Page 13 of Rescued By the Dour Demon

“So, what’s the next step?” she asked, flipping up the collar of his jacket. The wind swirled leaves around their ankles.

“Well, I told you about the letter I gave Tim. That was an opening salvo. Doesn’t have much legal bite to back it up, so it’s merely a stop-gap measure until I can build a solid case to move forward.” His brain was already compiling a list of possible statutes and regulations he could use.

“So, to build this case, you need background on what’s happened and what they’ve done so far?”

He nodded. “That’s part of it, certainly. We’ll pull together background and documents, conduct interviews with affected parties, work to uncover anything that might be of use in the case, that sort of thing.”

“Okay. I’ll get you a copy of everything I have so far, including texts and other communication from those jerks,” she said, tapping a finger against her chin, a cute little line forming between her brows as she thought. “And I can talk to folks around town, do interviews, and stuff. I know pretty much everyone.”

He bit back a smile at her enthusiasm. “That’s not necessary.”What are you doing, you idiot?he growled at himself.Use this as an opportunity to keep her close. And don’t you dare blow it.Clearing his throat, he added, “However, weare a small staff with limited resources at our disposal. Your assistance would be greatly appreciated.”

“Excellent.” Rowan beamed at him, then grabbed him with a gasp, her short nails digging into his forearm. “Ooh, I know. Let’s check out their headquarters. Really take a look at this shady company and the people who run it. I just know that Seymour Myles is bad news.”

He caught himself before he shot down her idea, his brain dissecting exactly what she said.Was that a “Let’s” as in “let us”? As in the two of us spending time together?His heart did a little happy dance, fluttering inside his chest.

They could set up an appointment to meet with the CEO and his legal team — Leith figured he’d need to do that at some point anyway — and Rowan could be there as his assistant…

But she wasn’t thinking about doing that in the future. No, no. The woman had no patience. She wanted to do it tomorrow, as in Friday. “You know,” she said, her eyes sparkling as she gazed up at him, her hand resting on his chest, “they’re based in Charlotte, only a couple of hours from here. I’m thinking we take a little road trip, do some recon, and see what’s really up at DownHome.”

“But that’s not…” he trailed off as she barrelled right over his tepid protest.

“Excellent.” She patted his pectoral, each point of contact a spark of heat that traveled through his body and straight to his cock. “A road trip. My fave. I’ll drive. You bring the snacks.” Recklessly impulsive plan settled in her mind, she popped up on tippy-toes, gave him a kiss on the lips and a pat on the cheek, and darted off to collect her grandmother.

Dumbstruck, he watched her go, a bright, colorful flame in the night. She turned and waved at him from across the square. He was pretty sure Granny flipped him off, but surely he imagined that. After all, it was dark.

Just appearing at headquarters like that, that’s not how it works,he thought.

And she didn’t care, her spontaneous nature springing into action once again, as it had with the crossroads. But this time, he would be there to rescue her if anything went sideways. He’d bet a gold favor token they wouldn’t make it past the lobby. Which, fine by him. While relatively useless to the case, a road trip to Charlotte meant he got to spend an entire day with her.

Also, did she even realize she’d trapped herself in a car with him for a day? Did she care?

In the shadows of the evening, an increasingly smug grin spread across Leith’s face. It wasn’t the most conventional way to approach building a case, but honestly, it couldn’t have worked out better if he’d planned it himself.

11

ROWAN

Why, oh why, had she ever thought it was a good idea to trap herself in a car for hours with Leith? She shifted in her seat, adjusted her grip on the steering wheel, and snuck another peek at her passenger.

He was too close, taking up too much space, and pretty much all the oxygen. And it was a decent-sized SUV, too. Big enough to haul her larger canvases around and bring home her stock-up shops at Costco. But it didn’t feel like enough space for the two of them, what with his arm brushing up against hers on the armrest and his scent overwhelming the remains of the forgotten air freshener she’d stuck on a vent months ago.

Despite the growing sexual tension, the drive itself had been smooth, filled with easy conversation that lasted all the way to the edge of Charlotte. They’d covered topics ranging from childhood foolishness to bucket list items to favorite shows and the travesty of too many new series being canceled after a season due to poor decision-making by the streaming services. They’d even managed a heated debate over the legitimacy of selling one’s soul for physical goods or heightened talents beforesubsiding into silence, both of them satisfied they’d effectively made their points.

It was only as they made their way deeper into the city, an alternative rock song from the 90s played softly in the background, that comfortable silence grew charged. With each shift of his body, her awareness of him and his proximity to her expanded. Butterflies fluttered madly in her stomach, and her grip on the steering wheel grew damp. She felt like a hormonal teenager in her first real relationship, unsure of how to respond to what her body and brain were experiencing.

Despite that, their rocky start, and his wily machinations, being here, in this moment with Leith felt right. She was surprised how much she liked that they both complemented and challenged each other. It felt like fate played a hand in their meeting. After all, she’d gone to the crossroads looking for a spirit and a simple answer but wound up with a demon and a complication she couldn’t quite wrap her head around.

Okay, so maybe she shouldn’t have accessed a power like the crossroads in the first place. It wasn’t her brightest idea, but she’d been both pissed and desperate to help Granny after that threatening letter.

Then again, if she hadn’t gone to the crossroads, she wouldn’t be sitting here in this car with Leith, thinking about how much she liked him and how she wanted to spend an insane amount of time with him.

Lost in her thoughts, she jumped when he said, “Just after that fast food place, you’re going to want to merge.”

“I hate driving into Charlotte,” she muttered, slipping into a gap between two cars. “In fact, I’m not a fan of the city. Too big, too crowded, and far too much damn traffic and people who don’t know how to drive. Just get out of my way already,” she growled at the vehicles surrounding her and clogging up the road.

He snickered. “You know, I offered to drive, but you rejected me. Now, you have to deal with the consequences.”

“I like driving. I don’t like traffic. Besides,” she said, flashing him a grin, “you make an excellent passenger princess.”

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