Page 32 of Dating the Dealing Demon

His cousin moves between me and the monster as Monty leaps from my lap to the countertop.

“I can’t teleport her out,” Dupree yells. “You shouldn’t have warded the damn place so well.”

“Not well enough.” Theo and the cyclops crash together with an awful thud. The two go to the ground with such force that the floor shakes, glass bottles rattling behind me.

Another cyclops hurtles through the wavering hole that I’m assuming is a portal.

Then another.

And another.

“Shit.” Dupree drops his glamour and joins in the fight.

Monty dashes between potion bottles. While I know the mongoose can transform to a dragon—I’ve seen him do it—and he supposedly did horrible things to protect his witch in the war between the hell dimensions, it’s hard to remember that when he hisses at the cyclops who outweighs him a million times over. I scoop him up and prepare to run.

But where? We’re backed into corner with nothing across the way but a well-stocked bar, empty exhibits that look like they could hold equally cool stuff as the perfumery, and an aquarium which could be an extension of the massive water feature on the casino floor. It’s not as if I can swim away, and mermaids won’t be breaking through the glass to crawl in as backup.

Theo has taken on four cyclops to Dupree’s one, but the monsters just keep coming.

“Let’s go, milady,” Ora demands. “This way.” She waves me toward her.

My heart pounds as if I’ve already sprinted a mile. “We can’t just leave.”

“We can, and we will.” She hurls a bottle at one of the monsters, and it explodes, a glittering magenta coating a cyclops and all its hairy grossness.

I should do what she says and run. But I can’t see Theo, and I can’t catch a breath. He’s hurt and shouldn’t have been showing me around Shadowvale, let alone battling multiple cyclops. True, he kidnapped me and sent my friends to god only knowswhere. Leaving him to whatever beatdown he’s getting shouldn’t be hard. It’sTheo.

But my body refuses to move.

A cyclops surges my way, arms raised above his one bulging eye.

What to do?What to do? Analysis paralysis takes over, and I suddenly wish for a supersized dose of non-ADHD focus. I should’ve taken my meds, should’ve done the mandatory meditation that helps me center, should’venotbeen confronted with freaking monsters from the worst nightmares coming at me!

Monty leaps from my arms, transforming mid-air into his dragon. A ribbon of flame pours from him, creating a thin wall of controlled fire between me and the cyclops.

“Close the portal,” Dupree yells.

But Theo doesn’t answer. He can’t from beneath the mound of beasts piled atop him. They’re covered in blue blood. Theo’s blood.

Screw this.

I’ve spent most of my life hiding. Yet the hell dimensions bring out my crazy stupid adventurous side, and my choices have probably been more stupid than crazy. After all, I’ve already spent a night cozying up to Theo and waking curled around him. God, I barely pulled myself off him before he could notice the drool I left on his chest.

What’s wading into a monster battle compared to sleeping with the crown prince of hell?

“Shadowvale?” I hope the castle can hear me over the howls of pain. “A weapon I can use against the cyclops?” Remembering the rocket launcher fail, I quickly add, “No assembly required, please.”

The castle magics a small crossbow into my hand. “Whoa.” This isn’t like the bow and arrow the showrunners tried to makemy sisters and I use on an archery special during the Olympics. No, it’s like a pistol with pre-loaded bolts. It’sawesome.

“Milady,” Ora calls. The dwarf ducks behind the counter as a body part goes flying above us.

I swallow my sick. There won’t be enough antacid to settle my stomach or enough bleach in the world to clean this away.

“Monty,” I yell, “clear a path. I’m going in.”

The little dragon blows his flames toward the portal. I follow him, pretending I’m not shaking as I pass through the charred remains of the victim of Ora’s glitter bomb that obviously hadwaymore than glitter inside.

“Val.” That enraged bellow could only come from Theo.

---