Page 49 of Hell’s Half Acre

Laughing, he opened it before she drove him into it. The moment he was in the bedroom, she slammed the door shut behind him.

And realized her clothes were on the bed outside.

Why, Lord? Why?

A deep laugh rumbled on the other side of the door. Two seconds later, her clothes appeared on the vanity beside her.

“Thank you,” she said begrudgingly.

“I’d say you’re welcome, but I prefer your birthday suit.”

Sorcha ground her teeth. She really wanted to hate him. Be furious over what he’d done. Take him to task.

How could she when what she really hated was how much she wanted to be naked with him? He was an easy creature to adore. There was just something about him that warmed her, through and through.

Pulling her clothes on as fast as she could, she opened the door to find him waiting in the bedroom.

“Where have you been?” she demanded.

“I went to notify Lawson’s sister about his death.”

“For three days? Seriously?”

Luke blinked twice, then cursed. “Damn it. I totally forgot.”

“Forgot what?”

“Time flows differently in the Pormundus. I’ve rarely been there since I was banished, and I forgot that a minute there is several human hours…as in Hell. To me, I’ve only been gone a couple of hours.”

That thought made her head ache. “Why would it work like that?”

He shrugged. “Ask the big guy upstairs when you meet Him. I don’t make the rules. I just try to survive them.”

How simple he made it sound, but she knew he wasn’t that accepting. He would fight to the bitter end.

“Well, while you’ve been gone, your demons have run amok.”

He rubbed at his forehead as if he had a severe ache. “Of course they have. How bad is it?”

“They burned down a couple of buildings in the Starland District. Started a riot in Forsyth Park, and wreaked havoc all over SCAD Beach. We’ve managed to recapture ten so far.”

He gaped at her list of crimes, which had kept them all on their toes. Rory was hellbent, pun intended, to put the demons under the jail.

Fear they might eat the other inmates had caused Reyes to call in favors from every politician she knew and a few she’d only met once at a party.

Luke sighed. “How much do I owe the city?”

“You owe the captain more than the city. She wants a word with you ASAP. We barely kept a handle on them while you were gone.”

“Who is the we you keep mentioning?”

“Trinket, Helly, Envee, Simi, and myself.”

He looked impressed with her news. “How did you manage to contain them?”

“Barbecue sauce, silly. Demons are always hungry for good eats,” Simi said as she opened the bedroom door. “Akra-Sorcha? The scanner thingy is howling again with another report about your demons. The Simi thinks you needs hear it.”

Sorcha walked past Luke so that she could listen.