“Oh my, is that…?” the female voice asked.
“Yes, Nyx. Though we’re trying to smooth out some memory issues this weekend so please refrain from any heartfelt reunions for the time being. We haven’t discussed you yet.”
I blinked rapidly in confusion. Was he suggesting that this Nyx person had more significance than just an important member of his staff?
“Oh, yes, of course.” Her voice was swollen with emotion, almost as if she was holding back tears. She cleared her throat, sniffling. “Um, anyway. What floor would you like to go to, Sire?”
“Second. We’ll be traveling downward, traveling through memory lane to see if we can jog some old memories. Meet us at Lust’s lobby.” He cast a hasty glance at me. “Er, come in your human form.”
“Y–yes, Sire,” she answered, her voice wobbling.
The intercom clicked as she hung up.
I arched a brow at Lucifer, confused by the odd exchange. “What was that all about?”
His heart-breaking physiognomy wore a stony expression that betrayed nothing. “She’s just excited to see you, is all.”
The second the last word was out of his mouth, the elevator came to a halt, and the doors slid open with anotherding. I had not expected to see the sleek, modern lobby of what looked to be a hotel on the other side.
“I thought Lust was supposed to be a club,” I said, recalling what he’d told me during dinner over the best damn minestrone of my life. “A club with a restaurant on top.”
“It’s a club, a restaurant, a hotel, a spa, a casino. We even have an amusement park outside, right beside the aquarium and the Japanese zen garden.”
A laugh tumbled from me, but Lucifer’s stern look was enough to tell me he hadn’t been joking. “Oh, wow, you’re serious.”
“Of course I am. I take my domain very seriously, especially since it’s the home of all native demons as well as the departed souls lucky enough to come here rather than Father’s rigid, stick-up-a-butt ‘Paradise.’ My only rule here? Don’t be an asshole unless—”
“What’s on the lower floors?”
“Patience, Kitten. One floor at a time. Once you come live with me, we’ll stay here in Lust, I imagine.” He grinned. “We have the best parties here. Whatever you want, we have it. Drugs, alcohol, sex, the best food in all nine layers, thanks to Cerberus.Excellentmusic. Elvis is a resident here, you know?”
“Right… Elvis.” My head was spinning with all this information. I’m not sure what I thought Lust was going to be like, but a super ritzy getaway wasn’t exactly what I’d pictured. The lobby reminded me of the Cosmopolitan on the Las Vegas Strip. Modern, sophisticated, with black marble floors and ridiculously elaborate chandeliers dripping with crystals. The staff at the check-in desks wore black, with little gold pins of Lucifer’s crest pinned to their chests. Most of them weren’t human. They were demons.
My stomach fluttered as I took in their wickedly curious details, their scaled skin of varying colors, some red, some gray, some black. Some had leathery wings sprouting from their backs while others had horns, and some had both. Some of the males were absolutely huge, with bulging muscles and thick tusks sprouting from stony jaws. I wondered if Abaddon’s true form looked like that. Others were small, like the bellhop who scurried across the floor with his talons clacking against marble, pushing a luggage trolley.
“That’s an Imp,” Lucifer explained, reading the question in my mind. “They aren’t shifters. That’s just how they look. As for Abaddon, think bigger. He did use to be the king, you know? And back before I brought some class to the place, rulers were determined by the size of their balls. Poor devil has a terrible time shopping for pants.”
“Now you’re just making things up.”
His lips quirked, and his eyes sparkled with mischief. “Maybe a little.”
A woman dressed in a charcoal pencil skirt and a tight button-up blouse, clutching a clipboard to her breast, hurried across the lobby toward us, the click of her Louboutin pumps echoing off the walls as if to announce their mistresses arrival.
She held herself like a high-powered CEO, and all the demons and souls seemed to give her space as she passed as if afraid to get in her way.
“And that will be Nyx,” Lucifer murmured. “I warn you, there may be tears.”
No sooner than the warning was out of his mouth, Nyx flung herself at me and wrapped her arms tight around my neck, making it hard to breathe. “Oh! Itisyou. Oh, Lilith. I’ve missed you so.”
I stiffened in her arms, and she pulled away, tears streaming down her moon-pale cheeks. She was absolutely stunning, with gray eyes and long black hair the color of midnight. She almost looked familiar, and a second later, it dawned on me. She looked just like Lilith from Lucifer’s memory of Limbo. Only Nyx had fewer curves and was much taller.
“I’m sorry, I’m not sure…” This was awkward. I looked to Lucifer for help. Was everyone here going to think I was this Lilith person? Whatever I had to do to get home, I guess.
“Nyx, this is Jessica. She’s a nurse and my date for the weekend,” Lucifer explained.
Nyx blinked at the devil. “Right, but—”
He reached out, brushing his palm against her temple just like he’d done with me when he’d shown me his memories. The demoness’s eyes went blank for a moment, her pupils swelling, then a few moments, she stepped away, casting me an apologetic, if not slightly heartbroken, look. “I’m so sorry, Jessica. You must be so confused after all you’ve been through. Know that you’re safe here.”
