Esmerelda: A Rogue Enforcers Novel by Darlene Tallman (phonics books TXT) 📕

her usual tea which tells me she’s nervous. My woman has her tells and that’s one of them; her consumption of coffee increases whenever she’s feeling anxious. “It’s going to be okay,” I soothe as I lean in to kiss her cheek.

“I know, I have complete faith that we’ll get them back, Beast. I’m just concerned that we’ll be caught unawares somehow,” she replies, flipping the rest of the pancakes before pulling two plates close. I watch as she places two on one plate along with several pieces of bacon, while a huge stack goes on the second plate as well as the rest of the bacon. I see she already has juice poured in glasses and sitting at the table, as well as the butter and syrup, which I know she’s warmed.

Taking both plates, I carry them over to put on the table, then hold her chair out for her. Once she’s seated, I grab the coffee pot and bring it over to top off both of our mugs. “Need anything else, sweetheart?” I ask, taking the pot back over to the counter.

“Come sit and eat, sugar bear, before it gets cold,” she replies, smiling at me. I return to my chair then spend a few minutes doctoring my pancakes. Her soft giggle makes me grin; I’ve got a bit of a sweet tooth, so I tend to drown my pancakes. “It’s a good thing that shifters don’t really need any kind of medical care. If you were human, a dentist would have a field day with you as much sugar as you ingest.”

“Trying to live up to my nickname,” I tease, smirking at her. “You’re the one who started me down this path, after all, when you decided to call me ‘sugar bear’, my delectable enchantress.”

“Oooo, I like that one,” she teases. “In fact, I like everything you call me, Beast.”

“I like calling you mine best,” I state before digging into the food on my plate. “I have no clue how you manage to make these so damn fluffy,” I say once I’ve chewed then swallowed what I crammed into my mouth. “It’s a mystery because I’ve never been able to manage it.”

“You forgot an ingredient is all.”

I crook my brow at her. “What could I possibly forget to add?” I wonder.

“Love, Beast. Everything I make for you, for us, has that added ingredient in it.”

“I like that.”

“Me too, my handsome mate.” We finish eating then work together to clean the kitchen. Even though it’s not full, she decides to run the dishwasher while I pull the garbage then grab anything out of the fridge that could possibly spoil before we return. Our hope is that it’ll be a quick in-and-out mission, but as Mav stated during our meeting, it’s always better to prepare for the worst-case scenario. Making sure that we’ll come home to a house that isn’t reeking of spoiled food is one thing within my control. While I’m doing that, I see Esmerelda head down the hall to our room. Once I have the trash taken care of, I follow her to see what she’s up to since our bags are already at the front door only to find her remaking the bed.

“Esme, I made the bed already,” I say, walking over to my side to help pull the comforter into place.

“I know, Beast, but then I got to thinking it would be nice to come home to fresh sheets, so I figured I’d take care of it while you were handling the trash. I realize I could just wave my hands, but this is something I enjoy doing.” I don’t say anything because she reiterates that very thing every time I do, I just lend a hand to help her out. “I’ve already cleaned the bathroom, but I did use my magic for that,” she teases. “Don’t need my hands getting chapped from scrubbing.”

“No you don’t. I like those smooth hands on my body. Not sure I could handle rough, calloused fingers,” I retort, winking at her. Once we’re done straightening our room, she takes my hand and pulls me close. Leaning up, she kisses me, and I taste the minty freshness of her breath against my tongue. She always tastes good to me, though. “You ready?” I gruffly ask, my body wishing we could stay and play a bit but my mind already on the task at hand.

“As ready as I can be.”

Esmerelda

Because we’re leaving so early, not many are up and around. With six of us, we end up in two SUVs, Kash driving one and Charisma the other. Tabatha is going to meet us at the airport. I’m hoping the flight will give us sufficient time to make sure we’re a cohesive unit. Her skills are legendary, but so are mine, not to toot my own horn. I’m confident that we’ll be able to do our part to rescue my family. As the men chat, my mind drifts back to when I was a child.

“Esmerelda, child, the cards have told me you’re destined for great things,” Granny said, looking at me from across the table.

“What does that mean?” I asked.

She smiled while shaking her head. “Child, you know that’s not how it works,” she chided. “How long have I been doing your cards?”

I stopped and thought for a minute then declared, “Ever since I started talking, Granny.”

“And what did I tell you then?”

“That the cards show us our future, but not everything and depending on what we choose to do, things can sometimes change,” I recited. She had drilled that into my head from my earliest memory, so while I didn’t understand when I was very young, now I have a better grasp on what she meant.

“Yes, you’ve learned well,” she praised. Smiling, she holds out her hand. “Come, child, let’s go see if the practice you’ve been doing on your spells will yield any results.”

My smile is bittersweet as memories continue to assail me about time I spent under