Page 67 of A Summoned Husband

“What?”

“Call for me.”

Her brows dropped, that adorable crease appearing between them. “What?”

I held my hand out, extending it into the space between us.

Eden eyed my hand warily.

Take it!

She shook her head, pushing away from the counter. “I’m gonna go rest for a little bit.”

I watched her go, knowing there was nothing I could say to make her stay.

Having a wife was going to be a lot of work.

* * *

Leaving Eden after she’d only just told me she encountered the moth I had no doubt was linked to a witch and her fury felt like a bad plan but I also knew how quickly I could return to Eden should she need me. Her need for answers was causing a divide between us. Well, her need for answers and me being a demon, but I could only resolve one of those troubling issues.

The little shop was in a row, sandwiched between a realty office and a pizza place. Five other houses made up the line, but I didn’t bother to take note of them. My attention was solely on the one with the black storefront and the deep purple sign that read Tarot Readings.

The smell of witchcraft wafted in the air, blended with the smell of burning sage.

My nose wrinkled as I pulled open the door, ignoring the tinkling bells that rattled as it closed behind me.

Inside the store was dark. Fabrics were draped over the walls and ceilings. Candles lined the dark wooden shelves, filling the space in warm dim light as smokes filled the air. I wondered what this place smelt like to mortals. If they could smell the power underneath the incense and burning sage. Rich like turned soil and older than I could place.

“A demon.”

A woman appeared, pushing a black bead curtain out of her way. She had her dark hair piled atop her head, wisps falling before her ears and at her temples. Her hair was a dull brown, made to look all the more dull by the black painted over her lips and eyes. She smiled when she saw me, eyes taking me in from my booted mortal feet to the top of my head and then further up, like she could see the horns that weren’t there.

“I wonder what could bring a demon to my door. Perhaps it’s the scent of witchcraft on you.” She inhaled the air between us deeply, eyes rolling back.

Though the power in the air was ripe, her scent was mostly mortal. I inhaled her in turn, trying to decide just how much I should trust this witch. A witch was a witch at the end of the day.

She chuckled and the sound was raspy. Angry flaps of a wing trying to take off as they worked their way up her throat. It was the laugh of someone older, though she didn’t look much older than Eden or the women who accompanied her.

“Don’t worry.” She waved her hand between us. “The feud between our kind doesn’t fuel me. Quite the opposite… which is why I spend my time amongst mortals instead of coven.”

I stared, wondering if that were true.

“But… why would you believe me?” She shook her head, walking toward the counter to my left. She settled on a seat behind it, a high black wooden stool, and rested her elbow on its back. “You’re here because of the ruborae witches.”

My brows dropped.

“I can smell their magic on you. The cloud of confusion that darkens your brightest memory and shrouds your most logical thoughts.”

I knew there were different kinds of witches. They were sorted by their magics like most beings. Even demons were sorted by sin.

The witch gestured to the chair on the opposite side of the counter. “I’m Jasper and you’re here for answers.”

“Just what will those answers cost me?” Everything had a price.

She eyed me, thinking. “Do you have voluptae binds?”

Voluptae binds were cuffs imbued with lust that were often used amongst demons outside my sin. They were worth quite a bit amongst immortals who collected sex toys. I held my hand out, my flames hovering there before the dark leather cuffs appeared. There weren’t much to look at. Thick cuffs with no buckles or fastenings. You merely folded them over and they’d hold.