“Hey!” From halfway up the block, Thayne stopped and turned back to glare at her. “By the way, the thief was here and stole something again. So, thanks for nothing, asshole!”
With one last withering look, he turned and continued his blistering retreat. Dickhead jerkface stupid fart.
Shutting the door behind her, Kiki took a moment to try and still her breathing. Surveying the shop, she wondered if anything else had gone missing. Or when the bandit had returned.
It was entirely possible the theft had taken place when they were back in the storeroom. Neither of them had been in any kind of condition to keep an ear out for the door. Still, she refused to let herself believe it was anybody’s fault but Thayne’s. As much as he had cursed himself for being talked into helping, Kiki wondered why she had agreed to give over the shop to some stranger in the first place.
If she hadn’t, she probably would have missed out on the most intense, mind-blowing orgasm of her entire life. But, in the frustration of that moment, she almost thought that would have been worth it. Almost.
Chapter Four
Dereliction of duty.
That’s how Orrin had explained it to Thayne that night. Thayne hadn’t been sure if Orrin referred to the fact that he had missed the thief, or that he’d gotten too friendly with Kiki. But he’d known better than to ask. Not that he was afraid of being chided by the Master Vampire of the Nicolaides clan. Thayne wasn’t one to experience fear.
He hadn’t asked because he knew that letting the thief escape and getting too friendly with Kiki had both been mistakes. There was simply no way around the truth. He knew that better than everyone, and as he opened up the shop the next morning, he promised himself he’d pay double the attention to events and his surroundings. After all, no way would he let such a stupid situation sully his reputation. He got shit done no matter what, and it’d take more than a stupid Enchantress’s spell to make him forget.
He propped himself up on a tall stool, right behind the counter, and folded his arms over his chest. He remained staring at the door for almost five minutes as if he expected the thief to waltz in and admit it all, but none of that happened. Obviously. What happened was that his mind drifted again, his thoughts swirling back to Kiki like bathwater going down the drain.
He thought back to last night, when he had endured that awfully embarrassing conversation with Orrin. Sara had been sitting on the couch behind the Nicolaides Master, and she had offered an explanation to what had happened—maybe Kiki could be his Beloved.
Ridiculous! An Enchantress as his Beloved? If that were true, the world had surely gone mad. Still, a small part of him wondered. What he had felt was awfully similar to how most vampires described finding their Beloved.
That rush of adrenaline, a tidal wave of lust and desire, and an upwelling of affection for a complete stranger. Had there been a checklist for such stuff, Thayne was pretty sure he could tick most boxes. Not to mention the fact that he couldn’t stop thinking about her. It wasn’t just about the thinking, either. His body ached to see her again, every fiber of his being burning with desire every time he thought of her. Only his brain seemed content to hold the line, reminding him to have some common sense.
The whole thing was a ruse.
It had to be.
Enchantresses were experts at putting love spells on unsuspecting people, and he had no doubt Kiki was powerful enough to make him believe their bond was fated. He had no idea why she’d want to mess with his head, especially when he had volunteered to help her catch the thief, but it just went to show how untrustworthy Enchantresses were. Lower your guard around one of them, and next thing you know they’ve wrapped you in strings just to make you dance to their tune.
Well, he wasn’t going to fall for it.
He had a history with Enchantresses, and he knew to be careful.
“All I need to do is catch that damn thief,” he muttered, pinching the bridge of his nose as he rapped his knuckles against the counter. “Just focus on that, Thayne. It’s not that difficult.”
Except it was.
Even though he put in his best effort to keep a clear head, everything in the stupid shop reminded him of Kiki—from the little trinkets by the entrance to the wooden counter against which he had pushed her. He couldn’t focus on a single thing focus that would help. Except, maybe, for the silver charms, but he wasn’t that desperate.
Not yet, at least.
It helped that Sara had gone back and convinced Kiki to stay away from the shop, so there was that. Unfortunately, that was also a bit of a bummer. His mind couldn’t let go of her, and the fact he couldn’t see her was like having an itch he couldn’t scratch.
“Welcome to Witch Way Supply,” he intoned dutifully as the door swung open.
The bell jingled happily, and a lanky woman stepped inside, her teenage daughter trailing behind her. Thayne recognized them. They’d come in the day before and browsed a few of the cauldrons Kiki had on display, but they hadn’t bought a thing. Now, though, they were back.
With his elbows resting on the counter, Thayne watched them with hawk-like intent, tracking their every move as they walked through the aisles. His helpful clerk smile remained plastered on his face, but underneath it was the calculating mindset of a predator, one that moved in the cover of night.
It was probably overkill to think of himself that way, especially considering he was only dealing with an inoffensive shoplifter, but he couldn’t exactly flip off that switch. Even if this was an easy job, that didn’t change the fact that he was a predator, one that took every single one of his objectives as seriously as possible.
“That’s a good one,” the younger woman said, going on tiptoes to peer over her mother’s shoulder. They were looking at a shelf that was lined with cast iron cauldrons, the type experienced witches used.
“Right, they look like it,” the mother said, a smile spreading across her lips.
Something about that smile was slightly off though. Somehow, there was too much politeness in it. Narrowing his eyes, Thayne remained focused on the two women, watching as the younger one kept trailing after the elder.
Despite her perky and cheery personality, the young woman had the look of someone who was about to shut the door on her teenage years. If he had to guess, he would say she was somewhere between eighteen and twenty. Her skin was a rich, dark brown that reminded him of chestnuts, which contrasted with the brightness of her blue eyes, and she moved elegantly despite her curviness. In fact, it wasn’t just elegance. She moved as if she had boundless energy, her actions those of someone who was too excited about something.
It didn’t help the girl’s case that her style was so different from what it had been the day before. While today she wore red jeans, her blouse a bright yellow, yesterday her fashion sense had been muted and almost too prim.
Why such a dramatic change?
And why did he feel something was off about the whole thing?
Then, when it finally dawned on him, he had to make an effort not to smack his forehead. She had seen the girl and her mother before, that was much true, but yesterday her “mother” had been someone else. She had been smart enough to choose similar-looking women she could shadow, no doubt, but Thayne had been paying close attention to everything that went on inside the shop. He couldn’t be fooled easily.