Wait… what?
Part of him wanted to hiss and shrink away from them. He really expected them to attack. Why weren’t they attacking?
Suddenly, Lil was by his side. “It’s all right, Caleb.” She rubbed his back comfortingly.
Still, he wanted to run away. A crowd surrounding him had never boded well for him or any demon he knew.
But they weren’t attacking. They were offering gratitude. Some were offering drink.
Was this real? It seemed like a dream.
“Don’t leave me,” he whispered to her.
Lilliana tightened her grip on his hand. “They love you, Caleb. Enjoy the moment.”
Still, he wanted to run. Especially when the villagers came up to him to thank him personally for doing what he did by nature— kill a demon or anything else that got in his way.
It was several minutes before he finally relaxed and began to accept the fact that they meant him no harm.
“You’re a hero, husband. And not just to me.”
A hero. The thought wrenched his gut. He wasn’t meant to be a hero. And that title was ill-fitting to the demonic part of himself that he took pride in.
His father would vomit if he heard that. Or the cheers that rang out to celebrate a son Jaden had thrown away.
Someone handed him a cup of mead. “Well done!”
“It would have been better done if I wasn’t covered in blood.”
The unknown man laughed as he vanished in the crowd.
Then, the man they’d declared as the Lord of Misrule stepped forward and offered Caleb his motley, belled hat. “I take my hat off to you, sir, and declare you the real Lord of Misrule for the year.”
That caused a cheer to rise up from the others.
Scowling, he turned toward Lil. “What does this mean?”
“You get to spend the rest of the night playing pranks on others.”
“I don’t know how to do that.”
“I know, precious. But smile. It’s a good thing.”
He still wasn’t so sure about that. But with her, there was no such thing as bad. Neither in her attitude nor reality. Her presence made everything better.
And as the night passed without another incident, he slowly began to relax.
Her father came up and clapped him on the back. “Well, this has been the tamest Lord of Misrule we’ve ever had. I think the people are actually grateful for that after the demon mishap.” He smiled at Caleb. “But I’m sure you’re ready for your wedding night.”
Lil blushed profusely.
Clearing his throat, her father stepped back. “You two can have the cottage to yourselves. I’ll stay in the village and continue to celebrate.”
“Thank you, Papa.” She kissed his cheek.
It wasn’t until they started home that Caleb understood the full gift her father was giving them.
Lilliana hugged him close. “I hope we conceive a child tonight. I can think of no better gift than a little Caleb.”
