Buttercup (Spell Library #10) - Helen Scott Page 0,16

I asked, as though I needed to make sure I'd heard him right when the word was the only thing echoing around in my head like a bell that wouldn't stop tolling the hour.

"If I show you my true form will you freak out?" Magnus asked, standing from where he'd been leaning on a motorcycle. I hadn't even noticed the shiny chrome object under him, that's how much these men swallowed my attention whole.

"No, I've seen plenty of supernatural stuff before. Hell, I make candied house flies for a sentient Venus flytrap every other day. I had a vampire prevent my oven from smoking out my entire place earlier this week. One of the women I came here with tonight is a wolf shifter who may or may not be in the mafia. I don't spook easily." I took a deep breath and prepared myself, shutting down all the crazy parts of my brain so I could focus on what was happening, if only the tequila that was sloshing around in my system would cooperate.

"Please, just don't scream," Magnus said under his breath as his skin shifted from a slightly sun-burned Caucasian to a deep scarlet color. His long hair was shorter and thick, black horns sprouted from his head, gleaming under the parking lot lights. His bright blue eyes darkened and turned a reddish-brown color, and his lips, though they had been a normal pinkish type of color, were now the same color as a dark red wine.

He looked damn good.

Was he a demon? Absolutely.

Did I care? Not in the slightest.

"Now I get the nickname," I said, glancing at Mr. Jawline.

"I'm Casper by the way. Also, I think you're my mate," Mr. Jawline, Casper, replied.

I felt like I'd just been dunked into a tub of ice-cold water. And now felt stone cold sober. I wasn't, of course, but that nice buzz I'd had going was completely gone.

"What?" I asked, shaking my head as though I could force the words to make sense if I rattled them around a bit. Spoiler alert: It didn't work. "I don't understand. Wouldn't I feel something if I was your mate?"

The heartbroken look that crossed his face almost broke my own.

"I'm sorry, shit. That was such a dumb thing to say. Tequila was such a bad idea tonight," I mumbled, trying to push the locks of blonde hair from my face as my mouth ran, even though I was trying my best to shut up.

"You're okay," Casper said. "I kinda sprung that on you. I just couldn't keep it in anymore."

"Uh..." Magnus began. When I looked up into his dark eyes, I felt like I was falling into the end of a sunset. "You're my soulmate too?" he said, ending with a lilt to his voice that made it sound like a question.

"How can I have two soul mates?" I asked, but before they replied I added, "I need coffee for this conversation."

"Coffee it is. Jewels Cafe is closed, but we could see if Yes Now, Bob is open?" Magnus offered.

"Or we could go back to my place?" I suggested.

"Are you comfortable with that? I mean we only just met," Casper said, his brows furrowed together over those gray-green eyes of his.

"You're my soulmates, I guess, so yeah? I don't know. Yes, we just met, but a. these heels are killing me, b. I feel drawn to both of you, so maybe that is the mate thing? And c. if you are my soulmates, you're not likely to hurt me."

"The idea of hurting our mates is anathema to us," Casper said.

"Us?" I questioned. He couldn't be talking about Magnus because he was a demon and I was pretty sure Casper wasn't. Although they were friends so I could be completely wrong. Of course, I would be the person to end up with two demon mates.

"I'd rather talk about that in private," Casper replied.

"Okay, my place isn't far. We can walk if you want?"

"You just said your shoes were hurting you." Magnus frowned at the offending item of clothing. I followed his line of sight and my eyes became glued to the things. Were shoes clothing? They kind of seemed like their own thing. They were always grouped with clothing in stores, but that felt wrong to me. They should have their own special area. While my mind was getting distracted with shoes, two hot, firm hands, scooped me up. "You can direct me," Magnus said looking down at me as though I hung the