Page 84 of The Monster's Desire

Nadia’s eyes stay glued to his bare chest as he flexes, and Knight smirks.

“I think, perhaps, I’m not the only one hungry,” Athos says, chuckling darkly.

“It sucks that they can’t release you. You’re free to explore the house. I’m sure there are servers somewhere. They’re probably still putting away all the food and drinks.” She nods to the doors.

“I am interested in those prospects, but I haven’t been in this realm in...” Athos shrugs. “Many hundreds of years, by my guess. I’d prefer not to be abandoned. Someone worse than the two of you could come across my jar.”

“We’ll not abandon you,” I assure him.

“We won’t,” Nadia agrees. “While we’re waiting for Ridge and Echo to return, I think we’ll explore and try to determine exactly what Constantine was up to. I’d also like to get away from those creepy, shriveled-up bodies. They’re kind of grossing me out.”

“I’ll dispose of their shells,” I offer, bowing my head. I also need to deposit the two souls I reaped into the pit in Hell, but that won’t take longer than a few minutes.

“I’ll raid the pantry for snacks.” Athos laughs, making his way to leave the room.

Knight smirks at Nadia. “I guess that leaves you and me free to explore.”

I frown. That sounds way more enjoyable, but alas, work must be done.

ChapterTwenty-Eight

Knight

Nadia and I work in companionable silence for a while. Constantine was clearly the type to flaunt his wealth and standing. His bedroom holds nothing even remotely interesting. He had some darker kinks, but that’s not the kind of information we’re after.

Nadia squeals in surprise, or possibly delight, as we locate Constantine’s personal office on the second floor.

It’s obvious the downstairs version was for show or for meetings with guests.

Nadia spends a while magicking the locks and, once we’re inside, we set to work. I don’t know what we’re expecting to find, but as a dutiful, bonded demon, I still attempt to survey his filing cabinets.

She grunts, slamming one of his desk drawers. As she leans over, with her hands on the top, I do a double take. She clearly used magic to adjust her dress. It’s no longer the slightly longer version she wore previously. It’s now short and flirty, landing well above her knees. Her long hair falls around her shoulders as her head shakes.

I briefly wonder if she found something she didn’t like, or maybe she’s upset we haven’t found anything. It takes way too long for me to parcel out that she’s not a demon. She very well might be struggling with what happened earlier.

I take a few steps, sliding behind her and pulling her hair to the side as my hands land on her generous hips. I tease my lips down the now exposed column of her neck and gently bite her shoulder. “Are you okay? Would you like to talk about what happened earlier?”

“I’m okay.” She shrugs, making her hair fall over my arms as I hold her to my chest. “They deserved what they got.”

“Oh, doll. Don’t have a single doubt in your mind about that. They were more vile than most monsters I’ve come across, even in Hell. This isn’t something you should let weigh on your conscience.” I nuzzle my cheek to the top of her head from behind, offering her the comfort and reassurance that I can.

I’m the worst person possible for this job. Five monsters is a normal Saturday night reaping session for me and Wraith. Neither of us will lose a wink of sleep over taking out those assholes. The two monsters that’ll be reborn in the pit will have a chance to do better next time. Hopefully, they’ll succeed without the toxic influence of the other council members. Even those two weren’t pure enough to consider sparing completely. I murmur that against her neck as my lips tease over her shoulder.

“Do you think the human realm paranormal council will investigate? I mean, how could they not? We just murdered five monsters.” She shudders out a breath.

“I don’t think you should worry too much about that.” I lick Ridge’s bondmark. “We can handle whatever comes our way. From the little I’ve heard, it’s clear it was time for a change.”

“It was, but I also don’t go around planning massacres.” She trembles, and I hate that I can’t tell if it’s from my touch or the weight of her concerns.

“Let the paranormal council investigate, if they’d like. They hold no jurisdiction over us. Reapers and sin eaters fall outside of their purview.”

“It’s a little intimidating to realize how powerful you two are.”

“Sorry to inform you, but you’re just as capable of wreaking havoc as we are.” I grin against her skin. “It makes me hard as a rock, or possibly, that’s your curves in this delicious little number.”

She groans. Grabbing my right hand, she slides it toward the apex of her thighs. “I was obsessed with the mystery of Sam and what he’d feel like inside me.”

Her admission makes my heart pound.

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