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  Just her freaking luck.

  Mikayla balled the pillowcase in her hands with vicious glee. It wasn’t like she could blame anyone but herself. She’d asked her sisters to help. Hell, Alina probably was the key to freeing Ciar. She should be rejoicing. But the other woman’s presence meant only one thing, that she was about to lose her lover.

  “Cleaning?” a gruff voice asked.

  Mikayla dropped the sheet and whirled to face the doorway. Ciar leaned against the frame, watching her.

  “Hey,” she said, her heart thundering at the sight of him.

  He pushed himself off the wall before sauntering into her room. His eyes flickered over the stripped bed before coming back to her. “You owe me some explanations.”

  “Yeah,” she agreed. “I do.”

  Ciar prowled closer to her, stepping over the soiled sheets without ever looking away from her.

  “I didn’t know you’d been engaged.” The words were out before she could call them back.

  His smile held no humor. “It’s not a happy chapter of my life.”

  “Alina’s beautiful,” she said with a shrug. Surely any man would be happy with that woman as his wife.

  Ciar moved to her side, wrapping a hand around her waist. When he touched her, his face relaxed as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. “For decades that was the only thing I noticed about her.”

  “What changed?”

  He shook his head. “She proved what sort of demon she truly was. In my world, Mikayla, power means everything. She found a man who had more of it to offer than I.”

  She cupped his face between her palms. “Idiot woman.”

  Ciar leaned forward and drew his lips along hers in a teasing touch. “Why is she here?”

  “I thought she could help us break the spell.”

  He moved back slightly. “Demon magic is not the same as witch magic. They aren’t compatible.”

  “That’s not why we need her.”

  “Then why? Help me understand this, Mikayla.”

  She opened her mouth to explain about the spell before snapping it shut. She’d planned on telling him everything, truly she had, but standing here before him she wondered for the first time if that was the worst thing she could do. Ciar was a warrior. He fought to control his own fate. If she told him he was forced to fall in love, he’d resist with everything he had.

  But if the emotion developed naturally, without his guard up, he had a chance. A real chance. He could fall in love without his stubborn nature getting the better of him. If he knew the truth, he might never be free from the spell.

  Pain spiraled through her chest. She couldn’t tell him what he needed to know and he’d see it as one more betrayal on the steadily growing list.

  “Tell me,” he said, his voice soft. “Whatever is going on, we can figure it out together.”

  If only that were so, she thought. But she’d gotten him into this mess and she’d get him out, regardless of the cost to her.

  Placing a hand on his shoulder, she pushed him back.

  Ciar looked at her with puzzled eyes as his hands fell from her body.

  “Mikayla?”

  She lifted her chin and met his gaze. “I’m not going to tell you why she’s here,” she announced. “I can’t.”

  For a moment he said nothing. Once her words penetrated, however, his expressive eyes shuttered. “Can’t?” he said. “Or won’t?”

  “Both. We need Alina here but if I tell you why, it will ruin everything.”

  Anger sparked in his eyes. “You dredged up my past. You brought a woman I never wanted to see again into your home. Tell me why.”

  “No.”

  “What game are you playing this time, Mikayla?”

  She flinched at the ice in his voice but refused to back down. “If I asked you to trust me,” she countered, “would you?”

  A hiss escaped him before he spun around to pace the length of her room. “Demons don’t trust.”

  “I’m your lover.”

  “You’re a witch.”

  And there it was. The death knell to her budding hopes. Ciar would never forgive the one fact abut herself she couldn’t, wouldn’t, change. Not even for him.

  “It will always come back to that, won’t it?” she asked.

  “You cursed me.”

  “And now I’m trying to right that wrong, with or without your permission.” She strode over to him and grabbed his arm, stilling his pacing. “This is me,” she told him. “I am a witch, one with power I can’t always control. And yes, I make mistakes with it and no doubt will do so again. But I am also a woman who was in your arms last night. I’m a person who would go to any lengths for the people I care about and I—” She stopped before the damning words could escape.

  “And you what?” he demanded. “Care for me?”

  For a second she wanted to retreat. Wanted to drop his accusing gaze and flee, but Mikayla would never run from this man. He needed to see who she really was beneath the magic and the lies. “Yes,” she confessed. “I care about you.”

  “You have a funny way of showing it.”

  She flinched as he brushed off her confession. “There are only so many times I can apologize, Ciar. I will be eternally sorry for what I’ve done to you but I can’t tell you what you want to know.”

  He moved with liquid speed, grabbing her arms and pulling her close.

  “You owe me this.”

  “I do,” she agreed. “But my decision remains unchanged.”

  He bared his teeth in a gesture so inhuman it startled her.

  “Damn you,” he growled. “Damn you for doing this to us.”

  Mikayla cupped his face between her hands, her heart tearing at the pain in his voice. “Trust me,” she whispered. “Look past this and trust the woman who spent the night in bed with you.”

  Something flickered in his eyes before they grew cold once more. “No.”

  She hadn’t truly expected any other response, but it hadn’t stopped her from hoping. “I failed you,” she told him softly. “This curse I laid…it’s unforgivable. But believe me now when I say I will do my best to protect you against any who would harm you. Including me.”

  His hands tightened on her arms. “I don’t need your protection. I need your answers.”

  In reply she leaned closer and pressed a last, gentle kiss to his lips. If Alina did her job well, it would be the last kiss they ever shared.

  Without another word she extracted herself from his arms and strode for the door. She’d almost made it when his words stopped her.

  “Demons don’t like to be toyed with,” he said, his voice cold and devoid of emotion. “I will give you three days to fix this, Mikayla, before I take matters into my own hands.”

  “I’m not your enemy,” she said, looking back at him.

  “Then stop acting like one.”

  How she wished she could. She longed to give him the answers he demanded but it would be the weak, cowardly way out.

  “Three days is not enough time.”

  “I’m not negotiating.”

  She looked at his inscrutable face and knew he meant every word. Three days. There was no way she could resolve this mess in so little time.

  But if she didn’t, she’d find herself pitted against her lover. The universe had one twisted sense of humor.

  “Looks like we’d better pray for a miracle,” she told him before leaving him alone in the room they’d found such joy in only hours ago.

  Chapter Six

  “I’ve been looking for you.”

  Mikayla stiffened at the soft voice behind her. She’d come out into the backyard searching for some peace. It’d been a terse day for everyone and the last thing she wanted to do was play twenty questions with Ciar’s latest squeeze.

  Retreating out here should have given her the peace she’d been looking for but for once, the garden hadn’t calmed her. Instead she’d stood on the porch and gazed out at the dark trees. One of the r
easons she loved this house was the sprawling yard. It backed up to one of the city parks, giving it the illusion of space and privacy. Rose bushes and twisting trees hid the back of the garden from the view of the house. It was a perfect place to get away from the home full of people.

  Rows of herbs and vegetables lined the path connecting the porch to a small stone bench at the back of the garden. Everything they needed for their potions grew close at hand. Out here was her sanctuary.

  And Alina was intruding.

  With a sigh she turned to face the woman. After all, Alina was their secret weapon. Mikayla needed to do her part to ensure the other woman won Ciar’s heart.

  Alina stepped gracefully onto the porch and looked around.

  “Well, here I am,” Mikayla said, looking back toward the yard.

  “Ciar has been ranting about you,” Alina confessed in her musical voice. She stopped beside Mikayla, reaching out to hold the old wooden rail. “What did you do to enrage him?”

  Mikayla kept her face expressionless though the words were like daggers. “Nothing important,” she replied.

  Alina studied her in the evening darkness.

  Mikayla met her gaze head-on. “Did you need something?”

  “I was shocked when your sisters tracked me down,” Alina said. “You know they even entered the demon realm to find me? They are strong women, your family.”

  “I didn’t know they went to such lengths.”

  Alina shrugged. “I believe it was for you more than for Ciar. They think I will fix everything and take him from your life.”

  “That’s the plan.”

  Alina nodded, her dark eyes watching Mikayla. “Most of my kind don’t care to learn about other races,” she said. “Especially witches. All your spells and incantations go too far past our own powers. But my nanny was a witch when I was a child. I know about your kind.”

  “And what did you learn?”

  “I know what kind of spell you cast on Ciar.”

  Mikayla’s grip on the railing tightened.

  “It’s a Beauty-and-the-Beast spell, isn’t it? You need him to fall in love to undo the curse you laid on him. It’s why you found me.” When Mikayla said nothing, she continued, “It’s all right, I won’t say anything. I think you were right to keep this knowledge from him. Ciar is stubborn, even by our standards.”

  “You know a lot about him,” Mikayla said.

  The other woman nodded. “I spent much of my life betrothed to him. Our families wanted an alliance, neither Ciar nor I objected.” She smiled at the memory. “I thought I was the luckiest woman in the realm to one day have him as my own.”

  “What happened?”

  Alina dropped her gaze. She ran a manicured fingernail along the grooves in the wooden rail. “When you live as long as we do time runs differently. A human engagement might last a few months, ours last decades. That’s a long time for things to change. To go wrong.”

  “You didn’t love Ciar anymore?”

  Alina chuckled. “Nothing so mundane. Tell me, Mikayla, what do you know of Ciar’s life before he came here?”

  “Not much.”

  “He’s important,” Alina told her. “Or rather, his family is. His father was the lord of our clan.”

  Mikayla’s eyes widened. Clan Lords were all powerful in the demon world. They were the strongest, smartest and most brutal of their kind. To her knowledge, there were only six clans in existence, which meant Ciar’s lineage was impressive, to say the least.

  “I was to be Ciar’s bride but I was a foolish young girl,” Alina continued. “I wanted to wed his older brother, Teivel.”

  “Why?”

  “Because Teivel would rule,” Alina said, lifting her chin. “And Ciar never could.”

  Mikayla shook her head. “So you gave Ciar up as soon as a better offer came around.”

  Alina smiled. “Such a simple witch you are. Power, wealth, prestige, you’d sacrifice it all for the one you love, wouldn’t you?”

  “Money doesn’t keep you warm at night.”

  “Well, I wanted to test the theory. I broke it off with Ciar and he left for the human world.”

  “Did you marry Teivel?”

  Alina nodded. “I was a good wife to him. Right up until the day he died.”

  “Died?” Mikayla breathed. Ciar had lost his brother?

  “A few months ago in battle,” Alina said. The words were said in an even tone but Mikayla heard the regret in them. “I cared for Teivel,” she continued. “I truly did. We had a good marriage and together we made our clan strong.”

  “But?”

  Alina glanced in her direction. “But I never forgot about Ciar or how much I loved him. Teivel and I were partners, Ciar and I were so much more. When your sisters found me, I thought it was a sign. It was my chance to change the past.”

  “But who’s the Clan Lord now?” Mikayla asked. “Why can’t Ciar rule?”

  “Ask Ciar,” she replied. “I have told you too much already. He is not a man who appreciates others prying into his life without permission.”

  “I know how private he is.”

  “I’m sure.” Alina turned to face her fully. “Your spell may be the best thing that has ever happened to me.”

  “Not exactly what I was going for,” she replied, unable to keep the frost from her voice.

  Alina inclined her head. “I am grateful you sent your sisters to find me. Truly I am. But I need to be clear. Ciar is my future and I won’t let anything get between us again. Do you understand?”

  Mikayla stiffened.

  “I see the way you look at him and I’m not an idiot. Any woman would want Ciar as her own. But he’s mine.”

  “You gave him up.”

  “We were always destined to end up together,” Alina replied. “You can’t stop fate no matter how strong your desire. Ciar is a demon. He will choose me.”

  Mikayla jerked back, stung. She knew that was the plan. She had to give Ciar up to this woman but that didn’t stop the anger simmering within her. “You’re pretty confident for a woman who threw him away like a broken toy.”

  “I was his first love,” she replied. “He will never care about you the way he did me. I owe you, Mikayla, so I will give you this piece of advice. Don’t fight a battle you will never win.”

  She pushed away from the rail before Mikayla could protest. As Mikayla watched the demon go, she knew Alina’s request was not unreasonable. But that didn’t stop her desire to fight the beautiful woman. Or prove her wrong.

  Long minutes ticked by as she stood alone in the dark. From the kitchen she could hear Alina’s trilling laughter and the low voices of her sisters. But there were no growls or woofs to indicate the presence of the poodle on everyone’s mind. Which meant for a few rare moments, Ciar was alone. She shook her head at the foolish thought. Alone, perhaps, but not eager to see her.

  Mikayla tapped her fingers on the wooden rail. There had to be a way out of this. Something they hadn’t thought of yet. Alina wasn’t right for Ciar. Maybe she had been once but not now. She was too…power hungry. Too calculating. Ciar needed someone…

  Like me.

  She shook her head. Even if that was true, she’d never get him to see it. Her tapping fingers increased their pace. If love wasn’t the answer she needed, then maybe magic would be. There were some old spell books in the attic. They hadn’t seen the light of day in years but maybe they weren’t as useless as everyone had thought. At the very least, going through them would give her something to do. Away from prying eyes and grasping demons.

  She pushed away from the rail, intent on a few hours of study. No one hindered her as she strode through the kitchen. She tried to ignore the knowing glances Alina threw her way before she could reach the safety of the stairs.

  Mikayla was careful to avoid the guestroom Ciar and Alina had taken over, not in the mood for another fight. Instead she glided down the hall and pushed open the attic door, barely registering that it already stood aja
r. A flight of stairs appeared before her, leading up into the dark.

  Hitting the switch at the bottom of the stairs brought a single light bulb to life. It flickered valiantly as it tried to hold back the encroaching gloom. Silently she climbed the stairs. The attic was rarely used. Odds and ends accumulated over years littered the floor.

  When Mikayla stepped from the stairs she saw the little white dog curled up on the window seat looking out the only window in the attic. All it took was a single step toward him for magic to activate. Black smoke coiled around his small form in an instant.

  Ciar shook his head as the smoke dissipated, looking down at his natural body.

  “Attraction, huh?” he murmured to himself.

  Mikayla gripped the banister, not wanting another fight.

  There was nothing welcoming in Ciar’s eyes as he regarded her. “One place,” he said. “I just wanted one place free of you.”

  “Spell books,” she replied, pointing toward the clutter. “I was going to do some research.”

  “Even though you know very well what’s happening.”

  She lifted her chin. “I’m hoping there’s another way to break the curse. Something I can achieve in three days.”

  Ciar remained silent but waved her on with a regal swipe of his hand.

  Mikayla drifted forward, not wanting to turn her back on a demon. Even one who knew her intimately.

  Ciar must have noticed her hesitation, for a cynical smile twisted his lips. “Ah,” he said, tilting his head back against the wall. “Now you’re scared.”

  The words froze her in place. Slowly she turned to him, her eyes narrowed. “Am not.”

  “And here I was hoping you’d finally wised up.” He lifted his hand and tiny sparks danced from fingertip to fingertip. Mikayla shivered as the temperature of the attic dropped in the presence of his demonic magic.

  “You don’t scare me.”

  The slight smile widened into a grin. “I do.”

  She knew he had reason to be angry, that she should take whatever he threw her way without complaint, but this was one accusation she couldn’t let stand. Demons only took strong lovers and with Alina here, she needed to be stronger now than ever.

  Mikayla strode to his side and fisted a hand in his shirt. Though she pulled him up she knew the only reason she got him on his feet was because he let her. Her eyes locked on his, ignoring the cold fire playing around his fingers. He wouldn’t let it touch her. She wasn’t sure of much, but she was sure of that.