Lucifer’s gaze lifted from Celina and met his stare.
Everything inside Stone wanted to run. Only his pride saved him. Of course, it might have been terror keeping his feet glued to the ground.
“She loves you. You don’t talk to her like she’s a baby.”
Stone blinked. He didn’t know how to respond. That seemed such an odd statement to make. Lucifer had said that like Celina had told him about Stone.
Lucifer turned away and grabbed a baby bag from the floor. He set it on Frost’s desk and dug through it. “Come here. I have souls to torture. You need to know how to take proper care of my grandbaby. Labor is a long process, especially for a Were.”
Everything about that assertion was absolutely terrifying. This was the devil’s granddaughter. He had to make sure no harm came to her, or it would be the last thing he did. Not that he would let anything happen to Celina. He would die first.
Blue eyes, eyes of the gods, focused on him. “That’s one of the many reasons I’m trusting you with this. I see your heart. You’d give your life to keep her safe. Plus, you’re one of my twin’s warriors and all that nonsense. Yada yada. Whatever.” He pulled an empty bottle from the bag and a bottle of formula. “This is premixed, so it’s fairly idiot-proof. She’s up to six ounces.” He pointed out the lines, showing the six. “See. Idiot proof.”
He motioned for Stone to hand Celina to him. He had never been more torn. It was the devil. It was her grandfather. He was her devil grandfather. Stone fought a hysterical laugh. Maybe his mind had snapped. He passed Celina to Lucifer. Stone watched as Lucifer stole several kisses before pulling a padded thing from the bag.
“I’m about to ruin her day, but you need a crash course.” He set Celina on the pad and went to work on changing her diaper. Stone studied every move. This was important to him. He wanted to take good care of Celina. Stone ignored the way Celina screamed and fought. He blocked out who taught him what he needed to know. Nothing mattered but ensuring Celina got proper care.
Lucifer snapped her pajamas back together and passed her to Stone. “She’ll settle down as soon as she’s warm again.”
If Stone stayed focused on Celina, he somewhat forgot he was alone with the king of Hell. “Say you’ve got this.”
At Lucifer’s demand, Stone snapped to attention. “I’ve got this.” The way Celina still cried belied his words. He didn’t know how to stop her from making that sound.
Lucifer held his stare for a minute. It wasn’t comfortable. “Feed her. She’s hungry.”
“On it.”
Lucifer gave him a sharp nod and stole another kiss from Celina. “Papaw will be back later.”
Celina settled down. Her cries turned into fussiness.
The moment Stone worked one-handed to make her a bottle, she calmed.
“Oh, I see how it’s going to be. As long as you’re in charge, then no one gets hurt.”
Celina smiled.
Stone melted. This one little girl really had everyone she met wrapped around her finger. Stone wasn’t the least bit mad about it.
If Lysander hadn’t heard Stone in his head for the past sixteen hours, he would have gone after him sooner. Another successful Were baby slept in a new momma’s arms. It was a good day. As always, when Lysander popped onto Frost’s property, alarms sounded. They were immediately silenced by Leif. Leif nodded his way, but not a single vampire moved from their post. Everyone looked on edge—like they were extra on guard tonight.
With a mental shrug, Lysander strolled inside. There were no demons on duty. The place was eerily silent. Stone had asked Lysander to come to him. While Stone’s thoughts had been strangely blank on the matter, Lysander hadn’t been suspicious in any way. He hoped the request was a case of Stone missing him. Now that he was here, something felt slightly off. There was an odd static in the air that crackled. It wasn’t magic. It was pure, unadulterated power. Lysander picked up the pace.
By the time Frost’s office came into view, Lysander felt like he had waded his way through the power hanging in the air. Fairies were extremely strong, but they were also light. They felt any change in the environment. A golden glow hit Lysander first. It wasn’t like he needed to shield his eyes, but it was noticeable. Then Lysander saw him. A golden god with molten swirling eyes. Black wings draped the floor. Some of the world’s most notorious vampires stood guard over him. They seemed twice the size of normal vamps. Unsure of what to do, Lysander gave a small wave.
Frost, Gemini, and Stone sat nearby, looking completely at ease with the huge, winged creature. Audor leaned against the wall right inside the doorway, openly on guard.
“Hi.”
Lysander blinked when the man spoke. He sounded… normal.
The glowing stranger laughed. “That’s oddly nice. No one has thought of me as normal in a long time. We’ve been waiting for you.”
He could read minds. Lysander wasn’t surprised. Everything about him screamed godly power. Lysander eased Stone’s way.
Before he made it, Stone stood. He snagged Lysander by the waist and reclaimed his chair with Lysander on his lap. Stone kissed him. It was a sweet brushing of lips on lips. “Hey, baby.”
Lysander nearly melted at the sugary greeting.
