Page 53 of Premonition of Peace

The devil emerged from my library with a book in hand, his gaze appraising as he took in my excitement. “Well, well, well. I’ve never had a woman so thrilled to see me while wearing another man’s scent. Did Marcel’s attempts to please you fall short?”

I narrowed my eyes. Under normal circumstances, I’d tell him how talented Marcel was with his hands and egg on his alphahole nature, but this wasn’t the time for games. “Can you stop with the pissing contest, please? I don’t have it in me to deal with your jealousy right now.”

He shrugged, but I could see him soften ever so slightly. “I can keep my thoughts to myself for a while.”

“I figured it out,” I said, getting right to the point and ignoring his half-assed promise. “Look.”

Part of me was worried it wouldn’t work a second time, but I knew that was nerves. I had found the thread. That was all I needed. Holding out my hands, palm up, I took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. The shears materialized in a shimmering of gold light.

“Impressive,” he said softly, smiling in approval.

I preened, grinning as I continued to admire my discovery. It didn’t take long before the joy I felt became a little less. “I need your help.”

He glanced at his fingernails, ignoring my request. “Now you’re letting me in?”

I sighed. “Are we really doing this?” Since when did the devil himself want to talk about his feelings?

Lucifer studied me for a moment, his expression unreadable. Then he grabbed my wrist, and he led us to the couch. I crossed one leg under me, angling my body so I could face him.

“If you want my help, you have to share with me what goes on in your mind,” he finally said, his golden gaze cutting to the core of me.

“You want to know everything, that’s fine. But you have to help me. At this point, I might as well put it on a billboard with how many people I’ve already told,” I muttered with a long sigh.

“Who am I going to tell?” he countered with a chuckle. “I don’t like anybody except you.” His words caught me off guard. They caused a flicker of warmth to stir—which I promptly pushed away. Focus.

“Fair enough,” I said, letting a tiny smile slip through. I spilled it all. Every last detail and discovery . . . with the exception of what Ronan and I discussed.

“I suspected it was Morgan Le Fay,” he said, not showing any emotion alongside the admission. “Not-Sasha’s interest in me has been unusually specific.”

“You never said anything.”

“Neither did you,” he countered, raising a brow.

He wasn’t wrong, but still, I rolled my eyes. “She ‘suddenly’ had a change of heart about August as well, you know? The Morrigan is pretty keen on me taking him for myself. Everything she does has a purpose. It’s not just to throw me off you.”

“What help do you want from me?”

“I need her out of Sasha’s body, and I don’t know how. I can’t implement any part of the plan without that first piece.”

Lucifer sighed in a way that was unsettling.

“What is it?”

“You won’t like it.”

“Since when has that ever stopped you?”

Golden eyes settled on me like a physical weight. “You won’t be able to lure out The Morrigan. She’s too cunning, and even if you did manage to—without a soul in Sasha’s body to keep her alive . . ..”

“Señora kept her body alive before?—”

“And she told you it was temporary. That if Sasha didn’t return on Samhain, she wouldn’t at all.”

I shook my head. “No, I won’t lose her in this. There has to be a way to do both.”

“Do you want my help, or do you want me to placate you?”

Standing up, I began to pace. “Losing Sasha isn’t an option, Lucifer. My plan will work. I just have to get her out?—”

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