Page 16 of Dating the Dealing Demon

“Val? It’s Nic, Theo’s crazy fangirl you met earlier. You in there?”

“It’s not as though I could go anywhere else,” I tell her through the door. “Your brother trapped me here and then poofed out. I can’t even open the door for you.”

“But you’re okay with me coming in?”

“Yeah.”

“Awesome.” She teleports inside.

“Wait, are demons like vampires? Do you need permission to enter?”

“First of all, we are superior to those bloodsuckers in every way except maybe the sex appeal because let’s face it, there are some seriously sexy fang faces.” She keeps going, and I don’t interrupt to point out that I’m pretty sure both she and Theo have fangs in their demon forms. Nor does she stop when Monty huffs a skeptical snort of smoke. “That wholeyou shall not passwas a human author’s invention, not an actual rule.”

“I think that line comes from aLord of the Ringsmovie, not a vampire author.”

“Ooh, you know a vampire author?Hot.” She continues rambling as if it’s obvious I would agree when I’m still struggling to catch up with a crazy conversation where vampires arereal. “But no, depending on the wards Theo set, I can probably pop in with no permission needed. Although I’d rather not catch you and my brother in full mating flagrante delicto.”

“What?”

“Getting your freak on.”

“Ew.”

“Precisely.”

“Your brother and I aren’t?—”

She cuts me off. “Yet. Fated mates can’t stay apart. It’s destiny.”

“Not happening.” I shiver even as Monty transforms into a warm and snuggly mongoose in my arms. “Whoever told Theo we’re meant to be must have mixed up their tea leaves or whatever.”

Nic tugs glitter-polished fingernails through her short hair. “Promise not to sic your soul guardian on me for telling you the truth?”

“Yes.” I won’t ask why she and Theo insist on acting like Monty’s the scariest badass in the room, not yet anyway. Although I might in the future if I can use the info against her brother.

“Theo doesn’t make mistakes when it comes to figuring out which mates belong together. He’s the premier matchmaker of monsters in all the realms. He even bested our mother.” Her tone goes sharp on the last.

So sharp that I imagine how my mother would seethe if one of her children surpassed her in the beauty business. I’ve loggedenough hours in therapy to know I need to step lightly around a possible trauma wound. “How’d your mom take his success?”

“Not well. You know how your mom lost it on the show when one of the twins mouthed off to her in front of an important director?”

The memory makes my stomach burn. “As if I could forget. She banished the twins from free access to top-of-the-line beauty stuff for two weeks. Their social media ranking tanked, and they orchestrated a steam-in at a fancy spa in protest.”

“Picture your mom with supernatural powers and years to take her revenge instead of weeks.”

“Oh.” I hug Monty close. Maybe Theo and I have something in common after all. Shutting down any weird Stockholm syndrome sort of sympathy toward my kidnapper, I dial up the charm in hopes of finding a way out that doesn’t involve heavy artillery. Or at least gets me answers to this crazy demon dilemma I’ve landed myself in. “If your family and Theo have all this power, why won’t he help me go home? Or let me help search for my friends? I could ask your mom?—”

“Don’t.” Something strange and almost electrical seems to buzz off her skin with a static-cling snap as bold as her tone.

Monty hisses at her, and I consider doing the same given the change that came over a woman who called herself a fan of my family’s show. Maybe her love of the show doesn’t extend to me personally. What if I’m her most hated Bonetti?

Nic takes a breath, and the surge of energy licking along her skin calms. “My mother doesn’t give anything for free. We’re dealing demons, and she’s the most cunning there has ever been. She already made one deal with your family.”

A demon deal? What the hell?

Nonna’s horned hand and Halloween stories suddenly seem a lot scarier than they ever did before. Theo had said something about those stories being the truth. What if he wasn’t lying?

I move away from Nic—slowly. Without any idea what magic she might be slinging other than teleportation which seems pretty frickin’ huge, I don’t need to give her any reasons to attack. Nor do I want to remind her that I’m the defenseless human trapped here. But I need to know what kind of deal she’s talking about. Taking a seat on the couch, I invite her to take the one across from me. I keep my voicedon’t zap mecalm. “Your sister…she said something about our families being enemies.”

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