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He kissed me like he was dying of thirst and I was his favorite drink. His tongue surged in, and I realized how cold I’d been. He’d accused me of learning to close myself off, and I had to admit that he was right. I had shut down whole parts of my personality. I’d had to in order to survive.
Casey’s kiss reminded me how much I needed arms around me, needed physical affection. It was more than pleasure. It was the reminder that I wasn’t alone, that there was someone who cared if I was cold at night or couldn’t sleep. It reminded me that I was more than a power source for someone else’s spells.
I was…
He…
I pushed back, panic threatening to overcome me. “Stop.”
He stepped back, his fangs out, but I wasn’t afraid of him.
Shouldn’t I be afraid of him? He could rip me apart in every way. He was the enemy. He wanted to kill my master and send us all back to the past.
“Baby, are you okay? I’m sorry. I moved too fast. Come on. No more pushing you,” he promised.
I was ready to run, to get away from him. I would go and sulk in my room.
“Come and let’s find whatever passes for the Internet here,” he said, taking a deep breath and forcing his fangs back. “We can find Kelsey and talk to her about Lilith.”
I could run but I didn’t want to. I didn’t want to brush against those awful thoughts, but I also didn’t want to leave him. There was something soothing about being close to him, something that felt real and familiar.
I wasn’t ready to face the revelations that simmered under my surface, but I also wasn’t ready to be alone again.
When he started out of the lab, I followed him.
Chapter Eleven
Kelsey
I walked to the end of the gardens, looking out over the tree line I’d been told was the barrier between the mansion and the woods that surrounded the place. There were mountains in the distance, clouds hanging low over it. The clouds were dark, an inverse of the ones on the Earth plane.
There was beauty here in Hell, too. Like many things in life, it all depended on who was in control.
I stared out, watching to see if I could find Trent and Fen running in the moonlight.
“Lady Sloane, you look lovely today. The Eye of Night looks beautiful on you. It’s good to see the lady of the house wear our great treasures again,” a somewhat squeaky voice said.
My hand went up to touch the big stone around my neck. I hadn’t taken it off when I’d showered. I hadn’t even thought about it. “Thanks.”
“May I offer you refreshment?”
I looked down at the small, red-skinned demon who stood there offering me a platter of meats and cheeses. She was around five foot and wore what I’d come to see as the uniform for the mansion’s staff. Everyone with the exception of Tix wore simple gray tunics that flowed around their forms and likely had some magic woven into their fabric because I’d already seen one of the cleaning staff change forms. One minute she’d been a somewhat human-looking lady stretching to get the top of that bookcase, and then next she had no trouble at all because she took her seven-foot demonic form and dusted that sucker right off. Her clothes had stretched with her.
“Oooo, Crizzelo, that looks delicious,” a familiar voice said. “If I could eat, I would feast and feast here. There is nothing quite like Hell plane cooking.”
Lee was oozing charm as he strode up. And he already knew all the servants’ names. Despite the fact that everyone had thought he was human and wouldn’t get near a throne, Lee had been taught how to run a staff. They tended to adore him.
Crizzelo’s pitch black eyes widened as she took in the gorgeous vampire walking up. “Prince Lee, could I get some blood for you? I have my own, though I will say I don’t know it’s worthy of you. You might spit it out and curse the day you tasted it.”
Lee gave her a smile I’d seen him use when he was a kid and trying to put everyone at ease. “Never, but I’m also full up. Thank you so much. And thank you for bringing your lady some lunch. I was surprised when she didn’t eat at breakfast. That smelled delicious, too.”
The little demon flushed. Or at least I think she did. It can be hard to tell with red-skinned demons. At the very least she simpered and giggled and proved that Lee could charm all the ladies. And a good portion of the men. “Oh, she was nervous about the Dark Lord. But now she knows he can be kind, too. Like Lord Sloane.”
The chicks here loved my husband. Likely because he didn’t rape and beat them like his father had. I’d already heard a ton of horror stories about the previous Lord Sloane. Even in Hell, the serving class prefers to be treated with some dignity.
“I’m not sure about the Dark Lord’s kindness.” I wished Trent would come back. I was worried that he and Fenrir were taking so long. They’d taken off after Lucifer showed up, but that had been hours ago. I’d been invited to join Casey and Liv in the library, but I was feeling restless. “I get the feeling he’s going to put the heat on for Gray to sign another contract.”
“But he’s throwing a party.” Crizzelo placed the tray down and sighed like she was a teenage girl going to a dance. “I wish it was a ball, though. Oh, it’s been an age since Lucifer hosted celebrations. Sometimes when the vampires used to sign contracts with demonkind, there would be these parties and balls, and it was so fun to watch.”
