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“Hmm. Not your best work.”
“I know.” Joe lifted a gloved hand to cover his mouth as he coughed. “I think I’m coming down with a cold.”
“Come inside and I’ll give you something to make you feel better.”
“Nah, I gotta move along.” Joe cocked his head, as if listening to a voice in his head. “Besides, you’re going to be busy.”
“Busy?” Peri didn’t want to be busy. She was tired and hungry and in dire need of a shower. “Doing what?”
“That,” he muttered a second before Skye rushed out the front door of the coffee shop, her golden curls corkscrewing around her heart-shaped face with more bounce than usual. Like a halo on steroids. In contrast, her midnight eyes smoldered with unfathomable depths. Those eyes could see into a person’s soul and occasionally catch a glimpse of the future. A rare, sometimes awful power.
“At last.” Skye rushed toward her, the gossamer material of her sundress floating around her soft curves. “I was getting worried about you.”
Peri glanced back, not surprised to discover that Joe had disappeared into the night. The man was a mystery, but Peri had never tried to probe into where he lived or why he chose their particular street to pass the days.
Everyone was entitled to their secrets.
Even her.
With a smile, she hooked her arm through Skye’s and urged her back down the street.
“It took me longer than I expected,” she apologized, sensing her friend had truly been concerned. “I had to circle the damned dance floor a dozen times before my mark noticed me,” she told Skye, not bothering to reveal she’d also been offered a job by Aston and stalked by Valen. All’s well that ended well, right? “Am I losing my touch?”
“Never,” Skye assured her with a fierce loyalty.
“Like you would ever tell me the truth.”
“The truth is that you’re gorgeous. Both inside and out.”
Peri snorted. “Now I know you’re lying.”
They reached the front door, entering the brightly lit coffee shop. It was a narrow space, but the white tiled floor and bright lavender walls made it seem larger. There were small tables set near the window and glass cases at the back. The scent of freshly baked scones lingered in the air, despite the fact the shop was closed.
“Let’s have a cup of tea,” Skye urged, tugging Peri toward the arched opening that led to the attached bookstore. “I have a tray set up in the office.”
“Thanks, sweetie, but it’s too late for me.” Peri was weary to the bone. “I intend to grab a bagel with a very large schmear of cream cheese, then hop in the shower before I fall face-first into bed.”
Skye grasped her arm, her expression apologetic. “Maya needs to talk to you.”
“Tonight?” Peri frowned. Had Valen called to complain? That seemed… petty.
“Yes, I’m afraid it has to be tonight.” A voice broke into Peri’s ridiculous thoughts and she glanced toward the arched opening to discover the owner of the Witch’s Brew had stepped into the light.
Maya Rosen was tall and slender with silky-smooth black hair that was bluntly cut at her shoulders. It was impossible to determine her age. Like all mages she stopped aging around thirty, but there was a hint of ancient wisdom in her bright green eyes and a spidery web of scars that ran from her left ear down her jawline. The scars possessed the silvery gleam of a wound caused by a gruesome spell, but they did nothing to detract from her beauty. Just the opposite. They only heightened her regal perfection. Tonight, she was wearing her usual sleeveless sweater and jeans that were dusted with flour.
Maya was magic in the kitchen. Literally. She could not only create a muffin that had customers lined up out the door every morning, but she possessed the ability to conjure potions that could destroy cities.
Thankfully, she avoided the more explosive potions and concentrated on the garden-variety magic. Love potions, disguise spells, alchemy…the sort of stuff demons were willing to pay a fortune to get their hands on even if they knew the magic was temporary.
“Okay.” Peri didn’t need Skye’s clairvoyance to know something was wrong.
Moving forward, she allowed Maya to lead her through the narrow room lined with books. In the center was a wooden table with reading lamps. Between the mouthwatering muffins, freshly ground coffee and free Wi-Fi, Witch’s Brew was the go-to location for the local college students.
They at last entered the office at the back of the building. Most people would be surprised to discover how stark it was. There was a desk with a computer, two filing cabinets and three leather chairs. The floor was wooden planks and the walls were paneled, without one picture or piece of art. Overhead there was one bare light bulb.
It looked more like a prison cell than an office, but they dealt with angry customers on a regular basis. Elias, after all, wasn’t the first demon who’d been contracted to be cursed. Or blinded by a love spell. And nothing could destroy an office quicker than a pissed-off demon. Plus, it was stripped of any loose objects a mage might use as a weapon.
“Better safe than sorry” wasn’t just Peri’s motto. All three of them took precautions.
