Page 12 of Bitter Sweet Love

His stare turned icy when I faced him. “They’re hunting for the mansion. They know a Warden clan is nearby and they’re trying to find it.”

I gasped, horrified by the idea of these things descending on a homeful of children. “Is... is that common?”

He nodded. “More common than you realize. They just don’t usually come out during the day. They’re getting bolder.” His lip curled in disgust. “We must get back. I need to report this to Garrick immediately.”

How had I never known about this? Demons were getting that close to our home on a regular basis? How much did I not know? In a daze, I walked back to the car. Dez drove this time. I was cool with that.

Chapter Six

Dez had gone straight to my father when we arrived home, and I had gone in the opposite direction. As much as I wanted to hear what my father had to say about the Terriers coming out in the daylight, I didn’t want to be present if Dez decided to tell him I’d gotten out of the car.

And if Dez did tell him that, there was a good chance that my father would put a stop to my conditions.

I paced the length of my room, unable to sit for longer than a minute, it seemed. It had been this way since dinner. I hadn’t seen my father or Dez there.

Sprawled across my bed, Danika was... what exactly was she doing? Back against the mattress, arms flattened at her sides, she pressed her thighs together and lifted her legs straight into the air, holding still about six inches off the comforter. After a few seconds, she moved her legs up about a foot. Then she repeated the whole process.

“God, we need hobbies,” I muttered.

She laughed. “I’m working my stomach muscles.”

“Like I said, we need hobbies.”

Dropping her legs down, she sat up. Two thick braids bounced off her shoulders. “At least I’m being productive. You’re just walking back and forth.”

I stuck my tongue out at her and started pacing again.

A bright smile plastered itself across her face. “So what condition are you tackling next?”

I’d filled Danika in on everything—what happened today and my conditions, with the exception of the skinny-dipping, because I wasn’t sure I’d even been serious about that. “If Dez tells Dad about me being with him, there won’t be any conditions.”

“He’s smart enough to keep quiet.” She twirled the edge of a braid. “And Father is going to let you go with him. He’s always wanted you and Dez to mate. I’m so jealous. You’ll be traveling while I’m stuck here, wanting to claw out my eyeballs.”

“I don’t know,” I whispered. Mulling it over, I couldn’t imagine my father being okay with me traveling all the way to DC without a small army.

Danika flopped onto her back, sighing. “You’re going to get to see Zayne. I hate you.”

“You have such a crush on him.”

“I do,” she admitted, unashamed. “I hope he visits again with his father. That would make my year.”

I grinned. “It wouldn’t take much to make your year.”

She snorted. “True.”

Zayne was seventeen, Danika’s age, and extraordinarily handsome, even for a Warden. Danika had made no attempt at hiding her attraction when it came to the blond Warden, following him around like I’d done with Dez for many years, and Zayne had always been kind to Danika. If she had annoyed him, he’d never let it show. His father was the head of the DC clan, and it was rumored that in their household, there was a child that was both Warden and demon. I didn’t believe it. No clan would keep such an... an atrocity among them.

“So, did you kiss him?” Danika asked, interrupting my thoughts.

“What?” My cheeks heated. “No.”

Danika giggled. “Then your condition is not over.”

I opened my mouth and then snapped it shut. Dez hadn’t fulfilled his end of the condition with the driving, but fighting the Terriers hadn’t counted. We hadn’t been hunting for demons when they’d found us.

“You looked like you really enjoyed it when he kissed you last night,” she pointed out. “Brilliant idea, by the way, using your seven days as an opportunity to get out of the house, but you’re not going to tell him no in the end.”

My eyes narrowed on her. “I’m not telling him yes.”

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