Witch’s corpse. Witch’s ticket. Witch’s party. As a counter-boy at a high-end men’s boutique, Charlie Jessup’s life consists of little more than work and sleep. That, and enough flirting to help guarantee his commission on sales will pay his rent. So when a twist of fate, and some behavior unbecoming that of a Ganymede employee, leaves him in possession of a dead man’s pass to a mysterious Club 669, Charlie has no desire to waste it. Every seventeen years, the House of Witches throws a party like no other. It’s invitation-only, and for centuries it has helped ensure peace between the covens. It’s the last place Caspian wants to be, but with the death of Queen Avel, and his own imminent rise to the throne, it’s more important than ever that he attends. The stability of the House depends on it. In four days a new king will be crowned, but when Charlie unintentionally crashes a gathering of the most secretive of all the Great Houses, he sets in motion a series of events that could disrupt the transition of power, and threaten the future of the House of Witches forever.

Club 669

I pulled away when we both needed to catch our breath. “Let me rephrase.”


“I’d like to show you my bedroom.”


He nodded his head, letting me take his hands and pull him to the bed I’d left down in my hurry the last morning I was here. I sat down, backing up to the pillows, happy when he followed me, crawling to where he could kiss me again.


I couldn’t remember the last time I’d kissed someone I cared for. Besides the strangers at the club, I could barely remember being kissed at all. Even knowing these would be our only moments together, I would not be sad. There would be no regrets. Because what was a little rain compared to the joy of being outside?


When he reached me, I let him pin me to the mattress and explore my mouth.


Chapter 17