“Hi,” she said, voice quiet but steady.“Um...I had a dream.And it told me to come here.Sorry if this sounds crazy.Oh, yeah, my name is Brielle.Brielle Johnson.”
The name rolled through Saffron, settling like a piece of a puzzle finally clicked into place.
Ursula smiled gently and gestured toward the big kitchen table.“Come in, love.Sit.We’ve got tea brewing, and no one ever talks sense on an empty stomach.”
Willow leaned forward, her voice warm.“I’m Willow.These are my mates, Liam and Jacob.”She pointed them out, and both men offered quick nods and small smiles.
Brielle frowned, and Saffron knew exactly what the woman was thinking.“Mates?As in friends, or mates as in everything I’ve read about and envied in those ménage and reverse harem novels I’ve come to adore?”The question hung in the air, half teasing and half serious.Willow’s cheeks flushed while Liam and Jacob both nodded and grinned, and even Ursula’s mouth twitched with amusement.A smile equal parts wicked and innocent spread across Brielle’s face, transforming her from pretty to stunning as she added, “Just making sure I’ve got the rules of engagement clear.”
“You definitely have it clear,” Saffron answered dryly
“That’s Saffron.”Willow added
Saffron gave a short wave.“And those two troublemakers in the corner are my mates, Nolan and Isaac.”
“Troublemakers?”Nolan muttered with mock offense.“I’ve been nothing but a gentleman.”
Isaac rolled his eyes.“Since when?”
Brielle’s lips quirked despite her nerves.“Nice to meet you ...all of you.”
“Sit, love,” Ursula urged again, setting a steaming mug before her.
Brielle perched on the chair like a bird ready to bolt.
“You know, for a witch she doesn’t cackle nearly enough,” Nolan said with a crooked grin.
Brielle’s brows rose sharply.“Witch?Which witch?Who’s a witch?”
Saffron shot him a sharp look.“Out.Both of you.”
Isaac groaned.“Nolan, we are always getting kicked out because of your dumbass sense of humor.”But he obeyed, giving Brielle a polite nod as he and Nolan shuffled toward the lounge.
Nolan placed a hand over his heart like a martyred actor, muttering, “Banished again.”
Willow grinned at Brielle.“Don’t mind them.They’ll sulk for five minutes, then raid the fridge.If you could give us a few moments to talk, my loves?”
Liam and Jacob smiled warmly at their mate, before leaving after pressing a kiss to Willow’s mouth.
“Wow,” Brielle breathed.
Willow grinned.“It feels even better than it looks!”
All of them laughed.
“Tell us about the dream,” Ursula urged, her tone gentle but edged with command.
Brielle clutched her mug.“It was two nights ago.I woke up because there was light in my bedroom—like moonlight, but not.It was a woman, glowing.She told me that I had things to do, and that my fate was shifting, which I had no idea what the hell she meant by that, and then the glowing chick in the dream told me to ring your bell at noon today.So ...here I am.”
She gave a small, nervous laugh.But the room had gone solemn.Ursula and Willow shared a look that saidwe know.Saffron’s pulse thrummed.The Goddess had delivered.
“Brielle, love,” Ursula said carefully, “do you believe in witches?”
Brielle blinked.“My gran was Irish.She told us stories as children.But me?No.I don’t think so.I would need to see proof of that.”
“It’s not about belief.”Saffron said gently.“Either the thrum of it is in you, or it isn’t.”
Her brows pinched.“I don’t follow.”
