Mystical Seduction: full-length sensual paranormal romance (The Protectors) by Dorothy McFalls Page B

at the club both last night and
this afternoon.
    No matter how hard they tried, none of them could give a
good description of the gunman.
    “He was clearly magical,” Stone explained.
    “But he was using a gun?” Brendan asked. “Why?”
    A good question. And one no one could answer. But that
didn’t mean the others remained silent. The Protectors all started
talking at once, speculating about what could be happening. And why.
    Had this been an attack against Horace in particular? Or did
the creature plan to eventually come after all of them? It must have been
preternaturally strong to have withstood Stone’s banishment spell for so long.
And what about the human? How is she involved? Was she human ? How could
a human convince Stone to reveal the location of their secret café?
    Horace grimaced as the nervous whispers grew louder. It was
becoming clear that many of his friends harbored strong suspicions against
Faith. Thank goodness Brendan had shown his support for Faith by accepting her
first at the door and then by sitting next to her. Brendan and Dallas’s support
would help keep the others from panicking and doing something that might hurt
Faith.
    Still, Horace could feel the other’s fear thick in the air.
    “Worrying about what Faith does and doesn’t know about us
isn’t going to help us stop Ballou,” he said, feeling more discouraged than
before.
    “You still haven’t explained why you brought a human to
the café in the first place?” Kara added with a sneer.
    “She’s one of us now.” Dallas’s softly spoken statement
stunned the café into silence. Dallas had some amazing powers, and just about
everyone respected and feared her powers of intuition.
    “Impossible!” Kara blurted. “Horace claims she has a
family.”
    Could it be possible? Could Faith be a New One? What if her
parents had adopted her? Perhaps then, things could be different. Perhaps then,
Horace could have a future with her.
    He loved her smart, spunky attitude and even could see
himself growing to enjoy her adorably stubborn streak. He wouldn’t mind having
her around for a while. He’d enjoy the company. And perhaps, in time, they
could become partners, like Dallas had become Brendan’s partner.
    If she was a New One, he could teach her about how to tap
into and direct the powers that are a part of everything in the universe.
    “Your parents?” Horace asked Faith, trying to put it gently.
“They are your natural parents?”
    Faith had just taken a big bite of chocolate croissant, so
she nodded her answer.
    “How was her childhood?” Jake asked. “All of ours were
horrible.”
    Faith chewed and quickly swallowed. “I didn’t have a normal
childhood, but it was wonderful.”
    No one could doubt the pleasure shining in her eyes, as she
seemed to reflect on her past. Jealousy stabbed Horace squarely in the chest.
His childhood had been anything but happy. His ability to trust had been beaten
out of him, time and again.
    And his past served as a good reminder. No matter how
tempting a relationship with Faith might seem, Horace knew better.
Relationships in his life had always failed.
    They always ended with tears and pain.
    Always.
    In order to protect himself, he had to remain alone.
    “She could be adopted,” Brendan offered.
    “If you saw my parents you’d believe me. I’m their child.”
    “She’s one of us.” Dallas refused to change her mind on that
point.
    “What do you mean?” Stone asked.
    “She shares Horace’s power.” No one had told Dallas that,
but still she knew. The skin on Horace’s arm prickled.
    “They are mated,” she added as if it meant more than just
sex.
    “Mated?” Faith asked before Horace had a chance.
    Dallas smiled that enigmatic smile of hers and shrugged.
“The two of you are sharing an aura. I have no idea what it might mean.”
    “It means she’s a danger to us and herself,” Derrick said,
from the back of the room. At Horace’s glare, he quickly added, “She