Page 17 of Demon with Benefits
You’re a shallow piece of shit with no substance or personality.
She was still staring at her reflection, so there was no way to miss the guilt that flashed across her face, making her flinch. And with that realization came another.
Meph was doing the same thing as her: cutting toxic people out of his life.
And in this case,shewas the one who was toxic.
The truth was, the only reason she “hated” him so much was because she was so attracted to him. She could say it was because he was a demon and because his jokes annoyed her, but she knew it was bullshit. She’d accepted Mist and the other demons, even if she was still a little wary of them. And she wasn’t a complete downer and appreciated someone with a good sense of humor. Normally, she liked to laugh.
But Meph... intimidated her. As much as she was loath to admit it, it was true. The tattoos, the piercings, the red eyes that sometimes glowed dangerously, the tousled black hair always falling in his face... The man looked sexy eating cold pizza, for god’s sake. It wasn’t fair to the world that he was that hot. No one should be allowed to be that irresistibly fuckable.
So... she was mean to him. In what universe did that make sense?
She was like those little boys who bullied the girls they liked because they were the next generation of misogynists, and that was the only way they were taught to express emotion: with cruelty.
In primary school, a boy had bullied Iris like that, pulling her hair and throwing sand in her face, so she’d kicked him in the bollocks. He’d lost his lunch right there on the playground for all to see, and she’d been forced to read a written apology in front of him and his parents and been suspended for a week.
She’d always resented thatshewas the one who’d gotten in trouble. Yeah, okay, she probably shouldn’t have tried to pop his prepubescent testicles, but shouldn’t he have gotten some backlash for bullying? Shouldn’t he have been scolded for taunting her and making her feel unsafe?
But now, twenty years later, the roles had been reversed. Wasn’t that a bitch.
When she couldn’t hide in the bathroom any longer, Iris wandered back out into the kitchen and stood silently while everyone socialized. She watched Eva and Lily, glowing under the obvious adoration of their demon boyfriends, and she had the thought that the world was a weird fucking place, but it still didn’t feel like she fit in anywhere. Even the puppy that had turned up on her doorstep looked happier in another’s arms than with her.
She was living a double life. Witch by day, demon-fraternizer by night.
She couldn’t betray her sister by outing the demons to Suyin, but she didn’t want to cut ties with the coven either. It was the only place she’d ever felt she belonged, and the only thing that had given her life purpose after her parents’ passing.
All Iris had ever cared about was keeping her twin sister safe and becoming a powerful enough witch to one day find and destroy Valefor, the demon who’d killed their mam and dad.
Now... she didn’t know who she was anymore.
Eventually, Iris made up an excuse to leave and managed to extract her new pet from Raum’s reluctant grasp. Bundling up in her parka by the door, she was almost ready to make her escape when Lily caught her. “See you on Friday?”
Iris fought back a groan.Why the hell did I agree to that?“Yeah, I’ll be there.”
“It’ll be fun, I promise. You can bring your puppy.” Lily considered the squirming animal. “You need to name him.”
“His name is Faust,” Iris decided right then and there.
“Faust?” Lily made a face. “That’s awful, Ris.”
“Why? It’s cute.”
“How is that cute? It’s a legend about a horrible man who makes a deal with the devil.”
“Yeah, with Mephistopheles the devil. And I can’t name him that, but his eyes remind me of Meph’s, so...” She trailed off, realizing she may have inadvertently exposed herself.
Lily gave her an unreadable look. “So, really, you’re naming him after Meph, then.”
Iris remained silent.
But when she expected her twin to start teasing her or perhaps ask unwelcome probing questions, instead, Lily sighed. “I’m kinda worried about him.”
“Meph?” Iris scoffed to cover her interest. “Why?”
“I dunno. Maybe I’m imagining things, but he’s never around lately, and when he is, he seems quieter. He’s always hurrying off somewhere, and I think he’s hiding something.”
Iris told herself she didn’t care. And yet she asked, “Is he coming on Friday?”
