Page 2 of The Misfit Mage and His Darling Demon

I frowned. I wasn’t desperate. I simply preferred precise clarification. Plus, it was nice knowing for certain that Bez was, in fact, my boyfriend. A term he claimed to find juvenile, yet the few times I’d introduced him as such, his breathing had hitched momentarily—a funny response considering Bez didn’t require the “rudimentary functions of mortals” as he put it with biting snark.

“No, no. This is our real anniversary,” Bez explained. “A far more important date to commemorate. It’s the six-month marker to when we first coupled.”

My jaw nearly dropped before I pulled my face into a smile. He’d counted the days and knew the exact six months that’d passed since we first coupled? My ears burned.Coupled. Made it sound almost endearing like love making, but I recalled it as a very carnal experience much like most of our sex. Still, there was a tender passion to it, as there’d been every time since, andthat meant something to Bez. Meant enough to plan something special. A surprise.

“Aw, that’s really sweet.”

“Yes, the sound of your begging moans as I railed you again and again were quitesweet. Almost as delectable as the menu options here, I’m sure.”

“And your lack of tact takes away all the charm to your actions.”

“If you’d like to see my charming actions in action, we can—”

A passerby gasped, followed by a second, and then a third. I turned to find a half dozen people standing outside this restaurant staring wide-eyed at Bez.

“Shit.” I pressed my hands together, channeling mana between my palms and releasing a glamour to wipe away the shock these people had observed.

I’d spent so much time with him that the Diabolic features tearing through his host body hardly registered at this point. When we were in mixed company, I had to ensure he blended.

In order to create a potent and successful glamour, I had to envision and believe the illusion I casted upon others. The four curled ram horns protruding from his head vanished, no longer ruffling his shaggy black hair—orange roots removed. He could love the tacky neon color all day long, but my glamour, my rules. I washed away the beautiful pink of his sclera and shifted the crimson of his irises to a vibrant green. I’d glamoured his eyes in every human color under the sun and a few others bordering outside the box but enjoyed the pop of Bez with emerald eyes best.

He pulled his wings and tails inward, tucking them inside his body and wrapped within his essence, while I delicately stitched the holes of the gray suit jacket and matching slacks. No glamour for the holes—gods, he’d ripped through so many good clothes, Ihad to finally master a slew of sewing incantations just to avoid his need to buy new suits every day.

Once I’d fixed his suit, wrinkles and all because he’d most likely whine if he had to go in looking unpresentable, I laced a trace of Diabolic haze around the glamour cast in the air. Smoke swelled above us like a storm cloud, spreading along the street in a thick fog. Crimson flashed within, adding to the reminiscent lightning effect, but the haze lacked the thunderous sound. Lacked all sensation in fact, except visual which only Bez and I could see.

A basic glamour itself would be enough to fool any human who looked at my dashing boyfriend, but with Bez’s essence coursing inside me, I preferred balancing it with my Pentacles of Power so I could practice each. Truthfully, I only had a fraction—a very tiny fraction—of the effect Bez had with his own abilities, but the potential remained, and I sought to cultivate it.

“You know, you could’ve cloaked yourself and saved me the hassle of wiping their minds.”

“I only do this so you can improve, Wally.”

“Uh-huh.”

He claimed it was to help me learn all the ins and outs of casting his borrowed essence, but I suspected Bez was too lazy to care. If it weren’t for me, he’d leave an obvious trail of magic everywhere he went, tasking the Collective to clean up after his antics, but that’d mean they’d catch us. Which I didn’t want. Ever. Another reason we typically avoided bigger cities with more prominent mage influences.

“Besides, you’ve got to get your casting cardio in”—Bez strolled close behind me, hand on my lower back as he guided me toward the door—“but not the mortal cardio. We’ll find other exquisite ways to workout later. Thinking perhaps we replay a bit of what makes this an anniversary worth celebrating.”

I rolled my eyes, perhaps playing a little hard to get. In truth, if Bez even suggested dragging me into the bathroom between courses, I wasn’t sure I’d say no. He’d been gone the last two weeks, securing freelance work for me, and I admit I’d wanted to jump his bones the minute he walked through the door. Instead, he rushed me into getting ready for a surprise.

“Bez, this place is something. Something very nice.” I grimaced, lingering by the street corner where the valet greeted others. It was more than nice. The ambiance exuded opulence in a way I hadn’t experienced since attending family events.

Bez had planned this evening for me. I didn’t want to burst his bubble, his efforts, his consideration, but…

“Not to complain because the gesture is great. It’s just…why are we dining here? I mean, I love the surprise. Absolutely think it’s, you know, sweet—please don’t interrupt. I just don’t understand why you wanted to surprise me here. In the city. Chicago. A major transient hub for the Collective. Which you know because we discussed it when taking on work in Galena”—a few hours from Chicago and outside major Collective influence—“which, by the way, has plenty of fancy restaurants that I’ve mentioned multiple times. Repeatedly. Some with really fascinating stories. One with a cool historical tour beforehand. Seems like that could be…hmm…more discreet?”

Bez stared, slowly blinking and smoldering. Gods. His lashes were so full and perfect, always accentuating his eyes no matter what color I gave them.

“And I know what you’re going to say,” I added before he could use some snarky wit to charm his way out of my concerns. “Who needs discretion when I have you subtly glamouring the details away?”

I lightly saturated mana to move in sync with my steps, surmounting the glamour around the street, allowing it to followour path inside and wipe away any magical mishaps others might observe.

“But nothing this deep into Collective territory is subtle.” I swatted away his tail. “Any sign, even someone sensing my spark of mana in the air, could reveal our presence.”

Another reason I used Diabolic essence in tandem with my casting. Since Bez’s magic couldn’t be detected, it helped cloak mine.

“Well?”

“Sorry.” Bez yawned, stretching his sharp jaw in the most exaggerated sense. “I assumed this would be one of your hour-long lectures rehashing precautions.”

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