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Okay... in the span of a single heartbeat, this had gone from playful reenactment to something else entirely.

The heat from Devlin’s body seared into mine, even though we weren’t touching, and suddenly, my knees felt useless. Like they might just give out at any second.

I sucked in a shaky breath, and a full-body shudder nearly betrayed me as his scent wrapped around me. The lingering lavender from the bubble bath still clung to his skin, but beneath it—rich and unmistakable—was him. Spice and sandalwood, warm and heady, something that curled deep into my senses and branded itself there.Fuck.I had a sneaking suspicion I’d never be able to forget the way Devlin smelled.

My eyes dragged upward, tracing over the taut muscle pulsing in his neck, past the flex of his jaw—Goddess, the way it clenched, like he was holding something back. I tried not to linger on his lips, tried not to fixate on how soft they looked, slightly parted, like an unspoken invitation.

Instead, I made the mistake of meeting his eyes.

Because Devlin was looking at me like Kieran.But not just any Kieran—perfect alpha Kieran.The kind of look that saidHow dare you challenge me, witch... but with just enough raw hunger to whisperYou are so fucking beautiful up close.

For a split second, I forgot we were acting.

I caught my bottom lip between my teeth, my body swaying slightly forward,desperateto close the space between us. I wanted to know—to feel—if his lips were as soft as they looked.

And then Devlin moved.

My heart nearly escaped my rib cage as he reached out, gently hooking a single finger beneath my chin. My eyes fluttered closed, lips parting slightly.

This wasn’t in the script.

But, Goddess, did it feel so fucking right.

Devlin’s lips hovered mere millimeters from my ear, his breath hot as it wrapped around me, leaving my skin prickling in its wake. He sniffed the air, as if Kieran could scent the moment Mina’s body betrayed her. His voice was a low, dangerous growl. “I don’t need some desperate, sex-starved witch trailing after me,” he murmured, each word slow and cutting. “Distracting me with her unrequited scent of desire.”

Well. That fucking hurt. And definitely wasn’t part of the dialogue.

He’s just going with the flow. He’s talking to Mina, not you,I reminded myself.

Devlin straightened slightly. He was back on script when he said, “There are a dozen covens between here and there. I’ll find anormalwitch along the way.”

In my story, Mina had a sharp, well-articulated comeback to Kieran’s cruel words. In this moment, however, I didn’t feel much like talking.

If I had my magic, I would’ve happily hexed him—maybe turned him into a toad or shriveled his dick down to the size of a prune. That would’ve been fair. But without the ability to actually hex his dick off, I had to go for the next best thing. Quick as a viper, I shot my hand out and tickled the armpit of his outstretched arm.

A sharp giggle pierced the air.

Devlin’s eyes went wide in horror as if the sound had betrayed him, and he launched himself backward, clutching his armpit defensively, lips clamping shut to keep another laugh from escaping.

“What wasthatfor?” he said, breaking character. “Mina was supposed to say ‘Don’t mistake a physical attraction for attraction to you as a person.’”

“Sorry!” I said. “In the moment, I decided Mina would have been a witch of action rather than words.”

“And her big move wasticklingan alpha wolf shifter?” he asked, his lips spreading into an amused grin that sent my stomach into a series of flips.

“No magic,remember?” I shot back, doing my best to keep my knees from turning to jelly. “If she had her powers, she’d probably have hexed your dick off instead.”

Devlin straightened, his movements slow and deliberate as he stepped toward me. For a split second, my mind betrayed me—I pictured him pinning me to the wall again, his body caging mine, the heat rolling off him in waves.

Instead, he sank onto the armrest of the couch, and I hated the tiny flicker of disappointment that settled in my chest. His expression was hopeful as he met my gaze. “So... how did I do?”

You made me want to kiss you. You have me both excited and terrified about how we’re supposed to tackle the more intimate scenes, because if this is how my body reacts just from you being close, then I have no idea how I’m going to survive the rest.

I cleared my throat, forcing my voice to stay even. “Yeah, that was... okay. You can stay.” I grabbed the notebook from the coffee table, clutching it to me like a shield. “I’m just going to, you know... go make some notes while it’s fresh in my mind.”

I hurried past Devlin, deliberately ignoring BooDini, who had been watching far too intently from the kitchen. I’d made it halfway up the stairs when Devlin’s voice followed me.

“And the date?”