The Dashing Witch (The Ward Witches) (3 page)

THE DASHING WITCH

He knew too, with depressing certainty, that once he had completed the bond, he'd never be able to see other women the same way he had. Justin preferred lots of women. One for a night, or if she was lucky, a week. He didn't make commitments, and he made sure they knew that up front. But the bond meant that he'd have a hard time finding any woman but Melanie sexy, if he could manage it at all. Depressing indeed.

Justin checked back in on the speech currently in progress. Seb was speaking of the virtues of a unified American community of witches. That was all well and good, but it would only work if everyone was as committed as Seb was.

“
Finally, I believe that we need to make the current Northeast Quadrant Coven into a National Coven and establish a new Northeast Coven. After all, the current one is the leading Coven, but it is unfair for one quadrant to be in authority over the others, leading to less attention for the members of that quadrant. I propose that this new Northeast Coven would be based in New York, and that some of the current administration would be brought under the National Coven banner. The individual sects in the quadrant would not be affected. I’m not asking anyone to decide today. I want you to get with the other members of your Coven, particularly the leader, this evening, and we’ll vote tomorrow. I will now open the floor to questions.”

Good, that should keep them occupied for a while. He knew that Seb wanted to keep the topic on unity until it was time for lunch. After that it would be Justin’s turn. Indeed, when the questions became repetitive, and it seemed that most people were nodding in approval, Seb dismissed for lunch.

Leo's wife Skylar and her team of assistants had gone all-out on creating a luncheon buffet for the summit, and everyone tore into it. Justin watched from the side, hoping that there would be some left by the time he got over to get a plate. If not, Skylar would probably have extra in the kitchen. He felt Melanie before he saw her, a wave of peace settling over him. She walked over to stand beside him, close but not touching. Justin was intimidated by the desire to reach out and hold her. This bond stuff was powerful.

“
Hey,” Melanie greeted him.

“
Hey yourself.”

“
Don’t you need to socialize? You know, promote the idea Seb floated of a National Coven?”

“
Nah. Seb’s idea is strong; it’ll be fine without my interference. Besides, I want to really make waves with my speech after lunch, and I want to be aloof until then. No questions before everyone hears what’s going on.” He paused and chanced a look at her. Yes, she was just as beautiful as she was last night and this morning. Damn it. “Don’t you need to catch up with the other members of your Coven? I know they’re probably worried that you didn’t come to the summit with them today.”

“
I don’t know if I’m ready for the questions yet. I don’t know if I’ll ever really be ready to talk about how I ended up married to a man who I plan to part with and never see again.” She said the last in a whisper just loud enough for him to hear, but no others.

“
I’m sure you’ll figure something out. Besides, we’re not going to tell anyone of the separation plan just yet.”

She reached out and slipped her hand into his. Justin didn’t want to admit how good that felt. “You’re right. Besides, your family, or at least your twin, has been supportive. My Coven likely won’t be. Scratch that. My Coven definitely won't be.”

“
Do you want me to come with you when you talk to them?” He looked over at her. She was biting her lower lip and looking nervous.

“
I should be fine. But if they come demanding your blood, I warned you.”

“
Why will they not be supportive?”

“
First, they know I never planned to bond, just like you.”

“
My family accepted that I changed that.”

“
Your family cares so much about you that they want to see you happy. Mine won’t believe this will make me happy. Second, they’ll be protective of the timid woman they don’t think can protect herself.”

“
That’s hardly you. You’re strong, and you can protect yourself.”

“
Thank you. But since I'm an air witch, they've always thought of me as having no offensive skills. It's not true, but they think that way despite the proof. But third, and this is the clincher, they know I had plans to settle down with another man.”

Justin’s heart stopped for a second at the idea that Melanie could be with someone else. Jealousy was unbecoming, especially in someone who didn’t plan to keep her, but he couldn’t help the feeling. “Please explain.” He tried to keep his voice as calm and cool as he could.

“
There’s another guy in the Coven, Richard, who happens to be here as well. Neither one of us wanted the full commitment of the bond, so we’ve been dating on and off for years. It’s hard when our magic rebels against a long term relationship, but we made it work.

“
Richard and I planned that when we were ready to settle down, we’d get married and adopt kids despite the lack of a bond. Lately, he’s been pushing that it’s time we started the plan and took the vows. I’m afraid he’ll think of this as a betrayal because it interferes with our plans. It was mostly him lately, but that won't matter in his reckoning. Now that I’m bonded, and soon to be legally married, I can hardly marry him or adopt children with him. Even if we’re separated for life, I’ll be loyal to what we have.” She looked sheepish.

This newest revelation made Justin pause. He was still jealous, and he knew he had no right to be. He told himself he should be honored that she’d remain loyal to him, but he couldn’t get past the fact that there was another guy who wanted to marry his woman. “And do you still feel anything for him?”

“
What I did feel, or thought I felt, is now gone, eclipsed by what I feel for you. Besides, we’ve been off for a while, despite his pleading to get married already. I don’t want to go through with that plan anymore, but my feelings don’t mean that he won’t want to go through with it, particularly after we separate.”

“
I understand. Do you want me to talk to him?”

“
I don’t know yet to be honest. I appreciate the offer, though. I really do need to speak with them, test the waters. I’ll let you know if I need backup. But you’re right, I need to stop delaying the inevitable. I’ll go grab a plate and find them.”

“
You’ll be fine.” He squeezed her hand.

“
Thanks.” She looked indecisive for a second, but she leaned in to give him a quick kiss. More like a peck than what he would have wanted from her. Before he could turn that into something more, she smiled and backed away.

Melanie filled her plate with what looked like delicious food. She wasn’t sure she’d be able to eat any of it when she got done with her chore, but she did want to have something in front of her when she talked to the Waverly brothers.

She could hear them gasp when she sat down.

“
Melanie?” Lawrence began as she sat down, “Is there something you need to tell us?”

“
As you can tell, I bonded last night,” she tentatively said. “We met at the bar and ended up in my hotel room.”

Richard was searching her face for something. “What about your plans? Our plans?” He asked quietly. “I thought you were never going to bond and that we’d get married.”

“
Plans change,” Melanie tried to sound confident and dedicated to the new course of action. “We hit it off, and I realized that a married life without the bond is like missing half of what a relationship could be.”

“
Did you really think before getting into this?” Richard asked, changing demeanor from hurt to angry like lightning. “Did you consider what all the ramifications of this are? What about your job? Your position in the Coven? Anything?”

“
I’ve already called Lisa. She’s agreed to let me leave on good terms. As for the Coven, I’ll get a new position here. It’s all for the best, Richard, really. We wouldn't have been happy like that, not really. I have a chance for something better. You have a chance for something better when you meet the woman you can bond with too.”

“
Don’t think this is the end of it. I will get you back.”

“
There’s nothing to get back. We weren’t dating, and now we never will be again. Don’t you see?”

“
I don’t. You should take your food and go sit elsewhere. If you don’t want us, we don’t want you.”

“
Isn’t that harsh, Richard?” Lawrence asked.

“
It’s what she deserves. Now go.” He dismissed her and returned to eating.

Trying to keep a little dignity, Melanie grabbed her plate and left. She saw Justin sitting on the other side of the room while Seb was holding court at their table. She slid into the seat beside him.

“
That bad?” He whispered.

“
Worse.”

“
You want to talk about it?”

“
Perhaps later.”

“
Hello,” a perky woman with a wave of long blonde hair greeted Melanie. “It’s nice to see that Justin finally found someone.”

“
Thank you. I’m Melanie.”

“
Skylar. I’m married to Leo, Justin’s younger brother. That makes us sisters.”

Melanie found herself smiling. How do you not smile in the face of such enthusiasm? “I’ve never had any siblings.”

“
Now you’ve got a whole mess of them. Leo and Dymphna are off chatting with an old friend, but you’ll meet them later. You’ve met Seb already.”

“
Yeah.”

“
I know it’s a bit intimidating. Believe me, I’ve been there. But it’s a great family, and we’re glad to have you.”

“
Thanks.”

Justin squeezed her hand. “You’ll help her settle in, then?”

“
Of course. It was hard enough for me, and I already lived in Boston. If there’s anything you need, please talk to me. Besides, I'd like the company.”

“
I appreciate it.”

“
I know! Why don’t you come over to the Manor after the summit? This place will be crawling with witches, and I’m sure you’d like to get away for a while. Bring Justin, and we’ll all get to know each other better.”

Melanie looked at Justin to see how he felt about the idea. He nodded stoically, and so she accepted.

“
We won’t keep you too long; I’m sure you and Justin will want to get some time to yourselves as well.”

Skylar proceeded to ask Melanie a million questions, with Justin commenting where appropriate. It should have felt invasive, but instead, it felt nice to be part of something bigger. She had never really had a family beyond her parents. This would be nice while it lasted.

Melanie sat with Skylar as they filed back into the ballroom. She introduced her husband Leo and his twin Dymphna, but there wasn’t any time to talk before Justin took the stage. He was so handsome. She knew that they would never work, but at the same time, her heart really wanted it to. That kiss, earlier, had confirmed that she felt for him, which was more than she would appreciate considering her imminent departure.

Justin smiled out over the room, waiting for everyone to quiet down. “I’m Justin Ward, head of Coven Protection here in Boston.  I imagine you all have some idea of why we’re here now.” He waited for the whispers to die down again.

“
Recently we’ve become aware of the latest activity of the Dark Order. Redman and his witches have been kidnapping witches under the protection of a Coven or no protection at all. They are using intermediaries to get their witches. Two of those that we know about are Linda Crowley and Selby Kincaid. They have almost certainly changed their names or used aliases. We haven’t been able to figure out what they are using the sacrifices for, but we’ve been working around the clock to figure it out. We also don’t know when the next sacrifice is scheduled for or if they already have the witches they want.”

A flutter of noise broke out through the room as people looked to their neighbors.

“
Quiet, please.” As the noise level died out once more, he began again. “In this time, we all need to work together, as Seb said. We need to let the unprotected witches know about the kidnappings. Don’t press them to join the Coven, just to be careful. But we also need to consider working within our own Covens. It’s not just the unprotected witches getting taken. The two individuals we know are involved in the kidnappings are both non-witches, but that doesn't mean that witches aren't doing the same kinds of things. Be careful before you go somewhere with someone you don't know. Look out for your friends. It would be wise to set up a contingency plan, just in case. Make sure someone knows where you live and work. If you go on vacation, let someone know where you’re going. Keep in contact with people, even just to check in. As witches, we're being hunted for some sick game, and it falls to us to protect ourselves. Please, do everything you can to be safe. We know there’s a danger, now we just have to deal with it. I’ll take questions now.”