Fiends and Familiars - Debra Dunbar Page 0,32

soft body against mine, nestled between my legs as she leaned in. The aroma of peppermint and lavender as her auburn hair brushed against my face. The nearly painful response of my body to her lips on my cheek.

By the time I’d recovered my senses, she’d left. I looked down at the address that I already knew on the napkin and the phone number, then tucked it into my jacket pocket.

“Dude, you are so going to get some tonight.” The bear shifter saluted me with his beer.

“Yeah, Addy isn’t shy about going for what she wants.” The minotaur nodded in respect. “Kudos, man. You’re golden as long as you don’t fuck this one up.”

Sadly, I was going to fuck this one up. I was going to let her seduce me, let her bring me inside of the wards of her house, then betray her to grab Faust and haul him back to hell. Part of me wanted to have sex before I did that, but I wasn’t that much of a demon.

Chapter 9

Adrienne

I skipped into Cassie’s office, feeling as if I were walking on clouds. I’d wanted to see her before heading to my next appointment, to let her know the resolution on the hornet situation as well as what was happening with the werebadger.

And about my date. Oooo, I had a date with a totally hot guy I’d met at Pistol Pete’s of all places. I’d been having lunch there after dropping the squirrels and Drake off at the firehouse to entertain Ophelia, and he’d walked in. Tall, dark, and handsome. And he liked dogs.

“Hey!” I plopped down in the chair across from my sister and told her all about the hornets and the badger, wondering if I should tell her about my date or not. Probably not. As excited as I was, Cassie would be downright ecstatic. And she’d get her hopes up. I was optimistic, but if this guy turned out to be a total douchebag, I didn’t want to have to explain all that to Cassie.

“So this werebadger has been there for months?” Cassie shook her head. “It’s not like any of us have gone up there much since the elves left. It’s all overgrown and wild. I guess if he wanted to live an isolated life where he could burrow up in his animal form for a few years, Savior Mountain would be the place to go.”

“Except it’s not going to be an isolated life with a rancorous werewolf compound practically on his doorstep.” I shrugged. “He doesn’t want to move. Says it’s a pain digging a sett in that rocky ground. He’d rather just set boundaries with the werewolves and learn to deal with neighbors. Actually I got the idea he was kind of intrigued by my suggestion of Clinton’s pack hosting him for an occasional dinner. I think he’s lonely but doesn’t want to admit it.”

Cassie’s gaze sharpened. “Is he cute? Hot? Smoking hot?”

I laughed. “I’m not really sure. He was buck naked when he took on human form and let’s just say it was hard to keep my eyes on anything above the waist.”

“Hot damn!” Cassie stood and came around her desk. “Go for it, girl. I don’t know much about badger shifters, but if he’s like all the others, you could totally hit that if you wanted to.”

My thoughts shifted to the guy in the bar. That’s what I wanted to hit.

“You sound like Sylvie,” I complained. “And I don’t want to hit that. Cassie, he was hung like a centaur.”

“That’s manageable with enough lube,” she insisted, reminding me even more of Sylvie. “You haven’t had a boyfriend in ages. Invite him to dinner next Sunday. If he’s been up on that mountain for months, then he’s probably dying for a good meal.”

“From what I gather, his idea of a good meal is earthworms,” I countered. What was it with my sisters lately? Actually, I knew what was up with them. They’d all found love and paired off, and now wanted me to do the same. Then they’d probably start pestering Babylon, if they weren’t already.

“I’m making lasagna. Tell him to throw on some clothes and join us, then afterward the two of you can go get drinks at Pete’s and get acquainted.”

I sighed. “Knock it off, Cassie. He’s not my type.”

She leaned on the edge of her desk, fixing me with a perceptive look. “And what is your type?”

I thought once more of the man in the bar. Then I