Page 121 of Ruined Vows

“So how do we do this?”

Kira claps her hands together and snatches the bag out of my hand.

“I’ll get the tea warming in the kettle!”

FORTY-SEVEN

KIRA

“Okay,”I say, so excited I can barely keep still after I have the tea prepared. I pour it into one of the hotel cups and bring it over to Isaak.

He takes the cup and looks at the brew speculatively. He leans in to take a sniff.

“Oh, don’t—” I start, but he’s already making a gagging face.

“Fuck, that smells putrid.”

“Yeah. It tastes fucking awful, too. Sorry. I should’ve warned you again. I suggest holding your nose every time you sip. And we should set our intentions while we wait for the tea to cool down.”

“I want to stop having fucking nightmares,” Isaak says.

Then he pinches his nose in between his fingers, brings the cup to his lips, tips it and his head backward, and chugs it all in one go.

“Isaak!”

His face contorts at the disgusting taste, but he sets it back down, empty except for the dregs of soggy mushrooms.

“Great,” he says, face still twisted from the bad taste. “What now?”

“Let me get you some fresh water. I was going to get that ready while the tea cooled. But you’re so goddamn impatient.”

“I’m not impatient. You’re impatient.”

“Me! I’m not the one who just downed a whole cup of burning, disgusting tea.”

“Well, you just brewed the disgusting stuff. I always suspected you were a witch.”

“Did you just call me a witch?”

“Absolutely. Red hair, disgusting medicinal brews, explosive orgasms. What else could you be?”

I roll my eyes, bringing him a water bottle. “Drink this.”

“Is the therapy for me to just piss out my trauma?”

“Shut up and drink it.”

“I like it when you order me around, Red. Tell me I’ve been a bad, bad boy.”

“Oh my god. I order you to be serious now and tell me yourrealintentions for our session.”

He cracks the water bottle and tips his head back just like he did with the tea, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he sucks it down.

“You don’t have to drinkallof it!”

He stops after finishing about half the bottle. “Had to get that foul taste out of my mouth.” He caps the bottle and looks around. “I don’t feel anything.”

“Well, it doesn’t work right away.”

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