Lee’s eyebrows rose. “Really? I couldn’t help but notice you looking at the security.”

Now I was really embarrassed, and I took a sip of my drink and turned to lean with my elbows on the upper railing about the table. “That was an accident,” I said as the amber dice rolled past. “I didn’t mean to trip the alarms. I was just trying to get a closer look at—um—you,” I finished, certainly as red at my hair. Oh God, I was screwing this up royally.

But Lee seemed amused, his teeth white in his suntanned face. “Me too.”

His accent was nice. West Coast, perhaps? I couldn’t help but like his easy demeanor, but when he took a sip of his white wine, my gaze fixed to his wrist peeping from behind his cuff and my heart seemed to stop. It was scarred. It was scarred exactly like mine. “You have a demon sca—” His eyes jerked to mine, and my words cut off. “Sorry.”

Lee’s attention flicked to the nearby patrons. None seemed to have heard. “It’s okay,” he said softly, his brown eyes pinched. “I got it by accident.”

I put my back against the railing, understanding now why my demon-tainted aura hadn’t scared him off. “Don’t we all?” I said, surprised when he shook his head. My thoughts went to Nick, and I bit my lower lip.

“How did you get yours?” he asked, and it was my turn to be nervous.

“I was dying. He saved me. I owe him for safe passage through the lines.” I didn’t think it necessary to tell Lee that I was the demon’s familiar. “How about you?”

“Curiosity.” Eyes squinting, he frowned at a past memory.

Curious myself, I gave him another once-over. I wouldn’t say Al’s real name and break the contract we had come to when I had bought a summoning name from him, but I wanted to know if it was the same demon. “Hey, uh, does yours wear crushed green velvet?” I asked.

Lee jerked. His brown eyes went wide under his sharply cut bangs, and then a smile born of shared trouble came over him. “Yes. He talks in a British accent—”

“And has a thing for frosting and french fries?” I interrupted.

Lee ducked his head and chuckled. “Yes, when he isn’t morphing into my father.”

“How about that?” I said, feeling an odd kinship. “It’s the same one.”

Tugging his sleeve down to cover the mark, Lee rested his side against the craps table. “You seem to have a knack for ley lines,” he said. “Are you taking instruction from him?”

“No,” I said forcefully. “I’m an earth witch.” I twiddled my finger with my ring amulet and touched the cord of the one around my neck that was supposed to defrizz my hair.