A Bundle of Trouble (The Lynlee Lincoln Series Books 1-3)

By Olivia Hardin

Trouble is what I'm good at.  I make my living at keeping the world from discovering magic, but sometimes my adventures see me delving into territory I might not be able to escape from…

Get the first THREE Lynlee Lincoln Series books all in ONE collection 

• Trolling for Trouble (The Lynlee Lincoln Series Book 1)
• Tangled Up in Trouble (The Lynlee Lincoln Series Book 2)
• This Spells Trouble ((The Lynlee Lincoln Series Book 3)

• Language: English
• Publisher: Olivia Hardin
• Release date: Nov 8, 2015
• ISBN: 9781516371716

Olivia Hardin

When Olivia Hardin began having strange movie-like dreams in her teens, she had no choice but to begin putting them to paper. Before long the writing bug had her and she knew she wanted to be a published author. Several rejections plus a little bit of life later, and she was temporarily “cured” of the urge to write. That is until she met a group of talented and fabulous writers who gave her the direction and encouragement she needed to get lost in the words again. Olivia’s attended three different universities over the years and toyed with majors in Computer Technology, English, History and Geology. Then one day she heard the term road scholar and she knew that was what she wanted to be. Now she “studies” anything and everything just for the joy of learning.  She's also an insatiable crafter who only completes about 1 out of 5 projects, a jogger who hates to run, and she’s sometimes accused of being artistic. A native Texas girl, Olivia lives in the beautiful Lone Star state with her husband, Danny and their puppy, Bonnie.

Book preview

TROLLING FOR TROUBLE (LYNLEE LINCOLN SERIES 1) © Olivia Hardin 2012

Keeping the world from discovering magic is just the start of TROUBLE for these two best friends...

My name is Lynlee, and I'm a Neutralizer. It’s my job to keep magical and undead creatures out of sticky situations. What kind of sticky? The kind where humans find out that we really do exist. The kind that derails the great big train of our happy coexistence.

It might sound like I’m complaining, but I love what I do. Still, sometimes a girl just needs a break from all of the supernatural chaos. Tonight, I just want to collapse into my bed and forget the day... until I discover two little kids scavenging through my refrigerator. One look at the motley pair, and my heartstrings get a good, hard tug. Imagine my surprise when I discover that their father is the one human I’ve spent years trying to forget.

Beck broke my heart, but when he asks me to save his daughter, that’s when I know I’ve landed into a whole new sort of trouble.

My name is Rhiannon, and I might not be a Neutralizer like my friend Lynlee, but that doesn’t mean I get to take it easy. When Magical And Undead Creatures cross paths with humans, sometimes they get hurt. That's when this doctor to the paranormal world steps into action. What I never expected was to get an urgent call from my secret crush.

Risking my life to grant Sandy a favor might not be the smartest decision I’ve ever made, but sometimes love means taking chances.

Also included, The Trouble With Holidays (The Lynlee Lincoln Series Prequel)

FALLING FOR A HUMAN who doesn't believe in magic was the last thing Lynlee Lincoln needed. Beck Hale was a young architect, and she was a Neutralizer-in-training—they were drawn together, but worlds apart. When Beck's apartment gets flooded, she invites him to her home for Christmas. Lynlee tries to ignore the pull of the mistletoe, but after all, 'tis the season.

Chapter 1

RHIANNON: WEREVAMP, doctor, BFF

Rhiannon Blackstone yawned so wide her jaw popped, then she rolled over and stretched her long limbs. The clock read 9:47, and she groaned in reluctant anticipation of what was sure to be another busy day. In one agile movement, she flipped back the covers and leaped out of the bed straight to her feet. Glancing at the nightstand, she saw her diary open, a pen marking the page:

Dear Diary,

Yeah, another one. I swear when my membership for MagicMatch is over, I’m ditching this stupid dating site. Do they even screen these freaks? Tonight’s guy was the worst yet. Seemed totally normal online, so I agreed to meet him at that Chinese buffet I like. I was really restraining myself—only on my third plate—when I realized he had been sitting there with one of his hands under the table since finishing his second helping. He kept staring at me with this glassy look.

Freak!!! I am so glad I drove my car so I could high-tail it out of there. And then when I get home, there’s a message telling me how I’m just not his type and the chemistry wasn’t there and to please not write him anymore because he won’t be able to respond. Uhm, can you say DELETE? Last time I go out with a genie. They never can keep it in the bottle. Lol!

Rolling her eyes at the memory of another failed date, she shuffled towards the kitchen. Her belly grumbled, and she immediately grabbed a whole-grain power bar, punching the button to start the coffee.

Werewolves were pretty much hungry all of the time, but it was in the mornings that they were more voracious than normal. She bit off over half of the bar, crumbs exploding everywhere and dusted the oat morsels off her nightshirt and into the sink.

Halloween, she muttered as she glanced at the monthly calendar on her refrigerator. She calculated she had maybe two to three hours before calls started coming in about MAUCs in need of medical attention. It wasn’t easy to be a doctor/veterinarian to the unseen paranormal world.

Magical And Undead Creatures were warned to remain under the radar on October 31st and the days surrounding it. Human perception of the paranormal was heightened during this time, and with all of the attention, it was like asking for trouble.

But many MAUCs just couldn’t resist the temptation. There would be calls about minor injuries and scrapes, vampires with holy wounds and probably a few human injuries that needed the touch of someone with a medical degree and knowledge of the paranormal.

Rhiannon glanced at her cell phone, plugged in on the bar between her kitchen and living area. The blinking light warned she had a message, so she grabbed it and tapped the buttons with her thumb.

Call me when you wake.

It was her best friend, Lynlee, and after pouring herself a big mug of black coffee, she dialed her number.

What’s up girlfriend?

Hey, Rhia. Uhm, hold on, Lynlee said, then shuffled around with her phone a second before speaking again. Sorry, was finishing an email. I can’t do that and talk at the same time.

Rhiannon snorted and nodded her head. Yeah, I know.

And she did. Lynlee was great at multitasking, but for some reason typing and talking didn’t mix for her. She’d end up typing what she was saying and saying what she was typing. Which normally provided lots of amusement for Rhiannon.

Things may get hairy later–no pun intended–so I thought we could catch breakfast if you want.

Are you kidding? I never pass up a chance to eat. That was true. Rhiannon had the appetite of... well, of a wolf.

Yes, I know, Lynlee responded dryly. Your eating habits are the bane of every woman in the world who wishes she could eat what she wants without getting fat.

Shrugging, Rhia heading to her bedroom to start getting dressed. I can’t help genetics. So, meet you at the diner? I’m already drooling thinking about a big giant stack of buttery pancakes. Mmm, mmm...

Darn, Lynlee hissed, and her friend had a feeling she knew why.

Getting a vibration?

Hold on. The irritation in her voice was palpable. She could hear her friend talking to whichever charge had buzzed her via her magical amulet, though she could only hear Lynlee’s half of the conversation. Okay, okay. I’ll be there in a few minutes. Yes, I know.

Standing me up?

Sorry, but duty calls.

Glancing at her clock, Rhiannon frowned. Duty sure is starting early today. I’ll try to check with you tomorrow ... after all the fun settles down.

There was little more than a grumble from Lynlee’s end of the line, and then she was gone. It was sure to be a busy day with an abundance of trouble for both of them to deal with.

Well, she said to herself. No one says you can’t go out for breakfast on your own. Slipping into a pair of yoga pants, she grabbed her keys and headed for the door

Chapter 2

LYNLEE: WITCH, NEUTRALIZER, BFF

My shoulders sagging, I stepped outside the huge granite grotto with heavy feet. I was tired. Dog tired, and I yanked the gold chain attached to my multicolored amulet from its slot in the stone wall with the finality of one ready to throw in the towel forever. That wasn’t the case by any means, but if I didn’t get another call for a few days, that would make me perfectly happy.

With a long breath, I slung the chain over my head and around my neck so that the crystal would rest against my breastbone.

Eyes narrowed, I flashed an exasperated look up at the ceiling of my old storage shed and opened my mouth to speak.

I’m done, I muttered to the heavens, to no one in particular. Done! Lynlee Lincoln is officially off the clock. I need sleep!

It was no secret that I hated this time of year. In truth, most of the others in my profession felt the same way. I knew my best friend Rhiannon complained about it almost as bitterly as I did even though she wasn’t in the business like me.

In the days leading up to Halloween, it never failed that my monitor would go into overdrive. It didn’t matter that MAUCs (Magical And Undead Creatures) were advised to remain out of sight during this particular time of year. No, some magicals were stubbornly unconcerned about the dangers associated with All Hallow’s Eve, even though we all knew Halloween made normal people more susceptible to the subtle nuances and evidences of our existence. Some just couldn’t resist the opportunity to spread their wings, so to speak. Sometimes, literally.

Geez... I muttered, remembering a call that came in at least five hours ago. The vampire bat sighting was something I’d come to expect, yet hoped I wouldn’t get. Stupid kid! I grumbled.

Technically speaking, Montgomery Janeck wasn’t a kid, since he was at least 158 years old. Still, he’d been little more than a teenager when he’d turned into a vampire, so he looked all of 15. Centenarian or not, Monty hadn’t grown up in the least. Just as he did almost every year, he’d found a way to get an invite to a teenybopper Halloween party.

I was sure he seemed perfectly normal to the parents and school kids for most of the evening. But then just about the time all of the other children’s parents arrived to pick up their offspring, Monty the Vampire transformed himself into a bat and began buzzing all the young girls with a lascivious and very un-batlike smile on his furry face. It wasn’t the first time he’d pulled such a stunt and was the main reason he’d requested to be in my charge ten years ago.

I’m a freelance Neutralizer. It’s my job to clean up all the sticky messes MAUCs get into when they mix with normal people. The Salem Witch Trials might have been averted if there’d been people like me around at the time. Yes, I’m a witch, but to be honest, my magic isn’t usually my most important asset. Oh, it helps me, sure, but generally my no-nonsense attitude and assertive attention to detail were what got my MAUCs out of trouble.

I glanced in exasperation at the body of the faux bat on the ground just outside the opening to the grotto. I’d killed the thing in order to convince the panicked parents it must have only been the overactive imaginations of their children and not an undead beast flying overhead. Some local doctor would likely do a little extra business treating one or two kids unnecessarily for rabies, even though each of the families would receive a letter in tomorrow’s mail certifying the animal had not had the disease.

Exiting my oversized storage shed, I hurriedly locked the rickety doors behind me and trudged on towards my house, a meal, a hot bath and sleep foremost in my mind. And not necessarily in that order.

With a flick of my wrist, I waved my hand behind me to engage the invisible shield around the building as an added protection. When I bought this place, my home inspector suggested I tear the shed down and build a new one. But I knew the run-down barn was the perfect façade to detract would-be snoops. Who would expect anything of value to be in an old monstrosity that looked like it would collapse at any minute?

Exhaustion was taking its toll on me, and even though my stomach grumbled in protest, I avoided the kitchen and started up the stairs towards my bedroom.

Absently slipping my hands into the pockets of my coat, I dropped my head back and rolled my eyes when my fingers brushed against something rubbery. I pulled the toy toad from the confines of my coat and tossed it over my shoulder without even looking to see where it would land.

Vampires certainly weren’t the only MAUCs to take advantage of the ghoulish holiday. No, in fact, witches were the worst offenders. Still, I had been more than a little shocked to get a call on the monitor from Grammie Charley earlier tonight.

Grammie loved Halloween almost as much as she loved little children. As a hag-witch, she looked the epitome of the character one might find in any child’s tale. That being said, Grammie was a kindly soul and liked nothing more than to make little kids happy. Which is why each Halloween she decorated her home in true holiday style, with cobwebs, pumpkins, fake tombstones, etc. She even took the time to divide the house into age-appropriate sections.

For the ten to fifteen age group, she annually concocted her toad brew. The neighborhood children of that age knew that if they brought Grammie a toy toad, she’d gladly dunk the little object into her brew, and it would emerge as a living, slimy toad. In all the years she’d opened her home to the children, this was the first time she’d ever had a child infiltrate a section he wasn’t supposed to enter. And when the little three-year-old boy precociously stuck his arm into the brew...

Well, it wasn’t any wonder the little boy’s mother fainted dead away when her son gleefully presented her with a wriggling green amphibian growing out of his chubby little arm. I’d arrived just after Grammie had nervously returned the boy to normal. The quickest solution was for me had been to place a spell on the child’s mother so she wouldn’t remember the trauma. Careful interviews with the other parents in the vicinity verified that no one else had seen anything amiss.

Those were only two of about a dozen calls I’d fielded, and it was just barely midnight.

My stomach growled again, and I paused about midway up the steps, realizing I was practically starving. The thought of food naturally brought to mind my best friend, Rhiannon whose appetite rivaled none. I figured she was having a time of things, too. As a doctor to the paranormal world, many Neutralizers called on her over Halloween. I hadn’t heard from her and thankfully hadn’t had to call on her, either. I decided she was either busy or in bed and not to bother her until the next morning. I also decided that despite near starvation, sleep was still more important than food at the moment so continued my trek up to my room.

The bedroom I called my own wasn’t very large, but it was the only updated room in my house. I’d faux painted the walls in tones of green and cream. My high-post bed was dressed to match with a single-tone green spread and ecru throw pillows. I liked the upstairs room the best and made it mine even though one of the bedrooms on the lower floor was the actual intended master.

The house was an oddity. The realtor had slipped and called it the mafia house prior to showing it to me. That was enough to pique my interest, and once I saw it, I fell in love. There were little hidden aspects throughout the 2200 square foot residence. One bathroom had a safe hidden behind a wall panel. Also, in that same bathroom, there was an opening behind the medicine cabinet door. The little peep-hole peered into the laundry room beyond. The largest room in the house wasn’t the living area or even any of the four bedrooms. No, instead it was a huge walk-in closet completely lined in cedar and with a built-in dressing table and numerous racks and storage cubbies.

Yes, to say that I loved this house was an understatement.

I reached behind me to slip my shoes off one by one, dropping them with a thud onto the carpeted floor. As I examined myself in the bathroom mirror, I considered the hot bath I’d been imagining. Brushing my long black hair away from my face, I frowned at the dark circles under my eyes. I needed sleep; a bath could and would wait. Instead, I simply brushed my teeth, wiped away my make-up and slipped into bed. The hazy veil of sleep was just wrapping around my mind when my monitor began beeping wildly from the nightstand.

I rolled onto my back, my arms spread out on either side of me and cursed under my breath. I waited a minute, hoping the alarm would cease and whoever thought they needed help would change their mind and leave me alone.

No such luck. The amulet around my neck began to vibrate and buzz the secondary alarm. I slapped my left hand onto the amulet and clutched it tight.

Gretchen...

Just by touching the crystal stone I could sense which charge was calling me. Gretchen was what one might term a somewhat paranoid Siren. Her voice could conquer any man’s will to resist her advances, which was good because she absolutely loved men. Still, she inevitably called me just after each date and always with the same quandary. I knew she wouldn’t settle down until after she spoke to me, so I gave up on sleep and snatched the monitor from the nightstand.

Yes, Gretch... I muttered, doing my best to inject as much agitation into my tone as possible. That wasn’t difficult.

He knows... I know he knows. He stared at me with this look. A look of total mortification, Lynlee. What should I do?

How do you know he knows?

I just do. He totally knows what I am. I thought I carefully masked the siren’s call, but he must know that’s how I got him to go out with me. He must sense it somehow...I gotta get him outta my house before he figures it out....

You just said he knows... that would indicate he’s already figured it out. Where are you, anyway? As I spoke, my stomach began grumbling again. I knew this interruption to my sleep might last a while. I gave in to my hunger and swung my legs out of the bed and started down the stairs.

I’m in the bathroom... I couldn’t take the uncomfortable looks he kept giving me. Lynlee, please! Tell me what to do.

I’d heard this same story multiple times. As I rounded the bottom of the staircase and headed towards the swinging gates at the entryway to my kitchen, I mentally took note of the partially open door to my office.

Eyeing the door for a moment, I held the monitor close to my mouth before speaking again. Gretchen, I want you to get out of the bathroom, tell the dude to leave, then go to sleep. Rather than believing you’re a Siren, he’ll think you’re a nut if you keep behaving like one. Just get off the monitor and do what I said. If he’s still giving you a look next time you see him, tell him ‘so long,’ and that’ll be the end of it.

But what if he keeps calling after tomorrow?

Not likely.

If he thinks there’s something wrong with you, then why would he call again? Before she could answer that question, I impatiently continued. If he does call again, I’ll give him a spell, but only if he calls again. Now go to sleep!

I hesitated at the entryway to the kitchen even as she hesitated on the monitor. I gave her just a moment to mull over my words, then when I was sure she’d reached the appropriate breaking point I spoke again. Good night, Gretch. Call me tomorrow.

She disengaged the monitor just as I shoved both palms against the swinging doors and burst into the kitchen.

There, standing at my refrigerator, was a gorgeous little red-headed girl, no more than four years old. She was so startled by my entrance that she froze in place, her hand to her mouth. Crumbs from the brownie she’d been eating littered the tile floor in little black tidbits. Chocolaty smudges on her cheeks indicated it wasn’t the first of my sweets she’d sampled.

I was about to speak when another child, this one a boy of about ten years, peeked his head from inside my pantry. When he saw me, his eyes widened, and he quickly shuffled across the room to stand between me and the girl. He put his hands down at his side in a protective stance, glaring at me with what I was sure he intended to be a fierce look.

None of us spoke for several moments. I used the time to examine the motley pair. I had to presume they might be siblings, though their resemblance to one another was nearly non-existent. The boy’s hair was brown, his complexion darker than the girl’s ghostly pallid skin. In fact, the girl looked sickly pale, as if she hadn’t eaten in many days. Both of them wore clothes that were wrinkled. Not dirty, just unkempt, as if they’d been bunched into a pile just before dressing in them.

I kept my expression void as was my habit. It was something I’d developed long ago to help me keep my magic closely in check. Extreme shifts in emotion directly connected to my powers. Those polar swings tended to so shock and dismay people, even those who knew about my magic, that I’d long ago decided it was better to remain stoic and cold. Still, seeing these obviously hungry ragamuffins in my kitchen tugged at some hidden recess of my heart.

"I’m hungry, too, so I imagine we might as well all eat," I announced to my tiny visitors. I walked in a wide circle around the kids to grab some paper plates from my pantry. I had no choice but to reach around them into the fridge for the barely touched pizza I’d ordered earlier in the evening. As I leaned close, the little boy wrapped one arm behind him and clasped the girl to his back defensively. I watched as she fought against him so that she could look around and up into my eyes.

And that was when I noticed it. She wasn’t just an ordinary child, she was a MAUC. Her eyes were as green as the grass in a spring field, and they flashed with the slightest hint of magic. I was fairly certain as I examined her and drew forth her power that she was probably a nymph. As if reading my thoughts, the girl smiled up at me with the utmost trust in her features.

You can take your sister to the bar, and both of you can have a seat while I get this ready, I told the boy even as I placed several slices of pizza on a plate and popped them into the microwave.

He glared at me a little longer, then took the girl’s hand and led her around the counter. Watching him wipe at her chocolate-covered face, I decided it was best not to talk and instead studied the carousel as it turned inside the microwave. When the cheese began to bubble, I pulled the latch and slid a piece each onto two other paper plates before setting one in front of each child. With a roll of one hand, I motioned the children to start as I leaned my backside against the counter.

In unison, all three of us wasted no time, opening wide and taking huge bites of warm gooey pizza. I had just finished the minimal amount of chewing necessary to swallow that first tasty mouthful when the kitchen doors swung open, and the three of us looked up in wide-eyed surprise.

Instantly reacting, I tossed my plate onto the counter and immediately conjured my wand into my left hand. I had just pointed the wand-wielding arm towards the doorway when I recognized the warm cognac-colored eyes staring back at me. 

Chapter 3

LYNLEE FINDS HER HEARTSTRINGS

His hair was longer than it had been the last time I’d seen him, and I was almost surprised to see the way his red-brown locks curled against his ears and neck. It made him look rugged as opposed to the perfectly coiffed man I’d known all those years ago. I stared into his eyes and felt some of my defenses slip. It appalled me when my peripheral vision caught the tremble in my outstretched hand.

I swallowed the remaining pizza in my mouth then gulped again to force down the lump I felt rising up in my throat. After a beat, I shook my hand to send the wand away.

Beck... I said in a hard, cold tenor.

Lynlee... he clipped back.

Okay, so we’d acknowledged we knew each other. What now?

She gave us pizza. The boy spoke, and when I looked at him again, his previously defiant face had melted away to be replaced by that of just an innocent young child.

I see that, Beck responded, and I couldn’t miss the fatherly affection in his tone.

Your kids? I was astounded. Beck, my Beck, was a father? Well, not my Beck, at least not for a very long time. But in all my imaginings, I’d never conjured the idea of him as a dad. Probably because it hurt too much to think of him with anyone else. Which was likely because it hurt too much to think of him at all.

My kids. Justin and Jillian... er, Jilly for short.

I followed him with my eyes as he walked into the kitchen and towards the children. He combed the girl’s hair back with one hand while he ruffled the boy’s head with the other. It seemed to me he was inspecting them for any signs of harm, and I snorted in spite of myself.

They were hungry so I gave them pizza. It’s not like I’m fattening them up for the oven or something, I declared, the slightest bit of aggravation rising in my voice.

The flash in his eyes when he glared up at me said he’d caught my veiled reference to Hansel and Gretel and the fact that I was a witch.

I see that, he finally said, repeating his earlier words. Then a sigh issued from his lips, and he shook his head as if angry. I’m sorry. I don’t really know how to explain this.

Try.

His eyes hardened again as that single word sounded from my lips.

I guess some things never change, do they? he breathed heavily, and his shoulders slumped a little as if in defeat.

I guess not. It was all I could do not to raise my voice at him, but I was determined not to give an inch. So now that that’s settled, why not try explaining?

It’s a long story, but... we don’t have anywhere to go, Lynlee. I thought you could help us. At least I hoped you could. Or would.

That’s interesting Beck. Since you don’t believe in my vocation, in fact don’t really want to believe the existence of magic at all. So that must mean you’re not coming to me professionally. And since you ended our relationship and our friendship, quite abruptly, I might add, then this cannot be a personal request, either. I must be missing something.

I knew this was a waste of time. I knew I shouldn’t have brought them here.

Then why did you?

Yep, I was getting dangerously close to that extreme shift in emotional balance that would lead to some explosive display of my magic. My fingers started to tingle as energy chomped at the bit to get loose. I was at the same time angry and hurt that he would invade my safe place. I didn’t want these feelings for him to come to the surface again. And I especially didn’t want the man I had once thought myself in love with to come to me with two kids in tow seeking my help.

Where’s their mother? I asked with narrowed eyes, doing all I could to keep a lid on my feelings.

Beck eyed the kids, then gave me a stern look before walking towards the door. He motioned with his hand that I should follow him. I took a few steps before I remembered my pizza. I backtracked and took the plate with me.

Leading us towards my office, we both stepped inside and I closed the door. It was immediately clear to me that the photos on my desk had been moved. No, I couldn’t tell because of magic, but rather because I was a terrible housekeeper and it was easy to detect where the photos had been based on the lack of dust under them.

You’ve been snooping, I accused dryly, taking a bite as I sat down on the worn easy chair in the corner of the room.

Beck smiled apologetically, looking off into space, and I wondered what he was thinking at that moment. When his eyes turned back to me, they were again impassive and hard.

My wife died a few years ago. Car accident. That’s when things went downhill for us. Cheri lingered for a long time before she finally passed, and I lost my job. We should have stayed put. The house was paid for, and I was at least able to maintain our basic standard of living there, but then Jilly’s terrors began. She became afraid of our home. It was like a nightmare, Lynlee, only it happened all the time. Whether she was awake or asleep, she was living in terror.

I frowned, thinking of the magic I’d seen in the little girl. What is she afraid of?

That was when I noticed the strain in his expression. He looked tired, worn, and he also looked as if he’d aged many more years than he should have in the intervening time since I’d seen him last. I realized his hair wasn’t long because of any desire to look sexy or attractive. He’d given up on taking care of himself, and I supposed he was focused entirely on his children.

I don’t know what she’s afraid of, Lynlee. She was too young to talk then. At least she wasn’t talking well enough for me to understand her. When we left, the terrors ended, but her sickness began. She doesn’t grow, she doesn’t put on weight, and she seems malnourished. I feed her well and regularly. You can see Justin and I aren’t suffering like she is. But the doctors I’ve taken her to can’t seem to figure out what’s wrong with her.

Why me? Why’d you think I could help? That was me fishing. I knew the reason, but I wanted him to admit it

Beck began pacing the room. Despite the wear and age, he still was as attractive to me as ever. I watched as he reached his hands behind him and slid them into the back pockets of his jeans. I licked my lips and tried not to remember how good his kiss tasted. I hadn’t thought of him in years, but now each memory was just as vivid as if the events had occurred just the day before. How could he still have such a profound effect on me?

Justin read her a book, a fairy tale, but when she saw the picture, her reaction was frightening. It took us hours to calm her down. It was very similar to when she had the terrors.

The picture?

Beck turned those brown eyes on me, and I felt a flutter in my belly. "I came to you because they were reading the Three Billy Goats Gruff... and the picture she saw was a drawing of a troll. So, tell me, Lynlee, am I crazy to believe maybe trolls actually exist? Is that what my baby girl’s afraid of?"

I took a deep breath. Carefully, I weighed my words. You do know what she is, don’t you?

He cocked his head. Even after all this time, I knew him, and I could tell he had no idea.

She’s a nymph, Beck. Which means her mother was, too. Are you telling me you didn’t know?

He switched his gaze down, consternation marring his features. I snorted in derision as I walked past him and took the doorknob in hand. "So I was at least honest and told you what I was, but you