Page 33 of The Prince's Mate

"Her name is Elva," Caelan said. "She's enrolled in cooking school and works as a barista at a coffee shop. She did a baking class before, and she wants to open her own restaurant."

"She sounds wonderful." I was glad Dad had decided to give the demons a second chance at life, so to speak. They'd spent decades doing the grueling work of punishing evil souls, and they deserved a chance to live for a change. Sure, they could'vegone to Afterworld, but it just wasn't the same. Hopefully, they were enjoying their stay in the human realm.

"Elva is a good demon," Ajax said, and I glanced at him from the rearview mirror.

"Are you two friends?" I asked, and he nodded.

"Elva is everyone's friend," he said, and I hummed. She sounded like Nox, who was also an expert at befriending everyone.

"I'm looking forward to meeting her, then. What about the third demon? Where do they live?"

Ajax answered before Caelan could. "Kali lives with Elva. They're together."

Caelan nodded, referring back to his tablet before adding, "She's a mechanic. They share a house with two human women."

I nodded. "Do we visit them both or just Elva?"

"We'll talk to Elva and then go from there. It won't hurt to talk to them both."

"We're here," Ajax said, and I peeked at the coffee shop. It wasn't one of the chain stores, but a cozy-looking small business instead.

I hopped out of the car before Ajax could open my door for me, and I winked at him when he frowned.

"Do you drink coffee, Ajax?" I asked, and he nodded as Caelan came to stand beside me.

"I like cappuccinos," he said, and I grinned.

"Okay, let's go have some coffee."

I took Caelan's hand, and he shot me a startled look. Raising a brow, I squeezed his hand, and he smiled at me before squeezing back.

I breathed in the aroma of coffee and chocolate as we stepped into the warm coffee shop, and now I wanted coffee and maybe a slice of cake.

There were two women behind the counter. The taller one had short brown hair, thick mascara lining her dark brown eyes, and was dressed in black. The other one was short, barely 5'3", and had black hair with pink tips, big blue eyes, wore bright pink lipstick, and was dressed in a colorful floral dress. They were complete opposites, and I wondered if it was some kind of gimmick of the shop or if that was really how they dressed.

"Which one is Elva?" I asked, glancing over at Caelan as Ajax hovered at our backs.

"Uh, the tiny one," Caelan replied, apparently just as stumped as I was.

No one in all the realms would look at this tiny woman and think 'demon.' Talk about the perfect disguise.

I walked over to her side of the counter, and she smiled brightly at me. Then, she spotted Ajax and her eyes lit up, big blues that stared up at him as if he was exactly what she'd been looking for.

"Jax! I haven't seen you in a while. Why did you stop visiting me?" she asked with a pout before her eyes flicked to us.

She tilted her head in an almost bow. "Hello, Prince Walker."

"Just call me Walker, please," I said with a wince, and she nodded happily. "This is my mate, Caelan."

Elva smiled at Caelan, and he returned it, his hold on my hand tightening slightly.

"I'd love a dark roast, and a cappuccino for Jax," I said, before raising a brow at Caelan. He shook his head, and I turned back to Elva. "Also, a slice of chocolate cake, and anything you'd like. I was hoping you could join us at the table."

"I'll take my break with you," she replied with a cheery grin. How was this woman a demon? Or a better question was, how had she managed to hold on to her brightness after dealing with the dark souls of the Chasm for lord knew how long?

Caelan and I took a seat in a corner booth, and when it looked like Ajax intended to hover behind us, I waved him over to the empty seat across from us.

I placed my hand on Caelan's knee, and he glanced over at me, brow raised. I shrugged. I didn't need a reason to touch him now, did I? Unless he asked me to stop, I was going to touch him as much as I could.

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