is still alive?”

“
I don’t claim her as my sister, but yes, she’s still alive.”

Okay, that sort of creeped me out. Especially now that I did know the truth.

“Didn’t she try to come after you?”

“
Yes.” Morgan didn’t elaborate. Memories shadowed her eyes. I didn’t press.

“
I still don’t understand why you couldn’t tell me.”

“
Don’t you hate me now?” Morgan demanded.

“
Why would I?” I was hurt and confused. Maybe a little bitter. Definitely felt betrayed. But I didn’t hate her.

“
I knew what that little shit was going to do and I never said anything!” She screamed the words at me.

“
Again, Morgan, why are his actions your fault? And what could you have done? From what you just told me, your sisters would have still done him in to prevent him from shaming the family name.”

“
Yes, but I didn’t . . .” Her voice trailed off. Frown lines creased her forehead. “I never really thought of it like that before.”

“
You mean, you’ve been carrying around all this guilt for centuries?” Sweet Glinda, and I always thought I had issues.

“
Its not like I ever talked about this before.” Morgan scowled at me.

I rolled my eyes at her. I
’d never thought Morgan might have hidden vulnerabilities. Shameful memories she carried with her. She’d always been a bit secretive, but all vamps are. She’d never hinted at any of this. Not once. Until Drake showed up.

She
’d been carrying all this pain, all alone for centuries. Living with it, but keeping it secret. If I had a sister like Morgause, I’d probably do the same.

If I
’d been in her shoes, would I have been upfront when we first met? Would I have been eager to claim a relationship? Or volunteer information about the curse?

I understood being vulnerable. And I knew all too well how those hidden weaknesses could control a witch
’s behavior. Or a vampire’s. I was still hurt, but I understood her reasoning and her fears.

My life had been run by my fears for far too long. And I
’d only lived a tiny portion of the span of Morgan’s life.

“
So, why find me at all?” I looked at her. “Why not just keep your distance from Aunt Tabs and myself?”

“
I didn’t even know anyone had survived until right before we met. Once I found out, I couldn’t stay away. I had to find you.” She shook her head. “Then I found out you were mortal and I don’t know, I had this crazy idea of watching you and protecting you, but then we met in that bar fight and I liked you so much,” her breath shuddered out, “I didn’t want to be alone anymore.”

Morgan thrust her shoulders back. “
It was selfish. I’d already caused you so much pain. I should have stayed away, but . . .” Her voice trailed off, her shoulders slumped.

She was more human than she wanted to admit.

We sat there until the sun set. We didn’t say much. I know I was trying to adjust to all the changes in my reality. I figured Morgan was as well.

On the one hand I
was thrilled we were related, on the other I was horrified I now knew the details of the curse. I should have been happy to have that mystery solved. But I could barely think about it without my skin crawling.

My own relative had killed off almost everyon
e in the family? She was a powerful, black witch? And Morgan was afraid of her?

How the hell was I supposed to come up with a way to break our curse from a black witch?

I didn’t know. If Morgan hadn’t been able to do anything, what chance did I have?

I couldn
’t think about it at the moment. It was too big, too scary and too overwhelming. For just this moment I wanted to sit next to my UDBF.

She was my best friend and we were related. I liked that.

The moment the sun finally slid past the mountains, Morgan sighed. Vampires love the night.

Suddenly, she laughed. “
Those trolls put up a really good fight.”

I had to laugh as well. “
Yeah, they did.” We had so many good memories between us. “Do you remember the size of the mace that one was swinging?”

Morgan
snickered. “I remember the lump it gave him when I smashed him on the head with it.”

Good times.

“Hey, wasn’t that zombie at the fight?”

“
Yeah, he’d been on our side.” I could hardly forget him. He’d used one arm as a club.

Morgan sighed. “
Too bad he really did die.”

Yeah. Totally sucked.

I turned to look at her. She sat mostly in the shadows. And I realized she’d been in the shadows most of her very, very long life. Morgan didn’t make friends easily. She may not have meant to become friends with me at first.

But we had become friends. Best friends.

We would get through this. Together.

The ache in my chest eased up.

“I think I’ve got a bottle of A negative. You want a glass?”

Morgan started to nod. A warm glow lit part of my deck. The part right outside m
y bedroom door.

“
He’s determined. I’ll say that for him.”

I glared at her as I walked by on my way to my bedroom. This was not funny. He could start a fire.

I made a mental note to hide all the matches and any lighters I had.

Crazy hit-man Chihuahua.

24. Back To Good.

“He left after you gave him a bj?”

“
Damn near left burn marks on my floor.” I glanced down at the Chihuahua sleeping in my lap. He didn’t move. Big Al had conveniently channeled away after I’d snatched the lighter out of his front paws.

He
’d used a pillow to get the lighter to the exact height of the candle wick and laid it on its edge. I couldn’t imagine how many tries it had taken the little nut-job before he actually managed to light it.

“
That doesn’t make any sense.” Morgan took a sip of her blood. She was on her second glass.

I drank a tiny sip of my vodka tonic. I had to make it last. There was just enough vodka left for one drink. “
I, maybe, kind of, pushed a few of his buttons.”

“
Which ones?” Morgan turned her head, her brilliant curls flowed softly over one shoulder.

I took a bigger sip. “
Just the ones for dominance, control, manipulation and male ego.”

“
Ah. The important ones.”

Yes, damn the ruby slippers.

We were trying to find our footing again. Asking her advice about Ash had been a perfect opening.

She was my UDBF. I couldn
’t live without her.

It hurt me that she
’d lied and I couldn’t quite process it all yet. We were related. I now knew how and why we’d been cursed. Scary evil witch. Black magic. The stuff of nightmares.

I pushed it out of my mind for the moment.

“No worries.” Morgan snuggled back into the cushion. “Just tell him you’re sorry.”

That was her helpful advice. Apologize?

“I know you, Kate. You didn’t mean to undermine him. Plus Ash cares about you. Tell him you’re sorry and he’ll forgive you.”

Hmm. She had a point. But she also said “
undermine”. Shit, was that what I’d done?

“
You could also follow up that apology with another bj.”

Now we were talking. Ash wouldn
’t be able to resist. I could tell him it would be on his terms. Any way he wanted it.

Knowing that dominant demon, his way might just include some handcuffs and restraints. You know, to make certain he was in full control and then he could . . .

“Get whatever deviant fantasy your mind has created out of your head right now. I might be full, but your heart rate makes me feel like a damn voyeur.”

Ick.
There went that fantasy.

The pull-out squeaked.

Which reminded me. “Harley is all healed up now. I need to take her back and I could use some help.”

She responded better to Morgan and Al. More than likely due to the fact they hadn
’t run her over in the first place.

I didn
’t want to keep casting sleeping spells over her. I was pretty sure there wouldn’t be any long term effects, but it’s always better to be safe than risk potential death. Or a magically induced case of narcolepsy.

Not good for a creature who
’d managed to stay out of sight - and off the front page - for who knew how long.

Harley would listen if Mor
gan asked her to lie still in the back of Ash’s truck.

“
Already? She’s barely had time to heal. Don’t you think she should stick around for a bit longer before we send her back to the woods? Her manicure won’t last and she’ll ruin her soft fur.”

“
Morgan, she’s Bigfoot. She’s over seven feet tall and taking up serious real estate on my pull out.” Plus Al liked to sleep with her. “It’s time for her to go back to where she came from.”

“
She can’t stay a little bit longer?”

I considered Morgan. Her absolute del
ight in pampering Harley and her devotion to Al.

“
Did you have a pet when you were growing up?”

Morgan scowled at me. “
What does that have to do with anything?”

Oh, for Spirit
’s sake. “Morgan, Harley is not a giant teddy bear. We can’t keep her.”

Morgan lo
oked ready to argue when my doorbell rang.

“
I’ll be right back.”

I cuddled Al against my chest as I headed towards the front door. Aunt Tabs stood on the other side.

Decked out in sparkly gold heels, skinny jeans and a long sleeved, v-necked leopard print shirt, she looked fabulous. As per her usual.

“
I don’t like it when you lock me out, Kate.” She stepped over the threshold, her heels clicked in a sexy rhythm. “I want you to promise me you won’t do it again.”

“
I’m sorry Aunt Tabs. I just needed some alone time.”

She continued to frown at me for half a second longer then she shook her head and smiled. “
I guess I can understand. That was a pretty big bombshell Morgan dropped. Have you two worked things out yet?”

She made it sound as if we
’d been fighting for weeks instead of a few hours.

I have to say it felt more like weeks too.

“She’s on the porch.”

“
Wonderful. I have so many questions for her.” She turned and
tap tapped
her way down the hall.

I followed, thankful she hadn
’t caught on to the fact I hadn’t actually promised her anything. I hated not being one hundred percent truthful, but there are times in a witch’s life when she simply needs her space.

I stopped to pour Aunt Tabs a glass of Chardonnay from the bottle I kept for her in my
fridge. When I stepped out onto the porch, Aunt Tabs had already pulled up one of my chairs next to Morgan and was in the process of grilling her.

I
’d been on the receiving end of her interrogation enough times when I was younger. Now, I quietly set her glass near her and sat back to enjoy the show and cuddle with my Chihuahua.

Forty-five minutes later, my hand was tired and Aunt Tabs finally paused to take a sip of her wine. She wrinkled her nose at its warmth.

“Did you tell Aunt Tabs you’re kicking Harley out?” Morgan asked, eyes the size of fabled emeralds.

Wonderful. She was trying to throw me in the cauldron. However, I understood. For such a nice witch, Aunt Tabs could be ruthless. Plus, it was clear Morgan was not so good with either feelings of gu
ilt or vulnerability. Given the opportunity, she was going to do anything - and use anyone as a distraction - to avoid facing them.

“
Harley?” Aunt Tabs quirked a brow.

“
Bigfoot.” I shrugged, still totally divided on my feelings for the creature. “Morgan named her last night.”

My aunt narrowed her soft brown eyes in my direction. “
I’m not throwing her out.” I defended myself. “She’s completely healed up. It’s time for her to go back home.”

Aunt Tabs turned that look towards Morgan who threw herself back in
to her seat in a huff. “Apparently, I have pet issues.”

“
We’ll get you a cat, dear.” She patted Morgan’s knee. “Bigfoot’s a little much for your first pet.”

Not to mention enormous, mythical and sure to cause an uproar if discovered. Speaking of which . . .

“Did I tell you the neighbor I’ve been worried about is a xenologist?”

Aunt Tabs turned to me with a scowl. Guess not.

“His name is Claud Potier. He’s renting the apartment four doors down. I don’t know how exactly, but he knows I’m a witch. Worse, he knows I have Bigfoot. He’s hoping he can steal her and get his photo on the cover of Time.”

“
Well,” Aunt Tabs tapped gold nails on the arm of her chair. “We need to get Harley out of here as soon as possible then.”

Morgan sighed. Hard. We both ignored her ut
ter dejection.

“
If Harley is fully healed, I think we should move her tonight.”

I perked right up. Morgan slumped down further in her seat.

My doorbell rang again.

“
Be right back.” I handed Al to my Aunt and practically skipped down the hall.

Ash
leaned against my doorframe. Black leather head wrap, black loosely tied vest, no shirt and tight jeans. Total badass.

I froze. Torn again between utter joy and pure fear. Undermine. I
’d
undermined
him. I’d looked it up on my phone when I’d gotten our drinks.

Sabotaged. Weakened. Reduced.

I’d fucked up royally.

“
Ash.” I didn’t know what else to say. I couldn’t blame him if he was upset. He was a frickin’ Demon Lord. And I’d undermined him. Spirits, I sucked at relationships.

Ash looked behind me, frowned a
nd gripped my arms. Next thing I knew my door slammed shut and I was thrust against it on the landing outside my apartment. Ash’s big hands rested next to my shoulders, caging me in.

“
You were a very naughty witch, Kate.” His amber eyes bored into mine. He didn’t sound undermined. Or sabotaged. Not even a hint of weakened.

He sounded all male. Very male. Dominant. Powerful. Male.

My stomach clenched.

My earlier fantasy came rushing back. Call me Wicked, but “
the witch who needs to be punished” might just be my new favorite fantasy of all time. Especially if it involved handcuffs.

“
I’m sorry.” And I truly was. I never wanted to hurt this demon. He carried enough scars as it was. “I only wanted to prove you couldn’t hurt me.”

Ash lowered his head. He brushed a
horn gently over my cheek. Smooth and silky, it did nothing to cool me down. I could imagine it gliding over various other parts of my body all too well.

“
Next time, you will discuss important matters with me first.”

The steel in his voice had me nodding,
and melting, before I fully processed his words. Next time. Ash had said next time.

Go us.

“Okay.” Sweet Glinda, my voice came out like the slutty witch version of Marilyn Monroe. All soft and breathy. “And what happens if I don’t?” I just couldn’t let go of my
Bad Kate
fantasy.

Flickers of ruby tipped blue flames sprang out over his shoulders and upper arms. “
I’d have to punish you.”

Oooooo
. In that case, just call me Naughty.

The door at my back opened.

Ash’s strong arms prevented me from falling. His flames flickered out.

“
Al told me
you
were here.” Based on her tone, Aunt Tabs was not happy. And if Al had channeled back . . .

Not good.

“What’re ya doin’ here, Ass?” Al, naturally, sounded like he wanted to kill someone. Preferably one very large demon.

Getting worse.

“Ass? I thought you said his name was Ash?”

Not going there.

I pushed lightly against Ash’s arms. He loosened his hold to allow me to turn around, his hands slid down to squeeze my waist.

“
His name
is
Ash.” I scooped up Al and shook my finger in front of his nose. He growled and licked my chin at the same time.

“
I believe you two have already met, but it doesn’t appear proper introductions were made.” I tucked Al into the curve of my arm and clamped the thumb and forefinger of my other hand over Al’s tiny muzzle. “Aunt Tabs, this is Ash.” I tilted my head toward him and then back towards my aunt. “Ash, this is my Aunt Tabitha.”

Ash moved to my side and held out one hand. He wrapped the other around my waist.

A Demon Lord isn
’t one to ignore the subtleties of - or the importance of - non-verbal communication. His arm clearly indicated we were together.

I had to admire his confidence in front of a witch with a wand in her hand. I
’d have been a teensy bit more hesitant in his shoes.

Aunt Tabs briefly shook his hand. “
We met last night.” My aunt’s a very polite witch. “After he damn near burned you to death.” Although not where my well-being is concerned.

Al growled and wiggled in my arms. I tightened my grip.

“About that,” I tried to step in front of him, but Ash wouldn’t let go. The look in her eye and the grip on her wand concerned me. “Ash didn’t mean to burn me.”

“
I would never intentionally hurt Kate.”

I adored steely, determined demons.

“What do you call burning her damn near to death then?”

Clearly, my aunt wasn
’t as big a fan.

“
Working through inter-species relationship issues?”

We all looked at Morgan. I hadn
’t even noticed her approach.