Page 98 of Soul Food

“Amit,” I whispered his name like a prayer as I turned around. There he was in his soul reaper form. A shadowy mass of dark that would scare even the bravest person. His bright-red eyes were clear. “How dare you?” I stepped closer.

His shadow swayed. “How dare I?” I could hear his confusion.

I nodded. “That you think it’s okay for you to decide on staying or going. That it’s okay to really pick up and leave after the night we shared and not come back.”

“I had to take something of you—”

“Do you know how long I’ve been waiting for you?” I interrupted, pointing at him.

“The hardest thing I’ve ever done is let you go.”

I realized I wasn’t even bothered by his soul reaper form as he gazed across the roof at me.

“Until I found out how hard it was to stay away after letting you go.”

“Change forms, Amit.” Closer, closer, I drew near him.

“Still afraid of me this way?” he asked.

“How can I touch you this way?” Once I was right in front of him, I brought my hand up and watched as my fingers slipped through him. Surprisingly, the haze that he was had a feel. He was warm. So warm. And tingly to my skin. Especially on this kind of night, he felt exquisite. “So much heat,” I whispered.

His entire shadowy form shuddered under my touch. I could hear his inhale. “You’re touching my soul,” he said in awe. “I am merely a dark soul that feeds on others.”

“Lars and you both told me you only went after the bad souls—until me.”

“I’ve never devoured anything but a dark soul, Ruth, but from smell alone, evil, corrupt, any and everything bad tastes better. It also keeps me from being hunted down by Reapers. But more than that, I’ve never had an interest in eating any soul deserving of life. Except for you, but that was never really what I wanted from your soul.” His change of form was instant, replacing a shadow with a wide chest filling up my view covered in a black T-shirt.

I looked up because now I had to in order to see those eyes of his.

“Do you believe me?”

“I do.” I let my palm seek out his chest, reveling in the heat I got in return seeping into me.

“Why did you call on me?” I felt his fingers trace my hipbone, almost as if he couldn’t help himself.

“I think it’s for me to decide if I never see you again. It’s for me to decide what becomes of me.”

“Oh?” He hummed, but it was thick and gravelly.

“I want you to stay or for you to take me with you.” I paused, fear creeping in despite how much I’d thought of this. The fear never outweighed my love though. “As long as I’m with you, I’ll be all right.”

“With the life you’ve chosen, we can’t stay. I don’t age, and soon you’ll see that you won’t either.”

My eyebrows furrowed in the middle. I always wondered about his life expectancy being a demon and all, but what did he just say about me? “What do you mean?”

“I hadn’t realized yet when I left you what my soul had been doing with yours.” There was a soft, sweet smile on his lips. He looked vulnerable, albeit excited in the process, like he wanted to fill me in as well. “Mine has been giving yours pieces of itself over the last decade. It’s a soul reaper’s duty to give half of themselves to the ones we love, to keep them always.”

“You said love,” I mumbled in a hazy blissed-out state. Forget the other stuff he’d said. I only heard L-O-V-E.

“Isn’t that what makes us fools?” He pondered with a grin. My heart leaped toward his—heart to heart, soul to soul. He cupped my face, leaning over me. “I love you, my Ruth, my human.”

“Hold on a second,” I whispered, pulling away as I unlocked my phone. I found Ma’s number and called, knowing I had to do this, or I’d never forgive myself. She answered by the third ring. “Ma.” There was a rushed, yet sad tone in my voice.

“What is it?” she asked. “I thought you were in a concert.”

“I love you. You know that, right? You know how proud I am of you?”

“What are you saying?” I could practically feel the alarm pouring through the phone from her.