AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He gave her an exasperated look. “No, you’re not hired help. You’re my guest—the first guest in my house for more than a few hours other than family and close friends. I want you to feel at home.”
He’d given her the perfect present without her saying a word, without her even hinting at how much she wanted this. His gesture was too much when he’d already offered her a place to stay, and yet, she wanted to indulge in reading every title in here more than she’d wanted anything. “Thank you.”
Alexei stared at her as if reading another meaning behind her words before closing his expression into a neutral one she couldn’t decipher. “Anything you need, just ask, but for now, you must be tired. I’ll show you to your room.”
How could she thank him enough? Snagging a small leather-bound book on tracking spells that reminded her of a similar one she’d left long ago with a boy in Moscow, she followed Alexei up the stairs.
“There’s a stocked pantry on this floor,” he said, “or you’re welcome to anything in the kitchen. The guest bathrooms have soap, shampoo, conditioner, the regular amenities. If you need something else, I’ll check what I have, or we can pick it up tomorrow. This will be your room.” He pushed open a door and flipped on a switch, dimming the lights when she blinked. “What do you think?”
“It’s beautiful—a princess suite.” If the princess had lots of money and taste. The room had been decorated in purples in every shade from lavender to the deepest hue imaginable. From the big bed to a comfortable couch that would be perfect for curling up with a blanket to read, everything looked soft and sensible.
He didn’t follow her inside. “What else do you need for tonight?”
“Something to wear to sleep in.” She didn’t mention the potions that Josh’s witch had crafted to help her fight the nightmares that had plagued her for years. Before that, the Order had kept her drugged most nights so she wouldn’t annoy the guards with her screams.
He went into the room across from hers and returned with a black t-shirt. “This work?”
It would fall to her thighs. “Yes, thanks.” She had run out of pleasantries to say, the awkwardness of the situation catching up with her. She would stay in the same house with the demon prince she’d thought of for months, and he saw her as nothing more than someone to save.
Standing in the doorway, Alexei stared at her as though he shared her uncertainty. She almost asked him to tell her the truth about what had happened between them earlier, the sweetness and that buzz of energy that had coursed between them when she held his hand. But he seemed to shake off whatever doubt had passed through his gaze. “Well, good night then.” He pulled the door closed with a soft click. His footsteps muffled by the thick carpets moved along the hall until silence surrounded her.
Spinning to take in the room, she wanted to call after him, to ask him to stay, but she didn’t. She shouldn’t risk putting herself out there. Physical pain she could handle, but rejection from someone she’d fantasized about since her first taste of freedom? No, she wouldn’t. So she used the shower in the ensuite bathroom with the miniature shampoos and soaps like a hotel, tugged the giant shirt over her head, and crawled between the soft sheets before calling Josh.
“Are you and Mina okay?” she asked.
“We’re good. I’m more worried about you staying with Alexei Maronov. The man’s reputation for brutality means—”
“He protected me tonight, and he offered to work with me to find our origins, to discovering who my birth parents might be.”
“He’s a demon hybrid.”
“And you’re a flying, demon-eating reptile bigger than a bus with no control over your rage. Remember that I’ve seen you in scary action. We can’t judge other supernaturals based on species alone.”
“How about based upon his record as a violent crime boss?”
“He’s a prince among a species known for chaos if they don’t have strong leadership.” She didn’t let him get the last word—not this time. “I’m staying, but I promise to call you if things change.”
He hesitated, but she didn’t give. “Fair enough,” he said. “You okay after tonight?”
“Rattled,” she admitted. “The poor witch they burned…I just feel so awful for her and her family. Did Mina know her?”
“No, but she’s handling a lot of the fallout since the Order got their hands on one of the witch’s artefacts.”
“What? Do you know the kind of artefact?”
“The magical kind.”
“Duh.” She echoed one of Mina’s favorite expressions. While she hadn’t mastered the delivery, it got the point across. “Be more specific.”
“I don’t know the details. She called it a torque, described it as a necklace that siphons the magic of whoever wears it and then stores the energy like a power source.”
“Our old guardian with another magical weapon?” She thought of how Noxx had used a dragon wing to burn Josh’s witch mother alive in their home, to steal him away as a kid. How many other families had she destroyed with stolen enchanted objects? “That can’t be good.”
“We can’t fix it tonight, and by that, I mean you can’t solve this by dwelling on it instead of sleeping.”
“Did you tell Mina that? Must be hard being mated to the leader of the witch world. How’d she take it?”
“She asked about you. She’s worried. We both are. Why don’t you reconsider coming with us where we can watch out for you?”
