Page 103 of Huntress

“Please, Saint? Please?” Her body was on fire, her insides tensed to a point of agony, and nothing but his touch could fix it. She leaned forward, pressing her lips to his, and for a second he let her.

He pulled away. “You’re being cruel.”

“Just kisses, I swear.”

He looked at her warily, then pulled her off the banister and set her feet on the floor. “I’ll make a deal with you.”

“What is it?” she asked, clinging to him.

“We need to go visit that witch of yours.”

“I don’t want Perrie,” she complained.

“She’s not going to want you, either. But she can make you better. You’re going to climb down that ladder, and at the bottom you’re going to pretend that nothing’s wrong. You’re going to bid those two guys goodnight and walk away with me. Do you understand?” Saint asked.

“Will you fuck me after?” she asked.

“I thought you wanted kisses.” He held her chin between his thumb and forefinger, lowering his mouth until it was barely out of her reach. “Is that okay with you?”

“Yes.”

Saint grabbed her thermos and the jacket she’d been wearing, then headed to the ladder. “I’ll go down first, in case your goofy ass falls.”

“You guys packing it in for the night?” Liam asked when they got to the bottom.

“Yeah, she’s freezing.” Saint wrapped an arm around Elsie’s waist as she plastered herself to his side. He tossed the coat over, and both men gave the demon confused looks.

“She can hang onto it for the night if she’s that cold,” Harold offered.

“I don’t want it,” Elsie grumbled. Saint shrugged, then walked back down the trail they’d come up on.

“See?” she crowed as soon as the watchmen were out of sight. “I told you I don’t want anyone else.”

“We can’t get down the mountain like this.” He peeled her off before taking her hand. “This is safer.”

“You promised me kisses,” she complained.

“After we get down the mountain.”

“That’s not fair.”

“Tell me about it.”

He kept putting her off until they got close to the watchtower.

“Can you be trusted not to spill everything to your friends?” he asked. “If they figure out that we’re bonded, we’ll be killed, remember?”

“But I want you.” She pouted, hugging him around the middle and setting her head on his chest now that he was standing still. Saint sighed.

“They can’t know that. I’m going to tell them you were coming on to one of those humans up there.”

“I wouldn’t do that to you.”

“One day in the future, I’m going to make you pay for this,” he muttered.

“The day you kill me?” she asked, looking up at him with wide eyes.

“Maybe.”