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"You have been more than enough, my dove," Kassam murmurs, taking her hand and kissing her knuckles. "We would be lost without you."
She looks fascinated at his touch. "I work the overnight shift again tonight if you're around."
"Thanks, Shirley," I say, climbing out of the car. The pavement of the sidewalk scratches at my bare feet but it doesn't look incredibly filthy, so that's a plus. Kassam follows me and we head toward Mom's shop, moving down the empty street. Downtown Chicago is busy a lot of times of day, but the crack of dawn is not one of them. The storefronts are all dark, and Mom's shop is as deserted as the rest of them.
I try the door, just because I don't relish the thought of sitting on the sidewalk in front of her shop for hours, and I'm surprised when it opens, the chimes clanging against the glass as I pull it open. "Ma?"
"In the back, darling. Stay out there!" my mom calls, voice muffled. Sure enough, there's a line of light under the stock-room door, so I usher Kassam inside and lock the door behind me.
I glance over at Kassam. "Feel anything unusual?"
He shakes his head. "All is quiet. If one of the gods of this realm is chasing us, they have not found your mother."
"Good. I want to keep it that way." I bite my lip, because even being here right now feels like it puts her in danger. "Make sure you don't use your powers, all right? No plants, no birds, no squirrel parade showing up at the door. None of that."
"If I do not release something, the hedonism will grow stronger," Kassam says, a vaguely hurt look on his face. "I was doing all of that to help you."
Help me? I guess. After I was clobbered by Charlie—Kassam's fault, I might add—I wasn't exactly feeling like having some sexy romps. But I didn't want him drawing every cat within a six-block radius to my apartment, either. Yelling at him feels like a lost cause, though. I'm frustrated because I'm tired and cranky and scared. I scrub at my face. "Can you bottle up the hedonism for just a little while? Please?"
"If I could, don't you think I'd try?"
"Honestly? No." I put my hands on my hips. "You're enjoying yourself far too much." I gesture at him. "You like eating all the snacks and kissing all the ladies. You like people falling all over you. You're having a great fucking time and my life is being completely and utterly destroyed."
Kassam moves toward me. "Carly," he says softly. "If I seem like I do not care, or if I am having a wondrous time, it is because of the curse. You think I would rather be here, eating your pink cakes and enticing your neighbor, than I would be back home, ruling my dominion? I endure this because I must. Because it is the only way to get back to who I was before this all happened." His voice is soft, and he reaches for me, rubbing my arm gently. "My biggest regret is that my presence is making you miserable. I hate that. I want to be your friend."
I bite back a sigh, because now I feel like an asshole. "This has just been really rough, okay?"
"It could be worse," Kassam says, and a dimple flashes in his tanned cheek, a dimple that was hidden by his thick beard before yesterday. "You could be stabbed in the guts with an enchanted sword and left to rot at the bottom of a blood glacier for a thousand years."
Oh sure, just play the trump card. "Okay, you win," I mutter. "That's a far shittier scenario than me losing a bartending job."
The look he gives me is wry. "I am aware this is hard for you, Carly. Trust me when I say I will make it up to you."
"How?" I have to ask, because I'm genuinely curious.
He thinks for a moment. "Endless orgasms?"
"Is that all you've got to offer? Because I have a vibrator, my friend, and it offers the same." I poke a finger in his chest. "And it never got me fired or invited two dozen cats into my apartment."
But Kassam's eyes gleam with interest. He catches my finger, tugging me closer to him, and the scorching heat is back in his gaze. A hot current of pleasure flares between us. "What is this 'vibrator'? Tell me more."
Oh no, I'm not falling for that. With a chuckle, I escape his grasp, backing up a few steps. "None of your business."
His brows furrow together and he looks…annoyed? Just then, my mother steps out of the back room, and my focus goes from Kassam to her. She flicks on the lights, a smile on her face, and I'm relieved to see that my mother looks the same as she always does. There's dark circles under her eyes, but overall she looks good. Best of all, she's whole and healthy, and I want to sag with relief at that realization.
