Read Online My Commander (Bewitched and Bewildered #1) by Alanea Alder - Free Book Online
Authors: Alanea Alder
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alley. Aiden looked down at her.
"Welcome to Lycaonia." He said and let go of her hand to push her forward. Meryn stepped beyond the tall buildings of the alleyway and gazed around. Everywhere she turned there was something new to see. Vendors laughed and shouted out to people as they walked by trying to sell their wares. Each store was different. In one store window, she could see stacks and stacks of old books and parchment scrolls, at another swords and daggers. One large store window held tiers of delicate looking cakes. She felt her mouth begin to water. When she looked across the street one swinging wooden sign boasted the best magical ingredients sold on the east coast. Magical ingredients! Just when she thought it couldn't get any better the smells began to hit her. Jasmine, honeysuckle, frankincense and myrrh. She looked past the magic shop and saw an apothecary. The delicious fragrance of freshly baked bread and cinnamon rolls spun her around to face a bakery with loaves and loaves of bread on display.
"I ... I ... Oh ... Could we ... Oh!" Meryn twirled in circles trying to take it all in. She felt one of her episodes coming on. She froze and let her brain take everything in. She could almost feel the images being downloaded and filed away.
"Meryn, Meryn! Are you okay?" Aiden's worried voice brought her back. He was bent down peering into her face.
"Sorry about that. Sometimes my brain needs to process stuff quickly and I have a moment." She blushed. She knew she was odd, she just hated that he kept seeing her weird side.
"A moment? A Meryn Moment. Got it. You're okay though, right?" Aiden took her hand again. She was starting to feel naked without his large, steadying hand wrapped around hers.
"Meryn Moment? I like that. Sounds better than 'Psycho Seconds' or 'Freak Meltdown'."
"Who called it that?" Aiden frowned.
"My first boyfriend and my second boyfriend." Meryn sighed. She had stopped dating after that.
"Humpf. Don't mind them Meryn, they were only human." Aiden swung their hands. Meryn felt her heart soar. That's right! They had only been human, she was swimming in a much bigger, freakier pond now. Aiden accepted her for who she was. It felt amazing. Meryn frowned and stopped dead in her tracks. Aiden glanced back concerned.
"I think I'm falling in love with you." She said flatly. His eyebrows shot up and he stared at her. People passed them on either side as they stared at one another.
"Well, I think I'm starting to love you too." Aiden grumbled his cheeks the color of the red apples for sale in the basket next to them.
"Good. Coffee now?"
Aiden cleared his throat and nodded. Meryn noticed that his hand as it gripped hers had gotten moist and trembled slightly. Her silly bear.
"Why do you have cameras on the roofs?" She asked pointing at the roofline. "The entire city is rocking this cool Victorian Steampunk vibe and then you see those cameras and it kinda ruins the atmosphere."
"Kids. Last year it became the cool thing to 'tag' locations of the city with a spell or in the shifter's cases urine. We spent a lot of time chasing teenagers and speaking with parents. With the cameras, we just send the parents the captured video of the delinquent kid and bill for cleanup. The vandalism stopped almost immediately. I think the new thing now are vanishing ink tattoos."
"I guess kids are kids no matter where you live." Meryn took a deep breath and beyond the smells of jasmine, myrrh, freshly baked bread and cinnamon was the crisp smell of autumn. As they walked Aiden pointed out the training academy and the local school. He walked her down a narrower street that was lined with small eateries. She caught a whiff of something familiar and began to smile.
"I hope they have pumpkin flavored drinks."
"I'm sure they do." Aiden stopped and held the door open to a smaller shop. The second the door cracked she could smell heaven. Freshly ground coffee beans lured her in off the sidewalk.
"Welcome to The
"Welcome to Lycaonia." He said and let go of her hand to push her forward. Meryn stepped beyond the tall buildings of the alleyway and gazed around. Everywhere she turned there was something new to see. Vendors laughed and shouted out to people as they walked by trying to sell their wares. Each store was different. In one store window, she could see stacks and stacks of old books and parchment scrolls, at another swords and daggers. One large store window held tiers of delicate looking cakes. She felt her mouth begin to water. When she looked across the street one swinging wooden sign boasted the best magical ingredients sold on the east coast. Magical ingredients! Just when she thought it couldn't get any better the smells began to hit her. Jasmine, honeysuckle, frankincense and myrrh. She looked past the magic shop and saw an apothecary. The delicious fragrance of freshly baked bread and cinnamon rolls spun her around to face a bakery with loaves and loaves of bread on display.
"I ... I ... Oh ... Could we ... Oh!" Meryn twirled in circles trying to take it all in. She felt one of her episodes coming on. She froze and let her brain take everything in. She could almost feel the images being downloaded and filed away.
"Meryn, Meryn! Are you okay?" Aiden's worried voice brought her back. He was bent down peering into her face.
"Sorry about that. Sometimes my brain needs to process stuff quickly and I have a moment." She blushed. She knew she was odd, she just hated that he kept seeing her weird side.
"A moment? A Meryn Moment. Got it. You're okay though, right?" Aiden took her hand again. She was starting to feel naked without his large, steadying hand wrapped around hers.
"Meryn Moment? I like that. Sounds better than 'Psycho Seconds' or 'Freak Meltdown'."
"Who called it that?" Aiden frowned.
"My first boyfriend and my second boyfriend." Meryn sighed. She had stopped dating after that.
"Humpf. Don't mind them Meryn, they were only human." Aiden swung their hands. Meryn felt her heart soar. That's right! They had only been human, she was swimming in a much bigger, freakier pond now. Aiden accepted her for who she was. It felt amazing. Meryn frowned and stopped dead in her tracks. Aiden glanced back concerned.
"I think I'm falling in love with you." She said flatly. His eyebrows shot up and he stared at her. People passed them on either side as they stared at one another.
"Well, I think I'm starting to love you too." Aiden grumbled his cheeks the color of the red apples for sale in the basket next to them.
"Good. Coffee now?"
Aiden cleared his throat and nodded. Meryn noticed that his hand as it gripped hers had gotten moist and trembled slightly. Her silly bear.
"Why do you have cameras on the roofs?" She asked pointing at the roofline. "The entire city is rocking this cool Victorian Steampunk vibe and then you see those cameras and it kinda ruins the atmosphere."
"Kids. Last year it became the cool thing to 'tag' locations of the city with a spell or in the shifter's cases urine. We spent a lot of time chasing teenagers and speaking with parents. With the cameras, we just send the parents the captured video of the delinquent kid and bill for cleanup. The vandalism stopped almost immediately. I think the new thing now are vanishing ink tattoos."
"I guess kids are kids no matter where you live." Meryn took a deep breath and beyond the smells of jasmine, myrrh, freshly baked bread and cinnamon was the crisp smell of autumn. As they walked Aiden pointed out the training academy and the local school. He walked her down a narrower street that was lined with small eateries. She caught a whiff of something familiar and began to smile.
"I hope they have pumpkin flavored drinks."
"I'm sure they do." Aiden stopped and held the door open to a smaller shop. The second the door cracked she could smell heaven. Freshly ground coffee beans lured her in off the sidewalk.
"Welcome to The
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