No, I didn’t, and as long as I stuck to the friend zone, I’d never have to find out.
Fuck you, disappointment. Fuck you.
“We’ll be moving into the main house soon,” Tor said as he washed our teacups. “You’ll have the anchor’s room. Leif’s ordering a new bed and mattress for your room this week.”
Good. There was no way I was sleeping on Charlotte’s old one. She’d shared it with her mates, and I didn’t even want to think about what they’d gotten up to on it. Sweaty, dirty, inventive things.
Nope. Not thinking about it.
Tor glanced over his shoulder briefly with a small smile. He’d reined in the dom vibe and the tension thrumming between us had ebbed. Thank God, I could breathe again. Think again. It didn’t stop my eyes from roving over his broad back and the muscles moving beneath his cream T-shirt, though. Fuck, the damn thing might as well have been spray-painted on.
“Cora?”
Wait, had he asked me a question? “I kinda like it here in the cabin.”
“Me too,” he said. “Cozy.”
“Yeah.”
He turned to face me, drying his hands on a tea towel. “We can stay here for a little longer if you want.”
I sighed. “If we do that, I might not want to move.” I smiled up at him. “We’ll shift to the big house whenever the bed gets here.”
He glanced up at the clock. “Look, I have some pack business to attend to; do you want to come with?” He shrugged a huge shoulder. “Mana isn’t as formal as Vita. No lunches or charity events.” His eyes darkened. “My mother passed a few years ago, but my aunt would like to meet you. It would be good for the other pack members to familiarize themselves with your scent.”
“Sure, I’d like that.” I pushed back my seat and stood. “But first I need to check on Wren. I couldn’t find him earlier. I’m worried.”
“I’ll be leaving in an hour,” he said.
“I’ll be back by then.”
I didn’t get far from the cabin when I spotted the redheaded witch Justine and her friend Kel headed my way. And clinging to Justine’s shoulder was a cute furry figure.
“Cora!” Wren leapt off the witch and bounded toward me.
“Wren, buddy.”
He clambered up my leg and wrapped his arms around my neck in a fierce hug. “Wren missed Cora.”
“I missed you too.” I stroked his back. “I came looking for you earlier.”
“Wren was hungry. Dottie fed Wren.”
Justine and Kel approached.
“Thanks for bringing him to me.”
“No problem.” Justine’s gaze slipped over my shoulder down the path toward the cabin.
It struck me that they’d probably never seen the place before. “You guys want to come in for a quick cuppa before heading back?”
Kel looked wistful. “We’d love to, but we have to get back. Sloane’s ordered extra training for all the witches for the next week.”
“It’s for the best,” Justine said. “Brie’s death and the tests we’ve all undergone show we’ve become complacent. We need to train regularly to keep our senses sharp. Wielding miasma doesn’t come easily to every witch. Some of us have to work at it constantly.” She locked gazes with me. “Is it true what they’re saying?”
“I’m not sure…What are they saying?”
“That you’re the new Elite?”
Ah, crap. This was Brie’s cousin, the witch they’d expected would step into her shoes.
No point beating around the bush, though. “Yeah. I am.”
She nodded curtly. “I’m glad we found someone. But I need to know that you’ll do the role justice. It’s an important duty. Not a side gig. You have epic shoes to fill.”
“Justine!” Kel looked horrified. “I’m so sorry, Cora, she didn’t mean that.”
But my gaze was still locked with Justine’s. Yeah, she’d meant it, and I respected that. “No need to be sorry. I get it, Justine. Brie was an amazingly talented witch, and she fulfilled an essential role, because that’s what The Elites are … essential for the protection of humanity. I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t want to protect humanity, and I promise I don’t take this responsibility lightly.”
She swallowed hard and nodded. “Thank you. And if you need anything, please don’t hesitate to ask.”
They left me with Wren and headed back the way they’d come.
“Cora,” Wren said softly. “Wren hungry.”
I gasped and pressed a hand to my chest. “Really?”
He looked up at me with his big, brown, quizzical eyes. “Is Cora making fun of Wren?”
I kissed the top of his head. “Totally.”
Mana Pack was nothing like Vita. It was a cluster of log cabins built off-road in a gated community.
We’d taken the Rover and Wren was curled up in the back seat, fast asleep by the time we parked on a gravel drive. Four wedges of cheese on toast and a packet of jammy dodgers and he was a pot-bellied, snoring heap.
I’d counted ten cabins as we’d driven up, all one-story affairs, but this main building, the alpha house, was a two-story monolith with a deep porch and lanterns hanging from the eaves. I bet it looked gorgeous at night with the lanterns lit.
Tor killed the engine. “You ready?” He glanced across at me. “Mana is smaller than Vita, more males than females for starters, but most of the menfolk will be resting in preparation for patrols.”
“Do the men always sleep during the day?”
“No, but we’re covering a wider area tonight. They’ll need to be in top form.” He unlocked the car door. “Come on.”
I checked on Wren and then followed Tor as he got out of the car and stretched his huge body.
Yeah, the Rover was a squeeze for him.
I caught movement to my left, a couple of women hovering at the windows to one of the smaller cabins. They ducked out of view when they caught me watching.
If Tor noticed them, he didn’t let on. Instead he led me up the steps to the alpha cabin. The door swung open and Sten greeted us. He’d shorn off his long golden locks and his face looked gaunter, haunted.
“Uncle,” Tor
