heyday, Arnie Mitress had been one of the best nightmare-invoking guys around. “I admire your loyalty,” he said. And he did. “But you might not have a choice if it comes down to either being loyal or eating.”
“Sure I do. Arnie looks out for me.” Sinead shifted her position so that her shoulder bumped against Finn’s hand.
When she didn’t move, he knew he’d been given the go-ahead. He slid his fingers over her soft skin and cupped her shoulder, feeling the frailty of her bones beneath his palm. “He’s doing a helluva job,” he muttered, a frown pulling between his brows. He genuinely liked Sinead, even if he was using her to get information. “When is the last time you ate?”
A smile curved her lips and brightened her eyes. “You’re sweet. I’m fine, Finn. Really.” She bent her arm and laced her fingers with his. “What made you decide to take a break today? Is it your boss?” Her features scrunched in commiseration. “I heard you two had a falling out.”
“You did, eh?” He stroked his thumb along hers. When had his business become everyone else’s?
She nodded. “Phoebus was just in here and—” Her eyes widened and her mouth formed a small O. “You probably ran into him on your way in.”
The animosity between him and Phoebus wasn’t a secret. “We saw each other, yeah.” At her look of concern, he added, “He walked away uninjured, don’t worry.”
Sinead grimaced. “I wasn’t worried about Phoebus,” she said. As Finn started to feel good about her concern for him, she stated, “He can take care of himself.”
He raised his brows. “You thought he might have hurt me, is that it?”
“Don’t get your shorts in a twist,” she muttered. She flicked her finger at the back of his hand before twining their fingers together again. “I know you can take care of yourself, too. It’s just that Phoebus fights dirty.” She shook her head. “You men and your egos. Really, it’s ridiculous the things you get upset over.”
“You think?” He let his voice come out in a low growl and wiggled his brows.
She giggled. “I do. And sometimes it’s cute.” She leaned closer, nestling in the crook of his arm. “So, your break?” she asked, redirecting the conversation back to her earlier question. “Why aren’t you working today? And does Lucifer know?”
Finn gave a little growl. “I guess he knows. Seems like everyone else does.” He smiled at her giggle. “I’ve been doing this for a long, long time. A break is overdue.” He lifted his gaze to the ceiling and blew out a sigh. “I get so fed up with it all, you know?”
“What do you mean?”
“Policing behavior we shouldn’t have to police. Being a minority within a minority. Kowtowing to humans, making sure we don’t do things to spook them.” Finn looked at her. “It’s especially galling for me.”
“Why you?”
“Because I’m a demon. We don’t answer to anyone. Well, other than Lucifer.” He scrubbed his hand across his jaw. Answering to his father was bad enough. He couldn’t imagine also being brought to heel by the council. “But we don’t answer to the Council of Preternaturals, and I’d prefer to keep it that way.”
“Do you think Lucifer would ever allow it? I mean, there have been councils for millennia, and demons have never been represented. They’ve never wanted to be represented. Why would that change now?” Sinead took a sip of wine, staring at Finn over the rim of the glass.
He glanced around the club. Both of the pole dancers had left the stage and no one had taken their places yet, though the cheesy porn music still played over the speakers. The other three patrons remained where they’d been when Finn had come in, so they weren’t close enough to overhear what he was about to say. However, just in case one of the others in the club was a shapeshifter with preternatural hearing, he lowered his voice and said, “Because I’ve heard this next rift might be different.”
“Different how?” She leaned toward him, her expression a mixture of curiosity and suspicion.
He couldn’t tell if she wondered how much he knew, or if she was legitimately curious. “It’s going to be open longer than usual, and more prets are going to come through.”
Her eyes widened. “The rift will be open longer…how could that happen? And how would more prets come through from the other dimension?”
“I have no idea. I’m only telling you what I’ve been hearing. And I want in.”