Hell’s Most Incompetent Demon (Supernatural Suckers #1)

Chapter 1

Chapter

One

Was there anything better than getting lost in a good romance novel?

There was so much to love. The meet-cute, the pining, the first kiss that only made the wanting worse, the drama, the grand gesture… and, of course, the mind-blowing sex.

Did Ethan feel a tiny bit self-conscious about reading a smut-scene at work?

He had in the beginning.

Then he’d found this perfect spot to hide away during his lunch break, between the religious section and the occult part of the library. He sat in an armchair, hunched over his phone. No one ever bothered him here.

Which gave him free rein to read about Marcus and James getting their happily ever after. Three hundred pages of almosts and maybes had led to this moment, and Ethan's chest felt just as tight as his pants as he read the final paragraphs. He'd been rooting for them since page one, when James had spilled coffee all over Marcus's favourite jacket and Marcus had fallen in love with his apologetic rambling instead of getting mad.

"Move in with me," Marcus whispered against James's temple. "I want to wake up to your terrible coffee and your endless astronomy facts every morning. I want all our tomorrows."

God. Ethan pressed his forehead against the page, trying not to cry in his favourite hiding spot in the university library. It was cheesy and over-the-top and absolutely perfect. The kind of love that felt inevitable, where the right person showed up exactly when you needed them, where every missed connection and misunderstanding only made the finale sweeter.

The kind of love that only happened in fiction.

Only in fiction…

Ethan sighed.

His phone buzzed. A notification from his brother Matt popped up on Instagram. Ethan clicked it, still a bit sniffly from the book, because nothing got him quite like a well-earned happy ending.

Instagram loaded and Ethan saw the picture his brother had posted: Matt down on one knee in front of a lighthouse, Sarah's hands clasped over her mouth, caught in a moment of pure joy.

She said yes!!!

The tears that had threatened during the book spilled over for real this time. Matt would totally call him a cry baby if he could see him now. He had been calling him that since they were kids and Ethan had sobbed through every Disney movie. But how could he not cry? His big brother had found his person .

Matt and Sarah were that kind of love he'd just convinced himself only existed in fiction. She laughed at Matt's terrible puns, she'd started a vegetable garden with their mom, and Matt got this dopey soft look on his face whenever she walked into a room. They'd even met at a coffee shop, just like in the books. Their meet-cute had turned into morning coffee dates, had turned into forever.

Ethan wiped his eyes with his sleeve and typed out "Congratulations!!!" with enough heart emojis to make his point. He meant every single one. His brother was getting married. His brother was getting his happily ever after!

So maybe real love like that was possible after all.

His thumb hovered over the search bar. Before he could think better of it, he typed in "Kyle Edwards."

Ethan’s crush looked unfairly gorgeous in his latest post, holding up a copy of Pride and Prejudice in front of the library's circulation desk. Those dark eyes, that bright smile that made Ethan's knees weak every time they worked together…

For a whole year now, Ethan had been obsessed with him. If only he didn’t get so damn tongue-tied around his co-worker. If only he could tell Kyle how much he adored his smile.

Maybe today was the day. Maybe today Ethan could work up the courage to ask him out for coffee. He could do that. Just walk up to him, open his mouth, and…

A laugh echoed through the stacks. Warm, rich, achingly familiar. Ethan froze, his romance-novel-and-engagement-photo courage evaporating instantly.

"Wait, you've read The Nightless Sky too? Everyone I recommend it to gets overwhelmed by the first book." Kyle's voice carried through the gap between shelves, full of that eager enthusiasm that had made Ethan's heart catch fire during their first meeting.

"Love it. The whole book-within-a-book thing? Brilliant." The answering voice was deep, confident. "I stayed up until four AM finishing the last book."

"Right? The way all the stories weave together at the end?—"

"Pure genius."

The soft sound of books being re-shelved paused. "We should get coffee sometime. Talk about it some more."

Ethan's phone fell into his lap. Had he just overheard his crush planning a date with someone else—someone who wasn’t too damn shy to go up and talk to him?

Of course he had, because Ethan always missed his chance.

He was hopeless.

And he’d read The Nightless Sky too, and he’d thought it was fucking boring. A lot of eloquent rambling about nothing of substance.

Strike that thought.

If Kyle thought it was brilliant, Ethan must have missed something.

Something that this new person had evidently picked up on.

Ethan sighed, seething with jealousy.

His watch buzzed. Break time was over. Ethan glanced at his half-eaten sandwich and decided he wasn't hungry, anyway. He had books to shelve. A whole cart of them, waiting near the circulation desk. He checked the call numbers and his heart sank. These books were going right where Kyle and his new friend were still talking.

Because that was just how his day was going.

He could do this. Just wheel the cart in, shelve the books, and get out. Simple. He'd perfected the art of being invisible over the past year. No one would notice him.

Kyle's laugh drifted around the corner as Ethan approached with his cart. "The world-building is incredible, right?" Kyle was saying, entirely focused on the ginger he was talking to. "And the love story!"

Ethan tried to focus on the call numbers. Philosophy, religion, occult studies. Keep it professional. Just shelve the books.

A slim volume caught his attention. It was bound in faded red leather, tucked between a treatise on meditation and a history of pagan rituals. "Love Spells and Summonings."

If only things like that actually worked…

Ethan snuck another glance at Kyle, still deep in animated conversation with his soon-to-be date.

Well. It wasn't like Ethan could possibly be any worse at love if he amused himself with a little fake magic.

He decided to take the book home.