Page 25 of Demons of Eden

“I want you to call Eden and ask her to come over.”

“Shit. Did you find something? Did you find the baby daddy?” His eyes are bright as he immediately straightens upinto a sitting position. There’s nothing he enjoys more than solving a case, yet there’s also a slight crinkle to his lips, making me think he’s disappointed too. Maybe I’m reading too much into it, but the hint of discontent makes me wonder if he’s gotten a little bit attached to her already. He obviously enjoys her company, and the physical attraction itself is blatantly obvious.

Are my feelings as transparent to him?

I shake off the thought, then answer his question, “Not yet. Just ask her to meet us here.”

Torrin slowly stands, crossing his arms over his chest when he leans back against the wall. Apparently he’s too lazy to stand on his own, despite working out every damn dayandsneaking in extra reps in his room.

“Okay, I can do that,” he agrees after a moment, though he narrows his eyes at me. “Butwhyam I doing it? And what should I tell her?”

“Tell her we want to talk. Don’t be specific.”

“What are you planning?”

I shrug back at him, amused by the fond, exasperated huff he lets out at the motion. “Make the call, and then you’ll find out.”

“I’m not doing this,”Rio grumbles yet again. I’ve already tried explaining why I’m doing this for Eden several times, but Rio isn’t the most open person. Not by a long shot.

“Eden’s feeling alone. She needs our help,” I grouse back at him, wondering what it will take to prove to her that we won’t leave her alone with this situation. She doesn’t have to handle it all by herself; the nature of her problem makes it impossible, actually. I’ll be damned if I watch her die because she won’taccept the help she’ll need soon. That’s if we can’t find the damn demon who impregnated her, anyway.

She obviously took my initial offer to help her with her vitav issue poorly. I hadn’t meant to make it sound like such a burden, for it to come off like a pity offer. The topic had just been…awkward to approach. I didn’t want to take advantage of her situation or for her to feel like I was either. Instead, I managed to make her feel like shit for a whole different reason. When I realised how it had come across, it clearly wasn’t the right moment to explain it wouldn’t exactly be a hardship on my part to sleep with her.

Far from it, honestly.

I can’t help but feel like if we’d met under other circumstances, things would be different. Simpler, if nothing else. However, she’s pregnant, with another man’s baby—a demon’s baby.Somehow, the thing that allowed me to meet her is now what’s making the situation so precarious. It’s a complicated, messed-up set of circumstances, but if she doesn’t find Ash soon, she could die from the energy drain. She needs help, and while I don’t fully understand this need in my chest to be the one to provide it yet, it’s there. I won’t turn my back on her because it would be easier.

No matter how much shit Rio gives me for it.

I won’t watch Eden die, not without doing everything in my power to save her. I started hunting demons because of their victims, the voice in my head questioning, demanding, that if I won’t do it, then who will? How is this really any different? Is it conventional? Fuck no. I don’t think offering to have sex with a pregnant woman so she doesn’t die due to her demon baby bleeding her energy dry is ever conventional. I don’t see a problem with doing what’s necessary for survival, though.

Eden, however, has made it crystal clear how she feels about needing to be fucked in an obligatory way. She’d hateit. She would feel like she was forcing the other person into the situation, so we need to show her that she can trust us to be honest. We have to let her get to know us and truly feel comfortable in our presence so she’ll believe me when I say I’m more than willing to help. She needs to believe the truth, which is that I am attracted to her.

This can’t be seen as being motivated by pity or sympathy.

I glance across the kitchen at Torrin, happily helping to prepare, having been on board with the plan the moment it was suggested, even without knowing all of my motivations behind it. I’m sure he’ll want to assist with the vitav problem too, but if he does, will he be able to handle his emotions when we do eventually find Ash? When Eden doesn’t need us anymore?

Regardless of my concerns, he's had one right idea from the very beginning: feed the pregnant witch so she’ll relax around us.

“If you can’t do this, then go back upstairs, Rio,” Torrin says, meeting my eyes with an expression of unease before looking over at our brother. He’s standing stock-still by the counter, his hands tightly clenched, clearly not happy about any of this.

“We want to show her that you aren’t a threat, but if this is a hard line for you, I understand. Just don’t ruin this,” I add.

“Well, I don’t understand how this is something that even needs to be done. She hired us to help her with a demon problem. We’re not here to be her new friends. Once we find the stupid demon she fucked, she’ll be out of our lives for good!” Rio snaps.

Fuck.I can’t listen to him snarl about Eden for another damn second. I grab his shoulder and haul him out of the kitchen, ignoring both his protests at being dragged along and Torrin’s eye roll when we pass him. It’s past time for our youngest brother to accept the situation. He doesn’t have to be happy about it, but he’s either going to behave or go upstairs. Shehasn’t done anything to earn his irritation. He’s just placing all of his emotional baggage onto her. While I’ll always protect Rio with my life, she’s not a danger to him, and I won’t let him hurt anyone who doesn’t deserve it.

I release him once we’re in the main office space, more of an illusion of privacy than the real thing, as I’m sure Torrin is doing his best to eavesdrop. I step back to stare right into his eyes so that he can see the resolve in mine. “Look, I don’t really care if you understand or not, Rio. I’m not asking you to understand. What I am asking is for you to restrain the shitty attitude while she’s here. I’m not forcing you to be her new best friend. Just don’t be such a dick. Got it?”

“Alright, fine. I can hold it back, but I’m not leaving.”

I sigh, hearing what he isn’t saying. He doesn’t trust her, so if he can keep his eye on her, he’s going to, even if it’s unpleasant for everyone else involved. He bitched me out for eight minutes when I explained my exercise sessions with Eden, hardly pausing to breathe the entire time, the prickly bastard. His ranting had veered off on several tangents, but the ultimate message conveyed had been some shit about not being alone with her in private spaces, like she’s actually a danger to me.

It’s not her fault he’s afraid. It’s not his, either, but it is on him that he’s allowing his fear to control him, to fuel the anger he’s now directing at her.

“If you fucking?—”

“I won’t.”

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