Hannah (The Coven's Grove Chronicles #2) (8 page)

“Let me be the judge of that,” Dominic replied sharply. “You just focus on your part, and leave the rest to me.” He wasn’t usually put off by Monica’s attitude, but today her target was someone he wanted to get close to, and, after the flight, he wasn’t in the mood for her bullshit.

Monica shook her head. “Whatever.”

The two of them walked up to the rest of the group once Nathan started pulling bags off of the conveyer. Everyone grabbed their goods and headed for the checkout.

“Hannah, this is Monica,” Dominic introduced as they walked.

“The group’s designated troublemaker,” Nathan teased. Monica punched him in the arm, despite the fact that she was carrying four bags, and then grunted a greeting at Hannah.

“You guys don’t travel light, do you?” Hannah asked, looking at all the luggage.

Monica’s eyes cut toward Dominic, giving him an “I told you she’d be trouble” look.

“Supplies for the demonstration,” Dominic replied. “That, along with Nancy’s wardrobe, pretty much guarantees we’re lugging around about five hundred pounds of stuff at all times.”

“Hey!” Nancy cried. “You’re the one with all the fancy duds.” Laughter sprung up from various members of the group, including Hannah.

The tension in Dominic’s shoulders eased. He was glad to see that his answer had satisfied Hannah’s curiosity. He wasn’t up to the challenge of telling her the truth yet, but he knew at some point it would have come out. For now, he had a job to do. Once that was over, he’d have to come clean.

H
annah hadn’t seen so many people gathered in one place since the seminar in San Antonio. When Dominic had said there was going to be a protest, she’d thought it would be a couple hundred people at most, not several thousand.

Dongle Tower was surrounded by a multicolored sea of protesters. All of them were either chanting, waving signs, or blowing air horns at the metal and glass monstrosity. Police and security blanketed the sidewalks next to the building, preventing anyone without clearance from entering. How their relatively small numbers were able to hold back so many people was astonishing.
Guns and authority,
Hannah thought as she eyed the holstered weapons of several officers nearby.

“What do you think?” Dominic asked, or more like yelled.

“It’s amazing,” Hannah answered. “I didn’t think there’d be such a massive turnout.”

Dominic shrugged. “People with a cause, plus a little social media, can do some awesome things.”

Hannah laughed. “No doubts here.”

“Thanks for the lift by the way,” Dominic said. “Not having to rent a car was a lifesaver.”

“No problem. Although finding a place to park was rather challenging.” She chuckled. “Getting out of here is going to be fun, too.” They had had to park about five blocks away, which was a pretty decent clip when toting a thirty-pound bag on your shoulder. Everyone had carried one, except Monica and Nathan. They had carried two.

“Sorry about that,” Dominic said. “I’ll have to make this up to you.”

She frowned playfully. “I suppose you do owe me.” She’d put a little more sultriness into her words than she had intended, but found that she couldn’t help herself.

His deep laugh was sexy and full of attitude. “Yes, I do.”

“Really, it’s not a problem,” Hannah said, backpedaling, not wanting him to feel obligated. “I’m glad to do it. I want to help.” She felt like a flighty teenager again, and decided that it must be his sexy, chiseled features that kept making her act like a complete dingbat.

“Oh, no, I repay my debts,” he replied with a smile. “You’re not getting off that easily.”

“That’s funny. I was hoping I would.” Hannah flushed the instant the words came out of her mouth, but she didn’t look away. Part of her meant what she said, and wanted to express how she felt. The other part of her was screaming to run and hide.

Dominic’s brows rose, and a devilish grin made its way across his face. “Point taken.”

“Sorry.” Hannah closed her eyes and shook her head. “I’m just really in an odd place at the moment.”

“I get that,” Dominic said. “Me too.”

Relief washed over Hannah. At least they were on the same page with the awkwardness part of their blossoming relationship—if that’s what this was turning into. The conflict within her was still very much present, but now she didn’t feel alone in her turmoil. Dominic appeared to have his own conflicts as well, which could be a good thing, unless the trouble he was having was her.

The rest of the day went by without incident. The group had split up to cover the other sides of the building in hopes of meeting more people—and meet people they did. Hannah’s pockets were filled with business cards and slips of paper containing contact information scrawled on them. The event had been a good experience, but, by the time the sun started to set, her feet were barking at her, and she was ready to call it a day.

“Where is everybody?” Hannah whined, playfully hanging on Dominic’s shoulder. “I wanna go home.”

Dominic chuckled. “Now now, dear. We have to wait for the others.”

Hannah gave him a flat look. “Your ‘people’ are painfully slow.”

“Tell me about.” Dominic scanned the dispersing crowd. “I’d fire the whole lot of them, but no one else will work with me.”

“That’s odd. You seem charming enough,” Hannah purred. “Are you a cheapskate?”

Dominic frowned. “Well... yeah, maybe a little.”

“That’s it, then,” Hannah said. “Raises for everyone!”

“I like the sound of that,” Nathan answered. He strolled up with Monica trailing slightly behind. Sweat rings darkened their shirts while beads of moisture covered their foreheads from exertion. The two bags that each of them carried looked bigger than when they’d started out this morning.

“Yikes, you guys look like you’ve been in a marathon,” Hannah commented.

“If only,” Monica grumbled. “These people are animals.”

“The only animal around here is you, Monica,” Kevin snarked, as he and Nancy approached from the opposite direction. They didn’t look much better than Nathan and Monica—covered in sweat and looks of exhaustion.

“Shut yer hole before I have Nathan fill it with something,” Monica snarled.

Hannah thought the aggressive redhead was joking, but she wasn’t entirely sure.

Kevin laughed, regardless. “Whatever, sweetness.”

Dominic grabbed a bag from Monica. “Lets load up and get going,” he ordered. The tone in his voice had an anxious air to it, but everyone seemed a bit on edge and more than ready to go.

Hannah pulled out her keys and rattled them. “Hannah Ward’s taxi service ready and waiting.”

“Thank God,” Nancy blurted. “You’re a lifesaver.”

“Funny. That’s the second time I’ve been told that today.” Hannah eyed Dominic as she started off in the direction the van was parked. “Looks like I’m gonna have favors to spare.”

The group got a laugh out of that, and razzed Dominic all the way to the parking lot. As Hannah had predicted, getting out of the downtown area was nothing short of a nightmare. Cars jammed up every intersection for ten blocks in all directions.

“Do you have any of those muffins?” Nathan asked from the backseat.

“Sorry, Nathan, I don’t,” Hannah replied over her shoulder, pleased that he’d asked.

“He doesn’t need them anyway,” Monica said. “He’s too fat.”

Everyone laughed, even Nathan. “You should learn to cook like her,” he retorted. “It’d help compensate for that nasty attitude of yours.”

“You love my attitude. And you love these…” Monica grabbed her breasts. “So, be quiet if you want to see either of them again.”

Dominic sighed, and looked over at Hannah. “See what I have to deal with? You just can’t find good help these days.”

The car erupted in boos and jibes, but Dominic handled it as he did most things: with a smile. Eventually, the roads cleared and arrival at their destination was achieved. Everyone cleared out of the van, thanking Hannah as they exited.

Dominic lingered a bit after the last of his posse disappeared into the lobby of the hotel. “I didn’t burn you out of doing something like this again, did I?”

Hannah shook her head. “Not at all. It was a really awesome day.” It really had been a great day, and she found that she didn’t want it to end, at least the part with Dominic.

“Good,” Dominic breathed in relief. “I enjoyed you being there.”

Warm fuzzies rushed through her body.
Well, I guess I’m not the conflict he’s wrestling with,
she thought pleasantly. He seemed a driven man, and most likely suffered from the same work-o-holic issues she did. Definitely a positive thing.

“I’d like to talk about a few other things at some point.” Dominic hesitated in thought before continuing, “Things about us.”

A mixture of exhilaration and dread pulsed through Hannah. She was all for defining what their relationship was, and where they were headed, but terrified of questions that might lead toward the fact of her being a witch. She was fairly certain he was going to ask about the touch they’d had, and thought that she could play it off as kismet, but she didn’t revel at the thought of perpetuating the lie she’d been spinning. Tired of the internal struggle, Hannah threw caution to the wind and blurted, “Do you want to see where I live?”

Dominic grinned. “I do.” He hopped in and buckled his seatbelt.

“Aren’t you going to tell them you’re leaving?” Hannah gestured to the hotel lobby.

“No worries. They’ll know, and, if they need me, they can call.”

“Okay, then.” Hannah put the van in gear, and headed to Coven’s Grove.

Hannah giggled to herself as Dominic’s eyes bulged at seeing the mansion. She had always thought the grounds were the most beautiful at dusk, and, judging by Dominic’s reaction, he felt the same.

Massive trees lined the drive, and golden beams cut across the road, as the sun set on the horizon. A halo radiated around the craftsman style house, making the place look like it belonged high in the heavens instead of down on the lowly earth. She pulled up to the front entrance and killed the ignition. They both got out of the van, and looked up at the manor house.

“You didn’t tell me you were a gazillionaire,” Dominic said in awe. “What the hell, woman?!”

“This isn’t going to affect our relationship is it?” Hannah teased. “Can you handle being with a rich girl?”

Dominic’s jaw was a little slack but he managed to say, “...Maybe.”

“It’s not mine,” Hannah confessed. “I live here, but I don’t own it... Well, I’m part owner… sorta.” She frowned, realizing how flaky she sounded. “C’mon. I’ll take you to my cottage.”

“Cottage?” Dominic frowned. “You mean, you don’t stay here?” He gestured toward the mansion.

“I don’t sleep there, but I spend a lot of time in the study and kitchen.”

“Who lives there, then?” Dominic looked shocked. “Surely, you don’t leave it unoccupied?”

“It’s owned by a group. Friends of mine. Some of them have rooms.” Hannah didn’t like where the line of questioning was going, so she took his hand and started walking. “C’mon.”

“You’re just full of surprises.” Dominic shook his head and followed. They walked around to the back of the mansion, with Dominic gawking all the way. His eyes darted from the painstakingly placed moss-covered rocks to the giant ferns that Hannah had babied in her greenhouse. “I’m assuming you did the landscaping?”