The Purrfect Stranger by Bianca D'Arc Read Free Book Online Page B

behind.”
    Suzy went to the fridge and Matilda’s tail twitched. When the saucer had been put down in a far corner, Keith put the kittens down next to their mother.
    Keith wasn’t looking forward to this conversation. He wanted to keep his relationship with Valerie—so special and new—as private as possible. But he needed Suzy’s help.
    “So what brings you to my door at this hour, Mr. Redstone?” Suzy asked as she placed another place setting in front of him without asking.
    Suzy was a homey sort of woman who liked to take care of people. He’d liked that about her the one and only time they’d met and he liked the way she took care of Bill, who wasn’t exactly the biggest, badest cougar in the woods.
    “As I said, I’m looking for Valerie.”
    “You tried her house?” Suzy asked.
    “I came from there,” he admitted.
    Suzy’s eyes widened. “Oh. So you…spent the night there?” She seemed surprised, which stroked his ego a bit. His stay had been out of the ordinary, which had to mean Valerie had thought something special was going on last night too, right?
    “Yeah.” He shook his head. “I thought things were going great but when I woke up this morning, she was gone.”
    “And she left you alone in her house. With Matilda and the kittens?” Suzy seemed impressed.
    “Yeah, why?” He didn’t understand what she was getting at.
    “She trusts you. Even after only one night. That says a lot, knowing my cousin.”
    Bill set bacon and eggs on the plates and took a seat at the table next to Suzy. His silence drew Keith’s attention. Bill was just sitting there, watching him.
    “What?” Keith prompted.
    “She’s the one, isn’t she?” Bill asked the question Keith had only just come to terms with himself.
    Slowly, he nodded.
    “Oh, wow.” Suzy spoke, her eyes lit with excited joy.
    “But she ran and I don’t know where she went. Matilda thought of you, Suzy, when I asked her, and here I am. But Valerie’s not here.” He knew he sounded hopeless, but he wasn’t handling this well. His mate had rejected him. It hurt deeper than any wound he’d ever been dealt.
    “She probably wanted to come here, but saw Bill’s truck in the driveway. She wouldn’t intrude on our time together. She knows how special Bill is to me and how new our relationship is.” Suzy’s tone held a banked sort of joy of its own. Could it be his cousin had also paired up with a witch?
    A questioning glance and a slight answering nod from Bill gave Keith his answer. They’d both mated magical women. Goddess help them all.
    “If she didn’t come here, then there’s really only one other place I can think of where she’d go,” Suzy said, oblivious to the silent conversation between the male cousins.
    “Where’s that?” Keith felt hope rise in his chest.
    “My parents’ house. She always goes to my mom and dad for advice. Her own parents are pretty much useless unless it’s a magical matter. Their abilities and duties have their heads in the clouds most of the time. My parents are a little more down to earth and they sort of adopted Val back when we were kids. I bet she went there.” Suzy jumped up and grabbed the phone hanging to one side of a cupboard. “I’ll call and find out.”
    Short minutes later, Suzy had her answer and Keith didn’t like it. Valerie had gone home to her own parents, not Suzy’s. From her reaction, this was more serious than any of them had thought.
    “Why would she go there?” Suzy voiced the question in his mind as she sat at the table. “Unless it’s a magical problem…” Suspicious eyes turned to him. “What exactly happened last night?”
    Keith cleared his throat. “Uh.”
    “Not sexually,” Suzy snapped, concern in her gaze as she pinned him in place with her accusing glare. “Magically. What did you do to her?”
    “Nothing.” He held up his hands palm outward, deflecting the visible waves of her anger away from him.
    She jumped from her chair. “What did you