Page 67 of The Demon's Delight
I sniffled, unable to hold it in any longer. He pulled back to look and reached up to wipe away the tears streaking down my cheeks. “Will you carry me, then?”
All worry fled from his face, leaving behind the youthful exuberance that was his very essence. “Yes. Every step. I’ve been telling you that since the day we met! You just have to stop arguing about it and let me.”
I laughed again, feeling whole and centered. “Ridiculous demon. Get up.” He all but jumped to his feet and tangled his arms around me. “Seir?” His eyes shimmered, shifting subtly between gold and red. “Are you okay? You really weren’t hurt when you fell just now? How did you land? Were you in trouble in Hell?” The idea he’d been physically punished for helping me made my stomach roll with guilt. I raised a hand to his face like he had a habit of doing to me, and his eyes closed. A breath leaked slowly from him as he relaxed under my touch, and he held my hand in place with his own on my wrist.
He turned his head slowly, kissing my palm as it slid over his mouth. “I’m fine. So much better now, actually.” His expression became pinched, pained. “But I was worried about you. You’re okay?”
“I only passed out once,” I whispered. “Now we’re even.”
He stilled. “What? Why did you do that?”
I shook my head, wondering why I’d mentioned it at all. “It was fine. I felt really… odd while you were gone.”
“Elaborate, please?” He was frowning, deadly serious.
“The bond was… really upset.” I wasn’t sure what else to say.
“Yes, I felt that too.” His hand rubbed at his chest. “But you fainted?”
I nodded. “Only once. The pain went everywhere a few times. Like a flare through my whole body. Like I couldn’t control my muscles. I don’t know how else to describe it.”
Seir grunted, still frowning. “I was definitely more uncomfortable than I have been.”
“Wait, you didn’t answer me. Were you in trouble?”
“There are consequences to disappearing from your post for a full shift cycle and forgetting to check in, even if you’re summoned and leave a note,” he said cryptically. “But I’m fine.”
My emotions shifted violently, my fear for what had happened to him manifesting as anger. “If we’re going to be mates, you must teach me the rules of your job so I don’t accidentally get you tortured by summoning you back in the middle of something important! Because I almost did, but then I didn’t because I didn’t want to make things worse, so I was just out here, by myself, going crazy!” I found myself shouting. “And youmustteach me your alphabet! Soon!” I rushed to inspect the parts of him my hands could get to, looking for any injuries or damage. “And I need to know how time works other places, so I know how to convert that before I start to worry or start walking by myself, and—” I’d started gently beating my fists against his chest to emphasize my points, my anxiety bubbling over as subtle violence.
“Aw, so youwereworried about me.” He smiled down at me, all too smug as he brushed some hair away from my face before resting his hand over my fists, stilling them. He didn’t relax his grip on me overall, however, the other arm still lashed tight across my back while his wings cocooned us in their hold as well.
“No.” I huffed a breath. He was right, but I was feeling indignant.
“Liar.”
I opened my mouth to argue but couldn’t formulate anything clever fast enough. Seir, however, planted a thorough kiss on my lips as quickly as he could. “I missed you too.”
I squeezed my hands against his forearms, eliciting the smallest intake of breath from him.
“Youarehurt.” I reached for his shirt, pulling it up so I could find his hurts and fix them.
“It’s nothing—hey!” His chuckle was rich, full of amusement as I pulled his shirt off altogether. I circled him, then took his hands into mine and turned his arms over. At my grunt over the new collection of angry stripes, he said again, “It’s nothing. Really.Hailon.” He used that tone on me, the serious one that made every cell in my body pay attention. “I’m fine.”
“You’re not. I can fix it, just hold still?—”
Instead of letting me gather my thoughts and reach for my magic, Seir crushed his mouth to mine. Then he reached for the tails of my shirt, pulling it up and over my head in one smooth motion.
“What are you doing!” I squeaked.
“Checking you for injuries. Fair is fair, right?”
“I’m not hurt!” I protested.
“You could be. You said you fainted. Did you fall? Did you land on your side? Your back? This delectable ass?”
“Seir!” My blood pounded in my ears as he gripped my backside with both hands, mouth sealed over mine once again.
“Tell me to stop, Moonflower. I’ll listen. I’ll always obey your commands.”
