my chest, and I spread my fingers so I could cover as much of his skin as possible. I would savor his presence for hours in the stillness, marveling at the miracle of him like I did every night. I’d never get enough.
My legs felt strangely heavy, and my chest was warm from his closeness. I inhaled his scent, deeper, more…intoxicating. Now that he was healthy, he smelled like something from the legends about paradise gardens. I closed my eyes. His pulse against my skin slowed, and his breathing deepened.
Rees, my heart…
I opened my eyes and jolted. Time had passed. How long? Where was I? The warm body covering me shifted.
Rees.
Rees, my heart.
His presence calmed me. My arms lifted, and my hands clung to his skin, tucking him to me. He settled deeper into my embrace, still fast asleep.
Asleep.
Where had the time gone? Where had my mind been?
The answer was simple, obvious, yet so alien to me. I’d fallen asleep. For the first time since the beginning of life, I’d fallen asleep.
I was tired.
I’d given life to Rees. He was strong now, glowing with beauty and health, his scent clean. When I fucked him, he was insatiable, never drained like he used to be before. When he slept, he woke up refreshed and full of happiness.
And I was tired.
I was so tired I slept.
A sleeping Demon.
What a farce.
I slid from underneath Rees’s body and stood. He curled to his side. I covered him with my robe so he’d feel my presence and wouldn’t wake up. Then I went to the balcony.
Standing there, I watched the stars, pondering the rules of the universe.
Of course, the life I’d given must have been taken from somewhere. And while I’d healed people before, a long time ago, never had any of them been dying before I’d touched them. And none of them had meant as much to me as Rees. The monster in me raged in its cage at the thought of Rees hurting. His well-being had become my priority. Without making a conscious decision, I had sacrificed my strength to sustain his.
For some reason, while my rational self battled with the thought, the beast felt calm about it. Let the boy have everything, the monster said. I gripped the railing, my hands wrangling the iron.
No! Surely, it can’t be possible? I can’t grow weak and…mortal?
I let myself fall for a human boy.
My love for Rees grew so strong it drained the magic from my veins. I needed to know more, but I couldn’t depend on my memory from one thousand years ago. In the middle of the night, I left the bedroom, casting one last glance at the sleeping human who’d stolen my life. Should I be angry? I couldn’t. Not at him.
I spent hours in the library going through the manuscripts I’d collected about the times demons ruled over Earth. I was fairly sure what would happen if I let Rees go like all my former lovers. Once he’d leave, our connection breaking, he’d no longer be protected. He’d slowly age and die like any other human. I’d gain back my strength, keeping all the energy to myself, and live forever.
What if he stays, though?
There was nothing to be found. I’d searched the whole collection, but I couldn’t find any legend describing a lasting marriage between a human and a demon. Not even a single sentence scribbled on the bottom of a page. One pamphlet written by a preacher four hundred years ago claimed women could bear demonic children. I knew that to be false. While demons had had plenty of female lovers in the past, the children had all been mortal. There had been only eleven demons in the earth’s history, born from fire and storm long before mankind learned how to write.
Frustrated by the fruitless research, I took Sera and rode out. We traveled for hours, farther away from the estate, away from the villages, and deeper into the forests where no people lived. I hoped the pull I felt would weaken with the distance, but the monster inside me whined when darkness fell, demanding to go back to its mate. I resisted the urge.
How would it feel to live without Rees? I’d lived alone before quite comfortably. Why couldn’t I do the same again?
I could find other men to fuck like I always had. Rees would forget me, and one day, there’d be a human man to warm him at night, to grow old with him. As it should