I’m sure it’s all Aziel can smell right now. Good. Let him bask in it.
The door to Levia’s conference room opens before I can comment. Aziel straightens up, and Charlie jumps off Silas’s lap and slides into her own chair. Silas looks annoyed by her retreat, but he doesn’t say anything about it.
I know he felt special when she chose to sit on his lap in the first place.
Her fear fills the room, and I lean over the table with a low hum.
“I want to watch you touch Silas tonight,” I whisper.
Silas clears his throat, and I click my tongue against the roof of my mouth as I sit back down. I’m proud of myself as the scent of her fear diminishes.
Forcing any thoughts of sex away, I link my hands on the table and turn toward Levia. He watches us all with a smirk, the sneaky bastard undoubtedly trying to read our relationships. Aziel may have a long history with the King of Envy, but I don’t trust him.
“Sorry to keep you waiting.” His lips twitch upward as Charlie lets out an involuntary shiver.
Shay slips into the room and takes a seat, her presence more than a little annoying. Her dark hair is thrown back into a slick ponytail, and she wears a large pendant around her neck that draws attention to the low cut of her tight red dress. Her black eyes dart along the room before settling on me, but I pretend not to notice.
Charlie will never admit it, but I know she feels uncomfortable around the woman with whom Silas and I have been intimate.
If I could go back in time and warn myself to stay away from Shay, I would in a heartbeat. I rarely feel ashamed and regretful about the men and women I’ve been with, but Shay’s managed to weasel herself into that category.
My fingers twitch as I’m overwhelmed with the urge to pull Charlie onto my lap and provide assurances that she’s the only woman I want. She hates when I do that, especially when we’re in public, but I’ll make sure to tell her later.
Levia continues to smirk. I want to grab the back of his head and slam his face into the table until it’s gone. I’d probably try if Aziel weren’t here. He gets too worked up whenever I fight. Our bond makes him eager to defend me, and his wrath makes it hard for him to stop.
He’d probably end up killing Levia, putting us back at square one.
We have a plan, and we need to stick with it.
“I hope you’ve had ample time to discuss my conditions.” Levia is the first to speak.
Aziel nods and nudges a folder he brought with him across the table. He could have sent this over beforehand to give Levia time to look it over, but the whole point is to spring this information on him.
Levia says nothing as he reaches out and grabs it.
“We’ve considered it, but we aren’t willing to wait five years,” Aziel says. “Too many have already been lost, and we can’t justify postponing any longer.”
Levia scoffs. “Tell me again, how many years did you give yourself?”
“We’re willing to give you six months,” Silas adds, ignoring Levia’s question.
Levia leans back in his chair. His eyes narrow as he looks over us, and I mentally cheer when Charlie straightens up instead of shrinking underneath his stare. I can only imagine how hard it must be for her to remain firm when she’s being hit with the full extent of his power.
My female is so strong.
“No.” Levia shakes his head with a laugh. “You want my help; I want five years.”
I make brief eye contact with Charlie as Aziel shrugs and slides the documents back in his direction.
“That’s fine,” he says, the lie rolling smoothly off his tongue. “Thanks for your time.”
Levia grinds his teeth, looking confused, while Shay laces her hands on the table and leans forward. She hardly looks in Aziel’s direction, and I hope that means she’s given up on her hope of being his female.
If he wants to take somebody other than Charlie, fine, but I at least want it to be with a woman we all like. If he brings a female into our home, I need her to get along with Charlie. Our human is weak and can’t realistically defend herself against a demon, and I won’t put her life in danger by keeping her near one who wants to see her dead.
It doesn’t matter how many stone necklaces Silas gives her.
“You no longer want my help?” Levia laughs, like the matter doesn’t affect him, but I can tell by his tight smile that he’s upset.