When I arrived at Blue Ruby Ink the next afternoon, Moira gave me a once over and shook her head, dark green hair falling forward. “You must be feeling paranoid,” she said.

“Why do you say that?” I placed the two coffees and paper bag on the counter. She continued to stare at my shoulder where Bandit was perched, staring down at the case of belly button rings, rubbing his little paws together.

“You brought the trash panda,” she smirked. Bandit jumped onto the glass case, his grabby hands already looking for the fastest way in. I tapped him on the shoulder and wiggled my finger back and forth. He took the hint and wrapped his arms around my neck, hanging there like the big baby he was.

“He’s not a trash panda. He’s a raccoon,” I argued, putting an arm around him. Most people called me crazy for having a raccoon when the majority of pet owners had dogs or cats. Something normal. I didn’t want a dog or a cat. I didn’t really want any pets until one day I found a baby raccoon following me home from work. He’s been with me the two years since—and better trained than most people’s children. Apart from the occasional biting problem. But kids do that, too, right?

Moira shrugged and kicked out the barstool next to her. Blue Ruby Ink was the tattoo parlor we’d opened together right after she graduated college at Portland State. I handled tattoos and piercings while she handled all our bills, appointments, and balanced the books.

“So…you want to talk about what happened yesterday?” she asked, flipping through her planner. I settled back onto the barstool next to her and took a sip of my coffee. Strong and black, just the way I liked it.

“Not much to say. Kendall started some shit, so I set her car on fire.” Even thinking about it had me smirking. I wasn’t sorry I did it, even if I had to pay for a new car. She’s had it coming for the last month or so, and it felt damn good to repay some of the hate.

“Not that. The guy in the parking lot.”

I gave her a sideways look, but she kept her eyes on the planner. “Just some guy who paid my bail and wanted to take me out for a drink.”

“The hell? Just some guy that paid your bail? What’d you say?” she prodded. Subtle, she was not.

“No, of course.” I opened the paper bag and took a huge bite of my double chocolate chip muffin. Calorie counting was for suckers. You only live one life, may as well eat your way through it—least that was my take on it.

“Still staying away from men?”

“Can you blame me?”

She frowned at her planner. “No, but I worry about what will happen to you,” she murmured. I opened my mouth to dispute that, right as the front door chimed.

“How can we help you?” she asked, still not looking up. Too bad for her because there was quite a bit to see.

“I have a consultation with Ruby,” he said. I was pretty sure I was staring at a blonde Adonis because there was no possible way his face could be any more handsome. His full lips quirked up at me and I scrambled to stop my staring.

“Name?” Moira asked, flipping back and forth in her planner. I bit at the corner of my thumbnail and ran my hand along Bandit’s fur in a nervous gesture.

“Rysten.”

“I don’t have a Rysten listed,” she said, only then taking the time to look up. He would only see her glamor, beautifully neutral cedar skin that masked her true mint green color. I could see through it, watching her cheeks as they tinged pistachio: the tell-tale signs of a banshee’s blush, but she didn’t seem affected by his presence otherwise. Unlike me. My traitorous pasty white cheeks that turned red under the barest hint of sun, or in this case, blush.

“I’m certain I booked one. Can you check again?” he asked. His eyes never left me, and while he seemed polite and good-natured enough…so was the demon outside the police station.

Moira switched from her planner to the desktop, pulling up my schedule. In the top right corner, first appointment of the day, it said Rysten. She stared at the computer silently, blinking three times.

“That wasn’t there yesterday,” she said matter-o-factly.

“I can assure you that I booked in advance,” he said. He sounded amused. With what, I didn’t know.

“How far in advance?” she pressed. I sighed, getting up from my barstool to swing open the gate and escort him back to my office.

“Several months. I’ll only be in town a short time,” he continued, either not noticing her narrowed eyes and twitchy pen, or simply not caring. Moira took her schedules very seriously. She could be nonchalant about picking me up from jail or setting cars on fire, but fuck with her schedule and you’ll be dealing with a screaming banshee. I was not willing to sacrifice my eardrums.

“Moira, it’s fine. I can take him back and do a consultation. It will only be fifteen minutes,” I said, trying to ease the tension. She hissed under her breath.

“It’s not about the consultation.” Turning to him, she snapped, “What brings you here when you won’t be in town long?” I put my palm to my forehead and ran it down my face, sighing in my frustration. I wouldn’t say that she’s ordinarily sweet to people, because she definitely had some crazy in her, but she wasn’t usually this aggressive. When she sniffed trouble, she was a demon through and through.

Rysten took one look at her and smiled, like she was a hissing kitten and not someone that could burst his eardrums in seconds. “I’m here for Ruby,” he said, turning his dark emerald eyes on me. The intensity was startling. I took a step back. “Your tattoos are all the rage where I’m from. I knew I needed to check them out for myself,” he amended, giving me a boyish grin.

“Right,” I drawled out. The awkward silence hung for a moment before I motioned for him to follow me back. Moira opened her mouth to object, but I beat her to the punch. “It’s fifteen minutes. Please, just let it go. I could use the extra cash to pay for Kendall’s car.”

She glared at me and crossed her arms. “Fine. If you’re late for your next client, it’s on you.” I conceded with a nod and closed my office door behind me. 

Alone with Rysten, I settled behind my desk and leaned back in my chair, crossing my hands in a steeple under my chin. “So, is this the part where you tell me why I have a demon in my office, asking for a tattoo you don’t actually want?”

Across from me, Rysten blinked, his eyes sharpening. The glamor surrounding him pulsed for a moment, but settled back to its nearly undetectable state. He was good; I’ll give him that. Nearly as good as Moira was at hiding her green skin. His body had the slightest sheen over it; not a physical glamor. A psychic one.

“Clever girl. What gave me away?” he asked, that lazy smile reappeared like it never left his face. He may look like he just walked off a beach, but that carefree façade wouldn’t fool me. Demons were not easy-going creatures by nature. The fact that he glamored himself meant he had something to hide.

I quirked my lips up in a neutral smile. “I can’t reveal all my cards, can I? I still don’t know why you’re here.” I wasn’t weak, but I was nothing exceptional. I’d yet to come into my powers, if I ever would, and without any real gifts to speak of, it tended to make other, stronger demons view you as prey. It didn’t help that the only true power I had was the fact that anything and everything with a dick wanted me. Whether I wanted them or not. Best not to piss anyone off too much until I knew what I was dealing with.

“I already told you why I was here, love,” he said kindly. I frowned and scratched behind Bandit’s ears to busy my hands. “I’m here for you.”

“I’d gathered that much. What I don’t know is why.”

“I’m afraid I can’t tell you that just yet,” Rysten replied apologetically. “I wanted to get to know you first. Before the others got involved.” He rolled his eyes in a very human gesture of annoyance.

“Others?”

“I can’t explain that either. They wish to do it together,” he answered, shrugging off my attitude. He was infuriating. Yet another reason to stay away.

“Wait…does this have anything to do with the creeper waiting outside the police station last night?” I probably could have been less demanding about it, but it was too strange not to overlook the possibility.

Rysten snorted. “Allistair?” I nodded once. “I look forward to relaying that message to him.” Damn it. They knew each other. This was not coincidence, but I didn’t get the feeling it had anything to do with them looking to dominate me. Our kind were not subtle in their endeavors, and if that’s what they wanted, I think this conversation would be going very differently.

Bandit purred against my chest, clutching me tighter. I glanced down to see his tail was swaying side to side. He was either happy…or agitated. I was hoping happy because dealing with a biting raccoon was not high on the list of shit I felt like dealing with today.

Rysten eyed him, wrinkling his nose, he said, “I have to ask. Why do you have a raccoon?”

I pursed my lips at the mild disgust in his voice. “Why does anyone have a pet?” I asked. It was rhetorical, but he cocked his head like he was seriously considering my question.

“I suppose companionship. It’s the only real reason I could see anyone taking in a wild animal.” It was both a thoughtful, and yet, a very typical demon outlook. We had the capacity to understand, but not to empathize with most things. My bond with Bandit was abnormal, but I just chalked it up to the half-human in me and left it at that. “He seems quite fond of you,” Rysten noted.

“He is.”

We locked eyes, a world of silent questions swimming before us. I really wanted to know what the hell he was doing here, but he seemed to be content just watching me and evading my question. “You’re not what I expected,” he said eventually. I tilted my head, raising an eyebrow. Before I could ask, there was a knock on my door.

“Your first client is here,” Moira called. I tapped Bandit’s shoulder signaling for him to jump down. He scurried across the floor and up the massive cat tower I kept in my office for when I brought him to work. Most people weren’t too fond of raccoons, and he wasn’t too fond of most people.

Rysten stood, and I walked around the desk to open the door. My hand stilled on the door knob as I faced him. I was prepared to ask him once again why he was here, maybe even add a little persuasion to the mix in hopes of getting a real answer, but something in his eyes had me frozen to the spot. My mouth went dry at the intensity I found: so very similar to the demon from last night, and yet different. Allistair had a roughness, and an air of danger that edged that dominance. I had no doubts that there was more to the incubus than the cold arrogance he exuded.

Rysten had a different feel. His power was offset with curiosity, like I was the enigma he couldn’t figure out. His glamor was still in place; he’d yet to drop it once. There was a flux of something behind it; almost like a ripple of power that he was struggling to contain.

What kind of demon are you?

He reached forward, his fingers only inches from my face, and a knock at the door brought the moment to an abrupt halt.

His hand dropped to his side, a boyish smile lighting his face again as the tension dissipated. I opened the door and stepped through.

“I’ll see you again soon, Ruby,” he murmured. I turned around to say goodbye, but he was already gone. His words hung in the air, a promise that had my skin heating with anticipation.

I was so royally fucked, and I didn’t even know why.