Page 8 of The Demon Court

If she’d ever questioned whether Lust was a demon or not, now she knew for certain. The entire town had lost their minds last night, and no one seemed the wiser.

Gathering her things, she left her dusty room and headed downstairs. She needed to get some food in her, and hopefully some freshly brewed coffee. She had minimal hopes for the former. Almost zero hopes for the latter.

But her head hurt. She was exhausted from staring at the door all night, and she still hadn’t figured out how to tempt Lust any more than apparently bumping into him. Hard enough to make his breath wheeze a bit, which she was very proud of.

And so that was how she walked into the dining hall of the tavern, with a grin on her face. Memories of her first encounter with Lust being one of her besting him, ignoring the fact that they’d seen each other on the path to Greenbank, of course.

Sitting at the bar, she waited for the elderly man behind the counter to see her. “Breakfast?” he asked.

“I’d love that.”

He frowned, squinted his eyes, and then burst out laughing.

Why?

Looking behind her, she saw nothing other than new people entering the tavern. New people wearing clothing that was far too nice for a town like this.

Shit. Shit, of course he would come to the one tavern she was in. “Why are you laughing?” she hissed at the bartender.

“Well, ain’t you the woman who bumped into Lust last night and nearly knocked him off his feet?”

“Please stop talking about that.” She didn’t want any more attention than she was already getting.

“Ah, shy about it? What a shame. Seems like something that might surprise the lord enough to share his favor.” The man shrugged, but then set about getting her breakfast.

Selene pulled the hood of her cloak up over her head as the sound of boisterous men filled the room. Those who had already been in the tavern were overjoyed to hear that Lust was visiting their fine establishment! And wasn’t he to leave earlier? Oh, he was here for an extra night? Why was that?

She had a feeling it was because she’d left a small scrap of fabric behind and a few drops of her blood on it to boot. He might be a demon, but he was still man enough to wonder about that little mystery. A fair maiden runs away from him, bleeding? Surely that was something anyone of the masculine nature would want to hunt down.

His voice sent a shiver down her spine, even from the front door. “I have more to do here than I originally anticipated. The other towns have been informed.”

The sound of him wasn’t the only thing sending shivers through this tavern. A woman to her left suddenly squirmed in her seat, incapable of getting comfortable. Even the elderly man who brought her food back was sporting a tent in the front of his trousers that made her nauseous.

He saw her looking and grinned. “I love it when Lust is here. You know I haven’t been able to get it up for almost ten years now?”

“I couldn’t care less.” She grabbed the food and placed a single coin on the counter.

“Ah, well. You young ones will understand soon enough.” He leaned on the worn wood across from her, thankfully hiding his affliction now that Lust was around. “Where you from?”

Oh, they were talking? He thought this was acceptable?

If only she didn’t have to avoid a scene. Selene ground her teeth and replied, “Sapphire Falls.”

It was the first town she could think of, and honestly her favorite one in this kingdom. The falls really were sapphire. They tumbled down from the mountains and burst into bright white plumes that filled the air with the scent of saltwater. She’d loved it there when they visited, although the sorceresses so rarely left the Tower.

The old man frowned. “That’s a long way from here.”

“Been traveling a long time, and I’m afraid I’m a little too tired for civil conversation.”

The gleam in his eyes only intensified. “Did you know that’s the start of our lord’s rounds? Every year he visits Sapphire Falls first.”

She paused with the spoon halfway to her mouth. All she wanted was one damned bite. “I did not.”

“My lord!” the man shouted. “We’ve got a town hopper here! She’s been with you since Sapphire Falls, she says. Have you had the pity to talk with her yet?”

Damn it.

Damn it all. She was going to kill an elderly man, and it was a shame to end his life when he had so few years left.

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