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Taking her.
Taking care of her.
Handling her problems.
None of that was normal for me.
Something inside me had recognized her right from the jump, whether I'd been aware of it or not.
I guess I figured that the actual Claiming, if it was going to happen, though, was going to happen once we'd fucked. It seemed to work that way.
When I came and didn't Claim her, I figured any of that shit I'd been feeling was just in my head or something.
Apparently, though, my Claiming trigger wasn't sexual but defensive.
Which made a lot of sense.
"I wasn't sure you wanted me to come in," Nova said, moving toward me.
"The wing shit wasn't exactly subtle, babe. Figured there was no confusion."
"Well, I didn't know if the wing thing was, you know, involuntary. I don't want you to want me just because you have to. I want you to just want me."
"What about any of this says I don't want you?" I asked.
"Well, you know, the words would be kind of helpful."
"Fine. Words. I want you. There. Happy?"
Eloquent, I was not. But blunt had never been a problem.
"I, ah, sort of," she agreed.
"What's the problem?"
"Do you want to want me?" she asked. "Or do you just want me because you Claimed me?"
"Pretty sure I wanted you in that basement," I reminded her. "Before I'd Claimed you. I'd wanted you in the hotel rooms. At Bat's clubhouse. In the woods. And at fucking Sanctuary. I've wanted you from the jump."
"But more than just physically?" I asked.
"I've wanted women physically plenty in my life. Never force-fed 'em supplements. Never given a single shit about how they feed themselves. I give a shit with you. It's new for me. I won't pretend to understand it. But it's there."
"Okay," she agreed, moving closer.
"I don't know what I'm fucking doing, okay?" I added. "And I'll probably fuck shit up more than I make it right for a while. If you're good with that, then we're good."
"What about your people?" she asked. "I don't think Ace likes me."
"Ace doesn't like anything but warm weather, books, and Jo," I told her, wrapping my good arm around her. "He doesn't have anything against you personally. He was pissed about the situation. Which wasn't really your fault anyway. They'll adjust. Come on. Let's go in," I said, pulling her along with me, a bit worried about how pale she looked. The smudges under her eyes said sleep had been elusive.
"What's with the dead arm?" Daemon asked as we moved inside.
"Dislocated it," I said. "When Nova came to unshackle me," lying with a straight face while Nova pressed hers into my side to hide her pink cheeks. "Figured Ace might enjoy putting it back into its...fuck," I growled when Bael appeared out of nowhere, grabbing my wrist with his, and yanking hard, then moving off through the house.
"Don't let my brother give you a bad idea about all of us, baby cakes," Daemon said, giving Nova that boyish smile of his. "We're real welcoming around these parts. Okay, that's a lie," he said, shrugging. "But the girls are chill. Aram is cool. Minos is usually too busy moping to bother with you. And me, I'm a fucking delight," he declared gladly, pressing a hand to his heart.
"He's humble too," Aram said as he moved past.
"So, ah, I got a question," Daemon said, looking back at me.
"What's that?"
"Is the club, you know, off-limits now? Because I had a second, ah, date planned with a certain Child of Lilith."
"Glutton for punishment, huh?" I asked, smirking.
"Working on my tongue game, man," Daemon said with a devilish smirk.
"I figure it's fine. Might want to check with Ace though."
"What's a Child of Lilith?" Nova asked as I started pulling her toward the stairs.
"They're, ah, they're female demons who nourish themselves by feeding off of their sexual partners."
"Blood?"
"No, not blood. More like... life force," I told her.
"Do they... do they die?" she asked, stopping on a step to face me. Upset. And I guess I could understand her being sensitive about that kind of shit after what she'd been through.
"No. They wake up feeling tired, maybe almost hungover. It passes in a day or two."
"Do they remember they've been fed on?"
"Not really. They'll remember it as the best fuck of their life. Like they'd never come so hard before."
"So, that's why Daemon wants to see them again," she mused.
"They won't fuck him," I said, shaking my head.
"What? Why not?"
"Because we don't have the same kind of life force. Ours would give them the hangover. They like to fuck humans."
"But then why..."
"Daemon likes to eat pussy," I explained. "Sounds like there aren't as many demon chicks down in hell these days. He'd been going through a deep famine. He's gotta get his fill."
"Is that why Bael is so moody?" she asked. "He'd gone his whole life without getting any? Oh, God," she whimpered when Bael made his way down the hall, jaw tight. "Did I just make an enemy?"
