Page 113 of Demon Touched

“So do I want to know how you got…involved, with a demon?” she murmurs.

I laugh, the absurdity of the question puncturing my guilt.

“He saved me from Hathwell,” I say. “It turns out Mr. Reed was involved in some dodgy black magic stuff, and when he tried to involve Syrus, Syrus saved my life. After that, we started working together.”

“Wow,” she says, blinking.

I squeeze her arm lightly. “Don’t you dare feel bad about Hathwell turning out to be such an ass, either. That’s all in the past.”

She nibbles her lip. “If you say so.”

“He’s…er…very pretty for a demon,” she comments after a beat. “Although I guess maybe he doesn’t look like that all the time?”

“Close enough,” I say smugly.

“Right. And you’re definitely, like, completely yourself, yes? I mean, you seem the same. But he’s not cast a spell on you or something, has he?”

“No,” I say. “I promise. He’d tell you I’m far too rude to him for me to be under any kind of mind control.”

She smiles. “That sounds about right. So when you say it’s different now…?”

I shift, not really wanting to get into the whole possession thing right after reassuring Evie that Syrus isn’t my puppet master. Any way I phrase it will sound very fucked up. On the other hand, I don’t want to outright lie to her.

“We had a special connection,” I say, trying to keep things vague. “And then things happened, and we had to put distance between us. I guess now I’m a little worried about how that distance might change us. I wonder if we still have enough to anchor us together.”

“Well, do you love him?” Evie asks quietly.

“I think so,” I admit, exhaling around that huge truth.

“Have you told him that?”

I shake my head. “I’m not ready to yet.” The truth is I haven’t even had time to think about whether I’m ready between escaping Aradis and the revelations of last night. Telling him the extent of how I truly feel—hoping he feels the same way too—are things reserved for people who know they can build a future together. Right now, I don’t even know what tomorrow’s going to bring.

Evie nods, understanding my hesitation. “A demon and a nephilim. I can see how that would be complicated. But then, you’ve never been afraid of a challenge.”

Jeremy comes through the back door, a bemused expression on his face.

“Um…there’s a small woman here asking for you,” he says.

“Nicely dressed, calls you darling, maybe seems a little drunk?” I ask.

“It’s eight in the morning,” Jeremy points out. “But now you mention it…”

Asterim in a human disguise is a strange sight. She still looks elegant in a jade-colored tunic and loose pants, but the lack of purple skin, pointed ears, and wings makes her seem even smaller, somehow.

“Aster,” I say, pulling her into a relieved hug. “How did you find us? Did you hear about Luminis? Shit, you didn’t try to go back there, did you?”

“One question at a time, darling,” she says, squinting at me. “This is very early to be up.” She eyes Jeremy and Evie curiously, and I realize we’ve not made proper introductions.

“Asterim, this is my sister, Evie, and her husband, Jeremy,” I say, both of whom offer Aster polite nods.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, my dears,” Asterim says, “even if it is at such an unreasonable hour.”

“Oh!” Evie says. “I’m sorry, I’m being a terrible host. Shall I make everyone some tea? Coffee?”

“Toast,” Viz groans from the couch, where we appear to have woken him. He blinks up at Aster.

“Good to see you,” he says.