could.
And he was not even slightly amused by the flush that had come into her cheeks as she realized that she’d very thoroughly molested him before getting a glass of water thrown in her face for her troubles. Well, maybe a
Something seemed wrong with this scenario when the water thrower was an ex-incubus.
In all his existence he’d never felt this way before. For anyone. To put it mildly, it was very inconvenient.
Luckily, if nothing else, she didn’t feel the same for him. She might feel a strange affection for the demon who’d ruined her life, maybe a bit of lust — or
It was a relief, actually. Her saving grace. It made things much easier.
“You need to rid yourself of any remaining black magic right now,” Darrak said. “Try to concentrate. Can you do that?”
She nodded and closed her eyes.
The next moment all the magic that filled the room left in a rush. The glass he held fell to the carpeted floor as pain swept over him and he rapidly lost solid form again. It was only Eden’s powerful magic that helped him attain that form during dark hours. Before he could say another word, his body turned to black smoke. He suddenly felt desperate to find shelter. In this form he was very susceptible, as close to true death as a demon could get, apart from being on the receiving end of an exorcism. He didn’t even make a conscious choice; he simply moved toward Eden as if attracted magnetically.
As he possessed her, she cringed and clutched at the bedsheets.
He hated hurting her. If nothing else, at least it was fast.
“We’ll fix this,” he said when he was able to communicate with her again.
“Oh, yeah?” she replied after a moment. “I think I’ve heard that line before.”
“Theo will help us.”
She exhaled shakily. “You’re sure you trust him?”
“With my very existence. Which seems to be rather appropriate right about now.”
“What if he can’t help?” she asked.
“He will.”
“But if he can’t?” she persisted.
“Then we’ll find another way.”
“The eternal optimist.”
“Who knew?” He was quiet for a moment. “I know I shouldn’t have borrowed your body. .”
“No, you shouldn’t have.”
“But I’ve decided I’m not sorry.”
She tensed. “Not even a little?”
“I’m sorry you were so upset about it, but it had to be done and I stand by my decision.”
“Let’s just forget it.”
“Really?”
“For now. It’s been a long night.”
“What the hell did Ben want from you, anyhow? Did he really want to kill you?” Anger and hatred flared inside him as he thought about the cop who’d put Eden’s life at risk that night.
She hesitated. “No. He wanted to save me.”
He wanted to ask her to clarify. It felt as if she was holding something back, but he didn’t push her. “Doesn’t sound like it to me.”
“He means well. He’s made some. . bad decisions, but he means well.”
Why was she still defending him? That didn’t sit well with him. “A lot of men have done evil all in the name of good.”
“Kind of preachy for a demon, aren’t you?”
“You’re right.” He hesitated. “It’s disturbing, actually.”
It only confirmed what Theo said. Demons didn’t preach right from wrong. Demons weren’t “nice.” They were powerful and dangerous opportunists. They were loyal to their own kind when it served them. Their own existence was of first priority to them, bar none.
Darrak wasn’t nice. Hell, he didn’t even want to
If Eden had met the pre-curse him face-to-face. .
Well, she wouldn’t have been trying to make love to him. She wouldn’t feel remotely safe with him. And he wouldn’t feel this overwhelming need to protect her, even from himself.
Darrak trusted Theo as much as one demon could trust another. But Theo had no artificial humanity to deal with like he did. And Theo was not remotely
For the chance to break his curse, Darrak had no choice but to take a risk and meet with him at noon and take Eden along for the ride. He couldn’t say he wasn’t worried about this.
Even though demons didn’t worry. Or, at least, they shouldn’t.
On the bright side, he’d never had souvlaki before. It sounded delicious.
Eden slept in until after nine o’clock. The alarm clock didn’t go off. She assumed Darrak turned it off so she could recover from what had happened last night.
Last night.
Darrak was nowhere to be seen. She dragged herself out of bed and went to the bathroom, staring at her bleary-eyed reflection. She splashed some water on her face, then stared some more. Her gaze then fixed on her amulet.
Just like the circles under her eyes, it was significantly darker this morning.
Her hand shook as she drew a brush through her tangled hair. Her throat felt thick and her eyes were shiny. She wasn’t going to cry. That would be a really wimpy thing to do.
Everything was going to be okay.
Even though Eden’s soul had darkened from using her black magic again.
Even though someone had tried to kill her the moment they found out she was a black witch.
And that someone had been helped by Ben, a man she used to have a major crush on.
Also, she’d been unable to stop herself from jumping Darrak’s bones, and he’d soundly rejected her by throwing a glass of water in her face. The particular memory made her face flush with embarrassment.
Oh, and she couldn’t forget the news that her father was an angel.
Yeah. That little fact was still hard to wrap her head around.
Because of him, she had some sort of celestial energy inside of her fighting with her black magic and threatening to tear her into two separate and very pissed off pieces.
Did that cover it?
Her stomach lurched. Not painful this time. Just sick.
Eden had always wished for an exciting life. She really should have been more specific.
She forced herself to get ready for the day. She showered, dressed, and makeupped. She still had a glimmer of hope, and to this she clung desperately.
Unfortunately, that glimmer of hope was Darrak’s friend Theo.
The glimmer of hope flickered like a match in a strong wind, threatening to plunge her into darkness at any given moment.
Finally, she went out to the kitchenette to find Darrak and Leena both waiting for her.
“Morning!” Leena said cheerily. She obviously didn’t remember a thing from last night after being put back to sleep.
“Morning,” Eden replied, trying to force a smile to her face. She failed.
Darrak eyed her warily. “How are you?”
She couldn’t look him in the eyes. “I’ve been better.”
“Listen, about last night—” he began.
