Page 5 of My Summer Girl

“Yeah, I heard you the first time.” The barkeep returns, setting down a shot glass that looks more like a thimble in comparison to my massive palms.

I take the shot quickly and Cin twirls his finger for another. “You see, I will give you what you seek if you return the favor.”

“I’m not fucking you,” I argue immediately, knowing if I got off while on a mission from Vera, she’d string me up by my balls.

He laughs, his entire body shaking with amusement. “It would definitely be me fucking you,” he mocks. “But I need something only you can offer me, and that doesn’t include getting my dick wet.”

“And that would be?” I raise my eyebrow at the haunted look in his expression. It’s not a normal one. If anything it’s a bit darker than I’ve ever seen him have.

“I lost someone,” he croaks, and for the first time since arriving, it feels like I’m actually seeing the real Cin, and not the fake jokester side of him. “I need a way back to her.”

“Her?” I prod, drinking the next three shots set near me.

“My Lady Grey.”

“I’ve never heard of this person.”

His eyes close, a faraway look in them. “She was beautiful and unlike any creature I’ve ever met. I traveled to three different realms, chasing her.”

His hand goes through his hair, his body stiff yet somehow not at the same time. “What happened?”

“I lost her. I already mentioned that.”

“Yeah, but what am I to do about that? I’m not a necromancer.”

He solemnly nods, but there’s a challenge there. “You are Orukna, though.”

My magic.

Ice steels my veins and I worry that his intentions might surpass my moral codes. “I am.” It’s a confirmation he didn’t need.

He leans forward, his mouth close to my ears. “Send me to Obscura.” My entire body becomes rigid, like someone who has surpassed the first moment of death and hits the hard part where they lock up. His hand digs into my shoulder. “If you do this, Raevar, I’ll be indebted to you for life.”

“That place isn’t for the living,” I reply, worry in my tone, feeling a thickness in my throat. Not that making a magical port-path is illegal there, but it’s not something I’d do willingly.

“Take it or leave it,” he says, but I can hear the urgency. His eyes bulge like desperation is his only option. I nod, because it seems like he’ll find another Orukna even if I don’t help him. This way I can at least keep tabs and make sure he makes it out alive.

“Okay.”

Relief floods his expression, his body relaxing as he readjusts on the barstool. He waves the barkeep over once more. “Two shots of Bound ‘n Dry.”

“You’re serious?” I question, feeling my body stiffen once more at his request. Not only are the shots expensive as hell, they’re binding. The words shared and agreed between two parties tie them together.

He nods. The barkeep doesn’t change their expression, simply walking through a door and appearing once more with a bottle. Its contents are a weird green color, almost glowing, and nausea coats my stomach. There’s a chance I’ll puke. Making a decision this severe without talking to Vera might ruin everything.

She would do anything for a mate, right?

“To bind one with the words, blood must be shared, and the words must be agreed on both sides.” The soft tone of the barkeep’s voice solidifies the fear inside me. Taking out a blade, Cin slices his palm, and I follow suit.

“I, Cinder Santana, require a one-way ticket to Obscura.”

“No. Not a one-way. That’s a death sentence.”

“You’re not supposed to negotiate against your favor,” he complains, his face souring when I don’t concede. “Fine. A round-trip port-path to Obscura.” I nod for him to continue. “By this binding, I owe Raevar my life, and any help he seeks, I won’t deny.”

“No,” I say once more, and the gruff way it comes out has him rolling his eyes. “You will not timelessly and without reason tie yourself to me. Are you mad?”

“Madly in love,” he argues. “You’re a hard Orukna to please, Raev.” He sits up a little straighter, letting out a huff. “I, Cinder Santana, need a trip to Obscura, where I can come back with the touch of the port-path. I will owe Raevar Tora anything he asks—” I narrow my eyes and he chuckles. “—within reason, and it will expire upon either of our deaths.” He peers at me with a questioning brow. “Agreed?”

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