Page 3 of Wickedly Yours

Like it somehowcalledto me.

To the magic in my veins.

Or maybe it was just the only time I felt comfortable letting it free.

I’d always been different. For as long as I could remember, I’d always had strange dreams. Hazy visions of moments that hadn’t happened yet. Things that didn’t quite make sense.

And Iknewthings. Things I couldn’t explain.

What sort of witch didn’t even understand her true magic?

A sorry excuse for one. One who could have become a powerful seer but had chosen something safe instead. Something comfortable. Something that felt like home.

That was how I’d chosen to become a baker.

Flicking my fingers to pull a cookbook off the shelf with magic, I moved my finger in the air to swipe through pages till I landed on the recipe that I was looking for.

“What are you doing?” Willow asked, watching me rumble through cupboards, using my powers to pull out bowls and then the flour, sugar, and everything else I needed.

“Making another batch of scones.”

I didn’t normally make lemon lavender scones—my favorite—during October, but Willow’s coffee had inspired me, and maybe it would settle the restlessness in my gut.

That, and drinking a lot of alcohol tonight.

Shrugging, Willow left me to it, tying on her apron before heading back out to the front to serve the citizens of Pleasant Grove, who’d be arriving as soon as we opened the door at eight sharp.

After dumping all the dry ingredients in my bowl, I tried not to think about my dream from last night. The one that always started the same way. A flash of dark hair. Golden eyes. Mighty wings that unfurled in front of me. A palace that I was sure I’d never seen before.

A shiver ran down my spine. Those eyes had always followed me. Sometimes, in the darkness or when I was alone, I thought I’d see them looking back at me.

And yet, when I looked again—they were gone.

I had a feeling I’d see them again. I always did.

TWO

zain

Crossing my arms over my chest, I stared down at the group of demons who weresupposedto serve as my advisors. Not that they were doing much in the way ofadvisingright now. Instead, they were alltellingme what to do, ignoring my thoughts completely.

We were gathered in my study, standing around the large, scaled map I had of the demon realm. With magic, we’d overlaid a map of the human world. Thanks to my brother using his powers to teleport in and out of the place, I knew exactly where to look.

“I’m going to go get her,” I declared. “Surely, that would be easier than thisnonsense.” Lowering my brow, I waved my hand at the five of them.

I was tired of debating it. Tired of ignoring the pull I felt towards her.

Lilith frowned at me. “And you thinkthatwill work?” Her dark hair framed a pair of curved onyx horns, and the pair of leathery wings she used to fly—making her my perfect spy—sat closed on her back.

I’d recruited her two centuries ago, rescuing her when a group of much larger demons had been intent on beating her into a bloody pulp in an alley.

All because she’d been looking for work—and refused their advances.

Sometimes, I still saw her as that small teenager, not the woman she’d become.

The weapon I’d honed her to be.

Lightning cracked outside. “Why wouldn’t it?” I tried to temper down my annoyance.

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