Page 41 of Dark Souls

“You taste exquisite.”

“You have a remarkable tongue.”

He smirked, already knowing that fact clearly. “Better than…”

I frowned, not following, still trying to gather myself after that strange, yet deeply fulfilling experience. “Huh?”

He winked. “See. Long forgotten.” Realising he was talking about Ronnie, I punched him in the chest half-heartedly but it barely had an impact. He glanced over at the clock on the wall and groaned. “As much as I want to stay here and do that again, multiple times, I have to go.”

I sat up, leaning back on my hands as I watched him climb off the bed and dig his claw into his back pocket. His raging erection was still very much… raging and I winced, knowing that must be extremely uncomfortable.

He noticed me staring and glanced down at it. “You’re not ready for that yet, Snow. Trust me. But one day, you’ll be begging for it.”

“Very presumptuous of you.”

“I’m a confident demon.”

He threw something on the bed from out of his pocket and I reached for it quickly. It was a black matte metal card with a folded note. The card had no writing on it, just an embellished symbol. I opened the note to find a date, time and London address.

“What’s this?”

“If you’re serious about helping me, that’s the address of the nextUndergroundevent. You’ll find all the answers there. And that card will get you in. But it will be up to you to figure out the rest.”

My eyes widened, excitement sparking at the prospect. “This is a membership card forThe Underground?So you do work for them. They know what you are?”

His face turned serious as he leaned over, placing his fists on the mattress and staring into my eyes. “This isn’t a game anymore, Snow. You need to know how dangerous this is. How risky this will be for you to get involved in? I need to know you can handle it because I won’t always be there to protect you.”

“I don’t need protection. I can handle myself.”

The curve of his lips lifted. “I know you can. But you need to be careful.The Undergroundis not for the faint of heart. You’ll see shit, hear shit, that you won’t like. But reacting will be your biggest giveaway. And like I said, even though it kills me, I won’t always be there to protect you if shit hits the fan. So promise me, you’ll be careful.”

“Fine. I’ll be careful.”

“You can’t go as you. Wear a black wig and get yellow contacts. That membership belongs to someone else and you’ll only be able to use it once. Once you’re in, the rest will be up to you.”

“Okay. Got it. Black wig. Yellow eyes. Undercover.”

He stared at me blankly for a few seconds and then frowned. “This was a mistake. I’ve changed my mind. Give it back.”

“No fucking way!” I shouted, shoving the card down my bra. He laughed.

“You think putting it down there will stop me? That’s an incentive.”

“Heath, I’ve got this! Trust me. I’ll keep my head down. Read a few people’s minds discreetly, ask some questions without rousing suspicion and get out of there without causing a scene. It will be fine.”

He chewed at his bottom lip, clearly nervous and it was almost endearing. He huffed, glancing at the clock again. “If you run into trouble and I’m not around, demand to see The Dealer and tell him who you really are.”

“The Dealer. Got it. And who is he?”

“A man you need on your side if you have any chance of figuring this out. He’s someone who has influence and…” He sighed, looking more and more stressed. “You need to gain his trust.”

“Okay.” I nodded, showing I understood but it didn’t seem to ease his concern.

“It won’t be easy. He’s complicated. And cold. And ruthless. And an asshole.”

“A complicated, cold, ruthless asshole. My specialty,” I joked, but Heathen didn’t even crack a smile. “For fuck’s sake, Heath. Stop underestimating me. You wanted my help. You’ve got it. It’s too late to back out now.”

He took one last look at the clock and gave in, approaching the door. He paused, turning back to face me. “Just so you know, I haven’t been manipulating your dreams. But nice to know you’ve been having sex dreams about me, Snow.”

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