“Do you ever accidentally eat people who don’t deserve it?”
This was an easy question to answer. “Never.”
She looked relieved. “Because you can taste their badness, right?”
“Yes,” I said, then glanced around to make sure no one was looking at us. The nature of my magic meant that humans found it uncomfortable to look at me. At most, they might run their eyes over me but then quickly look away. No one stared.
I leaned over the table so she could see through the darkness of my hood, and I flicked out my tongue. She sucked in a breath but didn’t jerk away. Her anxiousness was replaced by… was that fascination?
“Show me again,” she demanded.
I opened my mouth and extended my forked tongue as far as it would go for a split second before pulling it back in and pressing my lips together.
She smiled wide enough to show teeth. “That’s impressive.”
A savory taste filled the air. I flicked the tip of my tongue out to draw in the taste better, I couldn’t help myself. I almost moaned. It was faint but distinct and tantalizing.
“What are you feeling right now?” I asked.
Her eyes dropped to the table and her face flushed. “Um, I, uh, nothing.”
“Be honest,” I demanded. “I’ve never interacted with a human like you before. I need to know what emotion I’m tasting.”
“I might be feeling, um, interested in you,” she said.
I reached across the table and put a single, long finger under her chin to lift her face. Her gaze met mine. My magic swelled. My eyes started to glow. There was no fear in her scent. All I could taste was the rich, pleasing aroma.
“Do you mean you’re interested in me like you might be interested in a human male?” I asked, my voice going otherworldly. The people in the booth behind Willow suddenly got up and left. I ignored them and the server that dropped a tray of food as they walked by us to another table. I didn’t care if I caused the entire diner to empty out.
All that mattered was Willow’s answer.
She licked her lips, her pink tongue slowly rolling over her lush upper and lower lips. Then, finally, she said a single word in a soft, but confident tone.
“Yes.”
Chapter 5
Willow
No sooner had the single syllable word passed my lips than plates full of food were hastily dropped in front of us. Vie dropped his hand away from my chin and rested both hands flat on the table.
“Enjoy,” the server said, then rushed away, casting a wary glance at Vie. Everyone around us did that. They either only glanced at Vie and quickly looked away, or avoided looking at him altogether.
I felt nothing but comfortable with him, but it seemed he had the opposite effect on everyone else. There was probably some deep, primal instinct that told the people around him to avoid eye contact and stay away.
Knowing what he could do, I didn’t blame them.
“Eat,” he ordered.
I could feel his eyes on me even as I picked up a fry and popped it into my mouth. I would’ve liked some ranch dressing to dip them in, but I doubted I could get the server’s attention.
His hands rested on the table on either side of his plate. His pale fingers seemed abnormally long, but then again, he was very tall. They were probably proportionate to the rest of him.
That made me think about what else might be of equal dimensions.
“What are you thinking about?” he asked, his hands edging closer to my side of the table.
I stared at his hands. “Why do you ask?”
