She swallowed hard. “That’s all nice, Blaze. But that’s all on me. What do you need to be happy?”
He laid a kiss against her forehead. “You, Astra. You’re all I need to be happy.”
Blaze kissed her softly before walking down the aisle, pushing the cart as he went along. Astra watched him, stunned and completely immobilized by the feelings his words had evoked. She was all he needed?
He looked back at her, smiling warmly. “Are you coming, love?”
Astra took a deep breath and made a decision.
She was leaning into it completely.
“Always,” she said.
It was a promise.
Chapter Eighteen
Astra
They loaded the bed of the truck with groceries while chatting happily. It was comforting and fun all at once. It made Astra know they could be so at ease with each other. Especially after she had decided she would be his mate.
When he opened the truck door for her and helped her in, she felt another rush of righteousness. He was a gentleman, and she loved it.
Especially since she was so short and his truck was so high.
When he sat beside her, he took her hand in his, and laid it on his muscular thigh.
“Any station you want to listen to?” he asked.
Astra played with the dial with her free hand and she settled on the local top forties station. The happy beats always made her feel good, like nothing bad could happen. That was especially true now that she was a wolf’s mate. He would protect her. She was a witch, and she could protect herself, but it was definitely nice to know Blaze was there beside her, ready to take on a crazy bunch of witch hunters for her.
She sang along to the soft music streaming from the speakers, but her heart did a weird clench and her skin became cold.
In the side mirror, she spotted a blue station wagon. I had been parked near them at the grocery store. She knew she was right because she had noted the weird rust pattern on the hood. Astra sat forward as Blaze made a turn. She would only tell him her worry if the car followed them in the turn.
And it did.
Fuck. Astra really wanted this to be paranoia and nothing more. She had just made a big life decision, and it would have been great if the universe respected that and left her trouble-free for one night.
Blaze took another turn, and once again, the blue car did the same.
“I think we’re being followed.” Astra looked in the side mirror. The car was still there. Her heart clenched again. She didn’t want to fight for her safety. Not when she wasn’t doing anything wrong.
Why couldn’t the Order of Salem see that? The Bishops were witches, but they meant no harm. The wolves, either. They were both peaceful communities who were under attack for being different. It irked her and made her want to jump out of the car and give them a stern talking to.
Not that she thought that would actually work. It would just make her feel better. Right up until the point they shot at her and Blaze.
There was a still a chance she was imagining things, though. Marblehead was a small enough town that this could be nothing.
“Which car?” Blaze asked, his eyes going to the rearview mirror.
“The pale blue station wagon. I could have sworn it was parked at the grocery store’s lot. And it’s followed our last few turns.”
“Could be a coincidence.” Blaze sure hoped it was. “Let’s take a few weird turns and see if they keep following us.”
Astra didn’t know Marblehead enough to know if they were taking a few wrong turns, but her attention was held by the car.
It took the same turns they did.
Time and time again. With every turn, her heart rate increased and a thin layer of sweat covered her forehead. She gripped Blaze’s hand in her hers.
“I think you’re right,” Blaze muttered.
“We should do another stop. Maybe confuse them? I don’t want to lead them to the bar.”
“Neither do I,” he answered. “But maybe if they see that it’s the Gray Wolf, they’ll back off.”
“Are you willing to take that chance?”
“I’d like to see them attack a shifter bar. It wouldn’t end too well for them, that’s for sure.”
Astra shook her head. “But that’s still very dangerous. It wouldn't put your pack and your business in danger.”
“That’s your pack and your business too now, Astra. As the alpha mate, you have the right to be protected.”
“Alpha mate?”
“Right. You’re my mate, so that means you have a leadership role in the pack. Did I not mention that?”
He had not, but it wasn’t exactly the right time to ask more details about what that role would entail. They drove around Marblehead, and Blaze pulled up to a coffee shop. He went to the drive-through lane and ordered two coffees.
“I know it’s late, and not the right time for caffeine, but I wanted to see what our friend would do.”
The blue car hadn’t turned into the coffee shop, but had gone on straight to the intersection instead.
“That’s good,” Blaze sighed in relief. “It might have just been a weird coincidence.”
“Right.”
Astra wasn’t so sure, and she remained quiet on the drive back to the bar. As soon as the truck was parked, Astra unbuckled her seatbelt, but Blaze placed a hand on her leg.
“Wait. It’s back.”
Astra turned in her seat and the blue car was driving slowly down the street.
“Let’s wait and see what they do before we get out,” Blaze warned. His voice was pitched low and Astra could have sworn she had heard a wolfish tone.
Blaze was clearly not used to being tracked. As a predatory animal, he was usually the one to do the tracking.
The car drove in front of Gray Wolf at a crawl. They windows were tinted making it impossible to see inside. Astra would've liked to have seen how many people had been stalking them.
“Leave the groceries,” Blaze instructed her. “I’ll get them. I want you to run to the apartment. I’ll be in shortly.” He leaned over the center console and gave her a quick kiss. “Lock the door behind you, and don’t open it for anyone.”
“You’re kind of scaring me,” she whispered. But really, she had been scared since she had noticed the car tailing them.
“Good. I definitely think that could have been the Order of Salem. If they found you here, that’s not good. We’re not even in Salem, and they’ve tracked you. Go, love.”
Astra leaned into him and gave him a peck. “Please be careful.”
He only gave her a nod, and motioned for her to head out.
Astra opened the truck door and rushed to the side of the Gray Wolf where she took the stairs two at a time, nearly stumbling on a step or two. Once she reached the top, she keyed in the code to unlock the door and slammed it behind her.
With her heart nearly beating out of her chest, she took a look out the peephole, but she couldn’t see much. Blaze wasn’t in his truck anymore, but she didn't see him anywhere.
She began pacing the living room, tapping out a rhythm against her thighs as she went along. Deep inside herself, her magic was begging to be used. She could do a few spells with fire to maybe locate the car. It would be a risky spell, but it could be worth it if it gave them a leg up on the order’s whereabouts.