Page 62 of The Sasquatch and the Hairdresser

Already, my mind is brewing up an entire menu of fall-themed goodies for us, like caramel popcorn, pumpkin frosted sugar cookies, apple pie, and so much more. I’ll have to bug Max for a few recipes since he’s got one up on me when it comes to baking.

Skylar rubs his hands together. “Yessss! That’s what I’m talking about. You and me and our little Elvira can cuddle on the couch together and enjoy some campy movie goodness. Our family of three.”

“Stop it,” Astraea says. “You two are melting my cynical heart right now.”

But I can’t respond right away because Skylar’s words knock the breath out of me. How long have I dreamed of that very thing? Making a family with Skylar and Elvira is all that I could ever want. Right now, the universe is telling me to hold on tight and never let go.

And I don’t plan to.

Skylar hesitates as he studies me, off in my little dream world. “So what do you think about the name?”

“I’m on board if she is.” I look down at our brand-new hellhound puppy.

As if realizing we’re talking about her, she opens all of her eyes again.

“What do you think?” I ask her. “Do you like the name Elvira?”

“Quite frankly, I love it,” Kassiel offers unsolicited.

The furry lady in question throws back all three heads and lets out tiny howls of agreement, making both Skylar and me laugh.

“Back to the matter at hand, people. While this whole love-fest has been fun to watch, I’m afraid we’ve still got some bigger fish to fry than Little Ms. Elvira’s future,” Astraea says with a sigh.

We all glance back at the portal, which isn’t getting any bigger, at least. However, it’s also certainly not going away either.

Baxter heaves a heavy groan. “I’m sorry, Akram, but I’m going to have to ask you to close down the bar for the time being. It just isn’t safe for you or your patrons to be in here. We don’t know if anyone or anything else will come through, and I don’t want to run the risk of someone getting pulled over to the Demon Realm without proper clearance.”

“Fucking hell,” Akram growls.

“Sorry, old friend,” Kassiel says. “Portals to the Demon Realm are definitely nothing to mess with, as you know. I did take the time to put up a magical warning of sorts on the other side, discouraging anyone or anything else from trying to cross over to us, but that’s not a foolproof guarantee, I’m afraid.”

Astraea bares her rather deadly-looking teeth as she glares at the portal. “Damn and blast. I’ll put up a similar magical wall here. At the very least, it will alert me if anyone or anything attempts to enter or exit the portal on this side. For now, I think the rest of you should go home while Baxter and I deal with this new headache.”

Skylar and I are smart enough to know there’s nothing we can do right now, so we leave along with Kassiel. A scowling Akram follows us outside.

Just as Akram closes the door, Kassiel’s partner hurries over to us.

“Sorry I got held up,” he says, huffing and puffing.

Kassiel opens his arms wide and rushes toward him, wrapping him in a tight embrace. “My dearest darling! How I’ve missed you.”

Yuki looks like he’s trying not to laugh. “It’s been like two hours, Kass.”

The demon holds a hand to his forehead in a mock faint. “Even a moment apart feels like an eternity, my love.”

Yuki rolls his eyes. “Yeah, yeah.” He glances at us. “I’m taking this one home so he’s out of your hair.”

“But you need to meet Skylar, darling,” Kassiel chides warmly. “He’s Mystic Hollow’s new hairdresser.”

Skylar raises his hand and gives a little wave. “Hiya. I think we saw each other when I first arrived, but we didn’t really meet officially. Skylar Wright.”

“Oh yeah! My colleague mentioned a friend of Hal’s was putting one of the study room couches to good use for a bit. I’m Yuki Abbott, and yeah, I’m a librarian over at the night school.” He smiles and points at his bright blue hair. “I’ll be checking out your salon once you open. But for now, we need to head home.”

He turns and Kassiel follows him as eagerly as a hellhound puppy.

Akram leans against the exterior wall of the bar and looks up at the night sky with a sigh.

“I’m so sorry this all happened, Akram. Let me know if there’s anything I can do to help.” I wince. “Having the bar shut down right before the Harvest Festival is… unfortunate.”