Page 30 of Summoning Mr. Wrong
“You were amazing,” I said again, because it needed repeating. “Oscar-worthy performance.”
“I wasn’t entirely acting,” he said, catching my hand and pulling me closer. “Especially the part about you being special to me.”
My heart did that stuttering thing again. “Deus…”
“I know, I know. Temporary arrangement, contract eventually fulfilled, blah blah blah.” He waved dismissively. “But that doesn’t change how I feel now.”
Before I could respond, his phone chimed with a notification. He checked it, his expression instantly hardening.
“What is it?” I asked, noticing the change.
“Nothing important,” he said, too quickly. “Administrative stuff.”
But his tattoos were moving more rapidly, a sure sign he was upset. And it wasn’t the first time he’d received a message that changed his mood.
“Deus,” I said firmly, “what’s going on? You keep getting these messages that clearly bother you, but you won’t tell me what they’re about.”
He hesitated, clearly debating how much to share. “It’s… complicated.”
“Try me,” I challenged. “I summoned a demon by accident and now we’re sleeping together. I think I can handle complicated.”
He ran a hand through his hair, a surprisingly human gesture of frustration. “It’s about the contract. The favor.”
My stomach tightened. “What about it?”
“There’s a… deadline.” He wouldn’t meet my eyes. “All contracts have them, though they’re usually much longer. Centuries, sometimes.”
“And ours?” I asked, already dreading the answer.
“Three months from the summoning,” he said quietly. “Which means I have about two weeks left to fulfill the favor.”
The room seemed to tilt slightly. “Two weeks? And then what?”
“And then I go back,” he said simply. “Whether the favor is completed or not.”
“What happens if you don’t complete it?” I asked, though I wasn’t sure I wanted to know.
His expression darkened. “Nothing good. For either of us.”
“Can’t you just… I don’t know, fake it? Say you completed it even if you didn’t?”
He shook his head. “Doesn’t work that way. The magic of the contract knows. It’s why I’ve been getting messages—reminders of the deadline, warnings about the consequences of failure.”
I sank onto the couch, trying to process this new information. Two weeks. After that, Deus would be gone, back to his realm, out of my life. The thought created a hollow feeling in my chest that I wasn’t prepared for.
“So we need to figure out what the favor is,” I said, trying to focus on solutions rather than the impending loss. “Fast.”
Deus sat beside me, his usual confidence dimmed. “I’ve been trying. I thought at first it was simple—help you with money, your job situation. But that doesn’t feel… significant enough for a demonic contract.”
“What about…” I hesitated, embarrassed by the direction of my thoughts. “The sex? Energy transfer stuff?”
He smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “Enjoyable, but no. That’s just a bonus.”
“Then what?” I threw up my hands in frustration. “What could I possibly need from a demon that would require a magical contract?”
Deus was quiet for a moment, studying me with those glowing eyes. “I have a theory,” he said finally. “But you’re not going to like it.”
“Try me.”
