Buttercup (Spell Library #10) - Helen Scott Page 0,26

that it was like we'd known each other for years, not less than twenty-four hours. Plus, I got to eat some of my favorite waffles, which was saying something since I adored waffles and had tried many different kinds in my travels.

We'd gone our separate ways after brunch since we all had things to do. I felt guilty about not opening the shop at the usual time, but I also didn't regret a single minute I'd spent with Casper and Magnus.

I'd just passed Jewels Cafe when I saw a man running toward me at a pretty good clip— albeit on the other side of the street—who was just as sexy as my two mates. Shouldn't I not think other men were attractive now? Wasn't that the deal with mates? They were all in with one another and didn't pay a lick of attention to anyone else.

This guy deserved some attention. And by some I meant all of mine. His skin was tanned, maybe a bit darker, and his hair was close-cut, blending with his stubble. His muscles were perfectly outlined through his skin, as though an artist had gone in and drawn them on to show where they were. He was blessed with truly washboard abs and that sexy v-shaped line that led down into his shorts.

I knew all of this because he'd taken his shirt off at some point and tucked it into the waistband of his shorts. It flapped in the breeze behind him, and I wanted to grab it. I hadn't even realized I'd stopped walking until he looked over at me.

And fell flat on his face.

I ran to him, crossing the street without care, which was something I never did. Something was happening, I wasn't sure what, but that pull was back and just as strong with this man as it was with my mates. My pussy was throbbing just looking at the poor guy pushing up from the ground, his back muscles flexing and tightening visibly. Now was not exactly an appropriate time to get all hot and bothered, especially not when the guy was probably injured.

"Are you okay?" I squeaked out.

He turned and looked up at me with his nose clutched in his hands and blood pouring down his face like someone had turned on a faucet. His knees were just as banged up, and I was sure his hands would be as well if I could see them. The guy had gone down and gone down hard.

Magic was flowing off him in waves though, so I figured his healing abilities would kick in soon, that didn't mean his wounds shouldn't be disinfected or his nose straightened though. "My shop's just around the corner. Let me get you cleaned up."

I offered my hand and he took it, sending a bolt of lightning straight to my lady parts. This couldn't be right. Why did I feel the same way toward him as I did toward Casper and Magnus? Mr. Sexy Abs stood and followed me, using his T-shirt to staunch the blood flow from his nose.

When we entered the bake shop I said, "Sorry, my kit's upstairs. Do you want to come up or wait here?"

"I'll come up," Mr. Sexy Abs said, although it sounded weird, like he was trying not to swallow.

I walked ahead of him and waved him to follow me upstairs and into my small bathroom. I sat him down on the closed toilet and knelt next to him, grabbing my med kit from under the sink. After pulling out a bunch of plasters and bandages, I found the disinfecting ointment that I knew worked on supes and dabbed some onto some gauze before applying it to his knees.

He hissed at the contact with his torn skin. It didn't look as bad now as it did when he first fell, which made sense. I just hoped we handled his nose before it got stuck like that.

"May I?" I asked, holding out my hand for the now ruined T-shirt.

He handed it to me, and I tossed it in the sink and ran some cold water over it, letting it fill the sink so it could soak. I wetted some tissue and worked to clean the blood off his face. I didn't want to ask him to fix his nose himself, but I was fairly sure that if I did it I'd be sick. Something about the crunch of bone and cartilage made my stomach turn.

"Um, I think you need to realign your nose,"