Chapter 10
Ezra was baking lacy oatmeal cookies in Rourke's kitchen.
Geri had come back with vanilla extract, and he'd stolen the other ingredients from the kitchen by the dining hall.
His magic was humming. Lacy oatmeal cookies were his go-to thing.
For some reason, he connected to them in a way he didn't with anything else.
His magic always intertwined with what he cooked or baked, but lacy oatmeal cookies bonded with his soul.
The power didn't buzz like it had before he and Ulric had gotten started on the wards, but it was there, mingling with the ingredients.
He'd replayed Rourke's kiss a million times. After he'd told Ezra about his plan to ensure peace through the mating, he'd rolled off him, and they'd gone to breakfast. Ezra had been in a daze. Rourke had kissed him. Geri had seen him touch Ezra, but Rourke wasn't worried.
When Geri had knocked on the door to give him the vanilla extract, Ezra had been unable to meet his gaze. They might accept Rourke since he was their leader, but now Geri had seen how Ezra allowed Rourke to touch him.
Did he think Rourke did more than simply touch him? The mating act along with the bite was one thing. It had to be done, and Shixyll had forced Rourke's hand. He'd expected a wife. When he got Ezra instead, there was nothing he could do about it, and the pack most likely didn't blame Rourke for it.
His hands shook as he scooped the oat mixture onto the baking sheets. The cuts on his hands still stung, but he only touched the dough with spoons, so there was little risk they'd reopen. No one wanted blood in their cookies.
The timer sounded, and he took the first sheet out of the oven before pushing in the next.
His muscles relaxed when the scent filled the room, and he moved the cookies onto a tray before clicking out more of the mixture on the still-warm sheet.
He repeated the process several times, his body humming in contentment for the first time in days. His motions were easy, the feeling in his chest light, and his hands tingled from the magic.
He felt good.
When he ran out of dough, he stared into the empty bowl.
No. He wanted more. Needed more. This was the first time he'd been himself in ages.
It was almost like being back in the safety of his hut.
No one came there unless they were to order him to do something.
He went to the main building to cook for the clan, and when he was done, he went back to his hut, away from everything and everyone.
Maybe he could make more cookies? He hadn't planned on letting anyone know he was baking, though he couldn't hide it from Rourke. Fear gripped him. Would he despise him for it? Strong witches didn't bake. On the other hand, he'd most likely already figured out Ezra was a useless witch.
He could do another batch, and when everyone was busy doing whatever it was they were doing, he could sneak the cookies into the kitchen. Everything without a name was free to eat, so he'd put them there, and people could eat. If they wanted to. They didn't need to know he was the one who'd baked.
Did he dare steal another egg? He eyed the door. He'd already taken two, and to get another one, he needed to go to the kitchen again.
On tiptoes, he neared the door and leaned his ear against it. Nothing. Carefully, he opened the door only to yelp.
Ulric was leaning against the wall opposite Rourke's room. His arms were crossed over his massive chest and his eyes narrowed. Ezra's heart jumped to his throat. Shit. What had he done wrong now? What would the punishment be?
"Are you baking?" Ulric's eyes narrowed more.
"Eh...I...erm..."
"It's selfish not to share."
Geri came walking down the corridor, sniffing loudly. He spotted Ulric and Ezra. "Who has cookies?" He took another deep breath.
Ezra almost slammed the door in Ulric's face. He would have if Ulric hadn't been grinning. "I need an egg."
"Geri, he needs an egg." Ulric didn't look away from him, and Geri turned around and walked in the direction of the dining hall without saying a word. Was he getting Ezra an egg?
"What are you baking?"
"Lacy oatmeal cookies." His cheeks heated as he waited for Ulric to mock him. He didn't. Instead, he took a step forward, forcing Ezra to step out of the way. He did, hurrying back toward the counter of the kitchen.
When Ulric walked there too, he grabbed the tray of cookies and placed it on the kitchen table. Ulric raised his eyebrows but pulled out a chair and sat. "Do you have milk?"
Ezra shook his head. Seconds later, Ulric held his phone to his ear. "Grab milk too."
Unsure of what to do, Ezra waited. Shortly after, Geri walked into the room with two eggs in one hand and a carton of milk in the other. "I think Farkas is on his way. He was sniffing around the corridor."
Ezra accepted the eggs with a nod. More people were coming?
"These are good." Ulric spoke with his mouth full. "Where did you learn to bake, Ezra?"
He frowned and cracked the eggs in the bowl. He had enough for another double batch. "At home."
"And you enjoy it?"
He did, but if it was because he truly enjoyed cooking and baking or because it was a necessity for his magic, he didn't know. It didn't matter. He loved baking, but the reasons were unimportant. "Yes."
"And you baked a lot back home?"
He nodded and added oatmeal and vanilla extract to the bowl. "Yes, I cooked for the clan."
Silence, but Ezra didn't pay it much attention. He was melting butter and stirring in the sugar. It made his palms tingle. He closed his eyes and rolled his shoulders. Magic twirled around him in a loving caress, and he allowed a sigh to slip out.
A hand landed on his left arm, and he yelped. Ulric watched him with glowing wolf eyes. "What are you doing? Have you poisoned them?"
Ezra blinked in confusion. "What?"
"The cookies, will I get sick now? I ate one."
He shook his head. "No, they're cookies."
"I can scent magic, Ezra. Don't play me for a fool. You did magic seconds ago."
Ezra glanced at Geri who was watching him with a murderous expression, and fear spiked. "No." He shook his head, but Ulric's fingers dug into his arm until he winced. He suspected one of the cuts had reopened.
Ulric took a breath and removed his hand as if Ezra had burned him, confirming the bleeding. He'd been able to scent it in the forest.
"My magic is harmless. Useless."
Ulric's eyes narrowed. "What will happen to me now? I ate one."
Ezra shook his head. "Nothing will happen to you. It gives you what you need."
"Meaning?"
"It'll help you replenish what you need."
"What I need?" He didn't sound as if he believed him, and Ezra didn't blame him. It was a pathetic kind of magic.
"Give an example."
"I don't know what you need." He stirred the butter and sugar. "It helps balance you."
"Balance me?"
It sounded stupid when Ulric kept repeating everything he said. "Yes, balance you. I don't know what you need because I can't see into you, but the magic won't hurt you, it won't make you sick, it won't do anything. I can't make it do anything. I can't hurt you or anyone."
"What if I don't believe you?"
Ezra shrugged. There was nothing he could do if he didn't believe him. "How do you feel?"
Ulric didn't reply.
"Have another."
"Will it turn me into a toad?"
Ezra huffed. "It would surprise me. I've never managed to transform anything."
Ulric turned to Geri. "Don't eat any until we see what happens." Then he crammed three cookies into his mouth in short succession. He remained next to Ezra watching him intently as he added the melted butter and sugar to the bowl and stirred.
Shortly after he leaned against the counter, his muscles letting go of the tension.
He rolled his head and rubbed his neck. Ezra smiled as he clicked some of the dough onto the sheet.
Relaxation. He should've known it was what Ulric needed.
It had been a tense few days. He might not be the one who'd mated a stranger, but his life had been affected.
Ezra glanced at him, trying to hide the smile, but it tugged at the corner.
"Did you slip a sleeping pill in there?"
"Nope. If you're feeling sleepy, it's because you need to sleep."
Ulric shook his head. "Nah, I feel..."
"Relaxed. Sit." Ezra nodded toward the table and focused on his baking. The magic flared again, and he lost himself in the process.
When there was a voice he didn't recognize, he looked up and found Farkas by the table. When had he arrived?
"Ezra, have a cookie." Ulric held one up to him, and Ezra took it. If it would make them feel better, he'd eat one.
As he chewed, Geri reached for one. "I'm having one."
Ezra nodded and watched as Farkas ate one too, then he went back to his baking.
"So you used to cook for the clan?" Ulric's voice was calm, lazy almost, and Ezra nodded.
"And this was what you did? With magic like this I mean?"
He nodded again. "It's all I can do. I can't shrink your skin, can't turn you inside out, can't transform you into a tree, or pull power from a cat.
" Normally, he'd have blushed at his inadequacy, but the magic was humming pleasantly in his veins.
"I can't tell the magic what to do with the cookies.
It hits your system and gives you what you need. "
"Relaxation?"
Ezra looked over his shoulder at him. "If it's what you need."
Geri's stomach rumbled. "I'm fucking starving."
Ulric looked between Geri and Ezra. "Are the cookies making him hungry?"
"I think he'd been hungry anyway."
"It's not the cookies?" Ulric didn't look as if he believed him, and Ezra shrugged. He couldn't say for sure.
Geri shoved one cookie after the other into his mouth until Ezra was starting to worry he'd give himself a stomach ache. He reached for the tray and held it away from Geri. "Go eat real food."
"Why? I want more cookies."
He shook his head. "No, you need food. You're hungry."
Geri stared at him. "Yeah. I'd kill for a steak."
Ulric's eyes narrowed. "Steak?"