The Demon's Song - By Kendra Leigh Castle Page 0,16

And with that understanding came a mix of fear and anger so potent that she could hardly separate one from the other. All she’d wanted to do was help a friend, and this was what she got? Sofia was shaking as she stepped out of the car, her flight response screaming at her to just keep driving. But her practical side, the thing she relied so heavily on, insisted that she needed time to think this out, without all the emotion in the mix.

It was just hard when every shadow suddenly seemed like a potential threat.

She punched in the security code at the door, then took the stairs two at a time to get to the third floor. It was habit, skipping the elevator, but even the well-lit stairwell didn’t feel safe. Nothing did.

By the time Sofia unlocked the door, flipped on the light, and hurriedly locked up behind herself, she knew she wasn’t going to be able to sleep until the sun came up. Amy was on nights this week, and with Sara still gone…she was alone. She flipped the deadbolt, braced herself with one hand against the door, and dropped her head, taking a deep breath.

I’m home, she told herself, over and over. I’m here now, I’m home, and everything is going to be okay.

“I don’t know what you’re so freaked out about. I took care of it.”

Sofia screamed before she could stop herself, spinning around and flattening her back against the door. Phenex looked at her from where he was sprawled comfortably on her couch, his expression faintly amused.

Once the initial burst of terror subsided and she managed to process exactly who was sitting in her apartment speaking to her, anger quickly moved in to take over. Her fuse, normally fairly long, ignited. Sofia’s hands fisted. It was the first time she’d seen that gorgeous face and wanted to punch it. He looked completely comfortable sitting there, as though he didn’t have a care in the world. as though he wasn’t very busy trying to make her nice, orderly life a living hell.

“What are you doing in here? Get out!”

One dark red brow arched. “That’s a nice way to say thank you.”

Her mouth dropped open. “Thank you? Thank you? For what? For following me around, breaking into my apartment, scaring the shit out of me? I don’t know what you people are, and I don’t care. I don’t want anything to do with it! And your friend can find somebody else to use as vampire bait, because I’m out of here. I didn’t sign on for this!”

“You figured that out, huh? If it helps, you made beautiful bait. Worked like a charm.”

Phenex’s slow, sensual grin only fed her building fury. Was this funny to him?

“It’s not some kind of fucking joke, cabrón! I mean it, get out!”

Phenex stood in a single, fluid movement that startled her with its speed, and was looming over her before she could make a run for it. He was much faster than any human could ever hope to be. She needed to remember that he wasn’t human. Sofia glared up at him even as she pressed back against the door, barely able to breathe. Up close, Phenex was overwhelming���the sheer size and strength of him, the faint, unmistakably male scent that reminded her of sultry nights and endless oceans. She had no doubt he was the sort of man who was used to getting his way. She was determined not to show how close she was to just slumping to the floor and curling up in a ball. But she hadn’t gotten where she was without being a fighter, and she wouldn’t crumble now.

As intimidating as he was, Phenex didn’t sound remotely angry.

“You’re angry,” he said, his voice turning even a simple sentence into a dark melody. “Don’t be.”

“I’ll think about getting over it, if you leave.”

He made a soft, amused sound, his eyes searching her face with an expression that was almost confused. That didn’t make any sense to Sofia. Between the two of them, she was far from the confusing one.

“You cursed me out in two languages,” he said.

“So?”

His lips curved. “I liked it. You might want to think about that before you do it again.”

Sofia stared up at him incredulously, her emotions so potent and muddled that she could feel herself quivering like a live wire. “What are you?” she finally asked. “I saw the wings, but you’re no angel.”

“Wrong. I’m the best kind of angel. A fallen one,”