9781618851307WitchsBrewShayNC by Unknown Page A

thing he could do to protect her. If
he didn’t report this, the consequences to him, and to his world, were too
severe to consider. He didn’t have the power or the right to decide what to do
about her on his own. He answered to the guild, as well as the king, just like
every waken in the kingdom. He didn’t owe this human a thing. She was
here where she didn’t belong, and she’d pay the ultimate price with her life.

     
    * * * *

     
    Saylym ignored the look on Talon’s face and smothered a
sigh. Talk about Old World chivalry. There was just something about a man
kissing a woman’s hand that was pure gallantry, even when said man looked as if
he’d bitten into something that tasted like dog poop. Her smile slowly faded as
she noticed the way Talon dropped Hannah’s hand. He stared at the woman,
unblinking.
    There had been a significant difference in the way he
kissed the top of Hannah’s hand compared to the way he’d kissed her hands. At least he hadn’t looked at her as if she’d just crawled out from
underneath a rock. What on earth was wrong with the man? “I guess we’re
finished here,” she said sharply, scowling as Talon continued to eye Hannah
with utter distaste. The other girl squirmed uncomfortably under his intense
stare.
    “Is it something I said?” Hannah asked nervously.
    Saylym wished he’d quit staring at the woman. Heck, it
made her uneasy, as if icy, skeletal
fingers crawled up and down her spine. “We have to go,” she blurted. “It was
nice meeting you.” She grabbed Talon’s arm and steered him out of the shop. The
chill in her blood didn’t go away when they left the bakery.
    “What is wrong with you? You frightened her half to
death!”
    “Good,” he said, balancing the cake box in his left hand.
“She should be scared. She should be very scared.”
    “That’s not funny,” she said. Worrying her bottom lip
between occasional forays into polite conversation, Saylym slanted her gaze
toward Talon’s brooding face. He seemed as preoccupied with his own thoughts as
she was with hers.
    What was it about Hannah that disturbed him?
    She didn’t feel she had the right to pry into his
business, but bloody hell! He scared the crap outta her going silent like this.
“What’s wrong?” she blurted, unable to stand the suspense any longer. “Why
didn’t you like Hanna? She seemed like a nice person.”
    “She’s human,” he replied absently.
    Saylym blinked. “Oh, well, that explains everything.”
Peachy. Just peachy. “What does that make me?”
    “A wit—”
    “Don’t say it,” she cut him off. “I am not a dad-gummed
witch!”
    He lifted a brow and grinned. “Okay, you’re not a witch…if
it makes you happy to think so.”
    “It does. It makes me very happy.” She smarted under his
silent laughter.
    It was nearly dark when they finally reached Eldora’s
cottage. The old lady waited on her tiny front porch wringing her hands. “I was
watching for you, child,” she called, flapping her arms. “You shouldn’t be out
on the streets alone after dark. It isn’t safe.”
    “I’m not alone. This is my friend, Prince Talon. Talon, my
neighbor, Eldora Waters.”
    Talon took her hand and pressed a kiss to the top of it.
“Charmed, Miss Eldora.”
    Eldora
jerked her hand free. “Your smooth talking charm won’t work with me, Prince.
I’ve been around for centuries. I know what you want to do,” she snapped.
    “You do?” Talon grinned.
    She nodded, the grape-colored pointy hat bobbing up and
down on her white head. “It’s Beltane, isn’t it?” she returned suspiciously. “I
know what a virile waken is after. I’m not a loose woman, young man. So
don’t be practicing your seduction skills on me.” She sniffed, twitching her
nose. “I smell cake.”
    Saylym
handed her the box. “Happy birthday.”
    Eldora peeked inside. Her jaw dropped and she swallowed
hard. “Well. Come in. Come in. We’ll each have a slice. Oh, my. A handsome waken to share