Page 10 of Hooked on a Demon (Leeside Witches #3)

Her face falls. “Wow. That was more than I was anticipating. I’m afraid to ask how much this will cost me.”

“Well, let’s head back inside, and we can go over the payment details.”

“Okay,” she says softly, the light she had when she first looked at him now gone.

Standing at the counter, he pulls up her receipt. Clicking a few keys, he watches as the number drops significantly before selecting print. He grabs the paper from the printer and places it in front of her.

Her eyes widened as they ran down the paper. She raises her eyes to look at him and back down, then back at him again. “Declan, I can’t. You can’t.”

He smiles. “I can. And I did. Benefits of being the boss.” He doesn’t often do things like this for people, but giving her such a massive discount helps her out, so it’s an easy decision.”

“Well, thank you. I appreciate it so much.”

“You’re welcome. I’m glad I was able to help.

” He taps some buttons on the machine and passes the payment terminal over to her.

Stapling the payment receipt to her printed one, he picks up a business card and writes his cell number on the back.

“If anything goes wrong, or you have any questions, don’t hesitate to text or call me. ”

He swears he sees a hint of a blush creep up her neck, but that can’t be right. “Again, thank you so much, Declan.”

His smile broadens, almost hurting his face it feels so big. “You’re welcome, Eliana. Have a great rest of your day.”

She smiles and picks up her papers with his card, then turns, walking out of his shop. His eyes follow the sway of her hips as she goes, and then he waves back as she pulls away. He’s not sure why, but it feels like he lost something important.

He stands at the desk for a little bit after she leaves, perhaps hoping she’ll return or that he’ll come to his senses and go after her.

But neither of those happen. Instead, he lets loose a sigh of resignation, returns to the shop, and continues the oil change he was working on when she showed up, thinking about how she smiled at him the whole time.

* * *

“Lach!” Declan bellows, walking in the door of his brother’s place.

His older brother strides around a corner, entering the living room on the left. “What?” His face shows concern and a bit of annoyance as he adjusts his pants. Meaning he and his wife, Petra, were likely up to something and Declan interrupted.

“Nothing. Didn’t know where you were and didn’t want to walk around the house playing find the demon.”

“Well, I was trying to play that… but you have some inconvenient timing.”

“Gross.”

“Well, next time, call first so I can tell you not to come over.” Declan laughs.

Despite the harsh tone, he knows his brother is only kidding.

Or is mostly kidding. He’s honestly surprised he hasn’t walked in on Lachlan and Petra in a heated moment yet, especially given he rarely announces his visits.

“You’ll learn your lesson one day,” Lachlan says as if reading Declan’s mind.

They walk through the house, stopping in the kitchen for a couple of drinks, and then head to the back patio, where they settle into the chairs by the fire pit, which comes to life as they sit.

“Thanks, Petra,” Declan yells in the general direction of the house. He didn’t see her scamper off as they walked through, so she was either well-hidden or managed to escape from wherever they were canoodling before he got there.

Lachlan sips his beer and looks Declan over. “You appear to be in good health. You don’t need money. But why do I get the feeling that you have come here for a reason today and not because you want to see my sexy ass?”

Sometimes, he hates how well Lachlan can read him.

Yes, his older brother helped raise him, especially after their father died and their mother wasn’t able to care for them appropriately.

Lachlan stepped up and did what he could while trying to bring the underworld to some level of balance as he undertook a role he never wanted.

He’s done great work since then. After Petra joined the supernatural council, they continue to do wonders, creating all sorts of new programs to help the underworld citizens better themselves and see the possibilities that are out there.

That crime and pain are not the only things they have.

“Getting right to it, huh?”

“You interrupted me about to fuck my wife senseless,” Lachlan says, snickering when Declan dramatically cringes, “so yes. I’m getting right to it.”

“Do you really need to say that?”

“Yes.” Lachlan laughs.

“Ugh. You’re the worst.”

“Yet, here you are, still not telling me what’s wrong. I can go back to—” Declan grabs Lachlan’s arm, pulling him back into his chair, interrupting him. “No. Fine.”

“I hate that this is somewhat related to what you’re talking about.

” Lachlan raises an eyebrow while Declan continues.

“Not like that. I don’t need the birds and the bees talk,” Declan laughs.

“Trust me, I know what I’m doing in that camp.

But I guess, how did you know it was time to settle down and stop all that fooling around? ”

“Do you see my wife?”

Declan snorts. “Valid. But when did you know you wanted more than just the lay? The conquest?”

Lachlan laughs. “Again, have you seen my wife?”

Declan’s head drops, his eyes staring into the ground as frustration builds and smoke begins to swirl around his feet. “Dude, you know what I mean.”

“Oh, put the demon back in its cage. I’m just playing.

” Declan’s smoke vanishes as quickly as it appeared, apparently listening to Lachlan’s command before he could do it himself.

“Look, I was never really like you. I didn’t do all the messing around you have.

” He raises a hand to stop Declan’s interjection.

“Yes, I had some fun, but you know as well as I do that as soon as Petra came into my bar, there was no one else. I tried dating, but there was nothing really there. Before that, any escapades I was involved in were mostly half-hearted. I knew it wasn’t what I wanted in the end, so why go through all that to end up hurt or hurt someone else? Ya know.”

“Yeah. I guess. Like I enjoy it, I really do. But also, I’m getting tired of slinking out of women’s bedrooms.”

“Yeah, I can see that. Maybe it’s time you take a step back and think about what you really want. Think beyond the pussy, if you will.”

“Oh, goddess.” Declan laughs. His brother has never been a philosophical one, but that has to be the worst thing he has ever said.

Lachlan leans over and claps his hand on Declan’s shoulder. “If you’re asking if it’s time to settle down, it probably means you’re ready to do so. Something to think about.” Lachlan stands and begins walking back toward the house.

“Where are you going?” Declan asks.

“I’m going to finish fucking my wife. I’d get out of here if I were you.”

Declan runs into the house behind his brother, puts his empty glass on the counter, and out the front door, hearing Lachlan’s bellowing laugh following him all the way out.