Chapter 9
NINE
Mia
These aren't the worst looks I’ve gotten walking around Walmart, but the comically large man next to me is garnering more attention than the nights Erika and I would make midnight snack runs in our pajamas pre-pandemic. On the bright side, most of the people I do make eye contact with accidentally seem to smile at us. As in, me and Tobias as a couple, but I still can’t help but feel a little self conscious.
Not that he notices. Tobias is more interested in all the advancements made in the last hundred years. He wasn’t exaggerating when he said he hadn’t been in the mortal realm in a while. It took twenty minutes to get him into my tiny Nissan Versa because it looked like a “strange metal cage”.
I watch as he walks through the men’s section, his brows creased in concentration or derision, I can’t tell which.
“What are these numbers for?” he asks, holding a pair of jeans, “Do I have to solve this equation to figure out what size I wear?”
Concentration, it is.
“You don’t know your size?”
Tobias shakes his head, “It just manifests.”
Of course. I grab the jeans and unfold them, holding them up to his hips, “The first is your waist, the second is the inseam. Let’s pick a few and we can take them to the dressing room.”
Tobias watches me with rapt attention as I fold that pair and put it away, then grab the next two sizes up, handing them to him.
Somewhere along the way to the fitting room, I stopped caring about the looks I’m getting from strangers, and instead focus on him. He is so cautious to interact with anything, always pausing for a second as if he doesn’t know what would happen if he touches it. It makes sense when I think about it, Tobias has mainly seen our world in dreams.
I wonder what his realm looks like, is it all fire and brimstone or is it just like a normal city? Is it just him or is there a Mrs. Tobias? A sharp pang of jealousy lances through my chest at the thought.
Oh. Do I have a crush on a demon? Truthfully, I might have also had a crush on the teddy bear too.
Probably because it's been him by my side all along, just in teddy bear form. Does that mean he’s been able to hear me this entire time? See me? I guess the only downside is that he’s not supposed to be in our realm. I will ultimately have to say goodbye.
What kind of supernatural avoidant attachment bullshit is this? I haven’t felt this level of connection with any of my exes and when I do, it’s a demon who will only leave me and break my heart .
Tobias disappears into the fitting rooms to try on the jeans and I stick close, looking at men’s underwear. Can’t say I’ve shopped for boxers before. I pick up a package of regular boxers and a package of boxer briefs, trying to remember what my exes wore, but all I see is Tobias laying naked on my bed in his full demon glory.
I blush so hard that my cheeks hurt. You’d think that I haven’t seen a dick before. I put the plain boxers back and keep the pack of black boxer briefs, plucking a bag of black socks from the end cap just for good measure.
“What are those for?” Tobias asks, walking up with a couple pairs of jeans in his arms.
“You don’t know what underwear is for?” I tilt my head, placing the two packages in the cart, along with his jeans.
“I know what it’s for, but why do I need it? You aren’t wearing any.”
I hear a loud snort from behind me and look over my shoulder to see a middle-aged man smiling down at a package of cotton shirts before walking off. Okay, maybe this is a bit more embarrassing than I thought.
Tobias growls and when I turn, his eyes are glowing bright red, the whites shifting to black. When he sneers, I can see the tips of new pointed teeth that I swear he didn’t have before.
“Hey.” I step closer, placing my hand on his chest, but he doesn’t budge. “Tobias.” I cup his cheek with my palm and his eyes dart to me. After a moment, his deep heaving breaths slow as his face returns to normal, “It’s okay.”
“You wouldn’t believe what he was thinking,” he says, his brows creasing in concern.
“I have an idea,” I shrug, my fingertips grazing his sharp jaw before I pull away.
“Are all mortal men like this? ”
“Many people have spicy thoughts, it doesn’t mean they’ll act on them. That’s just human nature, Tobias. It’s the percentage that goes farther that is the problem.”
“Like, Jeff,” he tilts his head, looking down at me.
“What about Jeff?”
“He was going to try and pressure you into sleeping with him. I saw it clearly in his thoughts.”
“Oh,” my hand goes to my stomach. He wouldn’t have succeeded, but Tobias felt the need to protect me all the same. Suddenly, that night makes a lot more sense.
“Are you okay? I can sense you're upset.”
“I—yes. Thank you for looking out for me, Tobias,” I don’t want to dwell on the other emotions blossoming in my chest, but I’m sure he can feel them. The comfort, the appreciation, and buried deep beneath that, affection. “Okay,” I clear my throat, “Do you want to pick something special for dinner? It’s your first day in our realm.” I look up at him, “Can you eat?”
“I don’t know, but I would like to find out.” Tobias smiles at me, his sharp teeth are gone and replaced with just pointed canines. “Can we order Chinese food?”
These feelings will not remain buried for long.
We make it home at twenty 'til three. Just enough time to shove Tobias through the door with his new clothes so that he doesn’t stick out like a sore thumb or look like a wild weekend fling, the latter only because the truth would hurt my feelings.
“I’m going to make coffee. Would you like some?”
“Please,” Tobias calls out from the other room.
Let me touch you. Please, little doe. His words from last night echo in my thoughts, and I allow them to paint a vivid picture as I fix our coffee.
What am I doing? I need to control myself or I am no better than the guy at the store. Tobias is stuck with me for who knows how long, he doesn’t need me crushing on him the entire time.
As I finish adding vanilla creamer to my coffee, the door to my bedroom creaks open.
“I left your coffee black. I could never drink it, but I know people who like it that way,” I explain, looking down at my mug before taking a sip. It is amazing as usual, “I wanted you to decide before?—”
There’s movement out of the corner of my eye, and I look up to see Tobias padding into the kitchen. He’s still wearing the black shirt from before and dark wash jeans that hug his muscled thighs.
I shift uncomfortably, immediately my brain launches to a fantasy of him pushing me back against the counter and kissing me.
I blanch. Shit, he can read minds. How am I going to control my thoughts around him? Maybe I need to practice meditation or something like that.
“Mia,” he says, his gray hand grabs my mug.
“That has vanilla,” I mutter, watching as he places it on the counter.
Tobias catches my chin between his thumb and forefinger and tips my head back, staring at my lips and nothing else.
Oh, god. I take deep, conscious breaths. The expression on his face has me feeling a lot like prey. “What—what are you doing?”
His soft fingertips glide across my cheek, before threading through my hair to grip the back of my neck, “Does that mean I can kiss you? ”
I gather his shirt into my fist, wrestling with the urge to pull him closer or push him away completely, “It’s not fair reading my mind, Tobias.”
“That isn’t an answer, my little doe,” he smiles, closing the distance between us, “Just say the word and I will end both of our agony.”
“Please.”
The moment his lips brush against mine, my knees threaten to give out. How in the hell are they so soft?
Tobias growls, backing me up against the counter, just like in my fantasy. He wedges his knee between my thighs to keep me upright, his other hand gently cupping my cheek.
When I give him a playful nip, he tugs my head back, gliding his tongue along my lips, teasing them open.
The first flick of my tongue has him humming low in this throat, pinning me in place.
The hard edge of the counter digs into my hip as he takes what he needs from me. He kisses me until I feel drunk and breathless, my lips almost tingling from the contact.
The constant pressure of his thigh is not enough, I can’t move, and can’t grind against him like I so desperately need and he knows this.
Each kiss is drawn out, fevered but unending. It feels like a dream.
And, like every other dream I’ve had, there’s a knock at the door.
Tobias stiffens and pulls away, looking down at me, he looks just as dazed as I feel.
“Just a minute,” I call out.
For a moment, I think, yep, that was my only chance. I have used up every ounce of romance the universe has ever allotted to me in that one kiss. It’s all downhill from here.
But then he leans down and kisses me again and again. Each one is softer and more playful than the one before. This isn’t for my benefit anymore.
The pounding on the front door continues and I finally gently gather the strength to push Tobias away, but not before giving him one last kiss. I have needs too. I dip out of his grasp and run my fingers through my hair to hide what I was just doing.
I walk into the living room with shaky legs, my lips feel swollen and I know they look worse.
It was just a kiss, I remind myself. It probably didn’t mean anything, maybe it’s some sort of demonic culture thing, he is an incubus after all. Aren’t they pretty sexual? It doesn’t mean I should catch feelings.
Not to mention showing interest and wanting more is the kiss of death for most relationships.
It’s casual. I can do casual. Can’t I? Fuck, I hope I can, because I would give anything to kiss him again.
With a slow exhale, I open the door to see Jason standing there in a plain white t-shirt, his tattoos on full display and his tool bag slung over his shoulder. He gives me a slow smile, looking down at my lips.
“Mia,” he says, taking a step and wrapping his arms around my middle, his hand brushing dangerously low against the small of my back.
“Jason,” I squeak out, giving him a quick hug then stepping back, “Come on in.”
“Hi,” he says, holding out his hand, “I don’t think we’ve met before, I’m Jason.”
“Tobias.” My demon just glares at his hand.
Thankfully, Jason breaks the tension, “Erika mentioned the faulty light is in the office?”
“Yes!” I force out, ushering him further into the house, “Thank you.”
Tobias gives me a look as Jason walks down the hall.
“Stop, I know what you’re thinking, but Jason is harmless. I’ve known him forever, there is nothing there.”
He makes a noise low in his throat.
When I turn to close the door, Erika is making her way up the sidewalk with her car keys in hand.
“Hey babes, sorry I’m late,” she says, her boots loud against the cement pavers, “I had to pick up a few things.”
“Don’t worry.” I let her pull me into a hug, “I’m just glad you’re here.”
She looks over my shoulder and I feel her muscles go taut.
“Mia, uh, why is there a demon in your house?”