Page 76 of I Accidentally Hired a Shadow Walker
“Fine. Let's find another way to convince you.” He stepped around me, and I followed his movement with my eyes, but my tipsy brain lagged for a moment when he lifted his hand in the air.
Whack!His hand landed firmly against my ass.
“Drink it,” he said after I jumped from the impact.
“Oh!” I looked back at him. “Are you serious right now?”
“You need another?” He rubbed his palms together, squinting as he focused on his target. “How many will it take?”
“You can’t just spank me and make me do what you want.” I protested.
“Let’s test that theory.” He pulled his hand back, targeting my left cheek.
“Okay!” I said, stepping away from him and quickly chugging the drink. It tasted the way it smelled: earthy. A frown creased my face as the thick, cool liquid coated my tongue with a chilling, almost violent descent to my stomach.
“That wasn’t so bad, now was it?”
“That tastes like dirt.” I stuck my tongue out at him. “Why would anyone drink that?”
“Just wait for it.” He moved to sit on the stool next to the bar and watched me.
Moments later, I felt it: the energy surge just beneath my skin. It moved from my toes up to my head and, like a magnet to metal, pulled away the intoxicationleft behind by many fruity drinks. As the seconds passed, I felt surer on my feet, my mind cleared, and the slight nausea went away. And then, I was…sober.
I felt like I had just woken up from the best night of rest. Even my skin felt clean, like I’d showered for an hour. How the hell could a drink do that?
“Woah.” I looked at the cup as if the secret to what I experienced would be written inside it.
“Do you feel better now?” he asked with raised brows that told me he already knew the answer.
“That’s absolutely amazing. How does it work and where can I get more?”
“Do you need more?” Judgment laced his question. “Since when do you drink like that?”
“Since I’m planning to leave the planet for a new world where I might die.” I put the cup down on the bar. “Something like that will push a woman to do strange things, like knocking back six suspiciously fruity drinks.”
“Interesting.” He stood, sliding the cup into the sink behind the bar. “So what you’re telling me is you become reckless when you’re afraid?”
“That’s not what I said,” I defended myself. “I let loose one night. Do you think I’m not allowed that? This coming from the man who keeps trying to convince me to stop being in control of everything. Isn’t that hypocritical?”
“You could consider it to be, but when I tell you to stop trying to control everything, I mean, let other people do things for you, not put yourself in a spot where you can be hurt,” he scolded me. “There are demons after you. They will take any opportunity they can to hurt you.”
“I considered that, and I let Jackie handle it for once.” I started to defend myself then stopped, because I didn’t have to justify a damn thing to anyone. “Wait. I didn’t do anything wrong. Why do I feel likeI’m in trouble?”
“Because you’ve been a bad girl, Jericha,” he said in a forceful yet playful tone before phasing out and appearing again behind me. “Bad girls have to be punished.”
Punish me!
“Bad girl?” I shook my head; why the hell was I excited about the idea of being punished by this man? “I haven’t been a bad girl.”
He smacked my ass again, holding on for a moment before rubbing the spot where his palm met my ass. “Don’t lie to me.”
“I’m not lying. What do you think I did wrong?”
“You told me you were okay when you weren’t.” His hand slipped around my neck. “Jackie talked to me. She said you’re afraid. Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I’m going to kill her,” I muttered. “Since when is she so open to men? She hates y’all.”
“It took some convincing.” I could hear the humor in his tone. “And about five hundred dollars’ worth of sushi. I have never seen anyone inhale fish so quickly. It’s concerning, really.”
