I laughed, but then my gaze trailed down to his lap.
Holy hell.
Sweatpants left very little to the imagination on most men. On Asher, they were downrightobscene.
“Quite a conundrum,” he teased.
I was about to tell him to go wander off behind a tree and deal with that conundrum himself, when a new arrival captured my attention.
“What’s wrong?” Asher asked, following my gaze to the raven that had landed on a sugar pine bough a few feet away.
“I’m pretty sure that’s Liam.”
“Seriously?” Asher groaned. “First a zombie cougar decides I’m a snack plate, and now I’m getting cock-blocked by Death himself? I should’ve stayed in bed tonight.”
I got to my feet, glad to see Ash was feeling better, and glad that after days of radio silence, Liam had finally found his way back to us.
Glad that he’d interrupted what could have been atotaldisaster. The worst.
My unmet desire turned into relief that turned into giddiness, and it quickly overtook me, filling me with a warmth and lightness that bubbled out in a laugh.
“Sorry, Liam,” I called out. “You missed all the fun.”
“More like youruinedall the fun,” Asher added, but he was on his feet and smiling, too.
The raven vanished, and a black shadow slunk forth from behind the tree, skipping the usual explosion of feathers and fluidly morphing into a man with sun-kissed blond hair and glowing blue eyes that blazed with…anger.
Oh, shit.
“Gray Desario and Asher O-Keefe,” Liam bellowed, snatching a fallen leaf from his shoulder and crushing it in a way that made me feel completely insignificant. “What against all that is holy have the two of you done now?”
Six
LIAM
The stench of death was heavy in the air, tinged with the sweet, electric hum I’d come to associate with Gray. Her magic was as much an aroma as a feeling for me, yet it was becoming harder to distinguish from the scent of decay, as if the latter were attaching itself to the former like a parasite.
That was… worrisome.
“I was doing a rededication ritual for my book of shadows,” Gray explained. “When the earth magic connected with mine, it all kind of…” She made a starburst gesture with her fingers.
“Definethisfor me.” I mimicked her gesture. When she didn’t further explain, I reached for her hand. “Come. We have much to do and little time in which to accomplish it.”
The incubus stepped in front of her and folded his arms across his chest. “I don’t think so, Spooky.”
“Your protective instincts are admirable, yet wholly misplaced, not to mention detrimental to Gray’s education as a witch and—”
“Yeah?” He didn’t budge. “Ever had a boot wholly misplaced up your—”
“Okay, boys.” Gray placed a delicate hand on the demon’s bulging bicep, which I was certain he’d flexed on purpose, and offered me a pleading glare. “Let’s all take a deep, cleansing breath.”
Reluctantly, we did as she asked.
“Better?” She nodded, as if answering for all of us. “Okay. So, Liam? I’mreallyglad you’re back, and I’m sure you’ve got some concerns. Ash and I would love to tell you all about our wildlife adventures, but maybe we can move this party inside? Where there’s plenty of tea and cookies and blankets and best of all, no dead things shambling around?”
“You make a compelling argument, little witch.” I nodded and lowered my hand, but I didn’t enjoy the soft pulse of emotion her pleading look had engendered inside me.
Perhaps I needed to consider alternate vessels.
