There’s a sharp zap and unbearable pain in my balls. I plummet into darkness.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
GALATEA
Damn. That looks like it sucked.
I watch Asterios go down, and I breathe a sigh of relief. The colorful magic that had wrapped around us fades, and my rational mind clears out the primal lust that’s fogging it. He was unconscious, and I was free of our animalistic behaviors.
I spell my gown back on my body and sit up on the table. I peer at my new favorite farm hand and smile.
Randy the Elf twirls his cow prod proudly. Poor Asterios did not see the little elf until he was being zapped in the balls.
“I’m going to give you a bonus for this,” I declare. “What would you all like? New overalls? T-shirts? Flannels? Trucker hats? All of the above?
“We want a foosball table in the breakroom.”
“You got it.” I slide of the steel and step over the naked minotaur.
“She’s a much better boss than the old jolly guy,” an elf named Willy murmurs as the farm hands gather around.
“This job pays better too!” Hank adds.
“Amazing perks,” Randy concurs. He swings his electrical prod like a light saber.
The other elves also pull theirs out to have a mock battle.
“I’m just lucky to have you all during the off season,” I confess. “I wish I could employ you all year round. You’re the best employees I’ve ever had.”
Truthfully, I could steal them out from under old St. Nick by offering amazing bonuses and competitive wages, but who’d help make all the toys for the kids at Christmas if I did that? I didn’t have the heart to take half of Santa’s workforce.
Randy grins and looks down at the Professor. “You want us?—?”
“I got him,” I say, waving off the rest of the staff. “Thank you, though.”
“Are you going to let him shut down the farm?” Chuck asks.
“No,” I assure. “Don’t worry. You all still have jobs.”
“What if your mate says otherwise?” Buck interjects.
I raise a brow. “Have you all ever known me to kowtow to a male minotaur?”
The group of elves in overalls and boots and trucker caps shake their heads.
“Exactly.” With a flick of my hand, the unconscious professor lifts from the ground. “Don’t forget to spray out all the blood,” I say as I make my way out with Asterios body floating behind me. “And butcher the meat. We can have a BBQ this week.”
“Yay!” they cheer.
The elves love a cookout as much as I do.
My mouth waters at the thought. Food prepared by hand has a much richer flavor than food conjured by magic. Magic defaults toward healthier choices. Non-magic food is what it is. High in fat and sugar? Sure! And for the company BBQs, we source all but the meat from human supermarkets.
“Oh! Your table football game is in the break room,” I call over my shoulder.
I hear excited gasps and boots running across the barn floor.
Once outside, I feel my eyes well in silence of nature. Now that I’m alone, re-hidden behind sunglasses and my umbrella, I find myself succumbing to the overwhelming anxiety weighing heavy on my chest. Fuck, that whole experience was intense.
Though, I will say it gave me a little thrill to see Asterious being so dominant. As a witch, I’m used to being the most powerful being in a room full of male minotaurs. Without magic to affect the professor in that moment, I had no choice but to submit to his demands on my body.
I hated how much I loved it.
Inside the bedroom, I magically clean him and tie his ass to the bed. I pour more wine, then decide to drink directly from the bottle. I replay Selene’s words…
“He’s there to boost you. Whatever you face in the future, he will be by your side.”
