Page 23 of Rescued By the Dour Demon

He laughed, the tension draining from him as he rested his forehead against hers. “Yes, you did. Though, to be fair, there are a lot of us, and it takes a lot more than bloodline to stay at the top of the demon hierarchy. I’m nothing special.”

“You’re special to me,” she said, breathing in his scent, grounding herself.

“Leith… Rowan…,” they said at the same time. Both huffed out awkward laughs.

“Please,” Leith said, tipping her chin up with a gentle finger, “let me go first.”

She licked her lips and nodded, her heart pounding in her chest.

“When I told Draig you were my mate, I was speaking the truth. I meant it from the very bottom of my heart. From the first moment I met you at this very crossroads, I knew we were meant to be together. Your bright spirit, your joyous impulsivity, the love you hold for your grandmother and friends, and everything that makes you such an amazing person, it makes my soul sing.”He ran a finger down her cheek and tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear. “I love you, Rowan Burnay.”

Her breath hitched. “I never believed in love at first sight. Not until I met you, my demon at the crossroads. I love you, too, Leith Mamon, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you.”

He picked her up with a whoop and spun her in a circle, his mouth crashing down on hers. She parted willingly for him, her tongue tangling with his as their breath mingled.

With every stroke of his tongue, sparkles exploded throughout her entire body. Her knees grew weak, and she tightened her grasp, drawing in his strength and warmth as the cool night air swirled over them.

“My mate,” he whispered, stroking her hair. “My always and forever.”

“Hey,” she said, resting her chin on his chest, “does this mean if we decide to make this human-legal, I’ll be a demon princess?”

“That’s not quite how it works in the demon realm,” he said, “but you’ll always be my princess.”

“Aw, how sweet.” She wiggled her hips suggestively against him. “Why don’t we take this somewhere warmer? Maybe somewhere with a nice, soft bed? We haven’t tried that yet.”

“Excellent idea,” he said, sweeping her up into his arms. With a snap of his fingers, he extinguished the candles and opened a portal.

She groaned as she peered into the swirling void. “Not another portal.”

“Don’t worry, love,” he said with a twinkle in his eye. “I’ll make it worth the trip.”

EPILOGUE

SIX MONTHS LATER

“What do you think?” Rowan asked, rubbing her cheek and leaving a smear of grass green paint behind. “Is it too bright?”

Leith adjusted the stack of boxes he was carrying as he paused to admire the mural of wildflowers and grasses his mate painted on the side of their garage. “No. All that color is going to be a perfect backdrop for the garden we have planned.”

“Little bro,” Draig bellowed from inside their new house, “where do you want these boxes?”

He rolled his eyes, wedging his own box on top of a stack in the garage.

Rowan snickered as she tamped down the tops of her paint cans, her flower mural mostly complete. Maybe. She might decide to change it up later. Artistic license and all that. “I mean, it’s sweet of him to help us move in.” She grimaced at the loud crash that came from inside the old Victorian they’d recently purchased. Boy, she hoped that wasn’t anything important.

“All he has to do is read what it says on the box.” Leith scrubbed his hand through his hair, tugging at his horn. “We have what room things go in written on every single side.”

“As long as everything gets out of the moving truck and into the house or the storage pod, we can shift things around later.” She grabbed his jaw and gave him a hard kiss. “Besides, we’ve only renovated our bedroom and the kitchen so far. Everything’s going to have to move around, anyway. So let him do his chaotic big brother thing and don’t worry about it.”

Eloise breezed past them, a single box in hand. “I’ll corral him for you. Better, I’ll take him off your hands for a bit,” she said with a wink.

“You’re a lifesaver,” Rowan said, making a shooing motion. “We’ll finish up here. But come back around six. We’re grilling out. Granny’s all excited about the fancy cake she’s bringing from Sir Bakes-A-Lot.”

“Excellent,” Eloise said. “I’ll make sure we work up an appetite.”

“Gah, don’t traumatize me in your sex life, especially if my brother is involved.” Leith covered his ears and chanted. “La-la-la.”

Eloise giggled and ran into the house, quickly reemerging with a grinning Draig in tow.

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