At exactly seven o’clock, a burning portal appears in the middle of my bedroom. So much for coming to get me. Mossy jumps onto my shoulder, and I tuck my long hair behind my ear as I walk through the portal into Seth’s apartment. I can tell we are in the castle from the views out of the large windows right in front of me. All I can see is the forest and the gate shining in the distance.
The warmness of the portal burns away, and I turn around to see Seth leaning against the counter in a small kitchen with white cabinets and wooden countertops. Other than two brown sofas and a roaring fire inside a fireplace, there isn’t much to the room.
But it feels like him. His presence. Seth owns every room he is in without even trying.
“Demon shitbag, why are you here?” Mossy demands, standing up on my shoulder. Seth’s lips twitch.
“I believe you are angry at me, my little monkey friend,” he smoothly replies and steps to the side. “I predicted Daesyn would bring you along tonight, and I bought you some of your favourite foods. Everything with honey and peanut butter that I could find.”
Mossy leaves my shoulder and runs across the floor before jumping up onto the counter. I walk over and see the counter is full of different cakes and sweets, everything that Mossy loves.
Mossy looks up at Seth, who somehow has moved himself to my side. His arm brushes mine, and I shiver from the tiny contact. “If you hurt my Daesyn again, I will kill you.”
“I don’t doubt it,” Seth replies in a serious tone even when we all know Mossy wouldn’t stand a chance against an overlord demon. Strangely, the fact Seth has always treated Mossy like a person and never seen him as an annoying monkey made me like him even more.
“Now you’ve successfully bribed my monkey. What’s for dinner?” I question, because I am actually starving. I forced myself not to eat all the food Sword made up for us earlier this evening as I knew I would be eating here. Seth nods his head to the side, and I follow him to the sofas where there are two boxes of pizzas and several fizzy pops on the coffee table.
“They aren’t from Mario’s, are they?” I say with shock. I adore Mario’s pizza, a small pizza place just down the road from my apartment.
“Yes,” he answers and sits down.
“Wait a second.” I hold a hand up. “How could you possibly have known I like that place? I only found it two years ago when I moved into my apartment.”
“I have simply been around, keeping an eye on you,” he comments. “After all, I did once promise you would be safe with me. I am not one to break promises, darling.”
I sink down onto the sofa and cross my legs, eying Seth with suspicion. “So you’ve always been there?”
“Not always, no, but when you were about to get in trouble, yes,” he confirms, his eyes flashing red. “And yes, I have seen your choice of men. First the succubus, then the two wolf shifters, and finally the witch.”
“You’re jealous,” I point out.
“You’re mine,” he replies.
I laugh and lean back on the sofa. “I belong to no one, and I never will. My life is my own, my heart is locked away, and my soul is not up for sale. Every one of those men knew that the second they met me. You should know the same.”
Seth smirks and shakes his head. “Oh Daesyn. You can’t lock your heart away from me. Don’t you know by now it’s too late? They say the devil can sneak into any place. We both know I’m buried deep in your heart and you can’t claw me out.”
I narrow my eyes. “Just stop talking.”
He laughs as I pick the pizza box up and open it. A fresh pepperoni and sweetcorn pizza sits waiting for me, and even though I’m pissed off he knows my favourite pizza, I still can’t resist eating it. We eat in silence, not an uncomfortable one, until Seth speaks.
“How is the academy treating you?” he questions.
“Fine. We haven’t had a test for a while, but training is interesting. Many of the students are well trained,” I say. “Poppy is getting better, and I have high hopes she won’t die anytime soon.”
“You always were too kindhearted,” Seth replies.
“How is the great Seth? How is your daughter?” I question.
He stretches his one arm across the seat behind me, his fingers grazing my hair. “Cheri is busy running a demon training centre in the city, but she is happy and well protected. I recently set up my fortieth supernatural club in the human world, well, thirty-nine if you don’t count the one they blew up two months ago.”
“I heard about that in the news. Many supes died, didn’t they?” I question. “I didn’t know you owned all the clubs.”
“I am quite determined to make humans accept that supernaturals are not going anywhere,” he replies, his eyes rolling over me. “No more of my clubs will be destroyed. I made sure of it.”
His dark grin promises me he murdered at least half of the town to make a point. I read about that in the news too.
“Things are better than they were when I was a kid,” I reply. “Queen Evie has made brilliant adoption and fostering buildings where anyone can drop off a child and be paid for the child if they are found to be homeless.”
“Talking of Earth,” he starts off, his fingers sinking into my hair. I don’t know why I don’t push him away. “Say the word and I will take you away from here. It is not safe for you. Not if they figure out who you really are.”
“Earth is not safe for me,” I counter, my breath hitching as Seth’s fingers graze the back of my neck.
“No one will dare touch you back on Earth. I will make sure of that,” he breathes out the threat.
“I’ve pissed off the whole world, Seth. You can’t protect me from everyone,” I softly reply.
His eyes turn fully black now, his demon coming out to play, his voice dark and deeper than before. “No one will take you from me.”
I suck in a breath, remembering that Seth told me to run if his demon ever appeared. I stare at his black eyes, and I stay very still as he shoves the pizza boxes out of the way. They crash to the floor as he pushes me back on the sofa and climbs over me. Red energy flickers around his body, nipping my skin as he looks down at me. Seth, well, his demon side, leans down and places his lips close to my neck. He takes a deep breath...like he is sniffing me.
“Mine.”
“Can I have Seth back?” I whisper to him. I close my eyes as Seth’s lips gently press on the skin of my neck, and my body comes alive under his touch. But I don’t want this, not right now, not when everything he did to my heart when he left is still so raw. I hook my legs around his waist, and I quickly flip him over. He crashes into the coffee table as I climb to my feet and carefully watch him rise.
“Mine.” He repeats. I hold up my hand.
