Page 12 of Hell Sent

“What caveats?”

She took a breath. “I don’t want to be physically hurt. I don’t want to be bruised or bloodied. I don’t want to be forced. But I’ll do my best to… satisfy you, otherwise.”

Mortals didn’t do this. He’d never heard of such a thing. “Why would you agree to this?”

“Because you can offer me something in exchange. I want you to protect me from my husband.”

“Your husband?”

“Nirlan. The one who summoned you.”

“He is your… your mate?”

“Yes.”

He just looked at her, searching for signs of deception. He didn’t know what mortals were like. He didn’t know how to read her. She was not in league with Nirlan, though—that much was clear.

Was it possible that she really did see Azreth as her best option?

For a moment, he pictured her supine beneath him, gasping in the throes of pleasure, both defenseless and willing, as if she really desired him despite their differences.He frowned. “No one willingly submits to a demon. The only mortals willing to deal with my kind are the ones like your master. Those mortals only summon us when they know they can make us submit.”

“I don’t want to control you. I don’t want to be controlled, either. Neither of us has to submit to the other as long as we stick to our agreement. We could be equals.”

“Equals?”

She reached out, looking him in the eyes. To his shock, she slid her fingers into the waist of his sarong.

He jolted away reflexively. Grabbing her wrist, he bared his teeth. “You will touch me only when I grant you permission.”

Her eyes widened. “Of course. I’m sorry.”

His entire body felt flushed from surprise and discomfort. His heart was racing. He should not have let her catch him off guard. He was grateful no one else was there to witness him cringing away from a small human.

Frustrated by her strangeness, he said again, to make certain she understood, “Do not touch.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know. I won’t do it again.”Her eyes were large and clear, their dark centers piercing him. He got the sense that those eyes saw much, knew much.

“You want… an alliance.”

“Yes,” she said, as if it were that simple.

They could never be true allies. She would happily kill him if she had the chance, harmless though she may seem. Mortals had ways of turning the tides. If she could find a bit of iron and catch him unaware, she could end him as easily as he could her. He could never let his guard down. Not for a moment.

But deep down, he was relieved.

“You are wise to make this offer,” he said flatly.“I agree to your terms.”

She seemed to relax. “Will you tell me your name, then, since we’re allies?”

“My name is Azreth,” he said absently, looking at the grassy slopes around them again.

There was a strange enchantment marking his hand, and the human lord might be following him, and he needed to find someplace where he’d be safe. But she had been shivering and stumbling since he’d put her down. She must have needed rest. He’d heard that mortals needed a lot of it. “Mortals must sleep every night and eat every day,” he said.

Her dark eyebrows came together in a question. “Yes…?”

“Then we must allow you time to rest, and then we must find you food to eat. Sleep now.”

“Now?”

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