Page 1 of Demon Shy

CHAPTER ONE

MAY

The roadof life wasn’t a straight, paved lane that traveled in one direction. It had twists and turns and was filled with potholes and boulders. Dead ends happened at regular intervals just as frequently as forks.

And, months after being rescued from an abusive hell, that was where I found myself.

At a fork.

“No one’s saying you have to do this, May,” Eden said, watching me with concern.

“I know, sweetheart.” I offered the woman a small smile.

She and I had a shared past, a rough one. For weeks after the world fell, I’d protected her when I could, using my body as a distraction for the men who’d held us captive. And in return, she’d given me and several others in that hellish prison of an underground bunker a way to save ourselves.

All we’d needed to do was accept living with the fey. Easier said than done, though. Not because of the fey but because of my inner demons. It was time to end that.

“Since coming here, I haven’t exactly been living,” I said.

Eden took my hand in hers. Her nails were no longer caked with dirt that wouldn’t wash off. They were clean and trimmed.Her palm was softer and not laced with callouses. She no longer had to fight to survive. At least, not like she had. She had a decent life now with her fey, Ghua. I saw them around often. Looking at each other with those lovey-dovey gazes and kissing. The nice kind, not the kind I’d endured back in the bunker. I pushed that thought aside.

“It’s time for me to move on,” I said. “And I think this is my chance to let go of the past.”

“Are you sure?”

I lightly squeezed her hand. “I’m sure.”

Doubt filled her gaze, and I smiled again.

“I’m thirty-five years old, hun. My face is starting to get too many lines I don’t want, and none of the ones I do. I want to find a reason to genuinely smile again, Eden, and that’s not going to happen just sitting here.

“I’ve seen you with your man. I see how he treats you, and I've been thinking about hooking up with one of them for a while now. This is just the nudge I needed to take those thoughts more seriously.”

She nodded slowly and released my hand. “Okay then. I can start introducing you to some fey you might?—”

“No need. I’ll approach him on my own,” I said, standing.

“Him? You already have one in mind?” she asked, joining me.

“I do.”

“What’s his name?”

“I haven’t asked yet. In my head, I’ve just been calling him Bob.”

“Bob?” she repeated with a growing smile as I walked her to the door.

“Yep. It’s a nice name. Solid. And I’ve never met a Bob who was an asshole. Plus, whenever he sees me, he dips his head like he’s nodding to me, but it never comes back up. Thatpartial head bob is what caught my attention. I think I make him nervous, and after everything I’ve seen and done, that’s just refreshing.”

She paused in the doorway.

“You could just ask him to have dinner with you, you know. You don’t have to be part of the doctor’s science experiment.”

Molev, the leader of the fey, had only returned a short while ago, and the survivor encampments were already a beehive of gossip about the medical team that had come with him. Everyone wanted them to figure out why the women sleeping with the fey were immune to the virus and create a vaccine. I was no different. Yet, the betterment of humanity wasn’t why I wanted to join in.

“I’m no one’s fool, Eden,” I said. “Asking one of the fey to dinner is like putting an engagement ring on their cock. There’s no taking it back then. Being a part of an experiment is my safety net if things don’t go the way I hope. At the end of the experiment, I’ll still have a choice to leave if the fey I pick isn’t right for me.”

“All right. Then I’ll keep my fingers crossed for you that you pick a keeper that makes you crazy happy.” She gave me a big hug, which I needed more than I let on, and left.

---