Dark Covenant (Living Covenant Trilogy Book 2) Read Online Free

coming?”
    “Scott. Tally. Kristy. I thought about inviting Kate, but I didn’t want to watch her drool over Aric all night.”
    “What about Matilda?” Paris asked.
    I shook my head. Matilda, a former roommate, joined a witch cabal bent on stealing my powers. She eventually saw the error of her ways, but the friendship was irretrievably broken. “I didn’t think that was a good idea,” I answered. “I think she’s better off living in her own corner of the world and leaving me to mine. Bad things happen when those worlds overlap.”
    “Still, it should be fun,” Kelsey said. “I’m so excited.”
    At least someone looked forward to the party. All I could think about was wearing a dress in public. Ugh. My mother really is a master at getting what she wants. She knew all I would see was pink when she showed me that dress. What? I’m bitter. She beat me and I hate it when I don’t win.
    “We should get ready,” I said, pushing myself up from the table. “If I’m going to wear a dress, I’m going to need a little time to psych myself up for it.”
    “One thing is still the same,” Kelsey said, chuckling. “You’re still the most dramatic person I know.”
    “You say that like it’s a bad thing.”

3
    Three
    T he restaurant was packed by the time we arrived, and I instinctively slipped my hand into Aric’s at the door. He cleaned up well, his black suit highlighting his broad shoulders. I felt out of place in my simple black dress.
    Aric’s eyes were curious when they locked onto mine. “Are you going to be my shadow tonight?”
    “I … no.” I moved to pull my hand from his but he didn’t let me.
    “I think you should be my shadow,” Aric teased. “I’m looking forward to you draping yourself all over me once you have a few drinks. You’re affectionate when you drink.”
    “I don’t need to be your shadow,” I shot back. “I just … .” What? Should I admit that a roomful of people made me nervous? We’d spent years isolating ourselves, so being around so many people crammed into one small room felt momentarily overwhelming.
    “Stick with me, Trouble,” Aric said, lifting our joined hands and pressing a quick kiss to my knuckles. “You’ll get used to this faster than you realize.”
    “You don’t seem nervous,” I pointed out.
    “That’s because I’m a wolf, and nothing makes me nervous.”
    “You made me catch the spider in the shower the other day because you were convinced it was giving you a dirty look,” I reminded him.
    “You’re good for my ego, baby,” Aric said, tugging me in front of him. “You never let me get too full of myself. And, for the record, that spider was looking at me. It had big plans for world domination. I could see it.”
    “If that’s what you need to tell yourself.”
    I let Aric navigate, marveling as people automatically moved aside to give us a wide berth. It took me a moment to realize they were reacting to us as a couple rather than his standing in Michigan’s wolf hierarchy. “They’re looking at me.”
    “Like the spider was looking at me?” Aric teased.
    I shook my head. “They all know what I did.”
    Aric pulled me closer and lowered his voice. “That’s a good thing, Zoe,” he said. “They respect you.”
    “They’re afraid of me.”
    “That’s still a good thing,” Aric said. “I know you don’t like it, but … it’s important that you’re safe. If people fear you, that means we’re safe.”
    “Until some crazy person doesn’t fear me,” I said, smoothing the front of my dress in an effort to avoid eye contact with party guests.
    “We can’t safeguard against everything,” Aric said. “If this is too much for you, we can go home. I’ll tell my parents you’re sick, and they’ll just have to deal with it.”
    “It’s fine,” I said, flustered by the idea of looking weak. “I’m fine.”
    “Are you sure?” Aric didn’t look convinced. “There are a lot of people you don’t know here.