Page 15

We did more than share the most perfect kiss I’ve ever had, then he called me a witch, and now the world is flipped all over again.

Darius’ hands are blue again, nails turned to sharp claws that dig deep gouges into the surface of his desk.

I suck in a sharp breath, and his eyes follow mine, locked onto his claws.

He jerks his hands back and stuffs them into the pockets of his well-tailored slacks.

His tail makes an appearance, giving an almost apologetic sway.

“I see. You wanted to kiss him?” he asks, tone taking on a deep, rich tone that makes something inside me sigh.

“Yes, very much so. He showed off a little by playing football, and then it started raining. He brought me inside, and it happened. It was amazing,” I say, like I need to calm Darius down.

They have some weird magical connection, so who knows, maybe Darius can smite Marcus from here.

“Very well,” he says, sliding back into his seat and adjusting his laptop on his desk so I can see the screen.

Well, mostly see it. I shimmy on his desk, propping the other ass cheek on it, and glance at all the numbers on spreadsheets, live maps sending out pings, and chat boxes rolling with numbers and text that’s probably words but scroll by far too fast for me to read them.

“How do you not have the world’s biggest headache?”

“I live with Marcus and Atlas. I deal with them both constantly and have for hundreds of years. Spreadsheets are nothing in comparison.”

The next morning I feel too good for everything that happened yesterday to be a fever dream. I yawn big and stretch out in my bed, my tongue rolling around in my mouth to taste for any leftover traces of alcohol. Nothing. Everything that took place yesterday really happened, and it was…interesting.

“Witch stuff. Gotta do…witch research,” I groan.

Tipping my head toward the open window, I try to coax myself from the tangle of warm sheets but find that my eyelids are just too heavy. Whatever I was dreaming about was too comforting for me to leave just yet. A soft sigh slips from my lips as I pull the covers over my head.

The moment of peace is shattered into a million pieces when my phone rings.

I shove my hand under the edge of the blanket and grope around on my nightstand until I find my phone and reel it back in. Kennedy’s name flashes on the screen along with the picture of us. I do the math in my head, trying to count back the hours to see what time it is in New York before I pick up.

“Hello?”

“Bitch, you took forever to answer!” she squeals, her voice dripping with excitement.

“Sorry, I was asleep, like you should be. It’s just normal for someone on this side of the world to be awake. What’s your excuse?”

“I went to bone town!”

I groan, shoving my head back into my pillow. “Please tell me you didn’t go back and fuck Chad.”

“Hell, no, I didn’t. You really think I’d climb back into bed with him when there are monsters lurking?” She giggles at me like we’re sharing a secret.

Oh, she has no idea.

“So, you met a monster…person,” I begin, waiting for her to fill in the juicy details.

“I did, and they were…well, a little bit unexpected. I have no clue what they were, but my god.”

“Gods,” I whisper reflexively.

“Sure, yeah, gods, they were something. Thin as a rail and sorta nerdy but so damn sweet! They took me to dinner downtown, and then we went to see that new documentary on the deep sea. It scared the shit out of me, so they took me home early, and we got it the fuck on.” She sighs like we’re back in high school again and she finally got the attention of the entire football team.

“I see, so things went well, and you’re skipping the gory details—thank you, by the way—because?”

“Well, I can’t exactly kiss and tell when I want to see them again.” Her tone is so matter of fact that I laugh.

I laugh so hard that tears begin to stream down my face. One thing my sister never does is see hookups again who she actually likes. Something in her DNA just repels actual romantic feelings.

“You bitch, shut uuuuup,” she whines, drawing out the words.

I swear I can hear her stomp her foot in the background, too, but I’m unsure as my breath comes in steady hiccups.

“OK— Sorry— Trying,” I gasp, my stomach muscles twinging with pain from laughing.

“I mean it! I’m going to see him again. He’s really sweet, and before I left, he gave me his prized possession.”

“Their nuts?” I ask with a snort.

“No, a limited edition Color-Fighters lunch box,” she practically purrs.

It’s really odd that she’s preening over a lunch box inspired by an early 2000s kids’ show.

My mouth snaps shut, and I think I stop breathing. This is so fucking weird. Either that or my sister was body snatched.

“What? Lottie? Lottie, you there?” she asks after what feels like the longest two minutes of my life.

“You’re in love.” The awe dripping from my words makes her sniff on the other end of the line.

“Am not. I’m finally letting a man treat me the way I’m supposed to be treated,” she says, and I can hear her signature pout.

“Sure, of course, you’re totally doing that and not just…in insta-love with this random nerd.”

“I am not in love. You know I don’t do love and won’t until I stop fitting into my skinny jeans,” she grumbles.

“Doubt that will happen, Kenn, but I don’t doubt that something is going on with this nice nerd of yours. I’m happy for you,” I say softly.

She sighs again, all the tension leaving her body through that exhalation of breath. “I am too. It’s nice to feel like a person for once.”

“You’re always a person, too good of a person for anyone, especially some finance bro named Chad.”

She scoffs. “I’m basically your finance bro.”

“You wish. You don’t have a bro bone in your body.”

“I certainly did last night…” she singongs.

“I’m hanging up now,” I hiss, clicking the end-call button as she cackles. “And they think I’m the witch.”