My fork paused on the way to my mouth. I lowered it to the table. My heart suddenly started racing. What exactly was he asking me?
“Um...” My cheeks grew hot. “Honestly?”
“Yes. Honestly.”
As my heart hammered, my mouth went dry. I licked my lips.
“I want to be with you,” I rasped.
Sagitta jerked, sitting ramrod straight in his seat as if I’d pinched him. His jaw dropped, but no sound emerged. After a few seconds, he stammered, “I—I meant for a job.”
“Oh.” Heat pounded in my head like a hammer striking an anvil. “Um. That was embarrassing.”
Faust burst out laughing harder than I’d ever heard him laugh. He sounded like he was rolling on the floor of my mind, absolutely fucking losing it.
I dragged my hands down my face. I couldn’t even be embarrassedin peace.
Faust cackled so loudly that I didn’t hear the scrape of Sagitta’s chair or his footsteps until he was right in front of me, prying my hands off my face and pressing a kiss to my lips.
My surprised squeak was muffled by Sagitta’s soft mouth against mine. I felt dizzy with hope and joy. He stayed there for longer than I expected, kissing me tenderly. He tasted sweeter than usual. I couldn’t get enough of him.
When he pulled back, his ears were red and his eyes were half-lidded.
“Well.” He cleared his throat. “Now can we talk about your job?”
I swayed in my seat, grateful to be sitting down. “Yeah.”
There was a mischievous spark in Sagitta’s eyes. “I have an idea.”
22
Sagitta
As we walkeddown the street, I really hoped this would work.
“So, are you gonna let me in on this idea yet?” Chase asked, hands shoved into his pants pockets. He was walking closer to me than before. Our elbows practically brushed with each step.
“Not yet. I want you to see it first,” I replied. “It’s something I noticed on our first day together.”
Chase blew out a laugh. “Our first day, huh? That feels like ages ago, but it hasn’t even been a week.”
I ignored the ribbon of anxiety squirming in my chest. At the end of this grace period, I had to make a choice. If I couldn’t exorcise Faust, I’d be forced to give up and let Cygnet handle it. But Cygnet wouldn’t be content to simply exorcise the demon. He wanted Faust dead. I was no fan of demons, either, but... was I okay with that?
There was one other option: step away from my life as an exorcist. But if I abandoned that career, I could never go back. Was I really okay leaving behind the only life I’d ever known?
“I feel the same way,” I agreed. “This has been the longest week of my life.”
Chase flashed one of his classic golden retriever grins. Prodding his elbow against mine, he asked, “In a good way, I hope?”
“I thought that was obvious.”
Chase beamed. He bounced down the sidewalk with a spring in his step until the Dustin’s Donuts sign came into view, and he halted abruptly.
“Oh no,” he muttered. “We’re back here.”
“Yes we are.”
“You brought us here on purpose?” He let out a petulant groan. “Sagitta, you don’t understand. He getssoannoying when he wants treats.”
