She flashed me a smile. “Well, there’s still a chance, since it’s for lunch. Plus fries.”
It sounded delicious, but I wasn’t about to let her know that. “Maybe I want breakfast.”
“Do you?”
“That’s not the point.”
She smiled. “Cassia wants to see us. For lunch.”
“I think there’s more cake!” Abbi bounced in the chair. “Or maybe a pie. I like pie.”
I wanted to tell her she needed to maybe eat a vegetable this year, but she wasn’t human and could probably eat anything she wanted.
“I need to get dressed,” I said.
“Oh, good! I’ll tell Cassia we’re staying for lunch.” Abbi hopped off the chair and flew to the door, throwing it wide. “He says yes! We get to stay for lunch! Can I have pie?”
The door swung shut behind her and closed with a solid click.
“It’s like living with a hurricane,” I said. “How are you feeling?”
Lu tossed her braid behind her shoulder and leaned down to kiss me. I didn’t know what she was expecting, but I held her there, my hand coming up to cradle her head. She melted into the kiss, and I never wanted it to end.
When we came up for air, her pupils were dilated, and her mouth was pink, a blush of color warming the freckles across her cheek.
“We have witches to talk to,” she said softly.
“Mmmm.” I reached for her again.
She evaded my touch. “And a book to recover.”
“Mmmm.”
“And,” she said, getting off the bed and walking with a much smoother gait than last night—one good thing about her being athrawanwas that she healed quickly—“a ghoul to meet.”
I put my arm behind my head, showing off the bulge of my bicep. “Bed’s comfortable. Maybe the witches can wait.”
She took in the show and waggled her eyebrows. “Sooner we’re on the road, sooner we’ll have a new place to stay for the night. Who knows what will happen then? It is my birthday, after all.”
With that, she slipped out the door.
Birthday. I had wanted to throw her a party. I had wanted to give her gifts and her favorite dessert. I had wanted her to feel spoiled and special and treasured.
None of that had happened, and I’d run out of time.
I sighed, pushed off the blankets, and grabbed clean clothes. By the time I was pulling on my shirt, I had an idea.
It took me several minutes to find where I’d stashed it, and I kept glancing at the door hoping Lula wouldn’t walk in.
The demon stone was wedged in a pocket of my duffle. I hadn’t put it there.
Abbi might have, but I had the feeling demonic items put themselves wherever they wanted to be found.
It was a huge risk to do this here among the witches, but the only way out of the room would mean passing the bar. From the sounds drifting in through the door, there were plenty of people out there, which meant I couldn’t sneak away.
I held the stone in my palm, took a few deep breaths, then quietly spoke.
“Bathin, if you’re listening, this is Brogan Gauge. You gave us this stone to use if we needed it. If we needed you. I didn’t want to use it. I don’t want to make a deal with a demon. But I have a proposition for you.”
