The change ( his mate)

Chapter 23: witches and demons and spells oh my!

Grayson

I don’t know why it was so important that we pretend we didn’t know Leo had just f.ucked the s.hit out of Amber, but if it made Lara happy then I’d do it.

I watched Amber come down the last two steps close behind Leo, she had a light sheen of sweat and her curls were a mess, it was so obvious what they’d been doing.

“You’re back, you should have let me know,” Leo said as I threw my keys on the side.

“Why?”

“It just would have been polite to let me know.”

“You mean so you’d have time to stop f.ucking Amber?”

Lara glared the most hateful look my way, but I ignored it. I didn’t really understand the whole concept of lying or pretending, I could play a role for a purpose, but I was s.hit at it and if you asked me on the spot nine times out ten I’d end up blurting the truth.

Amber blushed brighter than a tomato for someone who had dark skin. Leo glared at me too and in a clipped tone said, “my office. Now.”

I rolled my eyes, but followed him in, when I didn’t close the door he slammed it shut.

“Jesus Grayson, you couldn’t have been more respectful than that?”

I was baffled, what on earth was he on about. “Huh?” Was the only response I could give.

Leo growled in both frustration and exasperation. “You don’t blurt things out like that and certainly not so crudely.”

“But you did f.uck.”

“Grayson!”

“Alright fine, you had s.ex, or uh, what’s the other one? Made sweet love?”

He put his hand to his head and I shut up, I was only riling him up more, which I wasn’t trying to do.

“Don’t talk like that in front of the females.”

“Why? It’s just s.ex.”

He dropped down onto his arm chair probably worried if I kept talking he’d drop to the floor and have a heart attack.

I leaned back against the desk.

“I know you struggle understanding social situations and what’s appropriate and what’s not, but come on, you don’t embarrass someone if you can help it.”

“Why would you guys be embarrassed?”

“Because people don’t talk about their s.ex life in front of others and it’s even more embarrassing for Amber to know you could hear us.”

“Oh. Right. Well, technically I didn’t hear you, Lara did.” When it looked like he was going to have a brain aneurysm I tried to sound more understanding, I didn’t quite understand, but I could imitate that I did.

“Sorry, I’ll go apologise to her.” As I turned to leave he quickly grabbed my arm sleeve. “No! Don’t talk about it anymore for the love of God.”

“Fine.” I leaned back against the desk and grinned at him. “So, you and Amber huh.”

He narrowed his eyes at me for a moment, but then broke out into a smile. “Yeah, I like her and damn is she a gorgeous woman.”

“You two mates now?”

“No, well, not yet, but I think we’re headed that way.”

“About time, she’s been pining after you for months.”

He looked at me in surprise. “Really?”

I snorted. “How could you not tell? It’s obvious to anyone with eyes she wants you.”

He seemed happy about that and we spoke for a while more before he let me leave. I found Lara outside practicing some moves. I stepped out to join her and she snarled at me, “go away.”

“Why?”

She came over and shoved my chest. “I told you to not say anything and it was the first thing you blurted out your damn mouth!”

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to.”

I felt panic rising, had I screwed things up again? Would she decide she didn’t want me after all? I couldn’t bear the thought of losing her, it had killed me to keep a distance, to not lie beside her every night or be able to touch her.

I would never tell her, but sometimes I think it was worse when she would invite me to her bed, to kiss me and hold me after a run, I cherished every moment and every time I’d think, finally, she wants me, and then she’d pull away again.

I knew now it had been her own fears, but I was scared maybe I wasn’t good enough for her, maybe I was too wolfike for her to deal with. No matter how much I tried to act more human, tried to fit in to the world I knew I never would, I was basically a wolf trapped in a human body.

I don’t know what she saw in my eyes, maybe a flicker of my fears, because the fire in her eyes died down and she came over and hugged me. “It’s ok Grayson, I know you didn’t mean it maliciously.”

Sagging with relief I wrapped my arms around her. “You want to spar with me?” I asked.

Smiling up at me she nodded. We were halfway through, with her throwing kicks and punches, me, blocking, then vice versa when Leo opened the patio door and called out for us to come inside.

Lara walked up beside me and my arm automatically slid around her waist, she didn’t pull away and instead slid her own arm around mine. God I could get used to this.

We found Leo in the living room with Amber who was still clearly feeling awkward and wouldn’t meet our eyes.

“Fang called back,” Leo started.

“Fang, what the f.uck kind of vamp calls himself fang?”

Leo looked at me and muttered, “don’t ask.”

“Fang?” I mumbled to myself again, Lara nudged me and murmured, “concentrate.”

“As I was saying, he called back, turns out the whole needing a silver blade to kill them is true, but unfortunately so is the imprisoning them on the other side to prevent them crossing back over.”

“Ok, first one we can do, how do we imprison something on the spiritual plane?” I asked.

When no one jumped up with an answer, Amber said, “I may know someone.”

“A witch?” I snorted after she’d explained.

She glared at me and I met her eyes with a level stare, after a few minutes she dropped hers and said, “it’s not how you’re thinking.”

“No? So she doesn’t do spells, draw pentagrams on herself and dance naked around a fire?”

Leo gave me a warning look, but I didn’t care, it was stupid, if Amber wanted to believe some humans mumbo jumbo c.rap that was fine, but I wasn’t buying it.

Amber looked up at me. “No, don’t be silly, well, she does spells of course, but that’s what we need to imprison these things, that and dark magic.”

“Dark?” I sputtered in disbelief and tried again in a calmer tone. “Dark magic? What the f.ucks she called, Mrs Voldemort?”

Lara punched me in the leg from where she was sat and mumbled between clenched teeth, “shut up.”

I leaned back against the wall and folded my arms.

Amber persisted, “I’m being serious, she’s the real deal, she works with demons and—”

“Woah, back the f.uck up, demons? So now Linda Blair’s joining the party too?”

“Grayson, stop making jokes!” She snapped.

“I’m not making jokes, this whole f.ucking conversation is a joke, come speak to us when you have a real f.ucking solution.”

She stepped towards me eyes flaring with anger and I met her challenge, taking a step until our chests were touching and I was looking down at her. “Don’t f.ucking try it, you won’t win.”

“Grayson—” Leo started. I wheeled on him and growled, “no, I get it, she’s your girlfriend or whatever and you want to be polite and hear her out, but seriously, demon worshipping witches? I can’t listen to this, don’t ask me to.” I strode out of the room and went to my own needing to cool down.