I supposed telling him magic geek speak from a cute shy powerful mage was kind of a turn on for me, was out of the question.

  I smiled, “Not at all. Do you know how to create comms charms?”

  I actually wanted to do it myself, but using my own magic was a bad idea.

  He said, “I could look into it.”

  I nodded, “It’s more reliable and secure than radio comms, and can come in handy during ops. Especially if we need you to look up something or call someone on the fly. Just let me know what you need to make it happen, or anything else.”

  He nodded, and I decided that was enough for one day, this wasn’t a date after all. Strangely, I suddenly missed Harold, Tony reminded me of him just a little bit, he had the same shy strength. Harold was much more accomplished, but Tony was younger, and fresh out of college. Tony wasn’t nearly as odd though.

  “Alright, going to get ready for that interview, call if you need anything, or my doors always open if I’m here.”

  He said, “Thanks boss.”

  I smiled, and then hung up.

  I checked the time, and I had just enough to go grab a coffee before Lisa called me to start the interview with Jeris Little. My siren self, affected elves less than humans, but it was still a thing…

  I did my best to ignore Jeris’s arrogant demeanor. All elves rubbed me the wrong way, but their mages were powerful field workers, and the interview wasn’t going all that badly. Elves were the quickest race, despite all my energy and increased speed at being so well fed by Lisa’s love, they were still faster. Faster than Lisa even.

  Add in being a mage, and he’d be a formidable person out in the field. Both for those cheap wards we wanted to sell, and for cases where magic would be required. I could handle those cases now too, and shield myself with water magic, but the less I was forced into those kinds of situations the better. In truth, Brent had fucked up, and had been a big part of our being exposed, he’d sent us on mismatched assignments. It was either use my magic or die. I didn’t blame him for it, shit happens.

  If we did hire Jeris, we’d have to hire one more, maybe a shifter partner for him. That way we’d have two two-person teams, with Tony holding down the building. Even, or perhaps especially when, Jeris was putting up wards. He’d be helpless while casting the ward, and he’d need someone there watching his back.

  Lisa asked, “So Jeris, your resume is rather impressive, but there’s been no activity here for four months? What are you doing now?”

  Jeris replied, “There aren’t that many jobs here for our line of work, and I’d burned my bridges with Carol Martin. Normally I wouldn’t consider wasting time with a startup that will probably fail, but Tony told me this was a good place.”

  Lisa nodded, “How exactly did you do that, burn your bridges I mean.”

  Jeris said slowly, “She… had words for me when a job went south, and I had some words for her in return when I quit, words that in hindsight weren’t wise to utter. I have no problems taking responsibility for my actions, no one is perfect, but that job was a… cluster… and not my fault. I’m afraid I can’t divulge any more than that vague description, standard non-disclosure clause in my contract when I worked there.”

  Lisa replied, “Of course.”

  Was it wrong I wanted to hire him, just because he pissed that bitch off? She probably wasn’t nearly as bad as I remembered her, because all woman hated a siren after all. Still, she had gotten a bunch of people killed.

  Jeris’s resume was impressive, and he already had government agent status in the past, so getting him cleared again once our business was licensed for it wouldn’t be an issue. It would probably be harder for Lisa and I, since we couldn’t disclose we’d already had it.

  Lisa made him an offer, and then they haggled for a while before reaching a salary everyone could live with.

  Lisa said, “At first, you’re probably going to be doing a lot of warding jobs. We have a number of them lined up. We need to find you a partner first however, someone to guard your back while you’re working, and someone that you can back up during more violent missions. Any suggestions?”

  Jeris frowned in thought, “One, but only if you don’t tell her I said she was good, and don’t you dare ever mention I recommended her.”

  Lisa laughed, “Agreed, who?”

  Jeris said, “A bear shifter, Cerise Anthony.”

  Lisa looked up for a second, and then checked the stack of resumes.

  “I have that one here, we haven’t contacted her yet. Any reason why?”

  Jeris looked uncomfortable, “She’s the smartest shifter I’ve ever met, and controls their animalistic tendencies during a fight better than any I’ve ever seen. She’s a deadly fighter because of that, she doesn’t depend on her brute strength even if she has a lot of it. She’s good, and I trust her with my life. I’ll also burn this place to the ground if she ever finds out I said that.”

  Lisa chuckled, “She won’t, I promise. You start tomorrow in the morning. We’ll get you fitted for armor, and we’ll fill out the paperwork. Hopefully, by tomorrow afternoon we’ll have Cerise hired as well, if not we’ll have to consider someone else.”

  I said, “Tony’s calling her now to see if she can come in today and interview.”

  Jeris nodded, “Thank you. I’ll see you in the morning?”

  Lisa nodded back and stood, signaling the end of the interview. She left her office to walk him out, and I hung up the connection. As elves go, I’d met a lot worse. Then again, we were the bosses, so maybe that explained the lack of usual disdain. He’d only been arrogant almost to the point of insufferable, but at the same time he’d actually shown he had a sense of humor.

  Lisa came in my office less than a minute later, and rounded my desk before sitting on it, slightly to the side but facing me. She grinned, when I ran my eyes slowly down her tight toned legs.

  “He seemed okay.”

  I nodded, “Better than Tad.”

  Lisa smirked, “You’ll have to forgive him for that someday.”

  Fat chance, he got Lisa stabbed. I changed the subject.

  “I talked to Tony this morning, and I found out why our armor is so damned comfy.”

  I gave her the short version of his modifications.

  She raised an eyebrow, “Operation desensitize the male employee?”

  I smirked, “Something like that, yes.”

  She accused, “You like him.”

  I shrugged, “He’s cute, powerful, respectful, and clever. He’s also gung-ho and working his ass off, what’s not to like?”

  She said, “We should…” and was cut off by my phone ringing, I snatched it up.

  “Aria Jones.”

  I’d need to work on that, I still didn’t think my new name sounded natural enough rolling off my tongue.

  “It’s me,” Tony said, “Miss Anthony will be here at one, right after lunch.”

  “Thanks Tony, do you have lunch plans?”

  Silence.

  Tony finally replied, “Nothing special, just lunch in my apartment.”

  Lisa said, “Why don’t you join us, we’re going to get Mexican.”

  “We are?” I asked with a smile.

  Lisa nodded, “You need some spice.”

  I choked on my laughter, she meant in my blood.

  Tony sounded a little nervous, “What time?”

  I replied, “Better make it eleven thirty, we don’t want to not be here at one.”

  Tony said, “I’ll be ready.”

  I disconnected.

  “We make him nervous.”

  Lisa snorted, “He thinks I’m cute, you make him nervous.”

  I caressed her leg softly, “Only because he doesn’t know how wonderfully violent and deadly you are. Besides, you’re a knockout, you just don’t have the fucked-up pheromones.”

  Lisa smiled, “You say the sweetest things.”

  “I don’t think there’s much right now, we don’t have another case for us, even if we already have a backlog for Jeris, and whoever his partner will turn out being.”

  Apparently, a lot of people wanted wards, but not so many people needed an ass kicking. That was probably about right though, at least until we could contract with the government. Despite the success of our first day, it would take a while before we could work up a reputation with not only the local police and government, but with the supernatural community.

  Lisa nodded, “It will take time. I’m just thrilled we have a lot of requests for discounted wards, it may put us in the black quickly. Want to go out tonight? It’s been almost two weeks.”

  Honestly, I was of two minds about it. I did want and need dick in my life, but I knew when it was all over and we snuck out of lucky man’s home, I would feel cheap and empty. I missed Harold, but I’d get over it. It’d be fun, I just wished we could have something more meaningful, if not a man equal to us, at least a male friend we shared true affection with.

  Another way to put it was it was a need based on what I was, a metaphysical and magical need and desire for cock. I’d never minded that much in the past, sex was pleasurable after all, but after meeting Lisa and making love, and then sleeping with a man that added meaning past the physical, it was a hard pill to swallow to go back to an empty encounter. Physical pleasure was great, physical pleasure with feelings, was just so much more.

  Still, Lisa was incredible, and she made me happy. The rest was just wishful thinking. While I believed any man would be lucky and thrilled to share our bed for a night or two, or three, they also wouldn’t tolerate it in the long term, not unless we all loved equally, which was probably impossible. Especially since I’d always sleep with Lisa when we were alone, but never with a man in our life without her, and the same went for Lisa.

  The only way to overcome that, and become a true triangle, is if a man took the risk of going all in, and actually changed our minds about making him a true equal. Which… didn’t seem very likely, on either count.

  So, it was what it was, and I’d enjoy it, at least Lisa would be there.

  I nodded, “We can do that.”

  She slid off my desk, and then claimed a kiss. She caressed my cheek lovingly as we broke it, and she winked playfully at me when I opened my eyes. She knew how I felt conflicted about it, we’d talked about it before, she also knew I had no choice. Sometimes, I thought she acted so into threesomes just for my benefit, when really it was just her pushing it on my behalf. Not that she didn’t enjoy it too.

  Damn, I thought too much. Way too much introspection, and internal whining. Sometimes I actually missed being angry, reactive, and short-tempered, insights into my own psyche were a little too depressing.

  Chapter Nine

  Tony was quiet, so it wasn’t exactly the team bonding exercise I’d hoped for.

  I was also pretty sure I learned something new with my siren song, but it was worthless. I could get a man hard without magic after all.

  Point was, he was rather uncomfortable for the first half of our lunch, while Lisa and I bantered and tried to draw him out obliquely. I didn’t care what Lisa thought, it was pretty clear to me my gorgeous vampire lover intimidated Tony almost as much as I did.

  Maybe intimidated was the wrong word, we just made him uncomfortable. I imagine lusting after your bosses and having a hard on throughout lunch would be rather awkward. I was beginning to think maybe I should just stick to phone contact when possible, and let Lisa handle the face to face stuff.

  Then he cleared his throat during a particularly long pause in the conversation.

  “I think I can work up those comms earrings for you. Diamonds, amethysts, or sapphires will work best. It would also work best if it was all the same stone.”

  Huh, he was uncomfortable, but maybe he was so quiet simply because we just hadn’t been talking about anything he had an interest in?

  “Same stone?” I asked.

  He swallowed, and nodded, “Yes. If you can buy a large sapphire or amethyst, and I can cut it up into several stones and leave the base piece, the larger left-over stone, in the office on my desk. Then I can enchant them. Cut from the same stone will help the magic connect and resonate according to my research, and it makes sense from the angle of sympathetic magic.”

  “Alright. Figure out the supplies you need and make a requisition, and I’ll get it ordered.”

  He nodded.

  Lisa said, “if you have any other ideas, consider R&D for magical toys part of your job description. Anything that would help us track down someone, protect us, or someone we’re guarding.”

  He blushed, and looked excited at the same time, “Alright. I can do that. Umm, thanks for lunch.”

  I nodded. I briefly considered the idea of talking to him about the elephant in the room, but I decided despite my best intentions I’d just make him feel more awkward if I did.

  He added, “There was one other idea I had, at least right now. I’d like to add a tracking enchantment to the armor. That way if anything happened to either team and we lost comms contact, I can send the other team to assist?”

  Lisa and I exchanged glances. Chances were if we were overwhelmed, we’d be dead, not taken hostage. We were investigators then, and we hoped to be contracted government agents soon. Still, it wouldn’t hurt, and at the very least we’d find the bodies.

  It was also something I could easily do with my magic, if I knew the area or the person I couldn’t be hidden from, not without an extremely strong anti-scrying ward at least.

  “Alright, I have no objection. Unless other mages would be able to use it against us somehow?”

  He shook his head, “Doubtful. They might be able to feel it, and know it’s there, but they wouldn’t be able to use it.”

  I nodded, and we finished our lunch. Tony was quiet for the second half too, but he interjected a comment once in a while, and was almost garrulous if the subject was about something magical.

  I felt naughty, and was more than a little wet, as I waited for Lisa’s call, which would come any moment, when our interviewee arrived. I even felt a little tempted to touch myself, which was so damned wrong.

  Apparently, I wasn’t just an exhibitionist, at least when it came to showing off and acting wanton in front of Lisa anyway, but I was also a voyeur of sorts. I’d always known with all the men that checked me out, my face and body had to be added to quite a few spank banks by now. The idea always intrigued me, or at least, I’d never minded the concept before.

  It was even a little flattering.

  But… I’d never gotten to witness the results before. When we’d gotten back to the office, Tony had excused himself and went up to his apartment. Said he’d be back in a few minutes. Then his song had started to change. I could hear the slowly rising crescendo of lustful desire, euphoria, and pleasure as his body sung with it. So, I guess I still hadn’t witnessed it with my eyes, but there was very little doubt he was jerking it for me in that moment, and he was getting very close to adding those notes of pure bliss to his song.

  I was shocked, at how much that was affecting me, and how fucking wet I was at the thought of it. I had no idea I would be so turned on by such a thing. I was sure just a little graze on my clit would send me over right then, and my body felt heated, my heart hammered, and I wished I had time to deal with it. But… there was only a few more minutes before Cerise would be here for her interview.

  I felt deliciously naughty and wicked, and at the same time was rather scandalized by my own desires and fantasies. I was tempted to touch myself, but I was also a little tempted to open a scrying window, so I could see him doing it. Was he fantasizing about cumming in me from behind, above, below? Or perhaps on my tits, which he seemed to love to look at. Or maybe on my face, and in my mouth?

  Of course, using my magic to watch would get me caught, and I couldn’t really do it, but beyond even that I wouldn’t violate his privacy in that way. If I could, I’d ignore his song too, but I had no control over that. It was so loud here near the large gulf, it was impossible not to hear it, not unless I left the building and went a block away or so.

  Fuck, I was dizzy with lust as his blissful crescendo reached its peak, and then broke into the rapturous song of pure bliss. Damn, I needed a cold shower, or Lisa and about three hours, but neither were available right now. I shivered, as I crossed my legs, and then the video conference app rang, and I picked up.

  I tried to ignore the notes of satiated contentment coming from upstairs.

  “Good afternoon.”

  Lisa said, “This is my partner Aria. Aria, this is Miss Cerise Anthony.”

  Cerise said, “Nice to meet you.”

  She had red hair, brown eyes, and was surprisingly petite for a bear shifter, although average for a human woman at five foot six. She had an athletic body, and a fresh-faced fair beauty to her face. She looked about nineteen, but that didn’t mean shit, so did Lisa and I when it came down to it. Like me, she was probably in her mid-twenties, or possibly early thirties at the most in age.

  She also seemed to have meant what she said. Of course, as soon as she met me that whole nice thing would go away, but I could deal if I avoided her. Even then, she’d be less cordial even on video. Men seemed to do better over the phone without the artificial lust present, even if they’d met me before, but the annoyance and anger I generated in women seemed to last long after we’d parted physical company. It just was.

  Women held grudges.

  Some woman reacted worse than others, and I hoped Cerise would be one of the more minimal cases. I’d find out soon enough.

  I replied with a slight professional smile, “Nice to meet you too. Thanks for coming in on such short notice.”

  She shrugged, “I’m working nights right now, just bouncing until I can find a better position in a security firm. My days are pretty open.”

  Lisa cleared her throat.

  “The position we’re offering will be partnering with a mage. You would be tasked to protect him while he creates wards, and in more violent cases, he would support you with spell work while you took the lead. This company will most likely remain rather small for the short term and even the long-term. The only other team here is Aria and me. We also have a young in-house mage, who will be enchanting our armor and weapons. We’re currently in the process of getting recognized by the government and approved for contracting status, but it will be a while before we build up our reputation.”