Page 27 of Twisted

He shrugs and winces from the pain it causes the burn.“I guess I don’t.But we don’t really know if anyone keeps any promises.”

“True, and I might be a little bitter right now, but I’m apt to say people in general just suck.”

His face softens.“You had no idea your family made a deal.”

“Nope.”I go into the bathroom and run another washcloth under cold water, swapping it out with the other.A bead of water runs down Devon’s arm and I gently wipe it away.He’s warm.Muscular.And…a nice guy?

No, I refuse to believe it.

“You thought you were getting Larissa.”

“I was supposed to,” he says, looking guilty.“Then I saw you.I’m…I’m sorry.”

“I feel like I should be mad at you, but I would have been given up anyway.”

“Yeah,” he agrees and silence falls over us.

“You’re totally her type,” I say and playfully nudge him.“Larissa, I mean.”

He raises his eyebrows.“Sure.”

“Yeah,” I go on.“She has horrible taste in men.”

“Thanks,” he says dryly and I laugh.

“Really, though…her last boyfriend was this textbook narcissist who took any opportunity to trash-talk his ex-wife/mother of his children.”

“Sounds like a winner,” Devon says and carefully pulls the rag away from his skin to look at the burn.It’s pretty bad.

“Right?We all told her that he was a lying piece of garbage but she believed him when he said his ex was crazy and made everything up.”I roll my eyes, remembering how frustrating it was to watch Larissa defend this asshole to the family.“Even his kids were scared of him.And I get it—maybe, ya know?Believe him but when his own children say they don’t want to be with Dad because they’re scared he’s going to hurt themlike how he used to…it takes a special kind of stupid to stay with someone after that.”

“What ended up happening?”

“He got mad and threw a plate at the wall.Leo happened to be on the phone when it happened so let’s just say that man, who is now bald, will never have the range to throw things like he used to.”

“Bones were broken?”

“Oh, yeah.”

“And the baldness?”

I smile.“A simple curse.And I might have made him have lustful dreams about his mother for a few weeks after that, too.”

He lets out a snort of laughter.“You are diabolical and I’m fucking here for it.”

I shrug like it’s no big deal.“What’s the point in being a witch if you can’t curse an abusive narcissist every now and then?”

“It would definitely come in useful.”He looks at me, wanting to say something more, but inhales and gets up.“I should go and you should sleep.Maybe?You’ll probably have to get used to being up at night.You’ll be expected to, I don’t know, hang on Xavier’s arm when he’s doing, well, whatever the hell he does.”

“You don’t know, do you?”

“I am on a need to know basis as a human.Though I do know tonight, he and Theo are meeting with another family whoruns a companyif you know what I mean.”

“Humans or vampires?”

“Humans.I think they’re eager to spread the news that by marrying a pretty human girl, Xavier Malus is suddenly trustworthy or something.”He shrugs.“Things have changed since vampires have assimilated.I hear them talk,” he adds.

“Right.Because now…now…there are other options than sneaking around, killing people in the middle of the night.”