check the other rooms, if it makes you feel better.” Philip offers him a wobbling smile. “My young assistant here has a key to the refrigerators and the storage areas.”
The second officer eyes us with more suspicion, his gaze sweeping over our odd assortment before he settles on me. “Might I offer my condolences? I’m sorry for the loss of...”
“Donald.” I sniffle and widen my eyes. “Such a good man.”
Turning, I bury my head in Julian’s shoulder.
As I let out a couple sobs, Julian’s arm curls around me, and he pats my back. “There, there.”
“We should leave them to their service,” Kellen says in a subdued voice. “If you’ll follow me, I can show you Mr. Henderson’s paperwork and give you access to the rest of the building.”
“We’re sorry for the disruption,” the first officer murmurs, and their footsteps move past us.
I straighten to put my back against the seat before they reach the other side of the room, and Julian keeps his arm strategically placed in case they look back at us.
Philip picks up his speech, droning on about the afterlife and heaven. He repeats himself a few times, his eyes darting to the mortuary doors, but he keeps up the act until Kellen returns, alone this time. He must have taken the officers out the back so they wouldn’t disturb us again.
He rolls his hand to motion for Philip to continue while he hurries to the door to the foyer and peeks out.
After another ten minutes, his shoulders relax. “They’re gone.” He glances back at Philip. “You did well. They were convinced.”
Philip cuts off and sags against the wall in relief.
I spring out of my seat and across the room to cup his sagging jowls and plant a kiss on his surprised lips. Pulling back, I grin at him. “You clever, clever imp.”
He recovers quickly and gives me a leer from beneath his bushy gray eyebrows. “So you like them old, huh?”
“Centuries old,” I purr and step back before he gets handsy.
He straightens as his face begins to morph back to normal. “Hey, I’m a century old.”
A static-filled arm slides over my shoulders. “That was plural, runt. Don’t get greedy.”
Philip pouts, but it can’t contend with the pleased smile that twitches at the corners of his lips.
Julian joins us and clasps Philip’s shoulder. “You did good, taking the lead like that. Otherwise, we might have had to kill people, and that would have made Adie sad.”
The smile blooms, Philip’s youthful face taking on a glow of happiness, and he eyes me. “How about one more kiss as my reward.”
I pinch his round cheek. “Talk to me when you’re older.”
“Don’t make promises you can’t deliver,” Tobias growls as heat floods my back. A moment later, lava hot hands grasp my hips, and he pulls me back to fit snug against his front. His lips sear my ear as he whispers, “You’re already spoken for, aren’t you, little succubus?”
I shiver with excitement at the show of possessiveness and wiggle my ass against him. “I don’t recall. Maybe I need a reminder.”
He growls, catching my earlobe between his teeth with enough pressure to border on pain. I hiss with pleasure, my lashes drifting down to veil my eyes.
“Come on.” Julian steers a disappointed Philip away. “Let me tell you about the Brownbury triplets.”
When Kellen moves to follow, I reach out and snag his wrist, my nails against his skin. “Oh no, you don’t, Sparky. You’re staying here.”
His eyes sparkle. “Here or over there, I can still listen.”
I glare. “Not if Emil freezes your eardrums.”
“So vicious.” Ignoring Tobias’s hold on me, Kellen swoops in to plant a static-filled kiss on my lips. “You’ll just have to work hard to be better than the Brownbury triplets.”
“I will kill the Brownbury triplets,” I vow. “They are now on my termination list.”
The sparkle in his eyes grows. “You have a termination list?”
“Yes.”
“I hope none of my staff are on it,” Emil interjects as he joins us. When I keep my lips sealed—because, yes, one Ms. Turner is definitely on the list, the hussy— he turns to Kellen. “I believe the cremation is complete.”
Kellen leaves to check the machine, which is, indeed done. Forty minutes later, the cooled ashes come out of the grinder and go into a container for burial, and we’re finally free to leave.
If I never visit a mortuary again, I’ll be happy. I never needed to know this much about the burning of a body.