Page 59 of Cocktails & Cauldrons

“Yeah, and she’s been suppressed for her entire life.” Eoin shrugged and grinned. “She was bound to blow, and what a grand sight her explosion was.”

Spring giggled. “Legos. Who’d have thought that was her worse insult?”

“Don’t be forgettin’ she called me a jerk and, in her mind, a turd.”

Alastair stole a glance at Damian and murmured, “Cat-twat-knife-wielding haters.”

The two men broke their stoic façades, laughing until their sides practically split as they held their stomachs and leaned against one another.

“Sure, and you’re having the craic at me beloved Brenna,” Eoin said, trying to keep a straight face and failing miserably, sending the other three occupants of the living room over the edge to hilarity.

“Holy… spitballs,” Spring said between great wheezing breaths.

“Tell me you’re not having a go at that poor girl’s expense.”

They all jerked to attention at the sound of a provocative feminine voice from the doorway. The woman bore an uncanny resemblance to Brenna. Belatedly, Eoin registered the accent was different than hers, more southern United States, based on the people he’d encountered in the art world.

Damian was the first to let his guard down, and he strode to the door, hand extended. “Narissa. I’d hoped you’d come.”

“When you’re summoned by the Aether, sugar, you hustle your butt to comply.” Her “sugar” sounded more like “shoog-ha,” and the slow honeyed way she spoke made men want to open doors for her and tip their hat.

“You summoned her? What the feck for?” Eoin demanded, shaking off any gentlemanly thoughts toward the woman. For sure, she had to be related to Brenna. He just didn’t know how. But if the woman knew of Brenna’s existence and knew of Odessa’s penchant for stealing magic, then she lacked compassion in her heart. She should’ve never left Brenna with Odessa for all these years.

“And who is this indignant hunk of hotness?” Her salon-groomed brows began to meet but shot up as her eyes widened. “Oh! Eoin O’Malley, as I live and breathe. The famous artist here, in little ol’ England.”

Shoving aside his flattered inner peacock, he crossed his arms and glared, refusing to be charmed.

Amusement lit her blue-green eyes, and his heart flipped at how alike she appeared to Brenna when she found something funny.

“To help Brenna,” Damian said, answering Eoin’s initial question.

Though the woman hesitated, it was only for an instant, and she continued smoothly as if she didn’t have a care in the world. “And who’s Brenna, sugar? Am I supposed to guess?” She usedher Siren’s voice to soothe and scold as she sauntered into the room, hips swaying, a sexy pendulum that drew the eye like a bee to a pollen-packed garden.

Shaking his head to dislodge her unintentional spell, Eoin looked at Damian. How did the man remain unaffected? Was Eoin more susceptible because of her resemblance to the woman he loved?

Damian met his gaze and smiled.“Sirens. They’re unintentionally seductive, and the older they are, the more powerful they become.”

“Feck.”

“I believe you’re going to need fortification for this, Narissa.” The Aether told her as he walked to the sideboard. “Still prefer Tennessee bourbon?” At her nod, he poured her a drink and handed it off. He waited until she swallowed a sip, then said, “Brenna, your niece. Clarissa’s daughter. I believe you remember her, no?”

Narissa paled, and her gaze darted around like a trapped animal. She recovered remarkably well, lifting her chin and plastering on a wide smile. “Bless your heart, Damian. You must be mistaken. I’m an only child. You’ve known me for years.”

All humor left the Aether’s face.

Eoin’s unease made itself known as a pounding heart and in his temples. It was never good when Damian Dethridge lost his indulgent courtesy.

“Are you seriously going to stand there and lie to me, Narissa Wells?” Damian leaned closer to her. “Or should I say NarissaSullivan?”

The tumbler dropped from her hands, but the Aether had the reflexes of a jungle cat and froze the downward trajectory of the glass long enough to catch it and any liquid that escaped.

“I’ve always known who you are, my dear. I simply chose to let you keep your secrets because it suited me at the time.” Hereturned the drink to her. “But now, I need you to be a Sullivan. Odessa needs to be stopped, and your niece needs your help.”

“I left my past behind for a reason,” she said coldly. “I’ve no intention of walking back into that viper pit. Sullivans aren’t a normal breed of witches.”

“There’s only one viper—Odessa. And she’s been left free to syphon your niece’s magic to fuel her Succubus. Brenna’s innocent in all of this.”

Narissa swallowed and fought to maintain her composure as she met Damian’s dark, forbidding eyes. “Mama’s…gone?”

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