Raya shot Phoenix a questioning look.
He held up his hands. “I was just trying to be careful.”
“Since when have you ever been careful?” asked Raya.
“Must be a new thing,” said Cosmo. She slid the glasses under the spouts of an odd fountain-like contraption that appeared to be filled with ice water. She turned the taps and water dripped out, drop by drop, onto the sugar cubes, through the spoons, and into the glasses. “Besides, you witches pose more danger to us than we do to you. By far.”
“So why’d you let me come?”
Cosmo shrugged as she placed the green bottle on the shelf. “I trust Phoenix.”
Raya scoffed. “This demon right here? Are we talking about the same Phoenix?”
The bartender smirked. “You must have trusted him if you let him drag you through the streets of this neighborhood blindfolded.”
“Aha!” said Phoenix. He laughed. “She’s got your number.”
Raya opened her mouth to respond with a cutting remark, but became distracted as the liquid in the glasses slowly transformed from clear emerald to milky green. “What’s it doing?”
Cosmo followed her gaze. “The pure absinthe is mixing with the cold water and sugar. The reaction changes the opacity of the solution.” She reached over and twisted the taps closed. “That should be about right.” She placed one glass in front of Raya and the other in front of Phoenix.
Raya lifted the glass and sniffed. The drink smelled of woody herbs.
“Now face each other and lift your glasses.”
“Cosmo, really—” said Phoenix.
“Do this wrong and you’ll have seven years of bad luck, so stop interrupting and pay attention. Now, look into each other’s eyes.” Cosmo’s eyes glittered in the warm light as she watched the two of them.
Raya lifted her gaze from the drink to meet Phoenix’s gaze. She’d never held his gaze longer than a second or two.
This was awkward.
Were those flecks of gold hidden in his deep brown eyes?
“À votre santé,” he said.
“Try again, Phoenix,” said Cosmo.
Phoenix lowered his glass and shot Cosmo a look.
Her serene expression, reminiscent of the Mona Lisa, left Raya wondering what on earth was wrong with what he’d said.
He looked at Raya and raised his glass again. “À tasanté.”
“Now you say ‘À la tienne.’”
Raya raised her glass to Phoenix and mimicked the sounds to the best of her French-speaking ability, which wasn’t much, but it would have to do.
“Drink,” said Cosmo.
Raya lifted the glass to her lips and took a sip of the drink. Strong and sweet, it raced past her lips like cold fire. “Oh, my.”
Cosmo started setting up a drink for another patron. “Strong, isn’t it?”
Raya cleared her throat. “You could say that.”
Phoenix watched her. “So, what do you think?”
