Dead End: Midnight Hollow by Penn Cassidy (free novel 24 TXT) 📗

I had to hold back a giggle at how serious her face was as she segued into candy territory. Typical.

Everyone was staring at me, waiting for my reaction. They were right—I was in the here and now with the people I loved surrounding me. I just wished Freddy and Jessica were here.

“Lead the way, Aunties.” I hesitantly smiled and loved watching them get excited like two little kids as they basically moonwalked out of the living room, their robes fluttering around their feet, singing gibberish. They were insane, but I loved them to death.

I pecked Jason and Michael on the cheek as I got up to follow, grabbing a daydreaming Maddie by the hand. I glided my fingertips over a still frozen Norman by the archway. He gazed down at me expressionless as we passed him, before sighing and following behind us. I knew he was worried about Freddy. We hadn’t seen him since he went into beast mode, but my gut feeling told me he was fine.

He was a werewolf, made to feel the dirt beneath his paws as he howled at the moons. He’d always been a wild card, the guy who lived every day like it was the only one he’d get. He really was made for this world, just like the rest of us.

The moment we stepped outside, my jaw dropped and I felt a warm, happy glow fill my chest. Right under my nose, fresh baked foods floated by on trays, landing on the smooth surface of a tree trunk in the middle of the yard. Pumpkin cakes were still steaming from the oven, and there were apple strudels with cream cheese drizzle, fresh popped candied popcorn, and caramelized apples. It was making my mouth water…until a horrible thought popped into my head.

“Um, who made these?” I gestured to the feast, praying to the great pumpkin that it wasn’t Auntie Pip, or I would start sobbing.

“Came from—” Auntie Fe started.

“Toil and Trouble,” Auntie Pip finished. Gesturing for us to take a seat on a bunch of floor pillows that looked comfy and squishy.

The colorful pillows were scattered across the lawn in a massive circle surrounding a bonfire that Michael lit with a snap of his fingers, grinning widely at me as I clapped in excitement. We sat down, the glow of the fire warming me instantly on the chilly, perpetually autumn night. With the stars twinkling above, I tilted my head back with a contented sigh. A small, cast iron cauldron was brewing over the bonfire, smelling of spiced apple cider, and I was practically bouncing on my toes for some.

“Sister, lights please,” Auntie Pip asked as she started pouring us steaming cups of cider to pass around.

With a whispered spell under her breath, Auntie Fe pointed at the dark stained wooden shed in front of us, and we oohed and ahhed as a white sheet was pinned to it with string lights, creating a homemade screen. A movie started playing from the projector over our heads in the apple tree, and I instantly recognized the music in the background.

“Nothing like a little Hocus Pocus to cheer us up!” Maddie bounced in her seat and smiled happily over at me, but gasped at something over my shoulder. Whatever it was had her jumping up with a squeal.

I quickly turned around, thinking the worst, but sagged into my pillow as Baen and Cal stepped out of the shadows to gather around our bonfire. Baen came bearing a bouquet of black roses and purple cotton candied web for Maddie, who flung herself in his arms. Cal stood there, looking awkward with his hands in his black jean pockets, but he couldn’t take his eyes off Maddie as she let go of Baen and turned towards him with her arms already open. He stepped forward hesitantly and wrapped his arms around her, picking her up off the ground to hug her tighter.

Yeah, that girl gave the warmest hugs that you couldn’t help but smile at. He finally set her down, clearing his throat, and glanced around while raking his hand through his bluish black hair, until his eyes settled on me.

“Hey, October, how are you adjusting? Still going to the festival?” I noticed the wicked glint in his eyes as a group of not so silent growls filled the air. The cheeky fucker was teasing my guys and enjoying every second.

“She’s adjusting just fine. Not that it’s any of your fucking business, warlock,” Norman hissed, his bat swooping down to frantically flutter around his head before landing on his chest.

I would have laughed at the way he lovingly stroked Billie’s wings and continued to glower at Cal, but I didn’t want to embarrass my jealous boyfriend. It was kind of adorable.

Wait a second... I knew I loved the guys, but was I really just now coming to the realization that they were my boyfriends? Were they really? What if they didn’t want to be? We hadn’t had a real chance to talk about what this was! Oh god, I felt another panic attack coming on soon.

“What’s eating at ya, luv?” Damon crooned as he reached over to gently stroke down my cheek. I’d known it was only a matter of time before he made an appearance again. He was probably drawn to the food.

As Norman and Micheal bitched at Cal like a bunch of tough guys—which they were, but still—I leaned over to Damon so they couldn’t hear me. “Do you think I’m their girlfriend?” I bit my lip and watched his yellow eyes flicker to grey before changing back to an amused yellow glow.

“Of course,” he said through a laugh. “I bet they can’t wait for you to carry their babies. Imagine all the sex you’ll need to get that going.” He smirked at my horrified expression and crushed me in a hug to calm my suddenly racing heart. “I’m only half joking, luv. Not about the fucking, as there will be lots of that.