Page 16 of Witchy Woman

“Maybe if you talk us through it, we can help you figure it out.” Hazel scootches a little closer, her green eyes lighting up. “We’re stronger together.”

“Are we?” I snort. “I’m pretty sure nobody here but Grandma knows what they’re actually doing.”

Grandma lifts a hand. “Are you ready to tell us, Laura, or would you like to end our lesson here for the evening?”

Am I ready to tell them? For some reason, it feels like I’m opening up to them in a way I haven’t before. I’m not a super vulnerable person in general, but telling them about the visions—if that’s even what they are—will lead to telling them about the whispering.

And the whispering is mine.

I shake my head, pointedly not looking in Hazel’s direction. I don’t want to see the disappointment in her face, or the rejection.

This isn’t about her.

I stand and walk back inside, determined not to feel guilty about doing what feels right to me.

“I have cheesecake.” Noah’s voice comes from the left and I swear I jump seven feet out of my skin.

My hand flies to my chest. “Fuck, we need to get you a bell or something!”

His smile is almost infectious. He’s too happy—it should annoy me, but it doesn’t for some reason. “I was thinking about getting Rosie one, maybe I’ll get one for myself, too.”

“Good.” I walk toward the kitchen. “Where’s the cheesecake?”

We plate it up in silence. Hazel and Grandma haven’t come inside yet. They’re probably discussing me again. They love to plot.

Well, they can plot and be shady, and I’ll enjoy cheesecake.

“Noah, how does it feel to be the only normal guy in a family of witches?” I ask. It’s got to be an interesting dynamic...More entertaining than any trashy reality TV show, that’s for sure.

“I can’t pretend it was an easy thing to come to terms with. You saw how I reacted.” The guilt is written clear across his face.

I swallow a bite. Oof, this woman has to be a witch. “You reacted that way because of the lying, not the magic. At least that’s how I heard it.”

“That’s a fair point, but I would be lying if I didn’t admit that the magic tripped me out, too. It’s a lot to swallow. But a nerd finding out that there’s magic in this world? I’m definitely cool with it.”

“Yeah, I guess magic would be kind of your dream, huh?”

He shrugs. “Hazel is my dream. The magic is just fun.”

He’s so open with his affection when it comes to my sister, even when she’s not in the room. It’s easy. No games or manipulation.

He just loves her. My heart throbs at the purity of it. At how easy it is for them to love each other.

“And the soulmate thing?” I’m not sure why I’m even asking him, to be honest. Not like I have a soulmate I’m avoiding but somehow spending time with tomorrow morning on a not-date.

Couldn’t be me.

He smiles. “It’s pretty awesome, to be honest. But that might be because it’s Hazel. She’s my future.”

“You really don’t mind the whole constant danger thing?”

“Nothing is for certain.” He makes deliberate eye contact with me. “Nothing is a given. And I would rather spend a few days with her than a lifetime without her.”

Goosebumps raise along my arms at the seriousness in his tone. At the pure love in his voice. The devotion.

It sounds a lot like the few memories I have of Dad with Mom.

“Did you know something was different with her? Even before she told you what you were to each other?”