A sneer curled Sal’s thin lips. “But you’re allowed, right—gah!”
As Luc’s fingers tightened around Sal’s neck, he fought the desire to snap the demon’s bulbous head off his shoulders.
“You will speak to me with respect, Salvokos. It was I who breathed life into you, and I am perfectly capable of tearing your limbs from your body without breaking a sweat.” He shook the demon like a terrier with a rat. “Do I make myself clear?”
Although his minion was unable to form a response, Luc plucked the agreement from his mind. With a flick of his wrist, he tossed Sal aside like yesterday’s garbage.
“Be gone.”
Sal scampered away, never looking back.
“Send Petroval and Emmanthiel to watch him. Tell them to make sure they aren’t seen and to be careful. Salvokos is evil incarnate and will delight in harming them,” he instructed Thamiel.
“Understood, my liege.”
Thamiel was on the phone before Luc cleared the door.
Sal would need to be dealt with sooner rather than later. But Luc required someone to replace him at the library first.
Shaking off his irritation, he returned to his main suite to change. He had a pool party to attend, and with any luck, Nadia would improve his mood considerably.
A large shadow blocked the sun, spiking Nadia’s temper. Whoever stood over her was the third guy in fifteen minutes to make a play for her attention. Why couldn’t they understand she didn’t want to be bothered? She hadn’t gotten past the hangover stage of her day.
She was about to flay the person alive when chill bumps formed along her skin. Despite the shiver, warmth filled her chest cavity, expanding outward.
Luc.
Only he had such an effect on her.
Propping her sunglasses atop her head, she rose up to her elbows and smiled.
“I was hoping you’d join us.”
“I’m not the pool-party type, but when rumor reached me that you’d be in attendance, I altered my plans,” he replied smoothly. “You require lotion. Your delicate skin will burn.”
“Would you believe me if I told you I don’t get burned?”
It was an oddity her friends had never been able to get over. Nadia wasn’t a science major, and having skated through college obsessed with ancient texts, she had only the basics of biology. So she couldn’t comprehend why she didn’t fry after spending hours in the sun like others.
“Yes. I’m the same.”
She sat up. “Seriously? I’ve never met anyone else like me before.”
His smile was mysterious when he said, “You’re one of a kind.”
“Here, take my lounger,” Katie said. “I need another drink, and I spy a gorgeous man all by his lonesome. Leaving him unsupervised is selfish of me.”
Luc chuckled as she strutted away.
Her curvy hips were a thing of beauty and moved to an age-old rhythm of seduction. Nadia envied Katie’s ease with her sexuality.
“She’s a man killer. I want to be just like her when I grow up,” she told him.
Luc’s grin flashed as he sat down and focused all his attention on her. “I highly doubt you have a problem attracting others. The symmetry of your classical features draws the eye, and your coloring is quite unique.” His intense gaze raked along her body, heating her where it lingered. “You are stunning, Nadia. It would be criminal if you didn’t know your worth.”
“Thank you.”
Somehow, his compliment eased the constant sting of not being good enough. Perhaps growing up in foster care had left her with low self-worth, but she’d spent the bulk of her life trying to overcome the feeling. Trying to prove, if only to herself, she had a lot to offer some lucky partner. Telling herself that even if Mr. Right never came along, she would be fine.
