“Like what?” he asked, as if he truly wanted to know and wasn’t just making polite conversation.
“To us,” I told him with a smile.
“To you and your sibling?” he asked, as he must have gathered with me, saying to us that I wasn’t an only child. So, I decided to trust him enough to reveal that part of my life.
“To me and my sister.”
“I gather she didn’t give you whiskey as a child, as I may not be mortal, but I do have enough understanding that giving alcohol to a child isn’t wise.” I laughed at that.
“No, the whiskey was for her, as we usually got a giant bowl of ice cream.” A quiet sound escaped him then. Not quite a laugh, but more like a thoughtful hum. I glanced up at him, suddenly unsure whether I had imagined the note of approval hidden in it.
Which was when my brain chose the absolute worst possible moment to ask the question that had been lurking there for several minutes.
“Can demons have children?”
The silence that followed was immediate. That was before Wye, then choked slightly on his whiskey. As for me, my eyes widened in horror.
“Oh my Goddess,”I groaned, covering my face with one hand.
“Please pretend I did not just ask that.” I could feel the laughter building in his chest behind me.
“I mean not that I want children right now, I mean maybe someday, but not like today or tomorrow or…” I rushed to clarify, words tumbling over themselves in a mortifying attempt to recover the situation. Of course, his laughter didn’t help.
“Please shut me up,” I groaned with a shake of my head, something he stopped when he framed my face with both hands and said,
“If you insist.” Then he kissed me again, and all thoughts of my blunder slipped away with the taste of whiskey and this Demonic God at my back.
When I finally pulled back several seconds later, my cheeks were burning, and not from what I had said. Although I still felt the need to say,
“Definitely not first date conversation.”
His laughter this time was warm and completely unapologetic.
“Perhaps tenth.”
“Definitely tenth,” I agreed weakly with a smile. Despite the fact that we were still sitting on a throne in the middle of a demon nightclub, with half the room quietly watching us, I realized something. Something that made my chest feel strangely light.
That for the first time since this entire insane situation had begun…
I was actually enjoying myself.
9
SHARING SPACE
The moment we stepped into the corridor beyond the club, his world felt different.
It felt more human.
The air here was cooler, calmer somehow. The distant thrum of the club reduced to a dull vibration through stone walls as Wye guided me steadily down the corridor. My hand firmly in his, as if he feared I would suddenly try to run at any second.
His fingers were warm around mine, the grip firm without being restraining, yet I knew they would tighten the moment I tried to pull away from him. Because every time my thoughts began drifting somewhere dangerously complicated, the subtle pressure of his hand seemed to tense just slightly. It was as though he could feel the exact moment my nerves threatened to spiral.
Which, unfortunately, they were doing rather frequently after everything that had happened since first walking back into his club. Our kiss being at the very top of that list. And yes, I knew that shouldn’t have been a priority after all the magic mojo with Bo but try telling my girly parts that.
Apparently, kissing the terrifying ruler of a demon realm in the middle of a nightclub had been something my brain was perfectly capable of processing in the moment. Now, however, it seemed determined to revisit that fact with relentless enthusiasm. Especially knowing we were now walking back to his bedchamber.
The kiss.
