“So where am I supposed to go?” I asked, nearly in tears.
He laid a hand on my shoulder, and as a soft current of electricity flowed between us, I shivered. Was that part of his magic? I sucked in a breath and met his honey-gold eyes—eyes that penetrated straight through me, leaving my soul naked before him.
“It will all be fine as long as you stay away from your family. I’ll arrange a motel here for you. You have nothing to worry about. You’re in a new world. Magic is real, and your potential here is limitless.”
Jaxson’s gaze drew me in like a black hole, and his voice soothed me. The anxiety in my chest evaporated, replaced by a cool, flowing undercurrent of calm.
Just like that, my worries vanished like smoke rising from a candle. Some part of me—maybe a magical part of me—knew that I didn’t have to worry because finally, I was where I belonged.
When Jaxson escorted me downstairs, everything I saw, I saw anew.
The bartender wasn’t just flaring cocktails and flipping bottles. He floated them in midair, grabbing the ones he wanted and spinning the others like pinwheels. He sent drinks sliding down the bar, hovering an inch above the marble surface.
In the back, another band was playing—but it wasn’t a band, just one girl singing along to five instruments suspended around her.
“I think I’ve had a lot to drink,” I muttered.
Jaxson pressed his palm to my lower back. “You have a lot to take in.”
I nodded, too exhausted, confused, and inebriated to register the goosebumps that his touch elicited.
His eyes had lost their honey tone, and they bored into me. “Will you meet with the sketch artist tomorrow?”
I gulp
ed and nodded. “I want to help.”
I’d expected my aunt to help me figure out why I was being targeted, but if Jaxson could do it, so much the better. I’d come to Magic Side for answers, after all. I’d take what I could get.
His gaze landed behind me, and his jaw tensed before his eyes returned to mine. I was no idiot—I could read the distaste written all over his face. My family revolted him, and by association, so did I.
“It’s late, and I have a prior engagement.” Jaxson’s voice was as cold as his sudden demeanor. Or maybe it had always been that way, and I’d just been too foolish to notice. “Samantha will get you set up with a place tonight. I’ll send a car to collect you from your motel at noon tomorrow.”
He was ditching me?
“Fine.” I was too overwhelmed and affronted to think. What had I expected? It wasn’t like we’d been on a date, but still, after bombarding me with all of that information, I never expected him to just leave me here. My cheeks burned from my foolishness.
Without another word, Jaxson turned and strode out, leaving me high and dry. Bastard.
Suddenly, I heard a woman’s voice behind me. “I’m Samantha. You’re Savannah, right?”
Turning, I recognized the female bartender I’d seen earlier. I nodded again, because I was pretty sure that if I tried to speak, the floodgates would open.
She raised her brow. “You okay?”
I’m alone in a magical city, and my car is broken. My only family here apparently dabbles with the dark arts and gun running, and werewolves are hunting me down.
I shrugged.
“Don’t worry, Jaxson’s made arrangements. I’m taking you over to the Magic Moon Motel. It’s not the Four Seasons, but it’s clean and safe and cheap. The valets will grab your bags.”
Suspicion and curiosity crept under my skin. “Is Jaxson your friend?”
The bartender smirked. “You could say that.”
I felt like a complete idiot. She was probably his girlfriend, or at least his ex, because attractive people like them couldn’t just be friends. I rubbed my throbbing temples, and whatever willpower I had was gone. I was like water, going with the flow.
“Thanks, Samantha,” I mumbled.