AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Nothing.” I take a long gulp of wine. Seems like I’ll need it to get through this dinner. I resist the urge to roll my eyes. Just as I’m about to elaborate, a shadow falls over the tabletop beside me.
“That’s not true.” Asmodeus rounds the table, every step crackling with power, making the air in the room electrify with his presence. As he takes his seat, dark amber eyes meet mine, a silent challenge in their fiery depths. I hold his gaze, refusing to be the first to look away.
“Then what am I to you,my lord.”I say the term of endearment he hates like it’s a dirty phrase one would whisper in the ear of a lover, but the disapproving look I give him is enough to make him shake his head.
For a split moment, I think I made him blush, but if I did, it vanished just as quickly as it came. More than likely, it was nothing more than the firelight dancing off his sharp jaw and strong cheekbones.
“You are the Lady of Grim’s Keep. That was our deal. Make of it what you will,my lady.”The purr in his voice… The way his eyes darken as he leaned forward and named the title he’s blessed upon me… I can’t help but swallow, taking another sip of my wine to cover up the way his words have affected me.
Curse that damn dream.
A long silence passes, no one daring to break the silence as we eat.
Then, as if sensing I’ve finally grown comfortable, Asmo clears his throat. “I see you bathed.”
I nearly choke on a vegetable. “It’s not like I had a choice in the matter.” My voice is harsher than I intend it to be, but he did undress me and toss me into a bathtub, so sympathy isn’t something I’m capable of right now. “It would seem you and your ghost child have more in common than you think. You both continually put your noses where they don’t belong.”
The ghost boy sniffing Asmo’s plate stands upright, his wide translucent eyes bouncing between us. All while Griffin sputters, slamming his cup down on the table as he beats a fist against his chest. It takes a moment for him to stop coughing, but Asmo doesn’t move a muscle and I don’t dare look away from him.
“I take it all back,” Griffin says, waving a hand. His eyes water and he clears his throat. “I want to stay. Nothing this interesting ever happens in Solaria.”
The ghost boy moves in my peripheral, attempting to take a seat next to Griffin at the table, but the chair goes through him, and he falls to the floor. I’m not sure why he can touch the floor and not other objects, but if I understood how the universe worked, I probably wouldn’t have gotten onto that ship. I wouldn’t have been stranded here or made a deal with the demon staring at me.
Tension fills Asmo’s shoulders, his jaw working at the hinge, then he looks away, taking another sip of his wine while the ghost, yet again, falls through the chair.
“For the gods sake,stop it.You won’t be able to sit until we get you a body, all right? Just have some damn patience.” Griffin growls, shaking his head as he takes a bite.
The boy scowls at the fae, then glides from the room without a word.
“You could be a bit nicer. He’s just a boy,” Asmo says, his movements smooth and skilled as he cuts his food. It’s the precision of someone used to handling knives and blades. But, then again, everything about him—even the bloody, carnal sideof him—is graceful. It’s mind boggling to think someone could be so composed, so refined when I can sense the barely leashed power thrumming through him. It’s like a current roving over my skin, beckoning me to give into its thrall.
It’smaddening.
Asmo catches me staring, a smirk already pulling at his lips. I swallow my bite, then say the first thing that comes to mind, anything to explain why I’ve been gawking at him like an uncivilized idiot. “I see you’re wearing a shirt.”
Asmo snorts, dabbing at his lips with the fabric napkin. “Yeah, well, as I told you earlier, I’d rather not have you—” He rakes his eyes over me, something dark lurking within them that’s unreadable.“Worked up,at my table.”
Apparently, what they say about demons being able to sense things is more true than our teachers in Vanderlyth suggested. They forgot to tell us that demons could smell you and know exactly how you’re feeling—fear, lust, all the above. It would’ve been nice to have a heads up, but I’m a quick study, and now I know. Now, I can be prepared.
Though, there’s only two ways forward in this conversation. One, apologize for something that’s completely normal. Something I shouldn’t be ashamed of. Or option two, own it and make him swallow his words.
The latter sounds like the winner to me.
“I believe the word you’re looking for is horny.” This time, they both choke. Asmo on his wine that he’s already refilled once, and Griffin on a bite of his steak.
Griffin tosses his napkin on the table. “It’s fine. I’ll just starve.” He stands from his seat, and for the first time, I realize how tall he is. He’s not lanky, despite being at least a foot taller than me, but from where I sit, he’s positively imposing. “Let me know when you’re ready to look for bodies.”
I snap my head to the left, meeting Asmo’s stare. I’m not sure how long he’s been watching me. “What bodies?” I ask.
“The boy’s and the people who used to live in the keep.” He lets out a long exhale. “Turns out, in my absence, they were murdered by Lord Elcrys.”
I stiffen at the mention of my father, darting my eyes away. “I see… Why would he do such a thing?”
“He was trying to find me. It was a long time ago, but when he came to the keep and I wasn’t here, he tortured my people and killed them all.” Asmodeus gives a lazy shrug, long fingers toying with the buttons of his shirt, but the muscle feathering in his jaw tells me he’s not as calm and composed as he’s trying to appear to be.
For the first time, I’m not sure what to say. Sorry doesn’t feel good enough.
The only thing I know for certain, is I did the right thing withholding my last name. If he didn’t already hate my father, I’m sure learning that made him.
