Page 18 of Shadow Witch

“What? No shower? No bachelorette party? What sort of wedding is this? I’m planning an epic bachelor party for Devon.”

Paige shot Drucinda a glance. “Are you serious?”

“Of course, I am. A vampire only gets married once. Usually, anyway.”

Paige heaved a sigh as her options slimmed. How would she ever get out of this marriage? She shook her head. As long as she got the soul compass, she’d worry about everything else later. She needed to find her mother, and she was willing to do whatever it took to find her, including marrying Devon.

She raised her gaze to the chiseled features of her fiancé. He offered her a grin and a nod. It may have melted other women’s hearts, but it turned her stomach. How did she end up betrothed to a day-walking vampire?

She propped an elbow on the arm of the couch and dropped her forehead into her palm. Getting through this weekend would take a miracle. She hoped she could pull it off.

Her eyes slid toward the screen of Dewey’s RP. She spotted a sash reading BLUSHING BRIDE-TO-BE complete with a matching tiara. His claw tapped the BUY NOW button before moving on to a new item.

It would take more than a miracle to survive this weekend.

Dewey slid his eyes sideways before he grinned. She offered him a weak smile. “Hey, you should get busy. Why are you just sitting there?”

“I’m busy,” she answered. “Praying for strength.”

“Now’s not the time for that. You’ve got a registry to make! Grab that extra RP and start picking china patterns.”

“Dewey, this wedding isn’t for real. We’re not going to need china. We just need to get through it and get the soul compass. After that…”

“What?” Dewey asked.

“To be fair, Paige,” Devon added, “you should make a registry. We need this to look legit to my dad. If you don’t do that, he’ll wonder what we’re going to eat on when he comes over and it’ll blow the whole thing.”

“OMG,” she said as she grabbed the RP device. “I cannot believe this. I’m doing more work for my fake wedding than I’ll probably do for my real one.”

“Are you going to have a real wedding?” Dewey asked.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Paige asked as she toggled on the device.

“Well, I mean, you were all about how independent you were and whatever. I’m just wondering.”

“Just shut up, Dewey. I’m busy trying to make a registry. Where do I even do this?”

“Pamazon, Piffany’s, Deiman Marcus,” Drucinda answered as she paged through a magazine. “Just to name a few.”

“Right. Okay, Pamazon.”

“Don’t forget the toaster. I like toast with my breakfast, so you’ll need one for when I visit,” Dewey said.

“Oh, and an air fryer,” Devon said. “Definitely need one of those.”

Paige shot him an unimpressed glance as he rose and crossed to her before collapsing onto the arm to peer over her shoulder. “Scoot over.”

Paige crinkled her nose as she shifted closer to Dewey, and Devon slid onto the couch with her. “Are you serious?”

“This is important,” Devon said. “I want to help pick our china.”

Paige stared at him for a few more seconds before returning her frowning gaze to the RP. “Fine. Do you want flowers, plain, or–“

“Ohh, this one,” Devon said, poking a finger at a set of silver-trimmed plates called Opal Innocence.

Dewey leaned sideways to peer at the pattern. “Oh, nice choice, Dimples. It’s classy, classic, with a timeless flair.”

“Right? That china says we’ll be here centuries from now still serving blood pudding on these very plates while we teach our grandchildren the traditions of the family.”

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