Loki tapped the little bell around his neck, making it jingle. “Remember when your mother got one of these for your cat, Heidi, and you told me I needed one, too?”
“Yeah, because you were always popping in unannounced and scaring the shit out of me.” I rolled my eyes and leaned against the wall. “You’re as much a ninja as Sophie, but she can’t teleport.”
He smiled, playing with the collar. I wasn’t sure what was going on, but he seemed almost… nostalgic?
“Dad, is everything okay?” I took a step toward him, concerned.
“You seemed happy when you got home,” he said.
There was no fighting the heat rushing to my face. “Yeah, I got a job at a bakery. Today was all about training and learning new recipes. I brought Sophie a bunch of the stuff I made. Do you want one?”
I intentionally left out any mention of the sexy lothario who was my boss, but this was Loki. If he wanted to, he would find out anyway. He smiled and straightened, walking over to wrap me in his arms. No matter how old I got, or how upset I was, my dad’s hugs were the best medicine.
All the stories in mythology painted Loki in such a bad light. No one knew what a great and loving father he was. Though he and my mom had never married, he was always there for both of us. I hugged him back just as tight, and he kissed my head.
He released me and headed for the door, then turned back again. “Maybe I’ll stop by for a cookie sometime soon.”
With a wink, he vanished. Horror flooded me at the thought of my dad showing up at my workplace and harassing my boss, or worse, trying to set us up.
Keys jingled outside the door, then Sophie opened it and froze when she saw me. She glanced suspiciously around the room, then cocked an eyebrow at me.
“What’d I miss?”
Chapter 7
Sam
Business had exploded to the point where I needed Lexi solely in the kitchen for her shifts while I was swamped up front. She hadn’t tried anything suspicious yet—no snooping, no personal questions, and she really tried to avoid touching me—so I needed to change tactics. Three weeks should’ve been enough time forsomethingto have happened besides her accidental power hiccups.
The first week, before I’d moved her to the kitchen, she had a disgustingly persistent male who wouldn’t take no for an answer. He’d run screaming from the shop after seeing maggots in his food, but the other customers chalked it up to drugs when his abandoned muffin turned out to be clean. Another day, I’d startled her when I tapped her on the shoulder and the entire shop went dark. The last time, a truck driver had been hitting on her while she signed for a shipment. I almost stepped in when he grabbed her ass, but then his engine went up in flames and his priorities changed.
What little intentional magic she used had an entirely different flavor, and one I was familiar with. She’d only used it when I was busy, probably hoping I wouldn’t see, but I felt it. I’d checked the security cameras afterward, but they always went fuzzy at the Sophiee time. One day, curiosity killing me, I peeked back there to find three separate bowls being stirred simultaneously.
I had to admit, she was both frustrating and amusing.
Lexi walked in the front and locked the door behind her, a bag slung over her shoulder. “Janet says thanks again and insists on letting them pay for the food or she’s going public with your charitable contributions.”
I put the last of the chairs up on the table and huffed a laugh. “And I’ll have to insist she not soil my sinful reputation. I can’t have people knowing I donate food to kids. What kind of devil would I be then?”
“One who knows how to clock out and be a human for a few minutes,” she replied with a smirk as she walked past. She stuffed the bag under the counter and headed into the kitchen.
“That’s ridiculous.” I followed her, pulling the till to drop off in the office. “I’m the face of the business, and as such, it’s my duty to emulate my brand.”
She grabbed the cleaner and started wiping down the counters, nodding to the front. “So grab a handful of those numbers and make up for it. I’m sure your business won’t suffer for it.”
Easier said than done, unfortunately. Since she’d started, none had lived up to the burning desire I had for her. She occasionally responded to my flirting, but was mostly aloof, which was a problem I’d never dealt with before. I was starting to think the only way around this hunger was through.
Well, I’d wanted a change of tactics. Maybe sleeping with her would put me back in the right state of mind and force someone’s hand at the Sophiee time.
Lexi slipped her chef coat off and tied it around her waist, leaving the toned muscle of her pale arms bared. Her black tank top, which she apparently owned a lot of, rode up as she leaned across the counters, revealing a strip of the enticing flesh of her lower back. I clenched my jaw against the surge of lust that beat against the mental barrier I’d put up between us and retreated to my office.
Three weeks of disappointing lays because I couldn’t shake one girl. I knew she was dangerous, but something had to change. If she was some kind of trap, maybe I could prepare myself before I sprung it. And if she wasn’t, then no harm done and I could go on as I always had. Problem solved and onto bigger things.
Like finding something other than soldier demons, someone that could tell me what the fuck Abaddon was building. I had a domain to take back, but I wasn’t going to rush in blind. I shoved the till in the safe beneath my desk, my thoughts a thousand miles away.
Until a knock on my door drew me back. Lexi was propped against the door frame, arms crossed, red hair spilling over her shoulders once more. “Sam? I got the dough mixer washed and your breakfast batches are prepped in the fridge. You need anything else?”
When I met her amber-brown eyes, an image flashed into my mind of her naked body sprawled across my desk while I hammered into her relentlessly. I blinked and it was gone, and somehow I didn’t think it came from her. This needed to be taken care of soon or I was going to snap.
