Page 1 of In My Closet

Chapter 1

Gracie

"Holy shit."

I couldn't tell if the rattling sound was my bones shaking from excitement or the piece of paper in my trembling hands.

"Shit can't be holy," my friend Stella chuckled, mocking her demon boyfriend.

That was still so weird to say and think about: a demon boyfriend. Lover? Partner? Actually, anything with the word demon in front of it should not be normal by any means. What made it all the weirder was the fact it would eventually become the norm between my friend and me because her demonic lover wasn't going anywhere.

The fact that my friend was a demon's soulmate was bizarre to me. Out of all the creatures that were intensely loyal and loving, a demon was the last thing to come to my mind, but hey, what did I know? I was just another "annoying and brainless human," to quote Kastoron, Stella's demon soulmate.

"Your parents are going to have an aneurysm when they find out their precious daughter will be moving out," Stella commented with a dry chuckle. But it's about time you get away from them. Seriously, I don't know how you've put up with them for the past year."

"Girl, you and me both. I'm surprised I'm not bald from pulling at my hair so much." It was definitely thinner with way too many split ends after the year, though.

A heavy exhale deflated from my chest as I bundled my long baby pink hair up and brought it in front of my face, frowning at the sad sight of my lifeless strands.

"I'm Surprised they didn't dye your hair back to your natural color or shave you while you were asleep," Stella remarked with a surprised but satisfied smile and nod.

"Only because I was smart enough to put a surface bolt on the door when I had to move my ass back to their place." It probably helped that I lived in their shed, too, because that meant I wasn't physically connected to their house, thus limiting their access to me.

My parents were real pieces of work; that was a given. If I had any other option at the time, I wouldn't have moved back to my parent's place after the whole apartment complex I resided in was burned down by some stupid arson attack. If Stella had her a place back then, I would have moved in with her, but she still lived in a tiny studio apartment.

No matter. I didn't care about any of that anymore. The past is the past, and nothing can be done about it now. I couldn't care less about my parents, either, after my cousin gave me my inheritance letter from my grandma, who had been dead for five years.

I was low-key pissed at the fact I could have had my place five years ago. There weren't any stipulations to my inheritance from what my cousin told me and what I confirmed in Grandma's will and inheritance letter. It just literally never made it into my hands. I was twenty-two years old five years ago, so any clause to wait until I was "of age" wouldn't be valid because I was over eighteen. It boggled both me and my cousin, but we decided to leave it because there was no point in pondering it.

"Are you sure it's wise to go there tonight? I mean, you haven't even seen the place yet, and honestly, if it's been sitting there for five years untouched... Is it even livable still?" Stella's lips twisted with concern as she helped me load the last of my stuff into the trunk of my car.

"My cousin took a look the other day and got everything reconnected and turned back on. The place still runs smoothly and is mostly furnished, too." I beamed with a grin and giddy squeal. "Man, my own place, for free!"

Yeah, good luck getting a damn apartment in this shitty Oregon economy, let alone a whole fucking house. I didn't give a shit if the house was from the late 1900s; a functioning house at no cost to me was a godsend!

"I would change the locks as soon as possible and maybe get a damn security system in place to keep your parents out. You know how much they're gonna blow when they come home later and find you and all your stuff gone without a word," Stella suggested with a concerned smile. "I think I still have some spare locks from when I changed mine if you want them," she offered.

"I'll swing by your place tomorrow to grab them. Honestly, anything to save me money, I'll take." Yeah, call me a cheap-ass Asian; I had no shame about accepting free shit from anyone. Hell, if I passed something labeled free on the streets, I took it.

Rolling her eyes, Stella pulled me into a quick hug. "Be careful. Text me when you get there," she murmured against my shoulder before pulling away. "I'll try to swing by the day after to help you unpack and settle."

Rejecting her with a confident smile and a shake of my head, I waved a small hand in the air."Spend time with your demon, babe. Pretty sure he's gonna go through Stella withdrawals if you don't spend some time with him soon," I joked with a soft chuckle.

Scoffing a soft laugh, I lightly shoved at her shoulder playfully. "Also, please don't teach him how to use technology anymore. Do you have any idea how much he was blowing up your phone throughout the whole day yesterday while we were out at that wedding?"

He was rather needy for a rough, tough demon, which made him rather cute.

Laughing softly in response, she shook her head at me before bidding me farewell and leaving in her vehicle.

"Whelp." Taking a deep breath, I patted the trunk of my car with an excited smile before whistling for my dog. "Goldie! Let's go, buddy!"

The golden retriever mix instantly shot up from his spot on my parents' porch at the call of his name, bolting right to me and lying at my feet with his wagging tail.

"Let's go home."

Chapter 2

Valphan

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