Page 79 of Devilish

KAI

BUTTERFLIES FILLED MY stomach as Lucien and I walked up the steps of St. Andrews the next day. I hadn’t felt this nervous since the night I first met Lucien, but the towering gothic revival church before us was…well, intimidating was an understatement.

Lucien gave my hand a squeeze. “Nothing to be scared about.”

There he went, reading me to a T. “How do you do that?”

“Well, the fact that you’re tinged a little green makes it easy.”

“I am?” I stopped moving, and Lucien turned back to me, giving me an easy smile.

“Not at all, but I wouldn’t blame you for being anxious. Churches can have that effect.”

I had a feeling he didn’t include himself in that, because I doubted there was anything that made Lucien anxious. He was so calm and confident all the time, and I wished some of that would rub off on me.

Why had I decided to do this again?

I took in a deep breath through my nose and then we started back up the stairs toward the entrance. The doors yawnedopen and a pair of older men in black robes greeted us, giving directions to Father Vitale when Lucien asked.

If I thought the church was stunning on the outside, one look at the absolutely massive and magnificent interior left me speechless. The space was bigger than it looked from the street, with spires and stained-glass windows. There wasn’t a service going on, but there were still a handful of people in pews, lighting candles and even taking pictures.

“Lucien,” a male voice said warmly from behind us, and I turned to see a tall—very tall—man.

Lucien smiled and inclined his head. “Father Vitale.”

Thatwas the priest he’d been talking about?

I knew I was staring, but I couldn’t help it. His height was the first thing I noticed, because he had several inches on Lucien, who wasn’t a short guy by any means. The second was how Father Vitale didn’t look anything like what I expected. He wore the right clothes for the job, but he was far too attractive and young to actually be a priest…right?

“You must be Kai,” he said, smiling down at me and holding out his hand. With the sun shining through the stained-glass windows, the reflection off his fair hair made it look like he had a halo.

How am I supposed to confess tohim?

“Uh, yes,” I said, shaking his hand while still holding on to Lucien with the other. “I mean, yes, Father Vitale.”

Despite my surprise, there was something comforting in his grip and the way he smiled at me. He had kind eyes, the same I’d always thought about Lucien, and it made my shoulders relax.

“Will this be your first confession, Kai?” he asked.

I nodded. “It is.”

“Well then, we’ll keep it to getting to know each other, how’s that?”

When I nodded again, Lucien brought our joined hands up to his lips and kissed my knuckles.“I’ll be here when you’re done.”

I squeezed his fingers in response and then followed Father Vitale to the confessional booth, hoping that what Lucien had said about no judgment held true.

LUCIEN WAITED UNTIL we were about to get into the car outside of St. Andrews to ask, “Care to go for a walk with me?”

It was a mild day in the city, not too hot, but I wouldn’t have cared if it had been a hundred degrees. Not if I got to spend it with Lucien.

He told the driver he’d call if we needed him and then laced his fingers through mine.

“Are we going anywhere in particular?” I asked.

“No. Is that all right?”

“Definitely.”

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