Charmed Again (Halloween LaVeau) (5 page)

They seemed nice enough. So far they gave no indication that they wanted to kill me. Their attitudes were far from the way Jacobson had behaved. I wondered if they were witches, vampires, or some other paranormal beings. It didn’t matter right now though. I’d save the small talk for another day. I still didn’t know whether there was an actual Underworld or that was just what they called it. And they thought I was suitable to be their new leader? What a joke. I definitely questioned their method of choosing me as the one in charge. In my opinion, it was a flawed system.

When we stepped into the room, I motioned toward the sofa. “Please have a seat. Can I get you anything to drink?”

My mama hadn’t raised a rude hostess. At least the caterers had cleaned up the mess from the Halloween Ball. It seemed like ages since that had happened instead of just hours ago.

Nina waved her hand. “No, thank you. We know it’s late, so we won’t take up too much of your time.”

Smart woman.

“We just wanted to speak with you about the Underworld before you are called to look into any broken laws or other urgent matters.” The corners of her mouth lifted into a wide smile.

“It’s too late for that,” I said matter-of-factly.

Nina’s smile quickly faded. The room fell silent. Only the amplified tick-tock of the grandfather clock remained. Nina and Miles looked at Liam, then to Nicolas with wide eyes. Obviously my answer had taken them by surprise.

“She knows?” Miles asked Liam.

Odd looks were exchange
d around the room. Was there something they hadn’t told me?

“If you’re talking about what Nicolas did to the witch, then yes, I already know. We went to New Orleans tonight,” I said.

The pair remained silent for a minute.

Nina stammered, then said, “Well, what happened?”

“As expected, Jacobson isn’t happy.” Liam folded his arms in front of his chest.

“Do you plan to consult the book for this?” Miles asked with curiosity.

I shifted in my chair. “I haven’t really had a chance to read the book from cover to cover, but yes, I plan on it.”

This book better have a whole lot of details because I needed them… like yesterday.

“So you do have the book with you?” Nina asked while scanning the room.

“Yes, it’s in a safe place,” I said.

It seemed as if they didn’t trust me with the book. I’d been through a lot to hold on to it, I wasn’t about to lose it now.

“We know this seems overwhelming right now, but we’re sure you’ll settle right into your new role,” Miles said with a critical expression.

He didn’t appear too confident about his statement.
“Thank you,” I said.

Miles cleared his throat and then said, “There is one other matter. In light of recent events, we feel it’s best that you have protection right now.”

I looked around the room at the faces staring back at me. “What do you mean protection?”

“Just like with the last leader, Liam would be assigned to protect you,” Nina said.

“Why would I need protection?” I asked in a louder tone than I’d intended.

They wanted Liam to protect me? That meant that he would be around all the time. As I glanced at Liam’s sexy face, his gaze locked with mine. This would not be good. Breaking free from his stare, I looked to Nicolas. He had that same far-off look in his eyes. It was as if he hadn’t even heard what they’d said.

“Nicolas, are you okay?” I asked.

As if an alarm had gone off in Nicolas’ head, he jumped up from his seat. “That won’t be necessary. I’m capable of watching over Hallie.”

Nina and Miles stared at Nicolas as if he’d just said he could fly. And not with a magical broom either.

“Nicolas, I can understand your concern for Ms. LaVeau, but Liam has a job to do,” Miles said with a hint of challenge in his tone.

This was an awkward situation. Liam had been in charge of protecting Nicolas’ mother when she’d been murdered. Nicolas’ posture tensed and his arms remained still by his sides. I understood Nicolas’ apprehension, but if I was reading his body language correctly, he didn’t want Liam around me period. I had to admit I had my doubts too… about Liam protecting me of course. After all, the last person he was protecting was no longer here.

“You’re not employed with the Underworld in that department. You’d have to be authorized first. That could take months and we don’t have that kind of time,” Nina said with a wave of her delicate hand.

“You don’t want Ms. LaVeau to be harmed, do you?” Miles quirked a gray eyebrow at Nicolas.

Nicolas shook his head
, then walked out of the room. I was sure the memories of his mother were flooding his mind. Should I run after him? No. He needed his space and a moment to collect his thoughts. Liam was staring out the window. He knew what we were all thinking—we were questioning his ability to protect me.

Nina and Miles stood.

“You’ll let us know if we can be of any assistance?” Nina said as she shook my hand.

I nodded. “You’ll be the first to know.”

That wasn’t true. I was too stubborn to ask for help. It was definitely a personality flaw of mine.

“Thank you again for accepting the job.” Miles shook my hand again.

They hadn’t left me much choice, right? I’d found the Book of Mystics, so the job was mine for the taking. But for all I knew, there were hundreds of highly qualified candidates for the position.

“Yes, it was a pleasure to meet you, Ms. LaVeau.” Nina smiled.

“It was a pleasure meeting you as well. Thanks for stopping by so late,” I said.

See, I really was trying to be polite.

After walking Nina and Miles to the front door, I released a heavy sigh and leaned back against the wood frame. Liam had stayed in the parlor, so I was alone in the foyer. The silence was only interrupted by the sound of the clock. Would it stay that way for long? Where had Nicolas disappeared to? I peered up at the stairs. Maybe he’d gone to bed. I needed to talk with Nicolas and Liam too.

When I returned to the parlor, Liam was still standing in front of the window. Something must have been very interesting since he’d been staring at it for so long.

I reached out and touched his arm. “Are you all right?”

He nodded, but didn’t look at me. “I know you are concerned
about whether I can protect you, but I promise you I won’t let anything happen to you.”

“I didn’t think you couldn’t protect me…”

Footsteps sounded from the foyer and I wondered if Nicolas had been listening. As much as I wanted to comfort Liam, I knew that Nicolas needed me more at the moment.

“We’ll talk about this tomorrow,” I whispered.

He turned to me and smiled softly. “Good night.”

Liam walked out of the room without looking back. When I thought he’d had time to head up the stairs, I made my way to the foyer.

Nicolas flashed his gorgeous smile at me. “I thought maybe you’d gone to bed.”

Maybe my mind was playing tricks on me, but had the blank look in his eyes disappeared? Why was his odd behavior coming and going?

“Without saying good night to you first? Never.” He wrapped his strong hand around mine. “You know, we didn’t finish our dance.”

“No, I suppose we didn’t,” I said.

Nicolas led me into the parlor to the same spot where we’d shared the kiss earlier.

“I hope we’re not interrupted this time,” I said as Nicolas circled my waist with his hands.

Nicolas pulled me close and placed a soft kiss on my lips. “Me”—he kissed me softly again—“too.”

This time the kiss wasn’t light, but full of passion as his lips moved with urgency across mine. Whatever had been affecting him earlier in the evening apparently had passed and I hoped that it never returned.

I wasn’t sure if he’d just freaked out from the stress of the situation or if something more sinister had been at work. I wished the night had ended this way. That it had never taken that bizarre turn. If only I could turn back time. But how far would I have turned it back? All the way before finding the book? Before Nicolas and Liam? Life had been simpler then, but then I wouldn’t have met Nicolas and Liam. In spite of everything, I didn’t think I would have changed a thing. Well, maybe I would have wished for only the good parts of the last few days—unfortunately that was never an option.

Breaking free from the kiss
, he gently held me in his arms and said, “Thank you for being wonderful tonight.”

I shook my head. “I don’t think much of what I did was wonderful.”

Nicolas placed his iPhone on the table next to us. After a couple of seconds, soft music drifted across the room. “May I have this dance?”

Nicolas and I swayed back and forth to the music. His hands skimmed down my back before coming to rest on my hips. As he held me tight in his arms, I tried to let my mind relax and be carried away by the moment, but my thoughts weighed heavy on my mind. We continued moving in sync to the music, back and forth to the rhythm. Nicolas’ strong arms around me were comforting, but something was nagging at the back of my mind. I tried to ignore it, but I knew it was everything that had happened through the night.

I had to prove that he was innocent. Nicolas must have sensed my tension. He paused and searched my eyes.

“Is everything okay?” he asked.

I plastered a smile on my face and nodded. “Everything is perfect.”

What a big fat lie. He probably knew it too. I was a lousy actress. He embraced me again and we continued dancing. As I rested my head on his chest, I inhaled and caught his warm masculine scent. The aroma was almost hypnotizing.

The first song had ended and another beautiful melody spilled from the tiny speakers. Unfortunately, just as I’d allowed myself to relax, my phone rang, breaking me away from the moment.

“Don’t answer it,” Nicolas whispered.

I thought about ignoring the incessant ringing, but if it was Annabelle or my mother they’d just call right back, thinking that something terrible had happened to me. I had to answer it.

“I’ll be right back,” I said, stepping away and grabbing my phone from the nearby table.

Nicolas groaned as I walked away. When I looked down at the phone, I saw Annabelle’s number. She’d called several times and I knew this would be her last before she picked up her gigantic purse and hauled her butt over. She hated coming to LaVeau Manor, so I wanted to spare her that agony. But I had a lot of explaining to do about the night’s latest events. I’d fill her in as quickly as possible on the key moments, then give the full details tomorrow. It was getting late and I really needed to get some rest. I stepped out into the foyer so that Nicolas wouldn’t have to relive the events of the evening via my phone conversation with Annabelle.

“Hey, I tried to call you, but didn’t get an answer. Is everything okay?” Annabelle asked suspiciously.

Annabelle claimed to have zero paranormal ability, but I wasn’t convinced that was completely true. She had a bit of a sixth sense about stuff. She sensed things about the people she cared for. How would I begin to tell her what had happened?

“There was a bit of an issue after you left,” I whispered.

“Why are you whispering?” Without taking a break for me to answer, she continued, “Did the demons come back? I knew it. I shouldn’t have left you.”

What did she think she could have done if she hadn’t left? The demons were nothing to mess around with. I wanted to stay as far away from them as possible and she’d be wise to do the same.

“The demons didn’t come back, but Liam did.”

She sucked in a sharp breath. I heard the sound loud and clear through the phone. “Oh, dear. Did they fight?”

“No.”

“So what happened then?” she asked.

“Nicolas has been accused of stealing another witch’s powers and we drove to New Orleans so I could formally hear the charges against him.”

“Get out. Tell me everything.” Her voice echoed loudly through the phone.

After I explained what had happened, there was a long pause.

“So what are you going to do now?” she asked.

“Check back with me tomorrow and I may or may not have an answer for that.” I chuckled nervously.

“Just please be careful.” Annabelle’s tone had turned serious.

I assured her I would, but that didn’t necessarily mean much. It was kind of out of my control.

After hanging up, I rushed back to the parlor. When I stepped back into the room, Nicolas wasn’t there. I looked over my shoulder to see if I’d possibly missed him, but he wasn’t there either. Maybe he’d gone into the kitchen for a snack. There was still food left over from the Halloween Bash and none of us had eaten much. I was starved myself. If it hadn’t been so late, I’d whip up a batch of cupcakes. I’d recently mastered a cupcake spell that produced drool-worthy sweet treat
s.

Nicolas’ phone still sat on the table where he’d placed it, so I knew he couldn’t have gone far.

“Nicolas?” I whispered. “Where are you?”