'Did you love him?'
A single tear slipped down her cheek. 'I did.'
My heart clenched. 'Where did he go?'
'I don't know.' She wiped a hand across her face and looked at me sternly. For a second she didn't look beautiful, she looked tired and sad. 'It was a long time ago. I've since learned that true love only exists in fiction. The sooner you accept that, Nikki, the happier you'll be in your life. Love only brings pain and disappointment.'
'And men like Robert,' I finished.
Her expression hardened. 'Seems like it, doesn't it?'
'Are you going to leave him? Are you going to move us across the country again?'
'You'll be the first one to know what I decide, okay? I promise.' She let out a long sigh. 'Now, if you want dinner, there's some pasta and sauce in the kitchen. I think I'm going to my office to work for a while.'
Before I could say another word, she stood and left my room.
She didn't know that my father was a demon. She couldn't possibly know.
Robert didn't come back. Not that I heard, anyway. I forced down some dinner even though I wasn't hungry and then I watched TV even though I couldn't concentrate and ended up just flipping channels. My mother's bedroom light was out by ten o'clock.
I waited until ten thirty before I quietly descended the stairs and slipped out the front door. I started walking down the street, not paying any attention to where I was going.
It had started to snow again and I pulled my coat tighter around me.
I figured it would only take a minute or- 'Princess, what are you doing out? It's not safe.' — even less before he showed up.
I suppressed the smile that wanted to appear and turned to look at Michael. His dark eyebrows knitted together with concern.
'I'm curious,' I said. 'What's with the Van Halen T-shirt, anyway?'
He looked surprised by the question and glanced down at his shirt. 'When I knew I was coming to the human realm I made sure I found some suitable clothes to wear. Isn't this okay?'
'Maybe twenty years ago. But it's fine, really.' I was quiet for a moment. 'Is it different here than where you're from?'
'The Shadowlands?' He glanced around the cold, dark street. 'It's definitely different.'
'How?'
He raised an eyebrow. 'Fewer demons here.'
I exhaled shakily at that. 'So, are you ready to take me to see my father?' I was surprised at how confident I sounded. 'Let's go now before I chicken out.'
'Are you serious?'
I looked at him. 'You're arguing with me?' 'No… of course not.' He gave me one of his devastating smiles. 'He'll be very pleased to see you.'
'Probably not after I've had my say.'
Michael eyed me for a moment. 'So you're not afraid?'
I contemplated how to answer that and decided on the truth. 'I'm scared beyond belief. But I don't think I can avoid it anymore.'
'Did something bad happen? Did your powers manifest?'
'Still not liking those words much.' I had a Technicolor flashback of what I'd forever mentally refer to as the 'incident.' 'But, you could say that. I broke my mother's husband's arm like it was a twig.'
His eyes widened at my admission. 'Your strength has increased. That's to be expected, of course.'
I crossed my arms tightly in front of me. 'And my eyes turned red.'
He put his hands on either side of my face, pushing my long hair back, and stared into my eyes. I inhaled sharply at how close we now were and it reminded me of our almost-kiss in the alleyway. 'They're back to normal.'
'I know that.'
He didn't move away. 'You're feeling better now?'
I nodded and touched his hand. 'Suddenly, I'm feeling much better. Not the least bit like a demon princess.'
His expression fell and he pulled away from me and started walking, abruptly putting a gap between us. What was that all about?
'Did I say something wrong?' I asked.
'No, of course not. You just reminded me who you are.'
'Is that something you forget easily?' I had to hustle to keep up with his long strides.
'Unfortunately, it seems to be.' He didn't look back at me. 'I have to find a gateway to the Shadowlands. I need to concentrate.'
'So you can just sense it?' I asked as I caught up to him. 'Yes.'
'Does it have something to do with your amulet?' 'Yes,' he said again.
I eyed the odd pendant lying against his closed jacket. 'And you're saying that you're not a demon.' 'That's right.' 'You're human?' 'Not exactly.' 'Then what are you?'
'I live in the Shadowlands and I help your father when he asks me to. Isn't that enough?' His shoulders went up and down as he sighed. 'You're not giving me much of a chance to concentrate here. Look, I'm. . what I am doesn't really matter.'
'It matters to me.'
'Why?'
I couldn't very well just come right out and say that I was starting to like him. A lot. Even though it had to be obvious, didn't it? 'Just because,' I said instead. 'Your amulet. . what's it made of?'
'Magic.'
'Magic,' I repeated. I already knew that, but to have it confirmed was something completely different. 'Okay. So you're not a demon, you're not a human, you're this Shadow thing. But I don't know what that means. Hey, aren't you supposed to answer my questions?'
'I'm supposed to answer your questions about where we're going, take you there, and assure you that you'll be safe. I don't need to tell you about me in particular, though.'
'Even if I ask really nicely?' I tried to smile at him.
'Please stop asking me. You'll find out soon enough.:: The shock of hearing his voice in my head again was enough to make me stop talking. For now.
His amulet flashed brightly once with green light and he brushed his fingers against it. 'Here we are.' He stopped next to a sewer grate. 'Home sweet home.'
'The sewer?' I said, stunned as I looked down at it. 'Are you kidding me?'
'Not everything is what it seems, Princess. Remember that.'
'You're not going to stop calling me Princess, are you?'
'Probably not.' With a little effort, he pried open the cover, looked down into the pitch blackness below, and then back up at my stricken expression. His brow lowered. 'You don't have to be afraid.'
I wanted to tell him that I wasn't afraid, but that would have been a total lie. He must have seen the fear in my eyes because he moved closer to me and reached down to take my hand in his.
'It'll be okay,' he said. 'I'll be with you.'
'Promise?'
'I promise.' He glanced at the opening. 'Do you want me to go first?'
I looked down at the black hole, aka the dimensional gateway. 'I think that would be a good idea.'
He fixed me with another one of his sexy dark-eyed gazes that made my insides turn to jelly. Even though he
