The tables directly around him sat empty, but clusters of his people were dotted throughout the rest of the space.

“The back wall is lined with invisible mages, and a bunch of people are on the side and at the entrance to the other dining area,” Jess said softly. “The back corner table of six is full.”

Austin glanced there and then away, the chairs pulled out enough to fit a person, whereas the rest of the empty chairs were pressed up close. Pretty obvious, that, if someone knew what they were looking for.

Did they think Jess and her people were stupid, or just incredibly naive?

She gave the mage a tight smile after stopping behind the open chairs opposite him. “Mr. Kinsella, lovely to meet you.”

His shrewd brown-eyed gaze took in her face and then dress, lingering on the necklace. He waved the woman at his side away like a fly. She stood without a word and slunk to one of the back tables. No one joined her.

“Yes. Ms. Evans.” He gestured at the chair in front of him, not bothering to stand for her or show common courtesy. He clearly thought she was well beneath him.

Anger simmered deep within Austin’s gut, but he pushed it down. This was not the time or place to let his feelings for Jess provoke his animal. She could use this contact in the magical world. He wouldn’t get in her way.

He pulled the chair out for her.

“I see you let him through.” The mage didn’t look at Austin. “I didn’t think you’d even know what the ward was, new as you are to magic.”

Jess’s rage boiled again and her hands tightened at her sides. The mage noticed, and a tiny grin played on his colorless lips. He liked that he was getting to her.

“I’ve heard of him,” Kinsella said. “The bear who killed the phoenix, right? Tall tales, of course, but I like fables as much as the next mage.” That watery-eyed stare slid to Austin. Kinsella flinched when he met Austin’s gaze and pulled back into himself, his shoulders rolling forward, compressing his chest. A primal defensive technique to protect the vitals.

Jess slowly lowered into the chair. She didn’t comment.

Her people filed into the room, spreading out, choosing tables alone or in pairs. Niamh sat across from one of Kinsella’s people, and his brow lowered in annoyance. She winked at him. Only two tables were left vacant.

Kinsella observed them as they came in and sat, his eyes narrowing at Cyra. Fire puffed in her wake.

“Is that actually a phoenix?” he asked. “Wow. What do they cost? I don’t know anyone else who has one.”

“She is actually a phoenix, yes.” Jess clasped her fingers in her lap. “They’re free, if you believe in fables.”

Kinsella watched her for a beat, and Austin pulled out the chair next to her, half wondering if maybe he should find somewhere else to be. This mage would make an issue of having Austin so close. Kinsella’s body language indicated he was trying to ignore the fear racing through him at Austin’s power and proximity. Trying to assure himself that his magic and/or his people would—could—subdue Austin if anything went wrong. He was desperately trying to put on a brave face.

The foolishness of it made Austin appreciate Sebastian, who’d never tried to conceal his fear. Somewhere along the way, he’d stopped being wary of Sebastian, and clearly for good reason. He didn’t seem to be like this mage at all.

Pretend all you want, but we both know the status quo, and we both know I am no fable.

“Peculiar, your situation, isn’t it?” Kinsella rested his forearm on the table.

Jess cocked her head, listening. If these mages could see Sebastian, they gave no sign of it.

“If you plan on breaking custom, so will I.” Jess put a hand on the table as well.

Kinsella’s eyes twinkled, but he kept his hand where it was. He thought he was the bigger player here, and the hand thing was an intimidation tactic if Austin had ever seen one. He thought he could get a spell off before Jess could counter. He was an utter fool.

“You were a Jane, and a magical house gave you a little power.” His smile was insulting. “Lucky you. But you’ll always be a Jane at heart.”

Anger throbbed within Austin as he sat down. He pushed it away. Forced it back. He needed to let Jess handle this.

“Clearly you don’t think much of Janes,” Jess said as the waitress approached.

The woman handed out menus and asked, “May I get you something to drink?”

After they ordered, Kinsella said, “Dicks and Janes are inferior. It’s nothing personal.”

“Ah, but I did get a little magic, so…”

Kinsella narrowed his eyes, looking at her as though he wanted to tilt back her cranium and get a peek at her brain.

“Yes, you did. I looked the house up. Back in the day, it had much status. Its mistresses have always had large quantities of power. How far it has fallen now, hmm? It had to elevate a Jane so that it could be said to have elevated someone at all. When you start below nothing, rising up is not hard.”

“This is true,” she said, and Austin’s anger throbbed. He wanted to reach over the table, rip this fool out of his chair, and tear him apart.

“Tell me, why is Elliot Graves interested in you?” Kinsella asked. “Don’t get me wrong, the joke was a nice touch, sending a team of animals at you when you employ animals. He’s always had a strange sense of humor.”

“Do you know him, then?”

“I’ve met him a time or two. If he didn’t have so much magic, he’d be a laughingstock. He might have had high status for a while, but he fell into obscurity. He’s a has-been.”

“Then why do you care that he’s interested in me?”

Kinsella shrugged. “Curiosity. He has never been interested in anyone. Why you? What am I missing?”

“Fashion sense. Tact. Manners. A good barber…” she murmured, so softly that Austin could barely hear. Given a mage’s hearing was nothing compared to a shifter, Kinsella wouldn’t be the wiser.

It took everything Austin had not to bark out a laugh.

“Is it the money?” Kinsella wondered aloud. “That house had wealth back in the day, correct? It’s been a long time. Does it still have holdings?” His gaze dipped to the necklace adorning her neck.

“Austin Steele gave me this, actually.” Jess touched his shoulder as she said it.

Kinsella laughed. “Sure, sure. Why not, huh?”

Jess frowned, not understanding the joke. Austin didn’t require clarification: Kinsella thought the notion of a shifter with money preposterous.

He leaned forward a little, as though getting intimate. “Why don’t you send away your lap dog? You’re perfectly safe.”

Austin didn’t need the link to know the rage Jess had barely been keeping at bay was finally crashing over her and dragging her under. It rolled across her face and screamed through every line in her suddenly tense body. Her beast was emerging. The female gargoyle was indeed a violent species where it concerned her intended mate.

He thought about touching her arm to reassure her it was fine—that he could change tables—but Niamh’s movement at the edge of his vision caught his notice. She was looking directly at him and shaking her head. Don’t interfere.

“If you disrespect him like that again,” Jess said in a deathly quiet voice, “I will kill you where you sit, do you understand me?”

Kinsella’s eyebrows lowered and a spark of anger lit his eyes. Cunning took its place.

“Oh, now I see,” he said, leaning back and placing his other hand on the table. Austin felt a hand press down on his shoulder and squeeze twice, reassuringly. Sebastian. Like Niamh, he was telling Austin to stay put, to leave this to Jess. “You like to bed filthy, dimwitted animals.”

A jet of red zipped from Kinsella’s fingers, and Austin couldn’t stop himself from jumping up and reaching for Jess. Only he didn’t get his butt far off the seat before a hard rush of magic slammed him back down. A comforting feeling came through the link with Jess. She was the one who’d held him in place.

The red jet of magic hit the air right in front of her chest and dissolved. She shoved out her hands, and tables skidded across the floor, chairs toppling over. Some were empty—belonging to the invisible people, Austin felt sure—and others contained Kinsella’s associates, who were then shoved against the far wall. They cried out as they were magically pinned.

Jess’s people still sat calmly in their places, untouched.

Kinsella’s eyes widened. He shook in his place, trying to get up and unable to move.

“I did warn you,” Jess said with a little smile. “Apparently I shouldn’t kill you, though. Something to do with the Mages’ Guild? I didn’t even know there was such a thing before you sent the invite. Doesn’t matter. I don’t need to kill you to make an example of you.”

Kinsella screamed before his feet were ripped out from under him. They saw the sky as his body was dragged off his chair and hoisted up into the middle of the room.

“Austin did force the phoenix to submit.” Jess clasped her hands in her lap. “He owns this restaurant and bought the jewels I’m wearing. And no, I didn’t know what that ward was out front. My associate had to tell me. He then told Austin he could break it by walking through it. Which Austin did. No problem. You don’t even have half the power my boyfriend has.” She put her hand on Austin’s arm. “My boyfriend, the animal, in case that wasn’t clear. I turn into a gargoyle, did anyone tell you that? I’m an animal, too, I suppose. And you are a clown.” She stood. “Oh, and my associate has been here the whole time. I’m sure you took a revealing potion, but you couldn’t reveal my invisibility potion, could you? Your people are disguised very poorly.”

Her chair moved backward, seemingly by itself, before it pulled to the side and out of the way.

Kinsella’s eyes widened further. Apparently the invisibility potion he couldn’t detect was more surprising to him than anything else that had happened.