“I asked him a lot of questions about his life, and his answers were really evasive. And I went through his wallet, and he had no ID. I also checked his phone, and his only contacts are his three brothers. And get this, they all have demon names too! There’s Belial, Raum, and Meph, which is short for Mephis-something.”
“That’s odd. But if he is actually...supernatural, why would he tell you names that would make you suspicious?”
“I don’t know, but he didn’t seem to care that I found it weird.”
The sound of the coffeepot gurgling came over the line as Eva’s elevator dinged, and she climbed out, heading down the hall toward the street.
“Do you feel safe with him?”
She stepped into the morning sunshine. The spring air had a bit of a bite to it, but she was too happy to see the sun after months of winter to care about being cold. “If I was in danger, I would’ve had some kind of feeling, right?”
“Not necessarily. Some people are very good at hiding their darkness.”
“Hmm.” She walked toward the cafe, which was only about five steps from the door to her apartment. “It’s just, I’m really into him, and he’s an incredible musician, and it seems stupid to throw that away because I had a hallucination.”
“Maybe I should consult your dad. He’s the one that knows about the occult stuff.”
When he wasn’t making modern art with her mom, Dan was obsessed with occult studies and witchcraft. What could she say? Her parents were eccentric. She’d long since accepted it.
Eva leaned against the glass beside the cafe entrance and crossed her feet at the ankles. “Yeah, maybe it’s not a bad idea. You could ask him about their names.”
“If someone’s heard of it, your dad will know about it.”
“Dad’s so weird.” Eva laughed fondly. “Both of you are. How did I end up with such weird parents?”
“Good karma, obviously. Now, get back to your mysterious lover. But first, I have one last suggestion for you.”
“Hit me.”
“If you really like this guy and see it becoming more serious, you should consider telling him what you saw.”
“What? No way. If I really did hallucinate it, he’ll think I’m a nutjob!”
“As someone who has been married for twenty-seven years, let me give you some advice. If you want a real relationship, it has to be built on trust. If the foundation is weak, the structure will fall. If he cares about you, he’ll accept it if you hallucinate things occasionally. And if you really did see something, maybe he’ll tell you what you saw. Maybe there’s a logical explanation. Maybe he’s into role-play.”
“Mom.”
“I’m just saying, if you like the guy, consider talking to him. You don’t want to start a relationship on such a distrustful footing. You went through his wallet and phone, for heaven’s sake.”
“I had to!”
“I know that, but you can see how that doesn’t exactly scream ‘healthy boundaries.’”
“Yeah, I can. All right, I’ll think about it.”
Eva said goodbye a minute later and headed into the cafe. She opened Ash’s wallet and fingered the wad of cash. She might have found it strange that he had nothing in there, but the fact that he’d handed her the thing and told her to spend his money said he wasn’t concerned about her knowing.
How could someone be suspicious if they didn’t try to hide it? Wasn’t that the very nature of being suspicious? God, her head hurt.
“Can I help you?” The guy behind the counter smiled expectantly.
She rubbed her head and tried to focus on the pastry display.
8
Sexcapades and Pastries
Eva stopped in the hall outside her apartment. The hairs on the back of her neck rose at the music coming through the door. As she listened, she recognized the chords and melody Ash was outlining between tasteful embellishments.
