Reign of Night (Thorne Hill #7) - Emily Goodwin Page 0,60
fucking you senseless proved that.”
“It did, but you’ll have to prove it again tonight.”
“Or now?”
I smile. “I’m tired. You wore me out.”
“We did fuck for an hour.” He covers us up and kisses my neck. “Go to sleep. I’ll wake you up in time to make it to your appointment.”
“Okay,” I tell him, too tired to protest. I roll over, snuggling up next to him, and fall asleep just a few minutes later, not waking until Lucas gently brushes my hair back.
“Callie.”
“I’m awake. I’ve been awake.”
“You are now.” He kisses my neck, tongue running over the little puncture wounds. “It’s a little after six. You want to eat before your massage, I’m guessing.”
“Yeah, just something light.”
“I’ll take you to the salon,” he offers, saying it casually on purpose.
“And then what? Sit in the room watching like a creep?”
“No, of course not. I’ll sit in the reception area.”
“Uh, no way. Men who sit and wait like that are abusive, controlling assholes, and that’s exactly how it will come off.”
“I don’t care what people think. We know that’s not true.”
“I care what people think.”
“You do?” he questions. “Because that would be news to me.”
“I care what people think about us because us is important to me. You’re the best thing that ever happened to me, okay? I don’t want to taint that with anything, so stop being so caring and protective.”
“Just yesterday, a demon wanted to kidnap you and give you to the new ruler of Hell.”
“He’s not an official ruler yet,” I counter. “And Lucas, I know things are a little dicey right now, but I can’t do this for the next four months. I need space to be on my own, and you do, too.”
“You can have space when Heaven and Hell aren’t looking for you.”
“That could be for the rest of my life!”
“Once Lucifer is back on the throne and in charge of the demons again, the rumors about you should quell.”
“And if that doesn’t happen?”
“Then I will do everything I can to keep you safe.” He takes me in his arms. “I told you I didn’t think I was capable of loving someone until you proved me wrong, but you made me feel other things, too, Callie. Things I hadn’t felt since in centuries.”
“Like what?”
“You kept me guessing and were constantly surprising me. That was a first in a very long time. But that night when Varrador almost killed you…it when then I realized I love you because I felt something else, something I hadn’t felt since I was human: fear. The thought of losing you terrifies me. I’m not alive, but I don’t want to live without you, so if that means sitting in the car in the parking lot while you get a massage, then that’s what I’m going to do.”
“Sitting in the car is still creepy, but better. Won’t you be bored?”
“I’ll bring a book.”
“Overprotective, rich, great in bed, and a reader. You really are my dream man, Lucas King.”
He flashes a cocky grin that shows off his fangs. “I am no man.”
“Really, guys,” I press, flipping a page in my Book of Shadows. It’s Sunday afternoon, and Kristy, Nicole, and Naomi are over. We’re in the kitchen, making potions and margaritas at the same time. Mine’s virgin, of course, but still tastes pretty damn good. “It’s not that much different than how things were before.”
“Oh no,” Naomi quips. “Instead of demons wanting to kill you, they want to kidnap and marry you.”
“I’m sure they wanted to marry me before. I mean, who wouldn’t want to?” I run my finger down the ingredient list, though I have this potion memorized.
“And archangels haven’t wanted to kill you before,” Kristy adds pointedly.
“Technically, they have,” Nicole interjects. “They just didn’t know who the Nephilim was. But since it was talked about, they wanted to be sure the abomination was destroyed. No offense.”
“None taken, as that’s pretty damn accurate.” I go to my spice cabinet, feeling rather adult by how excited I get to have everything organized in matching glass bottles. The builders thought I was some great cook, needing extensive shelving put in to hold all my spices. These cabinets were designed specifically for holding all my jars. Everything is in alphabetical order, making it easy to find everything.
“But the angels are busy looking for your uncle,” Naomi adds a shot of tequila to her glass before pouring the margarita mix in, keeping the pitcher alcohol-free for me.
“Right. They’re very distracted, and if I wasn’t worried about staking