Page 60 of My Demon Assistant

I was going to do everything in my power to make sure I never lost this.

Mammon and the dark souls had been quiet since their attack on me, and I didn't like it. They were clearly planning something, and we had to figure out what before it was too late.

In the meantime, though, my only duty was to make sure Jerry didn't harm himself by working too much. There was nothing worth doing that, and definitely not a project.

I knew and understood that his work meant a lot to Jerry, but I still wasn't going to let him burn himself out for it. No way.

Jerry exhaled softly, his hand tightening around my arm reflexively, and I smiled. He had no idea how much power he had over me, what I would do for him. It was better that way too, because I had a feeling it would scare him.

Huffing at myself, I pushed away all my thoughts, focusing simply on Jerry's even breaths. I needed to rest too.

Demons didn't really need sleep to survive, but the mental break helped us stay alert like it helped any sentient being, and I needed all my bits about me so I could take care of Jerry.

Pressing a soft kiss on his forehead, I closed my eyes and synced my breathing with Jerry's, letting the soft sound pull me under as I held him close, determined to protect him from everything, even himself.

Twenty-Three

Jerry

Idesperatelyneededthisproject to be over, but we still had one more week of work to do. At least we'd managed to stick to the schedule, which was a miracle in itself. I had a suspicion Eshim might've helped things along a little with his magic, but I hadn't mentioned it to him. I preferred to be oblivious.

Even without his magic, Eshim had been wonderful. I was sure I'd have worked myself sick without him. He'd been there to support me at every step of the way, and the only time he'd been away from me in the last week for more than an hour was the day he'd needed to help his neighbor move to the retirement home.

Other than that one afternoon, he'd been with me every day, and night. He'd taken care of Tom, and brought me food at regular intervals. He kept the teams going, boosting up morale with his cheerful personality and friendly nature.

Without Eshim, we wouldn't be as far along into the work as we were. We'd already completed all the designs, and the mockups I'd ordered last Friday were scheduled to arrive at any moment, which meant today would be spent making corrections and ordering more samples, along with sending the clients some of the designs for a final approval. The last thing we needed was for them to request a change on the last day of the deadline.

"Argh! I'm going to destroy this computer!" Henry, one of Tanya's team members, growled as he smacked his monitor, which almost sent the flatscreen sliding off his desk.

I opened my mouth, but before I could say anything—not that I had any idea what I would say—Eshim slid up to him.

"Hey, Henry. I was going to bring up some drinks and snacks for everyone from the café downstairs. Would you mind coming with to carry some of it?" Eshim flashed him a bright smile, his blue eyes warm, and I batted away the senseless jealousy tugging at me.

Henry blinked up at my boyfriend, dumbfounded, then nodded. "Uh, sure."

Eshim grinned again, and I watched the two leave the room, shaking my head in wonder.

"He's good," Tanya said, and I glanced over at her. She had an impressed look on her face, and her dark brown eyes met mine, a smile curving her lips. "And he's good for you too, I think."

"Ah, thank you?" I said, my tone going up to make it sound like a question. I didn't really think she and I knew each other well enough for her to say that. Not that she was wrong. Eshimwasgood for me.

She laughed. "You look so confused. It's just that you've been a lot more...open since you met him. Even this. A few months ago, I could've never struck up a conversation with you like this. I would've been too unsure of how you'd react to try."

She...was right. I'd always kept up the boss-employee barrier between me and everyone I worked with. I was sure that if Archer and Kat hadn't wriggled their way into my heart when I was young, I'd have never let anyone in.

I didn't even know what I was so afraid of anymore. Getting left behind? Being abandoned? I wasn't the same lonely foster kid I used to be, and yet some habits were hard to let go of.

Somehow, Eshim had helped me do just that. He'd snuck through my walls, and then somehow lowered them from the inside.

"I suppose that's true," I relented, and she grinned.

"I'm happy for you, Mr. Cohen."

She went back to her work then, and I did too, though my mind stayed on Eshim.

Why hadn't I told him I loved him yet? Why was I hesitating? I knew the two of us were it. He wasn't going to break up with me. I was his fated mate, and he was mine. I might not have the same reverence for that as he did, but I understood what it meant. Eshim and I were perfect for each other, and Eshim was all mine. Forever.

So why hadn't I told him that yet? What was I afraid of?

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