Page 54 of Married to the Devil

Her eyes narrow. “Yes, I am. We’ll be in Kalos’s home, and I’ll be next to his expecting mate so it’s not a security risk.”

I would have to trust Kalos…which I do, but it doesn’t mean that the idea of having Stella outside of the territory is easier to accept.

“If I spend another day here, I can’t be held responsible for what I do. You obviously don’t need me for anything, andKatarina wants to catch up. So, I’m going.” There’s a wideness to her eyes that verifies her words. She’s feeling shut in. And why shouldn’t she? Until the territory is stable, her every movement must be accounted for.

I wouldn’t have lasted half as long as she has, so why do I expect her to stay where I want her?

Ben won’t let anything happen to her.With that thought, the unease in my chest dissipates. He’ll be on his home turf even. The safest place for her right now is with Kalos.

“I hope you enjoy yourself.” I can’t crush her just because I don’t want her out of my grasp. She must be allowed to flit and flutter to her heart’s content.

I ignore the fact that, somehow, I’ve come to trust the demon. I can trust him to keep Stella safe…but I also believe he wouldn’t keep her from me, and there is no logical reason for it.

How troubling.

The demon of the hour strides into the library wearing his usual suit. There’s only a single hitch in his step when his eyes glide over to the couch we’d desecrated last night, but there’s no scent of embarrassment or arousal. There’s no scent at all.

And I hate it.

As much as I hated the burn of the emotion I felt when she gave Ben the charm. I’d enjoyed sharing her body with him, but the fact that he wears a charm that she crafted specifically forhim…this type of jealousy could very well destroy my plans.

“You’re taking me to hang out with Katarina today.” Stella’s sharp tone freezes Ben in his tracks, and his eyes widen. I take comfort in the small fact that I’m not the only one on the other side of her walls this morning.

“Okay,” he says.

“I’ll get my bag,” she says and leaves.

His confusion is comical.

“What did I do?” he asks.

That he would ask me when they’ve been a team of two pulls a smile from me that I wipe away with a hand to my mouth, contemplating.

“You did leave rather abruptly last night,” I say.

His cheeks redden. “I didn’t mean to.”

I nod in understanding. He was overwhelmed. I could track that even without using his scent as a guide. We offered him a feast, and he gorged but ran when the tide of the moment waned.

“She’s not thrilled with me either,” I share in commiseration. “I didn’t necessarily fall over myself and agree when she stated her plans for today.”

“She’ll be safe with me,” he says, and his expression hits me soundly in the chest. He understands what I’m struggling with. Our emotions on the subject may very well be running the same trail, and that sort of sharing—this seeing and being seen—is something I rarely experience.

I clear the sticking point in my throat like that will dispel this exposed sensation.

“She’d better be.”

18

STELLA

“Oh my god,”Katarina says, her eyes wide. “That is…so much. Oh my god!”

“I know!” I nearly knock over my mug of tea. It’s a giant relief to share how wild my new life is with someone who won’t shoot back even more preposterous plans and act like all this makes any fucking sense.

It almost seems worse to go over all the outlandish details in a place that reverberates calm. As much calm as you can get in a dragon’s lair anyway. The curated grounds sprawl around us. The colors are starting to change in the cool weather.

Just a few weeks ago, Katarina and I would hang out on this patio and gossip about anything and everything.

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