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Belinda lifts her chin.

“Mother. Melida.” She squeezes my hand. “This is Damian Leeds.”

Her mother's eyes sharpen at the name. Recognition? Interesting.

“Leeds?”

I smile.

“That's right.”

Melida's gaze moves from my face to our joined hands.

“Oh.”

Belinda feels it too. I know because her fingers tighten around mine. Then her mother notices the mark on Belinda's neck.

Everything changes. Her face drains of color. Her gaze snaps to me. Then to my wings. Then back to her daughter.

“What have you done?”

Belinda goes completely still. I feel the old instinct rise inside her. That tiny flicker of doubt. The expectation of criticism. The reflex to explain herself, to apologize. To make herself smaller.

My Devil growls. But I don't answer for her. I don't step in front of her. I don't tell these women she's mine.

I simply lace my fingers more firmly through hers. Belinda glances at me. I hold her gaze.

Your choice, Sweet.

I don't know if she hears the words. But something in her expression tells me she understands them, anyway.

Her shoulders straighten. Her magic brightens between our hands. And when Belinda turns back to her mother, she isn't the woman who answered that phone call a few days ago.

She's my promised.

My Little Witch.

But more importantly—she's fucking Belinda.

And she's finally starting to understand exactly how powerful that is.

Chapter 28

Belinda

“What have you done?”

There it is. Four little words. Four words that somehow manage to transport me straight back to childhood.

What have you done, Belinda?

When the potion exploded.

When the broom crashed.

When my magic didn't manifest the way it was supposed to.

When a boy chose Melida instead of me.