The Demon's Song - By Kendra Leigh Castle Page 0,79

there was a flip side to that. More gained meant more to lose.

Sofia stirred in his arms, distracting him from his darkening thoughts. “Mmm?” she asked, not even opening her eyes.

“Nothing,” he said, beginning to kiss her neck again. “We have to get back.”

“Mmm.” It became an unhappy sound. She opened her eyes, pale green gleaming like sea glass. “Why do we have to go? I’m off work. I thought we were here for the sunshine.”

“We were. We are, I just…there’s a lot to do.” He paused, then just came out with it. “Terra Noctem is moving. Friday. We Fallen have to protect it on the way out.”

If she hadn’t been awake before, she was now. “What?”

Quickly, he explained the situation to her. By the time he finished, she was sitting up and staring into the distance, an oddly blank look on her face.

“So this was kind of a last hurrah. I had a feeling.” Her smile was pained when she glanced at him. “I guess it was better that you didn’t tell me last night. I might not have come, and I’m glad I did, regardless.”

Phenex frowned as he realized what she meant. “No! No, Sofia, I’m not trying to say good-bye to you. I didn’t plan coming out here. When I saw you last night, I realized how much everything was dragging on you. This seemed like a fix, at least right then. Was it a bad idea?”

“No,” she said, shaking her head. In the light, her skin looked gold-dusted, her eyes luminous even though she’d just woken up. She had needed this. Out of Terra Noctem, she’d already started to thrive again.

Pleasure and guilt stirred, mixed into something unpleasant. She could thrive in the vampire city, too, he told himself. With some changes.

Phenex slid his fingers beneath Sofia’s chin and took a deep breath. “I want you to come with me. Wherever it is.”

“You…you do?” He loved putting the light back in her eyes. He just wished there was less wariness there along with it. What could she be worrying about? He took care of what was his. He always had.

“I do. We have a good thing, Sofia. I wasn’t expecting it, I wasn’t looking for it, but we do. I don’t want to toss it just because we’ve got magical city problems.”

Her smile was slow and warm…but still, cautious. He didn’t understand.

“I agree,” she said. “Completely. We do have a good thing. But—”

“You can do whatever you want to the house in Terra Noctem,” Phenex said, anxious to get the details worked out now that she’d agreed. The relief he felt was incredible. “I’ll get you out of there as often as I can. I know it’s different, but you’ll get used to it. I did. I—”

Her smile faltered as he spoke, then vanished altogether. “Whoa. Whoa, whoa, hang on. Phenex.” That beautiful light faded, replaced by sadness. Resignation. As though she’d been expecting something like this all along.

“I can’t live in Terra Noctem,” Sofia said slowly. “I’m a human. Even if Justin made an exception, the place is not at all human-friendly. I can’t live there.”

“You can if you go vampire.”

Now she was frowning, her voice taking on an edge. “We talked about this. I don’t want to be a vampire. I don’t want to live underground. Phenex, do you have any idea what being there does to me? I didn’t realize how bad it was getting until you brought me here. This,” she said, sweeping her hands around her, “is wonderful. This is everything I love—warmth, light, people walking on the beach laughing, music. I feel alive here! I know you understand,” she pressed. “You sang for the sunrise this morning. I could hear how you felt. You don’t belong down in the dark any more than I do.”

Phenex’s eyes narrowed. This was his fault, he thought as the hurt sliced through him. He’d opened himself up for this. It was why taking was always better than asking. Why not giving a damn was always the best idea. If only he could stop.

“You said you wanted to come with me.” He kept his voice even, barely.

“I didn’t think being a vampire was a requirement,” Sofia said, her own voice rising. “You’re not one.”

“I’m an immortal. The only way for you to join me in that is for you to get the bite. It’s not the end of the world, Sofia. Just a different start.”

“I don’t want a different start,” she said, almost shouting now.