The next second, her lips met his in another crash of fire and earth. Her fingers worked the buttons on his shirt, eager to feel the skin on his chest, drawing a moan from the planar. Gold rippled over his skin, glamour cracking.

She leaned down to run her tongue over the scales that appeared, working another button open.

He pulled back to look at her. Ronnie could have sworn actual fire danced in his eyes, then saw the gentle flames roar into an inferno.

Earnest flipped her over, so he was straddling her. One hand found her breast, teasing a nipple through the fabric. The other slid up her leg, gliding under her dress. She gasped at the sheer sensation. “Be mine, Ronnie.”

“I --”

He cut her off with another kiss, fingers playing around her thighs.

The announcer boomed again, startling them both. “Thank you for your patronage! But wait, the show’s not over yet! There will now be an intermission! The show will resume in an hour, but the card tables are now open. Minimums are set at a thousand dollars — good luck!”

Without warning, the veil dropped, returning the partitions to their original place. A server appeared, politely averting their eyes. “Refreshments for you?”

The voice sounded familiar. Ronnie turned her head, acutely aware of her position under Earnest. “Sarah?”

The server went instantly pale, almost dropping her platter of drinks. She tried to say something, but then she looked over at Earnest and blanched, doing her best to look anywhere but at Ronnie’s flushed face and disheveled jet-black dress. “I’m sorry,” Sarah stammered, straightening up and rearranging the items on her tray. “I’m afraid you’ve got me mistaken for someone else — Miss Liri must’ve given me the wrong table.” 

Ronnie started protesting, but it was too late — Sarah was already backpedaling away. “My apologies,” she said hurriedly, lowering her head. “I’ll leave you two alone now.” 

Ronnie’s face was on fire, but the heat was still pooling between her legs, snapping her back to reality. “Ok, you can get off me,” she hissed, growing increasingly embarrassed by the second when she realized there were still swirls of green in her dress and his tie. “Fucking hell — I can’t believe I almost let you do that in public!” 

Earnest sighed, resting his head against hers- she couldn’t help but inhale the warm scent of him wafting across her nostrils. “Look around, Ronnie,” he murmured, pressing his lips to hers- despite her irritation, she couldn’t stop herself from parting her lips and allowing him to explore her mouth again. “Like I said… there’s a reason humans only come as dates.” 

As he snaked his tongue down the side of her throat, Ronnie threw her head back and let out a soft moan. When she did, she glanced around the room and saw that Earnest was right — all around them, she could see planars in various states of undress, taking full advantage of the ‘intermission’. 

Shocked, Ronnie jerked back and stared at Earnest. His eyes were almost entirely green by now, and he was staring at her like she was the only thing he wanted in the world. Has to be the spell, Ronnie thought, frantically trying to ignore the throbbing between her legs as he slid his hand beneath her dress, slowly tracing his finger over the soft silk of her underwear. There’s no way he’d be doing this on his own. 

Sucking in a deep breath, Ronnie’s hands began moving on their own accord, threading themselves in his long, dark hair and yanking his mouth against hers. As soon as their lips collided, Earnest slipped his finger between her legs — instantly, she felt a burst of heat and a connection so intense she almost bit his lip. It was as if her body was no longer her own, twisting and turning on itself to satisfy his every desire.

For now, there was no case, no Vent, no sister, nothing. There was only the intense need to have him touch her, stroke her, consume her—

No, something was wrong.

“No,” Earnest heaved, pulling himself away and panting, his pupils blown wide. “We can’t stay here anymore… we have to go.” 

Ronnie pouted, reaching out to trace her fingers over the back of his neck. “But I want you,” she purred, reaching for his hand and trying to slide it back down to her thigh. “I thought you wanted me?” 

It was like she was watching herself, but unable to interfere. What the hell was she saying?

“I do,” he replied, obliging her with a light kiss. “And if you still want me when we get out of here, that’s definitely a conversation I’m more than willing to have — but right now, we’re stuck in a feedback loop.” He grimaced as he pulled away from her, but his eyes never left hers. “And we have a leprechaun to see.”

Taking a deep breath, Earnest stood up, smoothing the wrinkles out of his suit as he snapped his fingers again. A server — male, this time — instantly appeared. “I require Lirianna.”

The space between them made it easier to think. He was right — what had gotten into her?

“Sir — I mean, your grace—” the server stumbled over his words. “She is not to be disturbed.”

Earnest glanced down at Ronnie, who still seemed too out of it to notice the slip. “I insist. She’ll make an exception for me.” When the server hesitated, Earnest reached into his pocket and held up a chip, twisting it dextrously between his fingers. “There’s a $500 tip for you if you do this.”

The server licked his lips as his hands closed around the offering. “Very well.” He bowed and disappeared into a fine mist — moments later, Lirianna stood next to their partition, her eyes half-lidded and an expression of mild annoyance on her beautiful face. “Earnest, darling. What was so pressing that I had to interrupt my meal?”

“I need to do a small cast on behalf of my date.” He waved a hand at Ronnie. “I’d appreciate your help.”

Lirianna laughed. “I took care of that for you, my dear. Think of it as a testament to old times. I admit, Bacchus was a bonus — nothing wrong with a special guest now and again.”

Ronnie blinked, feeling like someone had dumped ice water on her senses. “Wait, you did this? You … roofied me?” She stood to jab a finger in Lirianna’s chest, violet streaking through the green in her eyes. “Fucking manipulation! I knew it!”

Lirianna studied Ronnie briefly before returning her focus to Earnest. “I must say, the rumors about her power are true. That cast is usually a great deal more effective. What’s your angle, your grace?”

Earnest gritted his teeth. “No angle, Lirianna. I hardly need to resort to such deceptions to charm a lady to my bed.” He smiled, letting his glamour crack enough to bare his teeth — the expression was anything but pleasant. “Surely, you remember.”

Ronnie bristled at the implications, but Lirianna returned the smile. “Perfectly.” The siren sighed dramatically before waving a hand. “If that’s what you truly desire. Rainmaker, you may feel queasy. I recommend some of the Petit fours; they’re the house special tonight.”

Before she could say anything, Ronnie felt a tsunami rush through her forest. When it left, she realized it took a layer of fog with it — a fog she hadn’t noticed. The lights and sounds of the casino seemed clearer. They were no less irritating to the senses, but at least they were in sharper focus. She breathed a sigh of relief when the fabric of her dress slid back into the rainbow hues.

Earnest gave a slight bow to the siren. “It’s been a pleasure seeing you, Lirianna.”

Lirianna curtsied back, far more gracefully than Ronnie had done earlier. “Likewise.” She turned and floated into the crowd.

Ronnie took several steps back and rearranged her dress, glancing over at Earnest. When she met his gaze, she only saw the everyday shade of human brown and swallowed nervously. “My eyes?”

“Normal.”

“Good. Good.” She licked her lips, rubbing her hands together. “Earnest, I’m sorry.”

He hesitated before pulling her into a gentle embrace and placing a kiss on top of her head. “Don’t apologize for Lirianna’s poor behavior.”

Ronnie stiffened before carefully returning the hug. God, she’d acted like such a fool. “When did she whammy me?”

“Probably when she came over the first time.”

Ronnie quickly thought back. “That was after…” She let her voice trail off, unwilling to voice the rest of the sentence — after their first kiss.

Earnest pulled back to meet her eyes, his expression serious. “Not everything is a manipulation.”

There wasn’t a trace of red anywhere, but Ronnie wanted to scream. How the fuck was she supposed to tell what was and wasn’t a manipulation? She was ready to be done with the outer planes. She knew she didn’t have long left, but she wanted to live a normal human life while she could, damn it.

Angry at the situation and herself, she pulled out of Earnest’s grip and wrapped her arms around her chest. “Let’s just play some cards and wait for the show to end, talk to Eve, and get the fuck out of here. Since you’re so secretly loaded, maybe we can just buy the damn thing back. And, just in case you had any stupid ideas, I’m not sitting back there.” She jabbed a finger toward the partition. “I need to freshen up.”

Ronnie stalked off toward the facilities, leaving Earnest gaping in her wake, but she couldn’t care less - Ronnie stalked off toward the facilities, leaving Earnest gaping in her wake, but she couldn’t care less – she needed to get out of there.

Oblivious to her distress, the trio of Dolly Parton’s began singing Jolene.