My father began to hum, a nursery rhyme that stirred up old memories. My mother had sung the same tune to get me to sleep countless times, but hearing it from him had my heart cracking apart.
I was in every one of the memories that followed. My first word, my first steps, my first birthday. And he was happy,sohappy, in every one of them. The twinkle in his eye and the smile on his face told me that this fate, reliving the happiest moments of his life, was his own slice of paradise.
This was his heaven. And I was in it.
By the time we got to my third birthday, I was sobbing into the sleeve of my dress, crushed by unexpected emotions. Belial drew me in against his chest, and in a flurry of magic we were back in his bed. The book laid between us, unopened.
He let me cry, holding me and stroking my hair. Which only had me crying harder.
This wasn’t how this night was supposed to go.
“Are you sad that I showed you this?” he asked after a while, reaching up to wipe the tears from my cheeks.
It was a lot. More emotional than I’d imagined possible, but… cathartic. My father was, and always would be, at peace. And even though it hurt, knowing I was there to spend forever with him—even in memory—was comforting.
“No,” I said, taking a deep breath to abate the tears. “This was the best gift anyone’s ever given me. So, thank you. Truly.”
He smiled beneath his mask, sinking down with me that my head rested on his chest. His fingers ran through my hair, consoling me.
“Making paradises isn’t the Lord’s strong suit as a demon, but he tries his best to give good afterlives to good souls,” Belial said. “Your father was a good soul.”
I nodded against his muscular chest. “He was. I worry I’ll never be even half as good as him.”
“Oh, little human…,” he cooed in that dark, purring rumble that had goosebumps exploding over my skin. His arm came up to curl behind my back, tucking me against his side. “Of all the things you have to worry about, that’s not one of them. I can promise you that.”
Chapter32
BELIAL
Watchingmy little thief’s heart shatter and mend itself all in one fell swoop was more than I’d anticipated when I sent for her father’s soul. I thought I could show her a lighter side of my realm. That way, she might warm to the idea of staying here. I hadn’t expected her to feel so much for a man she never really knew.
I definitely didn’t count on feeling so much as I watched her fall apart. I didn’t know what to do about the unfamiliar tightness squeezing my chest, or the warmth flooding my blood. All I knew was that this… whatever was happening between us… was right.
Rayvenwas right.
And I needed her, more than I was willing to admit.
I stared at her for several minutes, wishing I had the magical power to manipulate time, so I could freeze this moment and stay like this with her forever. Tomorrow I was going to break her heart.
So, I would have done anything in my power to ensure tonight never ended.
“You didn’t have to do that for me, you know,” she said, lifting her face from my chest to pin me with a sharp look. “Whydid you do that?”
“I did it for a few reasons. This realm isn’t all that you think it is. There are parts that suck, yes. But there are good parts, too.”
The prettiest little smile curved her lips, and I wanted nothing more than to kiss them. “Like you?”
Blood and Darkness. The things this little human was doing to me… Making me feel alive again, almost like she had the power to stir life into my long-dead heart.
“Maybe you should get some sleep,” I told her softly, my fingertips brushing over her cheek.
She blinked at me. “You don’t want to….” Her cheeks turned that delicious hue of pink, making my dick thicken in my pants. “You know.”
“Oh, you can bet your pretty little ass I want to. I want you so bad it scares me,” I admitted. “But I figured you wouldn’t be in the mood after seeing your dad.”
“You showed me his soul knowing there was a chance I wouldn’t want to?”
I tweaked a brow at her, even though she couldn’t see it behind the mask. “So?”
