Page 85 of Payne's Envy

“You know Joy and Kitty wanted to experience a human life. Melanie was human—”

“I know.”

“I was human,” Mom whispered.

I quirked a brow. “Then you became an angry poltergeist and did a lot of bad things.”

Mom placed her hands on her hips. “Mentioning that was unnecessary.”

I snorted.

“Humans are fascinating because their existence, their lifeline, is different compared to immortals. Knowing Joy, she probably romanticizes their lives and loves because of their brief lives. When she becomes a Reaper, she will discover humans are a lot worse than the small drama she’s found between other girls in the school.”

The mentioning of that loathsome place she attended darkened my mood again. “I don’t like high school.”

“You’ve never attended one to know. Besides, you just don’t like all those human boys fawning over Joy.”

The blood rushed to my face and ears. “She doesn’t talk to them.”

“You would know, since you constantly spy on her. Don’t think I don’t know you spend more time in the human world doing work because she’s there throughout the day.”

“Can I help you with something?” I tried to change the subject.

“You’re supposed to wear a tuxedo, Payne. Did you get one?”

“I got it handled.”

She crossed her arms and smiled. “Be good to her, hear me? She worshiped you as a child and then that same child grew into a woman who loves you deeply.”

Not as much as I loved her.

There was no limit to my feelings for Joy. “All I’ve ever wanted was to be good to her.”

“I know. You love her more. She might not know that yet, but she will.”

______

With his arms crossed over his chest, Grim greeted me at his castle doors. He didn’t even invite me into the ballroom to wait for Joy. Not that I needed an invitation to his home when I worked for him.

When he walked off, I took that as my sign to follow him inside. We stood in the large room. I tugged at the tie I wore. It felt too tight. “Does Joy know I’m here?”

“Of course she does,” Grim responded. “She always knows when you’re here.”

I didn’t know what to say to that. When I remained quiet, he smirked and shook his head.

“Payne!” Joy called from the stairs.

I looked up, and my heart stopped. I thought my tongue might have been hanging out like an ugly wolf demon stuck in a desert without water. Demons couldn’t enter the human realm, and there were no deserts in the Underworld, so what I said made little sense. I didn’t care because Joy looked like a goddess walking down the stairs.

She wore a shimmering, strapless blue dress that sparkled underneath the lights. It was tight fitted with a long train trailing behind her as she stepped toward me. I swallowed. There was so much, too much skin showing on her shoulders. The material concealed her breasts, but I didn't trust it.One wrong tug or if she fell, someone was going to see more flesh.

“Payne,” she said again with a laugh.

My heart squeezed in my chest. I recognized the blush on her cheeks and the way she dropped her gaze to the floor. Finally, I allowed myself to adore all her small, cute behaviors. I could stare all I wanted.

Good thing I could without worrying about someone telling me it was wrong.

The heat in the pit of my stomach grew. So much so that I felt a rush of pleasure…lower. I froze and dropped my hands in case I made a mistake. Mortification set in, and I couldn’t look at Joy. Her father was in the room with us.How could I get an erection?

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