They stayed on the roof for a long time. The city lights blurred and shifted below them.
“We should go inside,” Victor said eventually. “You’re freezing.”
“I’m fine.”
“Your teeth are chattering.”
“Romantic ambiance.”
He laughed, a real laugh, surprised out of him. She felt it through the bond, felt the release of tension he’d been carrying for hours. Maybe longer.
“Come on.” He stood, pulling her up with him. “I’ll make tea.”
“Tea.”
“I’m capable of making tea.”
“You have people for that.”
“I have people for everything. That doesn’t mean I can’t…” He stopped at her expression. “What?”
“Nothing.” She leaned into him as they walked toward the door. “I just like seeing you like this. Arguing about tea. Being normal.”
“I’m a six-thousand-year-old demon. Normal isn’t exactly my baseline.”
“Normal for us, then.” She reached for the door handle, then paused. “Victor?”
“Yes?”
“The brand.” She touched his injured hand gently. “Does it still hurt?”
He looked at his palm. The three flames were still raw, still silver against his skin. Still a permanent mark of what he’d given up.
“Yes,” he said. “It probably always will.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be.” He lifted her hand, pressed a kiss to her wrist where her own pulse beat steadily against his lips. “Some costs are worth paying. This one was.”
They went inside, and Victor made good on his promise to make tea, or tried to, anyway.
The kitchen was enormous, all marble countertops and professional-grade appliances that had clearly never been used.Victor stood in front of a kettle that probably cost more than Ava’s monthly rent, frowning at it like it had personally offended him.
“It’s not that complicated,” she said, hopping up onto the counter to watch. “You put water in. You turn it on. You wait.”
“I know how kettles work in theory.”
“In theory.”
“I haven’t actually…” He stabbed at a button. Nothing happened. “There are a lot of settings.”
“It’s a kettle, Victor. Not a spaceship.”
“Spaceships I could figure out. This has seven different temperature options.” He squinted at the display. “Why would anyone need seven different temperatures for water?”
“Different teas steep at different temperatures. Green tea is lower, black tea is higher.”
“Now you’re an expert?”
