Page 32 of The Misfit Mage and His Dashing Devil

“I got a plan.” I smirked.

Since I only had a second to devise a way to avoid nosy sentinels, I developed the quickest plan to pop into my mind. It had the bonus of being delectably entertaining and messing with Walter’s head.

“Follow my lead.” I pushed Walter against the brick wall of the alley, running my hands along his quivering torso.

His entire body heated, confusion swirling in his eyes, yet there wasn’t even a faint hint of resistance when my lips met his. I slid my tongue into his mouth, the sweet taste enticing me further as I guided him. Whether from instinct, desire, or just playing along, Walter’s hands lifted, and he ran them up my shoulders. His fingertips sent a rousing shudder down my spine as he traced them up my neck, running his fingers through my hair as he tilted his head.

The sentinel cleared her throat, biting back an embarrassedwhoops, but we kept our lips locked and faces turned. Seconds passed as the sentinel lingered. I panted, breaking away momentarily.

Walter’s eyes drifted toward the sentinel, so I kissed him again. Rougher. More passionately. I held his hips, though part of me wanted to grip the back of his thighs and lift him off the ground. That’d surely make it clear the sentinel needed to offer us a bit of privacy.

Heat spread through my chest, blood coursing faster everywhere. Distracted by the fruity taste of Walter’s lip balm, I almost missed the retreating feet of the sentinel who came to investigate two lovers cozying up.

I could end this. No need for such a diversion anymore. Yet the gentle caress of fingers in my hair coupled with the subtle thrust of his hips I held in place made it difficult to break away. This was his lust, clearly. I was simply caught in my own game. Pushing my thigh between his legs, I considered a hundred more possibilities for us, all of which would be more entertaining than walking into a trap.

“You know, Wally, if you were looking for a boyfriend, there’s better ways to go about it than a Diabolic binding.” A broad, well-built blond perched against the alley corner. He kept his arms crossed, which didn’t cover the sentinel emblem on his blue jacket. It was the playful smile he wore that I found baffling.

Walter pulled away, wide-eyed and slack jawed. “Alistair. This isn’t…wasn’t… It was a cover.” His voice creaked. “Right? Yes. Emergency. Your sentinels were…”

Mildly disappointed by the break from my entertainment, I lowered my thigh which was still firmly positioned between his legs. “Not exactly the head I planned on messing with,” I whispered.

Walter’s entire face burned bright red, blood changing direction, but not enough to lessen the bulge I noticed tucked uncomfortably in his jeans.

“Making out with a devil.” Alistair shook his head. “What would Mom say?”

I shrugged. “I begged him to stop.”

“Bet you did.” Alistair’s smile turned sour when he shifted his gaze from his little brother to me. Alistair appeared a polar opposite to Walter in demeanor and appearance. A tall, muscular mortal who held himself confidently, his features were sharper, too, yet softened by the playful smirk. Even his blond curls had a shaggy swoosh whereas Walter’s were as chaotic and untamed as the many tangents his beehive of a mind explored.

“Why are your sentinels here?” I asked.

“They’re always here to secure Mercury’s Marketplace,” Walter said, adjusting his tight black shirt which had ridden up thanks to my assistance. “But there are a lot more than you said there’d be, Al.”

“Mom is attempting to secure her position after your escape,” Alistair said. “And as her dutiful son, I assured her I would do my very best by securing the misfit mage behind the massacre at the Magus Estate.”

I nudged a shaky Walter. “I told you it was a trap.”

“Trap?” Alistair burst into laughter. “Please. If I wanted to take you in, I would’ve grabbed you at the apartment last night.”

“You knew we were there?” Walter asked. “But I kept the call short, and the place was covered in incantations.”

“And it belonged to Riley Hamilton, who your devil possessed, so I figured staking out the place would be a good call.” Alistair approached. “Turns out, it was good I went and let Chancellor Driscoll know no one had come in or out.”

Alistair was too friendly, too helpful, too unlike his chatty little brother who was a yarn ball of anxiety and depression one small cat bap away from unraveling.

“I want to know who’s behind this, why they set you up of all the mages working in the estate, and what their next move is.”

“That’s exactly what I want to know,” Walter said. “I think if I understood how the virus was actually used on the security systems, I may be able to figure out who really did it.”

“Let’s talk more privately.” Alistair reached into his pocket.

“Not happening.” I glared, crossing between Walter and his brother.

“Well, we look a bit conspicuous talking in an alleyway.” He offered a ring to Walter. “It’s saturated with my mana and has a glamour enacted.”

“Thanks.” Walter put it on.

“No problem. Figured you wouldn’t think of doing it.” His smile became grating to my eyes. Too much delight in an Alden mage. “Or be able to.”

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