Page 74 of Hooked on a Demon
“I like it.”
Eliana turns hers and kisses him quickly before turning her attention back to the eggs. “I do too,” she says. “Coffee is ready, I wasn’t sure how you took it, or really if you drink it, which sounds silly as we’ve slept together now and I feel like I should know your coffee order before that happens?—”
His hands turn her to face him and lightly touches the side of her cheeks. “Breathe.” His steady gaze helps to recenter her. He breathes in slowly, holds it, and releases it in a controlled manner. She mimics his technique and within seconds, she’s calmer.
“Thank you.”
He leans in and kisses her forehead before releasing her face from his soft hold. “Anytime.”
She watches Declan out of the corner of her eye as he takes the mug she left on the counter and opens her fridge. Returning with the milk, he pours a little bit in and then fills the cup with coffee. He puts the milk back and, leaning against the counter, watching her, he sips.
Just milk. Got it.
The oven timer beeps, so she puts on an oven mitt and pulls the tray of bacon out, putting it on top of the stove. She stirs the pan of hashbrowns and the one with eggs one more time before turning the elements off and plating their breakfast. A wave of realization rushes toward her. “I’m sorry, I should have asked first if you wanted breakfast. Again, I don’t know these things…”
Before she can get herself too worked up, Declan brings her back down. “It’s perfect. Breakfast is my favorite meal, and frankly, bacon should be its own food group.”
She smiles. Thankfully, he doesn’t seem to mind, and also doesn’t find her sudden nerves to be a turn-off. “Let’s eat, then,” she says, picking up their plates and taking them to the dining table.
A comfortable silence falls over them as they eat.
She wasn’t wrong in saying that there’s so much she doesn’t know about him. Eliana understands that they don’t know all the ins and outs about each other. And as scary as that feels, she still knows this demon is hers as much as she is his.
It’s absolutely terrifying, the idea of opening herself up to someone else like she did with her ex, but perhaps Dr. Colson was right in that she can never truly know if things with Declan will end up the same way as they did with Sam. It doesn’t mean it isn’t worth trying.
What she does know is that Sam would never have helped her regulate the way Declan did. Declan didn’t ask any questions or try to insinuate there was anything wrong with her. Instead, he used their connection as a tool for comfort. To Declan, her nervousness is not a sign of weakness. It’s something that is a part of her. That, in itself, confirms what she can see now she’s known for a while. Something wonderful. And scary. And exciting.
She loves this demon.
Everything else she needs to know, she can learn as they go.
CHAPTER43
Declan
With their fabulous breakfast complete, Declan brings up what they should have talked about last night—mind you, he’s not complaining one bit about anything that took place.
“So, Everest,” he starts.
“Everest,” Eliana replies, her voice turning distant. “I know, we need to tell him.”
“We do. He was so angry at me for lying to him about not wanting to go out all the time anymore. I don’t think I’ve ever seen like that.”
Pushing away from the table, she comes over and sits on his lap, draping her head on his shoulders. Instinctively, his one arm slides around her back and lands on her hip, while the other rests on top of her thighs. He flexes his hand on her hip, loving the feel of her. “I’m sorry,” she says.
“It’s not your fault. I should have been honest with him earlier.”
“It is my fault, though. You wouldn’t have been lying to him if you weren’t trying to hide the fact that you were spending time with me.”
“Look at me,” he says. She lifts her head, and he instantly wants to melt when her soft, hazel eyes meet his. “I don’t regret any second of the time we have spent together.” He kisses her lips softly. “Yes, I should have been honest with Everest, but we,” he gestures between them with the hand that is on her thigh, “needed time to figure things out.”
“I know. I’ll talk to him after the showcase tonight.”
“We can talk to him together.”
She lays her head back on his shoulder. “Thank you. But I feel like he may take it better coming from me. I think he’s less likely to feel betrayed or lied to if I’m the one telling him.”
Declan doesn’t quite believe that to be true. He thinks Everest is likely to still blame him and that he’ll see it as Declan not only lying to him, but targeting his sister as a long game conquest. As he pulls her further into him, trying to soak up as much of this contact as possible before heading to work, he promises himself that he will do anything he has to to prove to his best friend that this thing going on with Eliana is the furthest thing from a fling.
