Page 18 of Sugar, Spice, and Magical Moonlight (Midlife Menace #2)

I was too angry to return to my family, so I marched straight into our bedroom suite to cool down. Ric followed, closing the door behind us.

I turned to him with a sneer. “We’re dismissed?”

He sighed as he fell into a chair by the open patio doors. “She’s a bit dramatic.”

A bit? “You think?” I didn’t bother hiding the bite in my tone. “And she brought a Lamia here!”

He grimaced. “I know.”

I tossed my hands in the air. “They eat children!” I suddenly realized I’d need to alert Des. Maybe he should sleep in our bedroom. On second thought, that Lamia would have to go. No way would I tolerate sharing a roof with her.

He straightened, a humorous gleam in his eyes. “That’s a myth.”

I bore down on him with a scowl. “What do you know about them?”

He shrugged. “That they are very misunderstood.”

“And?”

“They aren’t much different than other mythical creatures,” he added, his brow furrowing, “though I don’t remember them having voracious appetites.”

“From what I read, they seduce men and eat children.” I remembered studying about them in my mythical creatures class in secondary school, and again when I was homeschooling Des.

The mythical creatures book I’d used to teach Des was the same one I’d been given.

In fact, there weren’t a whole lot of age-appropriate books on mythical creatures, and the book had certainly gotten sphinxes wrong, mentioning nothing about their appetites at the dinner table and in the bedroom.

Maybe the book was wrong about Lamia too. At least I hoped so.

“They don’t each children,” he reassured me.

“How do you know this?” I asked.

He stood and went to the wine server. Back stiff, he poured a tall glass. “My brother dated a Lamia,” he said, his voice barely above a whisper.

His brother? Why had he never mentioned a brother before? I thought Ric was the last living sphinx. “I didn’t know you had a brother.”

He handed me the glass filled to the top with red wine. “He passed away,” he said, then looked away, but not before I saw the flash of pain in his eyes.

“Oh. I’m sorry.” My heart ached for him, and I suddenly realized how very little I knew about my boyfriend’s family. It’s not that I didn’t care, but whenever we were alone, we were usually busy doing other things, like ripping each other’s clothes off.

“Not your fault,” he said on an exhaled breath.

“When did he die?” I took a slow sip of wine, loving the chocolaty, smooth flavor, then looked at the glass as if it was enchanted. I’d never tasted such delicious wine before. A chill swept into the room, and I set down my glass and crossed over to the balcony exit, closing the doors.

“Shortly before I went into hiding,” he said at my back, his voice strangely hollow.

“Eighty years ago?” I should’ve changed the subject. It was clear Ric didn’t like talking about it, but I thought I should know if his brother’s death was connected to the demons who were hunting us.

“Yeah.”

I sat on the edge of the bed, patting the space beside me. “What happened?”

He slumped onto the bed with a groan, hanging his head in his hands. “This is hard to talk about.”

Regretting bringing it up, I rubbed his broad back while wondering if he’d ever be able to talk about it. “I’m sorry.”

He nodded, staring blankly at the opposite wall. It wasn’t good for him to suppress his feelings. I didn’t want his pent-up emotions to cause him to bite off anyone’s head.

“Anyway,” he continued, “the Lamia appears to be a vegetarian. Besides, she knows I’d flatten her if she tried to hurt Des. Our biggest worry right now is the Enchantress.”

“Oh, I know.” I rolled my eyes. “She’s so obnoxious.”

He glared at me through side-eyed slits. “I’m more worried about your reaction to her.”

“My reaction?”

He flashed a fanged grin. “You have a very expressive face.”

“Here to bless you with my presence.” I mimicked her haughty voice. “Thank you for acknowledging my higher station.”

He elbowed my side with a laugh. “I know she rubs you the wrong way.”

Now was my turn to glare. “Rubs me the wrong way? She behaves like a snobby Fae socialite.” She had a long neck and thin frame, but she didn’t have the telltale Fae ears. If she was part Fae, it still didn’t excuse her behavior. I gave him a challenging look. “And she clearly annoys you too.”

Leaning back on his elbows, he heaved a breath. “She does, but our fates depend on our ability to make nice with her.”

Make nice with her? I’d rather be locked in a bathroom with Colin steaming from both holes after feeding him dragon pepper chili. Merlin’s dirty butt plug, this was going to be a long week!

I SCOWLED AT THE MOONLIT sky through the open patio doors as Ric and I trudged downstairs. It was late. I was tired and grumpy. I just wanted to ride my lion and go to sleep, but, no, the Enchantress wanted an interview.

I couldn’t deny how much it hurt my heart as that gleam in Des’s eyes dimmed when we joined our family at the patio table outside and he didn’t see his idol with me.

He still had that obnoxious glitter lipstick smear on his cheek, and was it my imagination, or was he wearing cologne?

He smelled suspiciously like he’d fallen into a vat of Shu’s Drakkar Noir.

I gave Shu an accusatory look.

He shrugged. “The fairy godfather can’t say no when his Phoenix asks for a little cologne.”

“A little,” I said on a hushed whisper while looking over my shoulder. “And don’t refer to him as the Phoenix anymore,” I added, not meaning to sound like a hissing siren. I blamed my mood on our unwelcome houseguest.

Shu’s cheeks colored, and he abruptly stood. “It’s late, and I need my beauty rest.”

I cringed when he channeled his inner Golden Girl and flounced into the house. I’d have to apologize to him later.

“Well?” Ethyl asked, her wings buzzing as she lifted from her chair, hovering over the table. “Is she coming back down?”

“I don’t know,” I answered, “but I hope she decides soon.” I gave Ric a look of longing. “I’m tired.”

Frederica, who sat on a stone bench the servants had used to replace two chairs, gave Ethyl a moo of disapproval, tugging her back into her chair.

I gave a start, yelping, when Nimue suddenly appeared in the doorway, her gills flaring like she was breathing underwater. I hadn’t even heard her coming!

“The Enchantresss will sssee you now,” she said through a snakelike hiss that was terrifying enough to make me squirt a little in my panties.

And not the good kind of squirt that was usually coaxed by Ric’s tongue, but the Goddess, save me!

kind of squirt that made me consider investing in adult diapers.

Pushing off from the table, I grumbled, “Lovely.”

Ric latched on to my wrist. “Play nice.”

I thought about asking him for a tongue bath reward if I agreed, but I was no longer in the mood for sex.

That’s when I realized how much I loathed the Enchantress.

First, she made all kinds of stupid demands while insulting us and entrancing my son.

Now she put me in a mood foul enough to not want “the purr.”

That bitch!

I spoke from between clenched teeth. “I will if she does.”

Then I channeled my own Golden Girl and flounced toward the house, though I may have hurried a little to get by Nimue, just in case she decided she was no longer a vegetarian.

“Maybe I should come along,” Ric said while hastily pushing back his chair.

“No.” Nimue bowed up her Amazonian chest. “The Enchantresss wishes to see only Phoenixxx.”

My heart beat double-time when Ric let out an angry growl, his eyes shifting to feline slits as he bowed his chest at the beast in return.

I jumped between them, realizing this wasn’t the kind of three-way sandwich I’d fantasized about, and I certainly didn’t want to accidentally get shredded to pieces.

I gently flattened my hand on Ric’s chest, noting the golden fur that sprouted on his neck and arms. “It’s fine.”

He continued to glare at Nimue. “It’s my job to protect Luci. I go where she goes.”

“Yesss,” she said on an angry hiss, her eyes narrowing, “but be sssilent.”

Grabbing my elbow, he ushered me past her, then grumbled aloud. “I won’t be bossed around in my own house.”

Nimue hissed behind us, and I moved faster, in case those gills squirted poison. Though I sometimes complained about my dry elbows and the fine lines framing my mouth, I still preferred my skin attached to my bones.

“AHH, THERE YOU ARE .” Face draped in a judgmental scowl, the Enchantress waved me forward while standing beside a buffet table with empty dishes littered with nothing but crumbs. “I was wondering what was taking you so long.”

I shot Ric a look as he stood by the door, arms crossed, brow drawn low.

A shiver rolled through me as I moved past Bea toward the Enchantress. Why was it so much colder in her room than the others? Perhaps it was the icy aura that radiated off the influencer’s stony facade. “I came as soon as I was summoned.”

She wore what looked like a gown from a regency romance movie with pale blue puffy sleeves and an empire waistline that drew the eye to her pert breasts.

She also wore a diamond tiara that reflected the colors in the gown’s shimmery fabric.

Her lipstick and eyeshadow were a pale silver that would’ve looked awful on me but were a strikingly beautiful contrast to her ebony skin. The bitch.

“Hm.” She ushered me toward the back wall that was draped with a sparkly canvas I didn’t recognize. “Nimue sometimes likes to take detours.”

Oh, lovely. The scary bodyguard was snooping about the house.

“About Nimue.” I dropped my voice, keenly aware that the snake beast stood beside Ric, blocking the exit with her broad shoulders.

“I’ve heard rumors that Lamia eat children.

” Yeah, Ric had said they didn’t, but that was based on a Lamia he’d met over eighty years ago.

The Enchantress’s eyes flared. “And I’ve heard rumors that you’re a demon.”

I pointed to the corner of my eye. “As you can see, it’s not true.”