Page 77 of Their World

“You lost track of time, obviously,” he said with a smile. “Judging by your shocked face at the food on the table.”

“And that you can feel my surprise through the mate bond,” I added, since I could feel his amusement.

“I did have help,” he said as he sat at the head of the table opposite me. “Paul is a great cook, probably should have been a chef of his own restaurant.”

“Perhaps that’s what I’ll do when I retire,” Paul said as he joined us at the table. “I can call the restaurant, The Alphahole.”

“The Alphahole?” I asked with a soft laugh.

“That’s what my girlfriends called me,” he said and shrugged. “I have a feeling several other alphas I know were called the same thing.”

“I bet that’s not all they called you,” Trey teased.

“True,” Paul said, and the three of us laughed.

Everyone else joined us, taking seats around the table.

“Thank you for agreeing to be our guards,” Trey said. “I know it’s not your normal type of assignment, but having you three here does make me feel a bit more at ease.”

“Understandable that you need a few extra sets of hands when you chose the mate you did,” Piper teased.

“We’re happy to be of service to you, Prince Trey,” Patrick said.

“Just Trey, Patrick. As our guards, you may address us informally,” Trey countered.

“This week is going to be a bit crazy, and we really don’t know what is going to happen after that,” Kayden said. “The demons are nothing like we thought. We’ve been fighting them for decades and had a lot wrong about them.”

“Like them being able to speak and understand us?” Paul asked.

I nodded. “Among so much more. They are trying to survive and coming here to get supplies, like food, because their land was destroyed and they aren’t able to grow crops. It really is a wonder they’ve survived as long as they have. They aren’t a race of evil beings like we always thought. They’re just trying to survive. Trying to keep their race alive, yet being controlled by a hybrid siren mage who is brainwashing them.”

“That’s heartbreaking,” Piper whispered.

“I’m going to stop it,” I said with certainty. “I’m going to rid them of the Grand Advisor and help them rebuild.”

“Just because you are part demon doesn’t mean you are required to help them,” Paul said.

“Since I came to live with Ember and her mates, I’ve been provided anything I want. I’ve had the best life an orphan could imagine. Yet, I have done very little with this opportunity. Knowing I am the Demon Princess, that my grandmother’s people are in trouble, how can I not dosomething?”

“You’ve done a lot for orphans here,” Patrick countered.

“I’ve created two orphanages and given them gifts periodically. That’s not enough. Plus, that wasn’t done with my money. That was still done through Ember and Caleb.”

“You are not going to win this argument,” Kayden said with a soft smile at me. “She refuses to accept her good deeds.”

They started passing around the platters and bowls of food so we could fill up our plates while talking.

“What if the people here can’t accept them?” Paul asked.

I scooped a big spoonful of green beans onto my plate before answering. “There have been very few people killed by the demons, whereas we have killed hundreds of them. I know it will take time, just as it took time for hybrids to be accepted. It is a fight that I think is worth fighting, though.”

And definitely a hill worth dying on.

Chapter

Twenty

The photo shoot took forever because Trey decided to be a prima donna and made us do four outfit changes, three different shooting locations, and the photographers took a total of one thousand and seven photos.

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