He didn’t look happy at my quick change of subject, but he finally nodded. “Sure.”

  When the server came over, he also ordered a double bacon cheeseburger with a basket of fries and a Smithwick’s Irish Ale.

  I chuckled as I put my menu back in the holder. “You weren’t kidding about being hungry.”

  He grinned. “Our metabolism burns faster than humans.”

  “Lucky.”

  He arched a brow. “No calorie-canceling spells?”

  “Not that I’ve discovered.”

  He laughed, and a swell of joy swamped me. “You’ve got a great laugh,” I blurted.

  He sobered, shaking his head. “I don’t do it very often.”

  For some unexplainable reason, I liked the idea that I might be one of the few people who made him happy, even if he was a werewolf and could overpower me physically. Despite my past experience, I felt safe with Zeke.

  After our appetizer arrived, he popped a cheese fritter into his mouth and growled. “That’s good.”

  Heat gathered low in my belly. I cleared my throat as I dipped a fritter in ranch. “So, what do you do when you’re not nursing Mathias back to health?”

  “I manage the operations at Munro Manor Farms.” He picked out another piece of fried cheese. “What about you? How long have you been in the Coven of Light?”

  “Since I was thirteen. My mom was part of the coven, too.” I swallowed and lifted my eyes. “Now I’m Lillian’s apprentice.”

  “I heard her say that. Has she always been your teacher?”

  I picked up my Poison Apple cocktail and took a sip, licking the cinnamon and sugar from the rim of the glass off my lips. “She and my mother both taught me to hone my power. Now Lillian is grooming me to take over her position.”

  “You’ll be the high priestess? Congratulations.”

  “Ha!” I shook my head. “I’m stepping into a storm. Between the Coven of Shadows supercharging their spells with werewolf body parts, and hunters picking off your pack to supply them, I’m not sure my magic is strong enough to fight all this.”

  He took another sip of his ale. “Mathias wants to step down from being our Alpha. He asked me to ascend.”

  I almost choked on my cheese. “You’re going to be the Alpha?”

  “I don’t know.” He shrugged. “I haven’t given him an answer yet.”

  “Why not?” I dipped another fritter into the ranch.

  “The same reasons as you, I guess. These hunters have already killed two of my packmates and then went after our Alpha. I don’t see how Mathias stepping down will solve anything.”

  With the live music blaring around us, we sat at our table in the darkened corner and talked all through dinner about werewolf and witch politics. Gradually, I began to realize we weren’t as different as I’d thought. I also noticed it was really easy to talk to him. Not that I’d been out with many men, but I’d had a couple of blind dates and more than a few boyfriends over the years. That said, in all my life, I’d never shared the magical parts of myself with anyone outside my coven.

  It was intimate and exciting to compare notes with a werewolf.

  “If I do take this Alpha spot, you and I will probably be working together to stop the Coven of Shadows and the hunters.” He took another swallow of his ale.

  I hadn’t thought about that, but he was right. I shrugged. “I guess so.” I finished off my drink and set the glass down. “I’m not convinced Lillian chose the right witch to be her successor.” I met his eyes and whispered the words that were like ash on my tongue. “I’m afraid.” Once they were out, a tiny weight lifted, and I forced a smile. “If you tell anyone I’ll deny it.”

  “Your secret is safe with me.” The corner of his mouth quirked into a sexy, lopsided grin. “Maybe you just need to be reminded that you’re magic.”

  “If only it were so simple.” I grabbed the check before the werewolf could. “My treat, remember?”

  “I was kidding about you buying me a beer.” He took out a twenty. “At least let me chip in. You had to listen to me complain about my pack.”

  I chuckled and added a couple more bills to the folder. “And you probably heard more about witches than you ever wanted to know.”

  When I lifted my eyes to his face, I found him staring at me, his smile fading. “I’d like to do this again sometime.”

  My heart skipped, and this time it wasn’t out of fear. “I’d like that, too.”

  “I’ll text you.” He stood up and offered his coat. “You sure you’re not cold?”

  I chuckled. “I’m wearing a sweater. I’ll be fine.”

  He put his coat on and followed me back out to the street. We’d gotten only about half a block when the sky opened up, pelting us with icy, slushy rain. I squeaked as I tipped my head down. Suddenly, the drops stopped hitting me.

  Zeke had his trench coat open and held his arm over my head. “We better run.”

  I nodded, pacing myself as I ran beside him, my body brushing against his warm chest. Even though we were both dressed, the brief body contact had my heart racing more than the running did. He kept me covered while I pulled out my key and unlocked my car. I got in and reached across to unlock his door while he raced around the front of the car.

  Once he was inside, I looked over at him and laughed. “You’re soaking wet.”

  He chuckled, smiling as water dripped off the end of his nose. “I’ll dry. Are you okay?”

  I looked down at my sweater and nodded. “Yeah, I’ll be fine.” I took out my phone and frowned at the text on my screen. “Oh shit.”

  “Did it get wet?”

  I shook my head as I looked over at him. “Lillian’s in the hospital.”

  CHAPTER 6

  Zeke

  Ruby’s little Datsun had some power as she sped through the rain toward Salem Hospital. I kept a tight grip on the handle in the door as her tires squealed around the turns and braced myself as she jerked to a stop in the parking lot. The red emergency sign glowed in the night. I couldn’t believe I was going into the hospital twice in one day, but she’d taken off so fast, I couldn’t bring myself to ask her to backtrack to my truck.

  I didn’t know her very well, but…I could relate to the position she was in. I’d been facing the same thing the night we’d carried Mathias back to the farm during the full moon. It had scared the shit out of me, and judging by how fast she had driven a car that was older than both of us, she was terrified.

  I cleared my throat. “Do you want company?”

  She looked over at me as if she’d seen a ghost. “Oh crap. I forgot to take you back to your truck.”

  “It’s okay. You shouldn’t have to do this alone.”

  She slowly released the steering wheel from her death grip. “Thank you.”

  We walked through the parking lot, and I steeled myself for the assault on my senses as we crossed through the automatic sliding glass doors.

  “Amelia might have beat us here.” She pressed the elevator button and stared up at the numbers counting down to the lobby. “She’s the one who sent me the text.”

  “I’ll stay out of the way.”

  She looked over at me. “You don’t have to wait for me. You could get a Lyft back to your truck.”

  There would probably be other coven members there, but I shook my head anyway. “I can’t. I’d feel shitty abandoning you until we know she’s all right.”

  A sad smile curved on her lips as the doors slid open and a nurse stepped out. We got in, and Ruby pushed button for the second floor. According to the plaque next to the buttons, that was the cardiac care unit. “You’re going to be a good Alpha.”

  I wasn’t sure about that, but I didn’t say anything. When the elevator opened, I had to fight not to cover my sensitive ears. So many fucking beeps at different intervals and pitches. I struggled to phase them out and focus on Ruby.

  She was chattering about Lillian softly with no idea she was currently my lifeline on this noisy floor. “…Lillian told me not to touch the cauldron, but it was like I couldn’t help myself. I swear, tell me something is off-limits, and it becomes an obsession for me.”

  When we turned the corner, a woman with brown hair and bright-hazel eyes rushed over to hug Ruby. Her hair was lighter brown than Ruby’s, and she had it in two braids that fell over the front of her shoulders.

  “You came.” She pulled back and forced a smile. “The doctor said Lillian’s going to be fine. Tomorrow morning they’re running some stress tests and then she can come home, but she’ll have to rest.”

  Ruby shook her head. “She won’t like hearing that.”

  Her friend looked over at me, her gaze sliding up from my feet until we locked eyes. “Who are you?”

  Ruby cleared her throat. “I’m sorry. I should’ve introduced you. This is Zeke…from the Salem Pack. Zeke this is Amelia Rey.”

  “Zeke O’Brien.” I offered my hand, and she took it in a firm handshake…that my wolf didn’t acknowledge. Not that I’d expected him to. As far as I knew, no witches had ever been mates to werewolves. Maybe fate figured a wolf and a witch might kill each other.

  I glanced at Ruby as I released Amelia’s hand. Or maybe a union of supernaturals would unsettle the balance of power.

  “Nice to meet you Zeke.” Amelia looked at Ruby. “Did I interrupt something? Were you…on a date?”

  Color crept up Ruby’s neck, and again, the instinctive urge to help her swamped me as I blurted out, “Lillian forgot her crystals up in Mathias’s room. I was just dropping them back to the store.”

  Ruby jumped in. “When I got your text, he came with me for moral support.” She peeked into the room. “Can I see her?”

  “She’s probably still sleeping.” Amelia studied me for a second and added, “You can go with her…if you want to.”

  I didn’t want to be in the hospital, but I was here. Ruby nodded so I followed her inside. Lillian looked tiny in the stark, white bed with an IV in her hand and oxygen tube in her nose.

  Ruby went directly to her bedside and took Lillian’s hand. “I’m here.”

  I brought a chair over so Ruby could sit and then turned to leave to give them some privacy. Ruby caught my arm. Her touch warmed me right through the fabric on my shirt sleeve. “Can you stay?”

  I nodded. “Yeah. I’ll be right here.”

  She turned back to Lillian and started whispering something in Latin. A spell maybe? I really didn’t know as much about magic as I probably should have. In my defense, I never imagined I might be Alpha of the Salem Pack someday so hadn’t considered needing to work closely with the coven.

  If anything happened to Lillian, Ruby would need to rise to the occasion and become the high priestess of the Coven of Light. Amelia seemed friendly enough, but would there be other witches who might want that power? I pressed my lips together and took a deep breath. I needed to slow my mind down. The witches weren’t my concern.

  I had enough on my plate.

  Suddenly, Lillian blinked her eyes open and turned her head to look at Ruby. “I hope you’ve come to take me home.”

  “Thank the goddess you’re awake!” Ruby squeezed her hand. “Amelia sent me a text that you had a small heart attack.”

  “I fainted, but I’m fine.” Lillian sighed and shook her head. Then she looked past Ruby to me. “How is Mathias?”

  “Better.” I nodded. “Much better actually. I think your spells really helped, and I did get him to take the first dose of antibiotics, too.”

  “Good.” She let out a sigh. “Then it was worth it.”

  Ruby stiffened in the chair. “What does that mean?”

  Lillian reached over to pat Ruby’s hand. “I used an energy-transfer spell. I guess it worked.”

  I came up next to Ruby. “You…gave him your energy?”

  She nodded. “It’s a level-four emergency spell. I’ve only used it once before, but that was thirty years ago.”

  “That was too risky.” Ruby frowned. “You should’ve told me. I could’ve cast it for you.”

  “No. Don’t you see?” Lillian focused on Ruby. “You’re the future for our coven, and I’m the past. You’re too precious to risk on a temperamental spell like that.” Her gaze flicked over to me. “Mathias has been planning to step down, but I knew he hadn’t picked a new second since Kyle was taken by the hunters. We can’t let Mathias slip away and leave the pack without an Alpha.”

  “I can’t believe this.” Ruby released Lillian’s hand and stood up. “You could have died. Where would that have left the coven?”

  Lillian’s lips curved into an exhausted but empathetic smile. “Everyone in our coven knows you’re ready for this except you. If I transitioned, I would be leaving the coven in very capable hands.”

  Ruby swiped a tear from her cheek. “You promised you’d help us face the Coven of Shadows. I can’t do this on my own.”

  Lillian let out a deep breath and her eyes drifted closed. “A bird doesn’t learn to fly from inside the nest, Ruby. When the moment comes, they defy gravity. Just…spread your wings.”

  I swallowed a lump in my throat as her words hit me like a ton of bricks. She was right. There wasn’t going to be a test for either of us to know we were ready. We had to take a leap of faith.

  It sounded so simple. But unlike the bird analogy, if we failed, it wouldn’t just be us crashing. We’d be letting down all the people we cared about.

  Ruby turned around with tears in her eyes. “I need some air.”

  We left the room just as Amelia came around the corner with a paper cup in her hand. “I found some hot tea. Did you want some?”

  Ruby shook her head. “I have to get my head together, but I can’t leave her here alone.”

  “Well…I already fed Lucifer.” Amelia glanced at me. “That’s my cat.” She worried her lower lip, definitely reading more into my relationship with Ruby than what actually existed. Finally, her gaze flicked to Ruby. “I can stay until they kick me out.”

  “Thanks.” Ruby gave her a tight hug. “I’ll be back first thing in the morning.”

  We went to the elevator, and I hit the button. “Are you sure about this?”

  “About leaving?” She looked up at me. “Yes.”

  The tears were gone, and there was a fire in her eyes that I hadn’t seen before.

  The doors parted, and we got in. I studied her on the way down. “What am I missing?”

  The bell rang, and the elevator opened to the lobby. She walked out without answering me. We were outside the hospital before she finally spun around, pointing up at the hospital behind me. “She broke the cardinal rule. The one she made for our coven. We don’t use magic we don’t understand, and we definitely don’t do it secretly.” She looked up at me, and the spark in her eyes had gone from smoldering to an inferno. “She went home today knowing that magic could have killed her. And she didn’t say a word to me.”

  I shook my head. “The spell could have…killed her? Really?”

  Ruby nodded. “That energy-transfer spell is tricky. It takes your physical strength and instills it in someone else. And if you hold the connection for a second too long, you can die.” The yellow lights of the parking lot reflected in the unshed tears in her eyes. “She thought it was more important for Mathias to live. She was ready to sacrifice herself.” She shook her head slowly. “I can’t lose her, Zeke.”

  I drew her into my arms without realizing what I was doing. My instincts had taken over, and the need to comfort her blotted out my rational thought, shaking me to my core. I was a thinker, not a feeler. My heart was a pump in my chest, not a decision maker. Why was it getting involved now?

  She stiffened at first. I started to release her, but her arms moved around me, clinging to me like a lifeline in a storm. She fit in my embrace as if I’d been made to hold her. I wasn’t sure why I even noticed. Over her head, I stared at the hospital. Lillian had saved Mathias. She wouldn’t have the strength to do it again.

  I’d spent the last twenty years ignoring the future, hiding from the reality that my Alpha wouldn’t live forever. My mom had been right. The wolf pack had asked too much of Mathias to bear the burden of being the Alpha for so long. And maybe the Coven of Light had done the same thing to Lillian.

  I loosened my hold on Ruby and stared down into her eyes. “Seems like the future is falling in our laps whether we’re ready for it or not.”

  She sniffled and chuckled. “Apparently.” She rolled her eyes. “Lillian says I’m more powerful than I realize, but that’s not going to stop the Coven of Shadows.”

  “You don’t have to fight them alone.”

  She wiped a tear from the corner of her eye. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I have a hard time trusting werewolves.”

  I rolled my shoulders back as my hands slid free from her waist. “You might have forgotten, but I’m a werewolf.”

  She searched my eyes. “I’ve noticed, but…”

  Her lips parted slightly as her words faded, and I fought the desire to close the distance between us. If I was going to become the Alpha of the Salem Pack, I needed this witch to trust me. We needed to be able to work together. Kissing her wouldn’t help.

  That didn’t make me want to do it any fucking less.

  She took a step back and shook her head as if she were breaking a spell. “I should take you back to your truck. Sorry I stole your whole night.”

  “I’m glad I was here.”

  She arched a brow. “Really?”

  I thought about it for a second. Was I just being polite? But I couldn’t think of a single place I’d rather be than with her, even if it was in a hospital. I nodded slowly. “Yes.”

  We walked to her car, and I wasn’t sure if I could explain my answer. I didn’t understand any of this. Maybe it was because we were both supernaturals. The secret of being a werewolf usually kept an invisible wall between me and everyone else. Or it could’ve been that we were both being thrust into leadership positions in the middle of a tempest. Or maybe it was because she made me laugh.

  Hell if I knew.

  She unlocked her car and got in. She reached across to unlock the passenger door, and I got in. After she started the engine, she looked over at me, her voice barely above a whisper. “Thanks for…everything today.”