She took a bracing gulp of beer before slipping off the barstool. Her heart thundered in her chest as she pushed through the dancing crowd. Halloween always ensured everyone went home blind drunk and, by the looks of things, the night was well under way.
Butterflies filled her stomach as she moved close to her quarry. She tried to conjure up her usual confident self and not the tongue-tied teenager she invariably morphed into whenever she got within ten feet of Ciar. This was Halloween. Tonight was her night. There was no time for nerves.
Brushing off a random reveler trying to gain her attention, Mikayla slid up next to Ciar.
“Happy Halloween,” she said.
The demon glanced down at her. “And to you,” he replied in his velvety voice.
Mikayla waited for Ciar to say something else but he turned his gaze back to the crowd.
“Enjoying yourself?”
His eyes flickered back to her. “Of course. It’s the one bar in the city where I don’t have to pretend to be human.”
“Right,” Mikayla muttered. Mentally she cringed. Why, oh why, couldn’t she be as effortlessly charming as Tamsyn or as flirtatious as Wyn?
“I came with my sisters tonight,” she said, reaching for something to fill the uncomfortable silence. “You know us witches. We like to roll together.”
His eyes darkened with an unnamed emotion before he dropped his gaze. “How nice.”
Smooth, she mocked herself. Remind him of the main reason he doesn’t want you. Of course, a far more insidious voice within her whispered, there might be other reasons he didn’t want her. Ones that had nothing to do with her species.
“Are you here alone?” she asked, shaking off the nagging doubts.
“Always.”
“You could come have a drink with us.”
He glanced behind her toward where she’d been sitting before shaking his head. “Bad idea. Your sisters aren’t comfortable around me.”
“I am.”
Interest leapt to his eyes before the heartening emotion was banished and his cool mask put firmly back in place. “But then again, you don’t know me.”
“I’ve known you for months.”
“And learned nothing. Not if you are here once more.”
She flinched but lifted her chin another notch. Fine. She might not know him well but Ciar was the most secretive man she’d ever met. If he trusted her just a little bit she’d treasure every revelation.
“I could know you,” she offered. “It’s Halloween. What do you have to lose?”
He watched her in silence. His face betrayed no hint of emotion.
“It’s not a matter of loss but gain.” His gaze swept over her, moving slowly down her body before returning to her face. “And I have nothing to gain.”
She stiffened. Did he find her that lacking? The urge to mutter an excuse and retreat was strong. But tonight was her best chance of getting through to him. She wouldn’t run.
“Then you’re not looking hard enough,” she said, putting a hand on her hip.
He sighed before twisting to push her back up against the bar. Mikayla caught her breath as she stared up at him.
“What do you want from me, little witch?”
“I…” She stopped, not knowing what to say. What would he do if she whispered how she wanted him to show up at her door, how she’d delight if he pinned her to the kitchen table and slid the thin straps of her tank down her arms? How she’d crave the touch of his naked skin pressed against hers or revel in the sensation of him sinking into her?
Ciar arched an elegant eyebrow in question.
Mikayla straightened her shoulders and lifted her chin. Demons valued strength. She wouldn’t let him intimidate her. “I want you to give me a chance. I’m worth it.” She met his gaze and refused to look away. Time to play all her cards. This was a night of revels and she wanted hers to be with him.
For a moment he didn’t move, merely watched her with his unreadable eyes. Finally, he leaned closer until his mouth was a breath away from hers.
Mikayla tilted her head up to him, parting her lips in anticipation of his kiss. After all this time, he was responding to her the way he had the first night.
But his lips never touched hers.
“Trust me,” he murmured against her mouth. “That’s the last thing you should want.” He pushed away from her before she could protest. “Leave me alone, witch,” he told her. “I’ll never be interested.”
Ciar strode away without a backward glance.
Mikayla stood stunned and alone. Within seconds her shock gave way to crushing humiliation. Was she that unattractive? That clumsy and unsophisticated that she couldn’t even talk a demon into a one-night stand? Pain tore through her. He couldn’t have picked his words better to shred her pride. Had she misread the lust she’d seen in his eyes when they’d first met? Had he been laughing at her all this time as she’d tried to gain his interest? Mikayla, the foolish witch who couldn’t even figure out when all a man wanted from her was an escape route. She gripped the bar, gauging little crescents into the polished wood with her nails. He had been deliberately cruel. More than was necessary. She’d always heard demons were vicious but she’d never expected him to treat her with such cold disregard.