The Warlocks' Pact: A Short Standalone Reverse Harem (Paranormal Quickies Book 3) Read online

  The Warlocks’ Pact

  By Lacey Carter Andersen

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Also By Lacey Carter Andersen

  About the Author

  Chapter One

  Harvey

  A blood pact’s a powerful thing among warlocks and not something to mess around with. But blood pacts can be even more powerful when done between twins... or, in our case, among triplets. My parents have warned the three of us from the time we were children never to make a blood pact.

  My brothers and I never worried about it. Between the three of us, we had enough brains not to do something so stupid. Or so we thought. But then... we graduated from college on the same night, got drunk, and made the biggest mistake of our lives.

  We made a blood pact to discover the identity of Nessie, the Loch Ness monster, before Christmas.

  Stupid, right?

  I blame the expensive tequila. My brother, Peter, blames the documentary that we’d started watching late on that fateful night. And my other brother, Ryan... he blames me for losing the remote and getting stuck on that show. We should have been watching sports, or a dumb reality show, or anything else at all. Anything but that.

  No matter what or who’s to blame, now we’re bound by our pact. The blood pact is why we are in Scotland the morning before Christmas Eve, determined to free ourselves, no matter the cost.

  Because if we don’t, the consequences will be dire. And we’ve wasted too much time already trying to break the pact without actually fulfilling the requirements.

  “This place is fucking cold,” Ryan mutters beside me.

  The three of us are squeezed into the back of a cab, heading for our hotel. We slept some on the plane, and now we're ready to get this over with.

  We’re bundled up in coats, our huge bodies pressed uncomfortably against each other, and I can feel Ryan’s anger building with each second that passes. I know he's thinking about the businesses he left behind, the millions of dollars he’s given control over to other people. Ryan doesn't give up control easily... or ever. This is new to him and it has been pure and utter torture.

  Peter whistles beside us as we pull onto a little road. Loch Ness Lake comes fully into view on one side of us, and we can see the hotel just ahead.

  “We’re not in Texas anymore,” Peter says, in a soft, awed voice.

  And he’s right. This place is so different from our home state. The morning sky is overcast. The green of the plants is brilliant. And the lake that stretches out with mist hovering over it like steam? It looks like something out of a horror movie, beauty edged with danger.

  A shiver moves down my spine, and I look away from it.

  I sense magic in the waters, but maybe it’s just my imagination or wishful thinking. Because if I can’t sense anything, I don’t know how we’re going to find this monster.

  “Here,” the driver says, stopping in front of our hotel.

  Ryan throws open the door, and we all pile out. He pays the driver, and we grab our bags. As the cab pulls away, we look up at the white stone building covered in moss. Already, I like this place. If we were here on vacation, I’d be in heaven.

  Unfortunately, we won’t exactly be enjoying our time here.

  An older woman comes out of the building drying her hands on an apron. “You boys must be those Americans, the Scott brothers.”

  I nod and hold out my hand. “Nice to meet you, ma’am.”

  She grins, and I immediately like her. She has long brown hair, the slightest wrinkles, and a warm smile. She reminds me a little of our mom.

  Mom's crushed we’re missing Christmas at home. I push the guilty thought away. She’d be even more crushed if she knew what we’d done. It’s better that she thinks we’re selfish than to worry about the consequences of our stupidity.

  The woman takes my hand. “I’m Sharon Reid. Welcome to the Loch Ness Oasis. Now, what brings you here?”

  A tingle moves between us, and I yank my hand back, frowning. The hotel owner is a witch?

  She raises a brow. “What’s brought three warlocks all the way from America?”

  My brothers and I exchange a glance.

  Who wants to handle this?

  Peter takes off his sunglasses and gives her a smile that flashes his dimples. “Probably like most tourists, we’re here to learn about Nessie. Maybe you could even steer us in the right direction to get a glimpse of it?”

  I know what he’s doing. The three of us played football on the same team. We’re hulking men with blond hair, blue eyes, and easy-smiles. Turning our baby-blues onto women seems to have an instant affect, even for witches. Maybe she will be able to help us.

  As if on cue, a teasing smile touches her lips. “Come inside. Let’s have a little whiskey and talk.”

  Chapter Two

  Harvey

  Ms. Reid shows us to our rooms. We reserved a suite, with a tiny living room and dining room connected by three bedrooms. It takes up the whole top floor, and didn't come cheap, but Ryan always has to have the best. As a teacher with limited pay, I would’ve been glad for just about anything, but Ryan’s quick to flash his card and tell me to put my wallet away. It almost makes up for what an arrogant asshole he can be most of the time.

  We drop our bags in the room and return to chat with the woman who runs the hotel. She pours us each a whiskey and one for herself before she pokes at the fire in the fireplace and joins us.

  I've never been a fan of whiskey, but this is the smoothest I've had... I could get used to this. I stare in silence at the tiny Christmas tree that blinks at me from the corner, imagining the huge twenty-foot tree in my parent’s home. I'm missing Christmas at home more than I thought I would. This could be our last Christmas ever. The thought is even more sobering.

  “Seriously boys,” she sighs, after a quiet moment, “as much as I enjoy flirting with three of the sexiest damn Americans I’ve ever seen, you didn’t come all this way to meet me.”

  Our light mood fades, and I can feel the tension in the air. Should we tell her the truth? Or lie?

  Peter leans closer, his face somber. “We did something stupid.”

  She raises a brow and takes another sip of her drink.

  “We made a blood pact,” he said, his voice cold and dark.

  Her drink drops to the table with a jarring sound against the wood. “Triplets? Fuck. That’s why I could sense your magic coming like a storm. What was your pact?”

  Peter stares down at his drink. “To discover the truth about Nessie.”

  “Why the fuck would you do something so stupid?” she asks. All gentleness has left her voice.

  Ryan shrugs. “We were drunk.”

  She sighs. “Of course. So, what happens if you don’t find out the truth?”

  No one talks.

  I don’t know what to say. Saying the words out loud gives them more power. And they don’t need more power. We’ve spent the last six months trying to find a solution. But now, we have just two days to discover the truth. Already, the consequences of the pact are chasing us like demons. I swear I feel the magic reaching into my chest and squeezing my heart... reminding me of what’s to come.

  “It’s bad,” Peter finally says. “About as bad as you can imagine.”


  She leans back in her chair and studies us for a long time. “You boys seem sweet. I don’t want anything bad to happen to you. But no one knows what Nessie is.”

  “But there is something out there right?” I ask.

  She nods and picks up her glass, staring down at the dark liquid. “If you go along the shore in that direction for a while,” she says, gesturing with her hand, “you’ll come to a little house. Humans can't see through its enchantment, but you’ll see it, and you’ll know it when you do. The woman there knows more about Nessie than anyone else. If you have any chance, it’s with her.”

  Relief washes through me. “Thank you.”

  We start to rise.

  Her soft voice surprises us. “But be careful. The humans who investigate leave empty-handed. But our kind? They end up either dead or gone. This secret... it’s one worth killing for.”

  We thank her and head out into the cool morning.

  Pausing before the lake, Ryan turns to me. “What do you think?”

  I shrug. “I think we'd better hurry. And watch our backs.”

  A breeze blows around us, and I swear I hear whispers warning us of death. This beautiful place—it does hold a secret. And we have no choice but to unravel it.

  Chapter Three

  Sharon Reid

  Picking up the phone, I dial her number. It only rings once before she answers.

  “Yes?”

  “Don’t kill me,” I whisper into the phone.

  “What did you do?” There’s a warning in her tone that makes me shiver.

  “Triplets were just here... big, sexy, American warlocks. Apparently, they’ve made a blood-pact to discover the identity of Nessie.”

  “What did you do?” she repeats.

  “I sent them to you.”

  My words are met with silence.

  Heart racing, I tangle the phone cord around one finger. “Did you hear me?”

  At last, she responds. “Congratulations, those boys are dead now.”

  I shake my head. “No, listen—“

  But she’s already hung up. Setting the phone down, I collapse into my chair. I hoped that helping them wasn't a mistake. I thought she would show them compassion, but apparently, I was wrong. May the Gods have mercy on their souls.

  Chapter Four

  Loire

  Six months ago, a man drowned a woman in the sacred waters of my lake in a fit of jealousy. When her ghost came to me, asking for revenge, I couldn’t help myself. Seeing his face plastered on the local news, tears streaming down his face, asking for information about her disappearance, made me sick. I dragged her body from the darkest depths of the lake and left her in his bed beside him as he slept.

  It was no surprise when he turned himself in.

  And I swear, the sound of his screams still makes me smile. I hear he can’t stop muttering of ghosts and zombies.

  Serves him right.

  But unexpectedly, the woman's ghost rewarded me for helping her. In life she’d been a powerful witch, so she cast a spell. She promised on the day he returned I would have help.

  Her instructions were simple. Three men would come to my aide, and I must have sex with all three of them in the waters. Their powers would be mine, and I would have a chance of freeing myself from him at last.

  Already I could feel myself going into heat. My clothes felt too tight, and the waters called to me. Today, I would become pregnant with another of my kind, and I would birth the only child of my rare species. The only child in a thousand years.

  One of these three men would be the father, and all three of them would die when I sapped their powers.

  It was a sad thing. I was gentle by nature and considered life precious. But Fate had other plans, and three unknown warlocks would have to pay the price.

  I only hoped they were horrible men, ugly, cruel, and selfish. That would make it easier to kill them. Wrapping my arms around my shoulders, I stared out at the waters. A monster would soon swim in its dark depths. That monster only had one goal, to make me his. He planned to impregnate me with his child and make more of his kind.

  If three warlocks had to pay to keep this world from being overrun with his kind, so be it.

  And yet, my stomach clenches as I think of what I must do.

  People might call me a monster. They might think I’m just like him, but I’m not.

  I’m just... me.

  Chapter Five

  Ryan

  I was glad for the thousandth time that I bought the top-of-the-line hiking boots on Harvey's advice. I preferred my Italian loafers, hand-stiched in Milano, but Harvey was right. These hiking boots were worth the fashion crime. They were already wet and filthy, and we were only on day one of exploring this damn lake. I hated it when one of my brothers was right.

  Peter seemed to like it here. He pointed out things in the water and studied the plants, the scientist in him unable to shut up, even when our lives hung in the balance. Even Harvey seemed to enjoy the nature that surrounded us.

  I despised it.

  I’d made every right decision in my life until that night, when I was so drunk I couldn’t stand without the entire room pitching. Even after all this time, I couldn’t for the life of me figure out what made us make that pact. My brothers said it was the damned tequila... but I felt something else. Somehow, Fate had a hand in all of this.

  I hated the idea that my life and choices weren’t my own.

  Harvey and Peter might feel hopeless about finding the truth about Nessie, but I’d handle this the way I handled everything. We’d find the truth and move on as if this mistake never happened.

  I hope.

  “Guys?” Peter called, just ahead of us. “I think I found the cottage.”

  I move faster, scrambling over the boulders and rocks lining the shore. Stopping next to Peter, I look at the little house, far too close to the water. Moss covers every inch of the stone structure, even the roof. Windows peek out at the lake, but hide what's inside. There's magic here. I sense it coursing through every inch of the structure.

  Murmuring to myself, I cast an ancient spell of protection around my brothers and myself.

  I step forward and at that moment the door opens.

  A woman stands in the doorway. She's tall, with auburn hair, her skin as pale as the finest alabaster. Her face is extraordinarily beautiful, with high cheekbones and full lips. Her jeans and T-shirt hug her supple curves in a way that pushes every thought of Nessie from my mind.

  My muscles tense, and my dick hardens.

  This woman is the most fuckable woman I’ve ever seen in my life.

  “You must be the Scott brothers,” she says, her Scottish accent making every hair on my body stand on end. “Come inside.”

  We follow like men under a spell, like humans caught in a siren’s song.

  Stumbling over rocks and dirt, we reach the little porch and duck to go inside.

  And then, we were in a tiny living room with a small kitchen. Despite the sense of foreboding, it's just a simple house, warmed by a crackling fire.

  Now that we’re closer, I see that her eyes are the color of the bluest water. They run over us in a strangely intimate way, as if she’s evaluating us on a level most people don’t.

  “Take off your coats.”

  Her command is simple, matter-of-fact. We obey in a rush of movement and put our coats on the coatrack by the door. She gestures to her couch, and again, we obey.

  Seating herself on a chair before the fire, she leans back in a confident way. “I’m Loire.”

  We all just stare at her.

  She raises a brow. “And you are?”

  “The Scott brothers,” Harvey says dumbly.

  Her eyes sparkle. “So, with triplets I don’t need to know your individual names?”

  Peter clears his throat. “Uh—no, sorry, I’m Peter. And this is Ryan and Harvey.”

  She meets each of our gazes as he introduces us. “Nice to meet you. I’m told you’re some kind of
conspiracy theorists, here to ask me about Nessie.”

  I want to answer, but my tongue won't respond.

  “No, I mean yes,” Peter finally says, his cheeks turning red. “I mean, I’m a scientist. Harvey’s a teacher. And Ryan, well, he’s been creating businesses since he could talk.” He clears his throat. “But, yes, we’re here to ask about Nessie.”

  There’s a flicker of interest in her eyes, and for a second I think she might ask us a question, but then a cocky smile plasters across her face. “Well, you aren’t the first to ask about the creature, and you won’t be the last, but no one knows the truth about Nessie.”

  I clear my throat, and sit up straighter. “You have to be able to help us find this monster. We—“

  “Don’t call it that.” Her smile vanishes.

  “Uh,” I look at my brothers, but they are no help at all, just staring at the stunning woman.

  “Okay. Well, we need help finding it. Anything you can tell us will be greatly appreciated.”

  A calculated look comes over her face, as if piecing together a complicated puzzle. “Okay, I guess I can help a little.”

  Standing, she grips the edge of her shirt and pulls it off.

  I lean forward, and my cock jerks as she tosses her shirt to the floor. Her breasts are covered by a sinfully delicious black bra. The lace cradles her, but doesn't hide her firm breasts and hard nipples.

  Fuck Nessie. I’m going to do whatever this woman wants.

  She unbuttons her jeans and slides off her pants. I bite back a groan as I stared at the matching panties. Is she completely bare?

  Fuck this!

  Standing, I peel off my shirt and tear open my jeans, tossing my boots along with them. Finally, in nothing but my boxers, I meet her gaze.

  She was grinning, her eyes running over my body. And I let her. She'll like what she sees.

  “And here I thought you Americans might be worried about taking a dip in December.”

  It takes me a long second to process her words. “You want to... go swimming?”