Derrick hesitated, but I waved my hand, dismissing the parrot. “It’s a scam. He’ll say anything for a cracker.”
I inhaled the seductive scent of spices smuggled in from foreign kingdoms as we weaved through the thin crowd. Derrick remained close. Too close. His sharp eyes missed nothing as he steered me around a transaction of daggers made with enchanted steel. A young blonde woman wearing a teal scarf over her face tossed an apple into the air, then flipped the dagger, slicing it clean through the crisp fruit.
“Enchanted steel isn’t illegal. You don’t have to give it such a wide berth.” I glanced over my shoulder in awe.
“Maybe not, but it’s damn sharp, and I don’t need a bloodied witch on my hands.”
“Come on, Detective. I’m not foolish enough to walk in between a knife demonstration.”
Derrick’s grip on my arm tightened, yanking me back as a blade whizzed past my face, nearly clipping off my nose. It sank into a post. The hilt vibrated from the force.
“Sorry! That one got away from me.” The blonde woman tossed up her hands before returning her attention to the customer.
“You were saying?” Derrick growled in my ear.
“That could have happened to anyone.”
“Unlikely.” He maintained a loose hold on my arm as we continued to walk.
Near the back was the stall called Flamelock Den, and I was miffed to find it empty. Merchandise lay strewn across a scarred table, but the merchant was nowhere in sight. Instead, a swarthy man wearing a black tunic and trousers slipped out of the shadows. Derrick tensed, and before I could say anything, the man swept up my hand and leaned over it, brushing his whiskered lips against my knuckles.
“Tessa, my love! My favorite customer.”
I squirmed out of his grip and made a slicing motion at my neck. Eyes wide, I spoke between clenched teeth, “Charlie, is it? I can hardly remember since we only met theonetime.”
Understanding was quick to dawn, and Charlie rubbed the beard under his chin. “That’s right, it was the one time. You’re hard to forget, my love. And who would want to?” His praise was over-the-top and likely dished out to every skirt that walked past, but it caused Derrick to bristle. He made a sound behind me, and I could practically feel his displeasure burning a hole through my cloak. It was distracting. There was no way he believed my story about the market now. Why had I bothered to mislead him?
“Charlie, this is Derrick. He’s a Roy—” I stopped, realizing my mistake. We hadn’t discussed a suitable cover story, and I’d almost botched it. Horrified, I changed direction. “He’s a colleague.”
Charlie furrowed his bushy eyebrows. “You mean, he’s a warlock?”
A bark of nervous laughter burst from my lips. “No! What I meant was…” My mind emptied, and I grappled for words like a flustered idiot. Why had I said colleague? Anything else would have been better. Acquaintance, a buyer, a friend! I should have said friend.
“He’s a fri—”
Derrick’s arm snaked around my waist and pulled me firmly against him, cutting off my introduction. “Tessa, don’t be embarrassed.”
I froze, heart thudding violently in my chest as his head lowered. His breath ruffled my hair, firing every nerve ending. My body seemed to know his intentions before my brain, and I arched my neck as he pressed a possessive kiss against my skin.
“Tell him the truth,” he murmured. “I won’t be mad.”I never get mad. I get even.
He wasn’t wasting any time exacting his revenge for my spell. The devil actually thought he had the upper hand. And maybe he did, for a moment, as his mouth dropped to my collarbone, warm lips sending a shiver coursing through my body. He was a dead man.
A wicked grin spread across Charlie’s face. “No explanation needed.” He winked and reached under the counter, glancing covertly in both directions. “It’s obvious why you’re here. I have just the thing.” He placed a vial of blue liquid onto the table. “Since you’re a preferredone-time-onlycustomer, I’ll give you a discount.”
All color drained from my face.
Derrick nuzzled my neck and whispered, “What’s that?” Unease tinged his voice. It should.
“Take a guess.” I turned in his arms and kept up his ruse. “Charlie thinks we want to spice things up.” Winding my hands around his neck, I watched Derrick’s eyes darken when he made the connection. My fingers lazily mussed the hairs at his nape, and I bit my lip until his gaze dropped to my mouth. “Still interested in getting your revenge this way,sweetheart?” His throat worked, and his chest expanded on a sharp inhale. I almost pitied the man.
“Up to you.” His voice was deeper than normal.Affected. It was such a shame we had to solve a murder.
“Maybe next time.” I pouted for Charlie’s benefit and disentangled myself from Derrick’s body. The things I did for ghosts. “Actually, we’re looking for something else.”
“I’m nothing if not your servant, my love.” Charlie grinned, laying the charm on thick, hoping to make a sale. Derrick sent him a deadly look and hooked his arm around my waist.
Ugh, men.I’d reached my limit for flattery and petty jealousy. Apparently, I had one. Who knew? But with Derrick’s all-too-quick revenge making my skin tingle, I was suddenly surly. What I needed was a glass of wine and a good spell book. Everyone else could go count frogs.
