Page 39 of Virgin Lust

“Are you finished for the day?”

“No.”

“Then we’ll work quickly.”

God, he made everything so easy. If I had been an ice queen, I would have melted on the spot.

_______

Shepherd was so refreshing. He ate demon souls for me everywhere we went. While it might not be romantic, it was oddly pleasing for a Reaper who killed on a daily. He didn’t make me feel ashamed for ogling him every time he shifted into human form again either. Since my arousal was evident, the entire time we worked, we didn’t talk very much, but the silence was nice. I could get used to it.

The nerves didn’t hit until I brought him to my place. Well, I faded, and he followed. I walked over to my bar and plopped down on the stool.

“Your home is beautiful,” Shepherd commented as he sat beside me. “Figures you would have a black chandelier. Is black your favorite color?”

My heartbeat roared in my ears. I couldn’t look at him, knowing the reason I invited him to my home. “Thanks. And yes, I do. I’ve missed my house and privacy since Dad decided that my sisters and I were safer at the castle.”

“Is this Harvest guy that dangerous?” Shepherd asked.

“Harvest is the reason for all the disasters happening in the human world.”

“So the unusual weather and plagues have been because of him? The witch Melinda mentioned something about the Reapers trying to prevent the end of the world.”

Nervousness forgotten, I gaped at him. “Did you say Melinda?”

He frowned. “You know her?”

“Yeah. She’s the coven leader for my brother’s soulmate. How do you know her?”

“She’s the reason I was at the human festival.”

My brows furrowed. It wasn’t the first time Melinda intervened with my family. It was like she was orchestrating the matchups with my siblings. Could she… My eyes widened. “I think she wanted us to meet.”

“Did she know I would bond with you?” Shepherd asked.

I bit my lip.No, she knew you were my marked mate.“Most likely…”

It didn’t make sense to unite us with our soulmates in the middle of a crisis. But given that Shepherd bared my mark, there was no other reason Melinda would have convinced him to go into the Underworld that night. Unless there was something else I needed to know about my soulmate.

“Prudence,” Shepherd murmured before grasping my stool and pivoting it so I faced him. I swallowed hard as he pulled me closer. “Yes?”

“Your arousal is gone. We don’t have to do this right now.”

Oh, Hades. I forgot he could sense my emotions—and my anxiety.

“It won’t take much to get me aroused again,” I promised. “I want you.”

He rubbed circles over my knee with his thumb and just like that, a shiver of pleasure rolled through me. The way his gaze hardened made my heart go pitter-patter. “You’re different from how I first imagined.”

My heart sank, and I lowered my gaze.He’s disappointed.I perfected my aloofness over the decades to restrain my emotions. Until Shepherd, I never realized how nervous I was. Did he dislike that about me?

Lifting my chin, he looked at me sternly. “Prudence.Stop. As a beautiful immortal who can wield a scythe like nobody’s business, you can be terribly hard on yourself. I meant you’re different in a sweet, albeit vulnerable way that makes me protective of you. I don’t want to leave you in a few hours—or ever. For the first time in decades, I remember I’m alive. That’s all because of you, Princess.”

My heart skipped a beat as I met his tender gaze.

“I promise to be a good demon for you.”

Delicious tingles fluttered along my stomach. My body swayed slightly, and I gripped my stool. His words made me feel weightless. Shepherd spoke as if we were already a couple.

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