Page 31 of Awakening the Dhampir

Damon’s grunt was the only reply. I would’ve brought Lorna inside with me, but she refused to leave the truck. Something about not wanting to be seen in her current outfit. Not that I could blame her. Elliott’s clothes swallowed her. Mine would be slightly better, but they’d still hang off her slender frame.

I strolled into the hotel, trying not to think about Lorna wearing one of my T-shirts and nothing else. The mental image stirred my desire in an instant. I shuffled awkwardly through the lobby, trying to avoid adjusting the growing erection in my jeans.

“Can I help you?” an older man asked from behind the hotel’s reception desk.

“Yes, I need a suite if you have one available,” I replied.

“Yes, sir, let me check.”

He tapped away on the keyboard while I looked around the lobby. It was rather busy. The seating area next to me was full, as was the small dining room, even though the hotel only served breakfast. An uproar of cheers erupted from the crowd, and I realized they were watching a ball game. The matching team logos on their shirts should’ve clued me in earlier.

At least they were too absorbed in the game to notice me.

“We have one king suite available, sir. It has a sofa bed, though,” the receptionist said. “Will that be okay?”

It wasn’t ideal, but it’d have to be if that was all they had.

“Yes,” I said as I handed him my credit card.

A few minutes later, I walked out with a keycard to our suite. Luckily, it was on the back side of the hotel on the top floor.

I hopped back into the truck and noticed Damon’s face flickering from human to demon. We needed to hurry.

“Pull around back,” I said, giving him directions to the room. “I’ll get your bag if you’ll open the room for us.”

He nodded at me but didn’t say anything. He’d barely put the truck in park before tossing me the keys. I handed him a keycard and watched him jog to the door.

“Is Damon okay?” Lorna asked.

“No,” I replied, not wanting to lie to her even if I could. “We should’ve stopped a while ago. Most demons can’t hold a human form for more than three or four hours.”

Her eyes widened as she did the math. Damon had assumed his human form ten hours ago.

“Is there anything I can do to help?” she asked. Her genuine concern made me smile, which made her frown. “How can you be smiling, Kenrid?”

“Because you constantly surprise me with your kindness,” I said without even thinking. “I expected you to push us away. You have every right to despise me right now, but you don’t. I’ll forever be grateful for what I hope is your forgiveness.”

Blushing, Lorna pushed open her door and jumped out. I shook my head, not even trying to figure out what she was thinking.

When we made it into the room, Damon was already sprawled on his stomach across the king-sized bed. His enormous wings hung over each side of the bed, and he hugged the large body pillow beneath him. And he was dead asleep.

“I guess I hadn’t ever seen his feet,” Lorna whispered from my side. “I didn’t realize they’d be hooves. Oh my god … he has a tail!”

I glanced over at her expecting to see disgust, but she looked like she wanted to cross the room and run her hands all over the demon.

“He’ll be asleep for a while,” I said. “How about we order some food?”

She nodded, and I pulled the door closed to the separate bedroom. The way she looked at Damon was starting to give me a complex. Everything about him seemed to fascinate her.

“Do you like pizza?” she asked me, interrupting my plunge into self-doubt.

“Yes.” I pulled my cell phone from my pocket. “We’ll order several. Damon will be hungry when he wakes up.” I also needed an excuse to order more than my preferred veggie pizza.

Lorna needed protein. I couldn’t believe how much weight she’d lost. When she stepped out of that shower in nothing more than a towel, it left her frail body on display. She’d been slender before Conrad stole her away, but now … We needed to get her on a well-rounded diet.

I found a local pizza delivery and paused before dialing. “Is there anything you don’t want on yours?” I asked.

“Nope.” She shifted uneasily in the middle of the room. “I like everything.”

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