Claiming His Forbidden Witch

HELP YOUR FRIENDS ESCAPE TO New Orleans

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EXCERPT

Maddie was going to die. The heat was unbearable, the hottest day in September she could remember. Her body was running on empty and she’d taken a wrong turn, had to ask for directions, and then it’d taken six houses before she’d found enough street numbers to realize she was going the wrong way.

Pulling her hair back into a ponytail with her hand, she held it away from her nape. There was no breeze to cool her down, but at least the thick curtain of hair wasn’t acting like a winter scarf.

Exhaustion rivaled her despair.

Maybe this was all futile. Maybe she should just head back to her grandmother’s house and hope that the police had arrived. That seemed like a great idea, except Gram had directed her here.

Wherever here was. An exclusive section of an already exclusive district. High walls, carefully trimmed bushes, fancy gates, and well-kept, old homes in a variety of styles.

Sweat dripped down her temple, rolling into her right eye before she could wipe it away.

“Dangit.” That stung.

Where was this place? Anxiety ratcheted up, bringing another unwelcome wave of heat over her shoulders. Bracing her hand against a rough stucco wall, she swallowed what saliva was left in her mouth and fought against the panic.

Her body was not built for this, and it was not cooperating.

But she could do this. She had to.

Her grandmother’s words made another pass through her mind.

Protect yourself. Protect the necklace.

With what little energy she had left, she started forward again. She’d give anything for a glass of ice water right now. Not that she had much. She didn’t even have her phone, or the little purse she’d been carrying around and mending for more years than she wanted to count.

It’d belonged to her mother, and she couldn’t seem to swap it for any of the lovely, hand-crafted pieces her grandmother had gifted her.

She closed her eyes for a moment, praying that when she opened them, she’d be in her little apartment, waking up from a bad dream.

Her toe caught on something, halting her progress. Eyes popping open, she careened forward onto the sidewalk.

“Dammit!” The curse escaped her lips as the rough concrete bit into her palms. Shoulders jarred; pain reverberated up her bones like a small earthquake. At least she’d caught herself before her knees had connected.

Maddie took another few seconds to check herself for injuries. She didn’t have time for this. She didn’t have the energy.

Pushing herself up, she glanced around. There wasn’t a soul about, so no one had seen her moment of grace.

Snorting, she picked a piece of stone from her scraped palms and made her feet move. Pain shot up her leg and her foot throbbed.

Biting her lip so she wouldn’t cry, she glanced at the nearest wall, searching for a street number.

Maddie did a double take. This was it. Well, it was one number away. Which meant…

Her gaze swerved across the street. Behind a shield of magenta crepe myrtles was a high, brick wall.

Stumbling between parked cars, she hobbled across the uneven asphalt as quickly as she could. Gritting her teeth, she saw the number she’d been searching for on a fancy plaque. Black as night, with raised, gold letters. This was the place.

But the gate was solid, and she had no idea what was behind it. A house, surely. But there was no bell. No call box.

“Hello?”

Nothing.

She banged the fleshy side of her fist against the dark wood. “Hello?”

A ray of sunlight caught her in its crosshairs, singeing her pale skin. She was going to have the monster of all sunburns, if she survived. As it was, she felt lightheaded and knew that heatstroke wasn’t far off.

September in New Orleans could be brutal. The humidity was oppressive.

Maddie sagged against the heavy gate, dropping her head in defeat. She had the right number. Her grandmother said they’d help her.

Who were they?

Maybe ‘they’ were out for the afternoon.

A fat tear escaped her lashes and rained down on the pavement.

The panic crept back in.

With her heartbeat thundering in her ears, she pushed away from the gate. She would not pass out.

There had to be another entrance. A gate. A door. Something.

The world started to spin, as if it were spiraling down the drain.

“No.” She ground out the word, trying to keep herself conscious.

Shuffling forward, she kept one hand on the wall and forced her feet to move. Left. Right. Left. Right. Her progress was slow, painstaking. Was it possible for blood to actually boil inside the human body?

Four steps and she would be at the end of the block. Using every last bit of energy she possessed, she quickened her pace and turned the corner.

Her feet skidded to a halt.

A man walked her way, his powerful legs eating up the space between them. His face was turned away from her as he glanced over his shoulder. But a ripple of recognition swept through her.

She didn’t need to see his face. She knew his body.

Tall, but not too tall.

Hard muscle. Wide shoulders. Lean waist. Toned legs. And a graceful saunter that no human possessed.

Desire momentarily pushed out her panic and exhaustion.

Today, he wore a black T-shirt that clung to him just right. A hole in the shoulder gave a peek at tawny skin. The v-neckline exposed a dusting of dark hair.

Worn jeans hugged his hips and thighs.

He turned toward her, and her stomach fluttered, despite the sick feeling. His long, dark hair was pulled back, away from his arresting face. And his eyes were hidden by a pair of the sexiest black sunglasses she’d ever seen.

Black dots swam before her eyes and the world started to melt away.

Too much.

He was too much.

Too handsome. So sexy it hurt to look at him, knowing how he felt.

Her heart thundered in her chest and fatigue pressed against her eyelids.

“Maddie? What the hell—”

Her eyes focused at the sound of her name. At that voice. So rich and dark, deeper than most of the males she knew.

Was she hallucinating, or was Dax really here?

She whimpered. He yanked off his sunglasses and stared at her expectantly.

Dark-chocolate eyes that saw too much and found her lacking.

Through the haze of heat exhaustion, she felt a wave of hope.

Then a spear of pain. Sharp. Painful. He’d hurt her. Broken heart.

But he was here.

The werewolf glanced over the top of her head, on alert, ready for whatever threat might challenge him.

She threw herself into his arms, crying his name as profound relief swept through her. He would help her.

He would fix this.

Dax would fix everything.

She wasn’t sure how long he let her cling to him, before he gripped her upper arms and peeled her back.

“What happened to you?” His dark gaze raked her up and down. Even as dehydrated and foggy as she was, she recognized the cold, clinical survey. “How did you get hurt? Why are you limping?”

Who cared what happened to her, when her grandmother’s life was hanging in the balance?

Somewhere far off, thunder cracked and rolled.

Fear, thick and remorseless, filled her veins like concrete.

Help. She needed help. She—

“Come on. Let’s get inside before the rain comes.”

Maddie nodded and felt tears roll down her cheeks.

“You have to tell me what’s wrong, Maddie.”

Did she?

Even as the contrary thought formed, a part of her screamed. Yes. Tell him.

Protect yourself, Maddie. Protect the necklace.

Her eyelids grew heavy, and she pitched forward. Dax’s arm tightened around her waist.

“Maddie. Focus. What happened? Were you in an accident?”

“No. Gram.” Her head rolled toward him as dizziness claimed her. “They shot Gram.”