Total pages in book: 76
Estimated words: 71312 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 357(@200wpm)___ 285(@250wpm)___ 238(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 71312 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 357(@200wpm)___ 285(@250wpm)___ 238(@300wpm)
“Don’t tell me the incubus is back,” Nik deadpans, coming to a stop in the kitchen. Ethan and I slowly break apart.
“Hah, not this time.” Ethan runs his hands down my body and takes a step back. “But I think something else is, isn’t it?”
I look from him to Nik and nod. “You didn’t feel anything?” I ask Nik.
“I felt a lot of things. You need to specify.”
“Anything ghostly.”
“No.” He cocks an eyebrow. “I thought you said this house wasn’t able to be haunted.”
“I did say that and I still believe it but—” I stop talking when Saanvi comes into the kitchen, carrying another stack of dishes.
“You don’t have to do that,” I tell her.
“Oh, it’s no problem at all. I like helping. I feel awkward sitting when someone else cleans up after me.”
“I know what you mean,” I tell her. “And I have an idea. How about we go to the barn while Harry helps wash dishes.”
She turns, looking at Harrison out of the corner of her eye. He’s doing a good job pretending he didn’t hear. “I like that idea, don’t you, babe?”
“I’m a guest,” Harrison protests.
“Exactly. You should show your appreciation,” Saanvi says and Harrison smiles, getting up and going over to her. The way she looks at him makes my heart happy. I really hope she doesn’t end up being evil.
We grab coats and put on our shoes and head outside.
“The barn is new?” she asks.
“Yeah. Like brand new. The inside arena isn’t quite done yet. Materials are back ordered, but the frame is up at least, and the weather has been decent so it’s not a big deal. It’ll be done before winter, that’s for sure, and I definitely took the heated arena at my previous barn for granted.”
“I bet. I lived in California when I rode. My definition of cold is probably laughable for you.”
“Hey, I’d happily get used to better temps. Of all the places my aunt could have lived, she picked the Midwest.”
Sundance and Mystery whinny to me when I step into the barn, and the donkeys start braying.
“I already fed you guys,” I remind them, but toss everyone more hay anyway. I give Saanvi a tour of the barn and then I take Sundance out of his stall, moving him into the grooming area. We talk as we take our time brushing each horse, not realizing just how long we’d been outside.
The wind picks up and the air feels charged from the storm that’s rolling in. We’re due for a good thunderstorm, and while I’m not scared of storms anymore like I was when I was a kid, I’m a little annoyed since the pastures were finally drying up.
“I have a bunch of baby chicks,” I tell Saanvi as I lock up the barn for the night. “I need to give them another handful of feed. They’re in the garage if you want to see them.”
“You’re living my dream life,” she says with a slight chuckle. “A creepy old house with horses—oh, sorry, not that your house is creepy. That came out wrong.”
“It’s fine, and I know what you mean. Victorian houses have a bit of a creepy factor and I personally love it. I always said my dream house was the Addams’s Family house.” I look lovingly at my house, walking closer to it. “This is perfect. Especially when I remember I don’t have a mortgage.”
She laughs. “That would make me love pretty much any house.” An old truck slowly drives down the road, letting off the gas right when it gets in front of our house. “That must be one of your neighbors?”
“Uh, probably. I don’t recognize the truck but that doesn’t mean much.”
“We saw it on the way here. It was going really slow, and I only remember because it has the dog kennel in the back and it wasn’t tied down. I didn’t see a dog in it, thankfully.”
“Oh, I hate seeing that. It’s so dangerous.” The truck speeds up as if whoever is driving sees that we’re watching, and I get a flashback to Ethan’s colleague Stephanie driving by the house hoping to catch me using magic.
She likes Ethan and thinks he’d be better off dating her than me. It wouldn’t make sense for her to go after him…yet it wouldn’t surprise me either. Maybe she’s pissed enough to want to punish him. She’s already on probation with the Order, which was probably like a death sentence to her. She definitely drank the Kool-Aid and believes the Order to be everything they say it is.
My stomach starts to twist into a knot and Hunter bumps his cold nose against my hand, reminding me to take a deep breath and calm down before I accidentally summon fire in my hand. That would be fun to try explaining to my brother’s new girlfriend.