Mygaze drifted off whenIpictured some of the delicious moments withValen. “Oh, that part was nice.Verynice,”Iadded with a wide grin. “Thiswitch’s garden is back in bloom.”
Pandorachuckled andIjoined in.Thefront door opened again, followed by the sound ofZoeandLucastalking.
Lucaswas a tall, blond dragon shifter with a charismatic smile.Hewas skilled at growing plants and herbs, which was something we went through often in potion making, so we dubbed him a green witch.Asidefrom his green thumb, he aidedZoeon investigations.Shewas a detective here in our group and was the opposite of her husband and mateLucasin almost every way.Shewas petite, reserved, and serious, whereas he had shifter hulk and was outgoing.
“Hey, ladies.”Lucasflashed a grin as he approached us from down the hall and stopped outsidePandora’soffice.
“Goodmorning,”Zoesaid.
“Wewent to see a band up inHamptonBeachthis weekend.Greatshow,” he added. “Whatdid you two do?”
Pandorareplied, “Notmuch.AustinandIhad a quiet weekend taking care of stuff around the house.”Shetipped her head toward me. “Cassandrawas telling me about hers, which was far more interesting.”
Lucasturned to me with an excited glint in his eyes. “Oh, and what did you do?”
Ishrugged one shoulder. “Iwent skiing in theWhiteMountains.”
“Isn’tthat whereSebastianis from?”Zoedrew her brows together in question.
“Yes, indeed,”Ireplied.
“Interesting.”Lucastapped his fingers together. “Didyou meet any hotties on the slopes?Orwarming up by the fire in the lodge?”
Ipursed my lips in an attempt to keep mum aboutValen, but my mouth rebelled against my half-hearted wish. “Both,”Iadmitted. “Well, the same guy.”
“Cass-an-dra,”Lucassaid my name with emphasis. “Thisis news.Younever talk about guys.”Herubbed his hands together. “Tellus more.”
“Easy,”Zoesaid with a chuckle, touchingLucas’sforearm.
Therewas no wayIwas going to tellLucasabout my sex life, but he loved a good story, soItold them about the chairlift dating and the tumble. “Hewas a wolf shifter, and he asked me out to dinner.Wewent out that night and then went skiing together the next day.”WhenIpictured the steaming night that followed, a low burn worked its way up to my cheeks.Isummarized it with a simple, “Wethen ate pizza in his cabin that night.”
“Pizza, eh?”Lucasnodded with a knowing look as if he knewexactlywhat that meant.
“Yes, pizza,”Irepeated.
Hewaved both hands to the side. “Iwon’t ask for the details ontoppings.”
Zoegroaned at his apparent innuendo and placed her hand on her forehead.
“Areyou going to see him again?”Lucasasked.
“No,”Idismissed.
“Whynot?”Pandoraasked.
“Because…”Ipursed my lips, searching for the reasons. “Itwas only a weekend fling.Ontop of that, he acted so weird yesterday morning—like he couldn’t wait for me to get out of there.”
Zoehuffed. “Soundslike a jerk.”
“Notexactly,”IdefendedValenfor some unknown reason. “Hewasn’t a jerk—but he was definitely acting strange.”
“Men,”Lucascommiserated with an amused smile and shake of his head. “Suchmorons.”
“Sometimes,”Iagreed with a chuckle.
Afterfinishingup at theNetwork,Ipicked upPaigefrom the academy for supernaturals she attended.Aswe drove back home,Iasked her about her day, and she told me the highlights.
Whenwe arrived home, we settled into the kitchen to make dinner together.Wechopped vegetables and boiled pasta.Iloved cooking dinners withPaige.Buteven so,Iknew moments like this wouldn’t last forever.She’dbe a teenager soon enough and probably want nothing to do with me.I’dtold myself thatIdidn’t want to get involved with a man while she was little asIhad to focus on being a mom toPaige, but that brief encounter withValenthis weekend reminded me of whatIcould be missing.
