“Good. I’ll have keys messengered to you this afternoon.”
This was great. A terrific job, a great-looking man who wanted to take me to dinner. Everything was perfect. Except for the whole demon thing. And my car. And Logan. And, oh yeah, Thea. Well, perfection was overrated anyway, right?
“And I’ll see you Saturday night?” His voice was low, husky, and sent a shiver of expectation rattling around inside me until I wouldn’t have been surprised to hear my knees knocking with the force of it.
“Saturday.”
“Seven?”
“Seven.”
Then I left, and on the way to the parking lot, my brain kept up a steady stream of criticism.
You kissed Logan last night.
He kissed me, I argued with my rotten conscience.
And you almost kissed Devlin.
Not my fault.
How is it not your fault that you’re lusting after two different guys?
It just happened!
You’re going to have to choose between them.
I don’t do decisions. Besides, why do I have to choose? Why couldn’t I want both of them? Was there a law nobody told me about? Some decree that you were only allowed to fantasize about one man at a time?
I didn’t think so.
Men do it all the time, I argued silently. Nobody tells them they have to take one woman at a time.
That nasty little voice reminded me why. That’s because we’re way more civilized than they are. They can’t help themselves.
You know what? I was tired of being civilized. Maybe it was time to let loose my inner barbarian.
Trouble…
I stopped dead, shook that voice right out of my head and said aloud, “A little lusting never hurt anybody, so get off my case, okay?”
An old man hunched over his shopping cart looked up from sorting his cans and bottles and said, “What’d I do, lady?”
“I wasn’t talking to you,” I snapped, then handed him a five-dollar bill before marching to my ugly rental car and driving home with my radio blasting high enough to drown out that annoying little voice.
Chapter Ten
“I brought pizza.”
I looked at Logan, standing there hopefully waving a pizza box at me from the front porch. Gotta say, he really knew the way to get in good in our house. The pizza did smell good and…“Fine. Come on in.”
I’d had a great day. A brand-new contract for Magic Nights, a little training with Jasmine, another fight with Thea, and let’s not forget that almost kiss with Devlin.
Why not top it all off with a visit from my former heart-throb, who still knew how to knock my socks off with a kiss?
He grinned at me and hustled through the door as if half-afraid I’d change my mind and slam it on him. To be honest, it could have happened. But there was THE KISS to think about. Damn, now I was thinking in capital letters. Until the night before, I had actually forgotten just how good Logan was at tonsil examinations. Besides, I was hungry, and I figured pizza might be enough to get even Thea out of security lockdown.
“Thea,” I shouted. “Pizza.”
Logan was already on the couch. In my spot, by the way, but I didn’t say anything. Instead, I sat on the floor and pushed Sugar off my lap before she could get comfortable. When Logan lifted the lid on the pizza box and those hot, cheesy fumes poured out, the dog whimpered, and I was right there with her.
“No way does that dog get my pepperoni,” Logan warned.
“He’s a selfish baby,” I murmured to Sugar and gave her a piece of mine. “Just so you know, hogging the food is so not the way to win friends in this house, Logan.”
“What kind of pizza?” Thea asked, stepping into the room and stopping dead like she’d walked into a solid wall of ice. Glaring from me to her father (was it wrong for me to enjoy seeing him get his share of teenage angst?), she said haughtily, “I’m not hungry.”
“Of course you are,” Logan said and jumped up from his seat on the couch. I thought about snatching it, but I was already comfortable. Besides, I had a better seat for the action. Poor Logan. He was trying so hard.
Too hard.
If he kept pushing at Thea, he’d push her so far he’d never be able to reach her.
He offered Thea a slice of pizza, but she walked past him, went to the coffee table and got her own. Have to say, I’d seen that one coming.
Then looking down at me, she said, “I want it understood that my taking this food does not mean that I’m through being pissed. It only means I’m hungry.”
“Got it,” I said around a mouthful of amazing pizza.
“Explain it to HIM,” she said.
Still with the capital letters.
“You betcha,” I assured her and handed off another piece of pepperoni to the dog.
“Explain what to me?” Logan asked, carrying his rebuffed pizza back to the couch.
“That she’s not speaking to us,” I told him and reached for another slice. Hey, it was a long day, okay?
“It’s more than that, MOTHER,” Thea said, ice dripping from her voice. “He has to stop following me around. He can’t talk to my friends at school. Or my teachers. And he can’t check up on me at the mall.”
I choked on a bite of pizza, and steaming-hot cheese stuck to the back of my throat. Eyes watering, I looked frantically for something—anything—to drink. But there was only my more-than-an-hour-old cup of coffee. Desperate times. I grabbed the mug, downed a slug of really disgusting cold coffee—who drinks this stuff iced?—and swallowed the pizza that had probably scarred me for life. Finally, I shot a look at Logan. “You didn’t.”
He fidgeted a little, clearly guilty as hell. “I saw her with some weird-looking kid, is all.”
Hell. Weird-looking described half of Thea’s class. I looked at her. “Who?”
She shrugged and grabbed another slice of pizza. All this not-speaking-to-us stuff was making her hungry, too. “Just Jett.”
“Aw, jeeezz.” Jett, aka Morgan Talbot, aka the kid every mother feared her daughter would bring home. Nice enough, but every time I looked at his eyebrow ring or, God help me, the silver bolt through his nose, I cringed and wanted to go get pliers to set him free. And that wasn’t even mentioning the spiky black hair, the pants always hanging down around his knees or the fact that he always called me dude.
Let’s be clear. Thea was still fifteen. She wasn’t going to be dating until she was sixteen. Or thirty, if I could manage it. But she could see friends. Or see them at the mall. Or bring them home. Why that friend had to be Jett, only Thea knew.
I could totally understand why Logan had followed his only child when he spotted her with Jett.
“HE,” Thea said, jerking her head in her father’s direction, “totally embarrassed me in front of Jett. Asking PERSONAL questions. Telling him he was going to RUN him, whatever that means. Jett will probably NEVER call me again.”
“You think?” I asked, and maybe my voice was too hopeful, because I got a sneer, and then Thea was off, back to cellblock D with another slice of pizza.
“This parenting thing isn’t easy,” Logan said and took a bite of pizza.
“Duh.”
“Right,” he said, leaning forward and studying his slice of pepperoni pizza like it was the first he’d ever seen. “I know. You’ve been doing it for years, and I’m coming into it late.” He stopped and waited for me to look up at him. “But that doesn’t mean I don’t care. Or that I don’t love her.”
Hell.
I could see that, and I didn’t want to. Damn it, I didn’t want to have a soft spot for Logan. He was my past and—
“Thea’s not the only one I’ve got feelings for, Cassie,” he said and edged off the couch to sit beside me on the floor.
He was way too close. My blood started humming even while I was trying to edge away.
“Logan,” I said, “last night was…”
“Great,” he whispered and leaned in closer.
God. He not only looke
d good, he smelled good, too. Some kind of spicy aftershave mixed with the scent of his black leather jacket.
“I told you I’ve thought about you a lot over the years,” he said.
“Bet Tipsy was happy about that.”
“Misty.”
“Whatever.”
He smiled. “I know you know her name.”
“Sure, I remember Fluffy.” I grinned and took another bite of pizza.
“You always could make me a little nuts,” he admitted, and moved in even closer, edging the dog out of her comfy spot. Sugar took exception and huffed out a breath before scooting away from both of us. Logan took advantage and eased in even closer. “Mmmm. What’s that perfume you’re wearing?”
Apparently the demon brew had a different effect on Logan than it did on Devlin. Lucky me.
“Jasmine,” I said, since I was in no shape to think up a new lie. “Yeah?” Logan said. “Smells great. Makes me hungry. Makes me want to take a big bite of your neck.”
“Yeah?” I turned my face and, oh, look what happened. My mouth was just a breath away from his.
See, this was why I hadn’t wanted him around. Sixteen years ago, he’d made me burn. Now? I could smell smoke, and I swear I could feel the flames licking at my feet. Apparently I hadn’t gotten any smarter about him over the years. I looked up into his eyes and heard myself say, “Show me.”
He smiled first. One of those smiles guys get when they know they’ve got you interested and there’s no way you’re going to push them away. Which was almost enough to make me give him a shove. Almost.
Then he kissed me, and this time, he really put everything he had into it. He dragged me across his lap, and I felt the hard, solid proof of just how glad Logan was to see me. I scooted around a little to get comfortable and (I admit it) to make him a little more uncomfortable.
He groaned a little and tightened his hold on me, his hands sweeping up my back to hold me even closer. His tongue danced with mine, and breath was really hard to come by. In a tiny corner of my mind, I remembered that Thea was just a hallway away, and that was the only thing that kept me from stripping off my shirt and slapping his hands to my breasts.
Yes, I know I’m a terrible human being. Get over it, okay? I already admitted to being a slut puppy. I refuse to feel guilt twice over the same thing. I think there’s a law that covers that. Double indemnity or something? Doesn’t matter.
Anyway…while he was kissing me, I couldn’t help wondering if I shouldn’t send a thank-you note to his ex, Spanky, for letting him hone his talents on her. Nah.
He dipped my head back, pushed his fingers through my hair and used his tongue to give every one of my teeth the once over. Very thorough, and I really appreciated the attention. I mean, I really appreciated it. There were parts of me that were sitting up straight and cheering him on from the sidelines, pom-poms waving!
Logan groaned and I did, too. Amazing just how well we still fit together. Was that a good sign? Or a bad one? Who knew? At the moment…who cared?
His mouth was warm and soft and hard and demanding, and I leaned into him, enjoying the rush of being kissed by an expert.
I admit, there was one small voice in the back of my mind, shrieking at me to stop. But who listens to small voices?
As it turns out, I should have.
CRASH.
A rock sailed through the front window, splintering glass into a crystal rain and landing just a foot or two away from us.
Logan threw me to the floor, shielding me with his body; then a second later, he pushed himself to his feet and raced out the front door like a man looking for a battle. I was still sitting there, stunned into stillness, and Sugar was spinning in circles and howling like a maniac.
“What was that?” Thea bolted into the room and came to a quick stop when she saw the glass shards all over the floor.
“Stay there,” I ordered, knowing that she, like me, was barefoot.
“What happened?”
“Rock. Window.”
“Who would do that?”
“Beats me,” I said and scooted farther away from the broken glass littering the floor. I sounded pretty calm, but inside, I was shaking.
Logan came back into the house, his features grim. “I heard a car peeling away, but it was too dark to get a look at it.” Crossing the room, he bent, scooped me up and carried me away from the mess. Looking down into my eyes, he forced a smile. “Gotta say, life with you is still exciting. You okay?”
“Yeah,” I said as he set me on my feet before I could get much of a charge out of being carried. “Just surprised.”
And totally cowed by Fate. For God’s sake, one lousy kiss and a rock has to sail through my window? What was next? Locusts? Plague? What is it about me? Why did the gods want me to go touchless? Did I have bad sex karma or something?
“Stay away from the glass,” Logan ordered. “I’ll clean it up.”
I looked up at him and shook my head. “No thanks. I appreciate it, but you should just go.”
“Cassie…” He didn’t want to go. I saw that in his eyes, and if I’d looked down, I was pretty sure I would have seen it in his jeans, too. But for whatever reason, this intimate little moment had been shattered big time, and there was no recapturing it.
“Thanks for the pizza,” I said, then half turned to Thea. “Take Sugar into your room and then get me my sneakers so I can clean this up, okay?”
Thea was still shocked enough to do it without a big production, and I was really grateful. While the now-whimpering cowardly dog followed Thea out of the room, I turned back to Logan.
“You better go,” I said again.
For a minute or two, I thought he’d argue with me. But he nodded and said, “I’ll go. But not for long.” He reached out and cupped my cheek. His thumb stroked my skin, and I sucked in a breath. “We have unfinished business,” he said, smiling. Then he dropped a kiss on my forehead and left.
I blew out a breath and got a grip on the few remaining hormones that were entirely too hopeful. By the time Thea came back with my shoes, I was alone and wondering what the hell was going on with my life.
“You have enemies.”
“You think?” I bent at the waist, struggling for air, and gave the old woman in front of me the death glare. How could she run all over my backyard and not get tired?
September sun was hot and burning down on us out of a steel blue sky. Not even the slight ocean breeze was enough to cool me off. I was really ready for fall.
“The demon population knows you are active now,” Jasmine said. “They won’t be happy about it.”
“So you’re saying a demon pitched a rock through my window last night?”
“Who else?”
She had me there. Nobody I knew was a rock thrower. Insults, sure. But rocks? Nope. Straightening up, I tried not to notice the roll of sweat down my back. This getting into shape was going to kill me.
“And,” she asked quietly, “did you see the driver of the car who hit yours?”
“Got a quick look. Guy. Ugly goatee.” Wheels started turning in my brain. “You think he was a demon and he ran into me on purpose?”
But the more I thought about it, the more it seemed that there was no way that could have been an accident. We were in a parking lot, for God’s sake. The engine had gunned and revved for a couple of seconds, like whoever was behind the wheel was really getting up some momentum.
He’d hit only me and then taken off like a shot, giving me the one-finger salute. That did seem a little personal.
“It is certainly possible,” Jasmine said.
“Well, that sucks.” I bunched my fists into the lawn and came up with dirty fingernails. Really pissed me off that some thing had deliberately hurt my VW. I could fix a window. But my car was something else again. Nobody messed with the Yellow Machine. “What’s the matter with these guys? Hitting a person’s car? Is nothing sacred?”
“Not to them.”
“Well, they’ve reall
y pissed me off.” And I was beginning to wonder if that guy in Devlin’s office had been my car killer. And if he was, why was he there talking to Devlin privately? Did all bartenders spend one-on-one time with the big boss?
Okay, paranoia rears its ugly head.
Get a grip, Cass.
“I’m delighted to hear it. It is time for you to begin your duty.”
“I thought I had,” I pointed out, frowning, still winded from all the running, crouching, jumping.
Jasmine shook her head, folded her hands at her waist and said, “You must begin to patrol the city.”
I laughed at the thought, despite the flare of temper still bubbling just beneath the surface. “Just like Buffy.”
She sighed. “Has it occurred to you that perhaps the television shows of which you seem so fond are based on reality?”
“Uh, no.”
Jasmine rolled her eyes up so high, they went completely white. Yeesh.
“No matter now. This is not fiction. This is reality. To kill the demons you must first find them.”
“Seems reasonable,” I allowed. “Can I start with the little shit who wrecked my car?”
“If you can find it, certainly. Until then, you will spend a few hours each night searching out the demons in La Sombra.”
“Oh, I don’t know,” I said. “I mean, I’m not saying I won’t spray ’em if I run into them, but going out looking for them seems a little pushy.”
“They will not come to you.”
“Hah!” I jabbed my index finger in the air to make my point. “You just said yourself somebody came to me and tossed a rock through my window.”
Jasmine rubbed her forehead. “You must hunt them. There is no choice.”
Then she added something that sounded like “If only there were” under her breath. I let it go.
“Fine, I’ll look around a little.” I was kind of a night person, anyway.
“Starting tomorrow.”
Oops. “No can do.”
Her eyes slitted, and she hissed in a breath through gritted teeth. “Why not?”
“I’ve got a date.”
“You would put off your duty in favor of the pursuit of pleasure?”
I grinned at her. “Oh yeah.”
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