Page 79 of The Demon Prince's Accidental Mate
“Compared to my castle, yes,” he said, just a bit too tightly.
“What is it? What’s wrong?” I asked with a frown.
He shook his head. “I like that place, you know. I’m going to miss it.”
“Is it gone?”
“No,” he said with a laugh. “But Astaroth has been known to hold a grudge. It’s going to be quite some time before I can head back there in peace. I’ll have to find some sort of suitable offering to him.”
“Suitable offering?” my mother asked warily.
“Yeah. Some serial killers. Maybe a whole state's worth of lawyers. You know, scumbags,” Belial said with a shrug. “Demon shit.”
“Demon shit,” I repeated deadpan.
“I am what I am,” he said gravely. “That won’t change, my love.”
My mother nearly choked. “What?”
“Uh, long story,” I said. “Long,longstory.”
“It’s not that long,” Belial countered.
“Maybe we get her inside, and a shower, some food, things she’s probably not had a ton of for a while? Then we can regale her with tales of how you tricked me into falling in love with you, okay, dear?”
Something flashed in his eyes when I said the word “love.” Triumph? Why would he feel that way about it?
Then it came to me.
The bond was gone. He could no longer read how I felt, just as I was now blind to him. Without it, he must have assumed I would no longer have feelings for him.
Had he been worrying about that the entire time? Concerned I would reject him, want nothing to do with him? Although it still hurt, in a nonphysical sort of way, a longing for something lost, I still had him. I had Belial.
“Come on,” I said, grabbing my mother’s arm and his hand before gesturing for him to lead us inside. “Let’s go, okay?”
He glanced at my hand, clearly holding back a smile, and nodded. We went inside, where he showed my mother to a set of rooms.
“Just one moment, okay?” I said to him, pausing at the door. “I’ll find you in a minute?”
Belial looked past me at my mother and nodded knowingly. “You’re safe here. As long as I don’t use my powers, they won’t find us. Take your time, okay? I’ll be here.”
“Thank you,” I said, lunging onto my tiptoes to peck him on the cheek. “I love you. For a demon, you’re pretty cool.”
“I hate the cold,” he joked good-naturedly before closing the door behind him.
I wandered back into the room, where my mother sat on the edge of the bed, touching the pillowy mattress with one hand as if unable to believe it was real.
“Are you holding it together?” I asked bluntly.
She laughed. “I spent twenty-odd years in Astaroth’s harem and then one year, seven months, and nineteen days in that torture chamber. I’ll be okay. I promise.”
I shivered. She’d counted the days. One by one, keeping track. It was probably all she could do to stay sane.
“I’m glad you’re okay,” I said awkwardly. It was weird. It was mymother, but she was also a woman I’d never met. A stranger, in some ways, and yet extremely familiar at the same time.
“Thank you,” she said heavily, meeting my eyes. Hers had that same golden-brown tint to them. “For rescuing me.”
I nodded. Questions filled my mind, but I couldn’t get my throat to work. There was so much I wanted to ask, so many blanks. All the things that had remained pent-up inside me for so many years now came to the surface, manifesting in tears.
