Joseline shifts, slowly walking over to sit next to me on the couch, and I can’t take my eyes off her. She doesn’t even look in my direction, though, because she’s cooing at the baby.
“I wanted to personally thank you, Tobias. You saved us,” Niki goes on, drawing my attention from Joseline. “We might not be here if not for you.”
Her eyes are misted with tears, which knots my insides and has my throat feeling unusually tight.
I don’t know what to say; nothing feels appropriate. Finally, I nod and clear my throat. “You’re welcome.”
“Do you want to hold the baby?” Joseline interrupts. My eyes bounce from her to the baby and back, discomfort twisting my insides.
“I don’t… That’s not really…” I stammer, fear prickling over my skin. The thought of holding a newborn baby is more terrifying than taking on a swarm of hellbeasts.
“Of course you do!” She grins and shifts to place the infant in my arms.
My chest tightens as she shows me how to hold it, and every muscle in my body tenses. When her hands disappear, my stomach turns, and I clutch the bundle a little tighter.
What if I fucking drop it? Sebastian would have me shredded into confetti in seconds.
My eyes finally fall to the cherub-faced baby. Her cheeks are round, her nose slightly upturned. Little dark curls cover her head. She’s the most perfect little thing I’ve ever seen.
I hold my breath, nerves taking over. I've never held something so fragile, so impossibly delicate, and my heart clenches hard at the thought of hurting her.
This accident.
This miracle.
She was never supposed to exist, never supposed to survive, but here she is. In the flesh. The product of Sebastian and Niki’s bond.
I immediately know that I'll protect her at all costs. I'd lay down my life for this miniature human, slay an army if it meant keeping her safe.
"What's her name?" I ask, fighting past the lump in my throat.
"Kacie," Sebastian answers, and I'm finally able to pry my eyes away from the newborn's face.
He’s staring at me casually from the other sofa, hands folded in his lap. Surely, I heard him wrong.
"Come again?"
“I don’t think you understand how grateful I am for you, Kaseilon,” Sebastian explains. “Everything I have, my life, my family, could have been ripped away from me, if not for you. So, we decided to name her after you. Her name is Kacie Tova Porter.”
The information is like a punch to the gut, twisting up every emotion I didn’t know I possessed, but before Ican even process the information, I’m hit again out of nowhere.
“Kaseilon?” My demon name on Joseline’s tongue is enough to knock the air out of my lungs, and my head snaps in her direction.
The word has never been spoken by a human before, and dark power licks through my veins at the acknowledgment. Just her knowing it is enough for a faint tether between us to snap into place. An invisible string that ties us together.
I force air into my lungs as our eyes remain locked, the desire to own her soul calling to every inch of me. The sudden need is painful, burning through me, but I do my best to tamp it down.
It would be so easy to claim her right here, right now, but I don’t want an audience. Especially considering everything I plan to do to her. If she swears herself to me, I won’t have a shred of self-restraint left.
Every inch of her will belong to me.
She’ll be mine.
Chapter 34
Joseline
As disappointing as it is to cancel this weekend’s concert—and possibly the next one—it’s in everyone’s best interest. The demons need to rest and recoup, and Tobias is still limping around like a wounded dog.
