Chapter 14 #2
He put his hand on my waist and pulled me close, which would have been beyond the pale of propriety if this had been an actual reenactment, but this was just a light candy store display.
“There is a great deal to be in shock about. I understand that. I was also in shock, from the moment you came walking into my fight club to now, hearing you talk about my flames. Going into my flames is a lot more sacred than a human marriage ceremony.”
I stared up at him. “No. That wasn’t a marriage ceremony. You weren’t even there!” I pushed away, but he wasn’t budging.
“Candy, that was my soul. I am always with you, and I always will be. My life is yours, wrapped in your delicate hand to do with as you will.”
“Is this the part where you call yourself my slave? And then ignore me when I ask you to clear my shop from all the entirely unnecessary and freaky demons?”
His eyes flickered again before he smiled slightly and released me. “If only it was unnecessary, but you’ve taught me to err on the side of caution. You are my soul’s heart, born of my flames. I would destroy worlds for you, but I won’t neglect your safety.”
I rolled my eyes and went to the counter where I’d stay and help with customers instead of gliding around like some jobless duchess.
At six, the last customers were ushered out, the place was swept and organized in record time thanks to the demons, and then a big black car pulled up once everyone had filed out, including Roberta/Regis who gave me a satisfied smile when he saw Dorian helping me into the back seat.
He wanted me to be the queen to his king.
“Ridiculous number of staff for a Tuesday,” Callerie said, glancing at my entourage and then my costume out on the sidewalk. The number of staff wasn’t the only absurd thing about this.
I waved at her. “Sorry about the parking. I’ll see you later. I need to get something business casual in your shop.”
She raised a perfectly tweezed brow. “Sure.” She glanced at Dorian and I knew that look far too well.
Callerie was younger than me, prettier, and incredibly competent and capable to boot.
She dated successful men while I stayed shut in my candy store like a lunatic.
She was thinking how weird it was for Dorian to go with me instead of her.
At some point, she’d strip for him and try to convince him that he could do much better than me.
I slid into the black sedan, more than slightly stressed out. The only perk was that Wilkie was in Dorian’s club.
“Candy, are you all right?” Dorian was staring at me while I was glaring at him unconsciously.
I swallowed and looked out the window instead while my stomach churned with nausea. “Sure. Everything’s grand. You and your court are my slaves, just waiting to do my bidding.”
“Your safety is my only concern.”
“And that’s why you were wearing that pointlessly attractive glamour in my shop and out on the street. With those completely inappropriate pants.”
He touched my hand, the barest contact, but it send a shot of awareness through me. “I’m trying to be attractive for you. Is that a problem?”
I took a breath that made my chest ache so much. “It just brings back memories.”
“Ah. Hurt, jealously, possessiveness, those memories?”
“Those are feelings. Memories of times when beautiful women threw themselves at you and I had to watch and act like I didn’t care.”
“Ah. So the memories bother you, not the feelings?”
I shrugged and wrapped my arms around myself. He wasn’t human; he wouldn’t get it. Although if the White Rabbit was right, neither was I. Whoever heard of a depressed demon? The White Rabbit hadn’t seemed too happy, either. “I need a therapist.”
“Ah. To help you process with your sudden emergence into a dangerous world when you’ve worked so hard to keep out everything that might hurt you, might stir up feelings or memories.”
I turned to scowl at him, but he was so impossibly handsome. Yes, it hurt. It hurt to want him because that was also part of the whole emotional wounds and scars package. I looked out the window instead with a sigh. “Where are we going?” I asked when I realized we were headed south instead of east.
“Dinner. I hope you don’t mind. I made reservations.” He took my hand and pulled me close, gazing into my eyes while his other hand smoothed down my back to my hip.
“What are you doing?” I whispered.
“Changing your dress,” he whispered back.
I blinked at him, so close, smelling of cinnamon bears, and then I pulled away and looked down to find myself in an outfit that was modern, but with many of the same elements of my Queen outfit. I touched my hair, and the wig was a hair clip.
“And you…” As I said the words, his clothing melted into dark pants and button-down shirt that were almost the same, but different enough that we wouldn’t stand out wherever we went. He took off his powdered wig and that was that. We were dressed for dinner. “Wow. You’re like the fairy godmother.”
He shuddered. “I’m not a fairy. If you’d ever met one of the cursed things, you wouldn’t make that mistake.”
“There are fairies? Oh, right, someone said something about the Zombie Queen not ruling them because nobody wants to rule the fairies.”
“It seems that you had a very enjoyable conversation with the White Rabbit. I’m terribly jealous. So much more jealous than you are of Lucia or Callerie. I wanted to die every day that I wasn’t with you, except that knowing that somewhere you were alive made my life worth living.”
“How alive are demons, exactly?”
He raised a brow. “Beg your pardon?”
I waved a hand around. “Don’t try to sweet talk me. Tell me about yourself, who you really are. Why do you want me to be your wife? Isn’t that weird for you to want some lame human whose parents didn’t even want her?”
“Your parents died, didn’t they? I can’t imagine anyone not wanting you.”
And my mother would have killed me if the White Rabbit hadn’t killed her first. Happy thoughts.
“Enough about me. You know all about me, but I don’t know about you.
When did you start the Den? Who did you sell the strip club to?
Did you do anything else between the two or was it a direct trade?
How alive are demons? How are they born?
How do they die? Will we have children together or would that not work between a human and a demon? ”
He gave me a soft smile that made my insides wobble like they were wearing expensive heels. “Unfortunately we can’t have any children together. Giving birth to a demon would kill you, particularly a demon like me. But we could make arrangements.”
I’d already had his child, but details. “Like adopt the baby demon?”
He shifted slightly. “I am beyond delighted to hear you thinking about having a family with me, but it takes more time than you have to raise a demon.”
“Because I’m a human? It seems pretty crazy that you’d bother with someone like me, much less with the whole, will-defend-you-from-nothing nonsense.”
“I never imagined that I would find my queen.” He held my hand in his, studying my fingers like they were miraculous.
My heart pounded faster and faster while the scent of him clouded my judgment. That’s why I leaned forward and kissed the corner of his mouth.
He tasted so much better than anything else, and suddenly the gray skies cleared up and everything was how it was meant to be. Like magic.
I sank my head on his shoulder and closed my eyes. I’d lost a lot of blood. When all was said and done, falling asleep was the most normal thing I could possibly do.
I woke up feeling more content than I had in a long time as the car stopped in front of a very nice looking Japanese steak house.
I smiled sleepily at Dorian and then the look in his eyes, the intensity had me straightening up and getting some space.
“Sorry, I think I drooled on you. Never mind, you like women drooling all over you, otherwise, you wouldn’t wear that glamour or those pants.
Steak dinner? How surprisingly conventional. ”
He gave me a slight smile and then he got out and held a hand for me to take. “Perhaps not as much as it seems.”
“Don’t tell me it’s also run by demons.” I let him pull me out of the car and tuck me against his side.
“Oni.”
“Wait, it’s actually run by demons?” I looked up at the normal-seeming building. It was slightly more ominous than your usual steak house, but I wouldn’t peg it as demonic.
“Don’t worry, Candy Queen. I’m much more dangerous than dangerously attractive.” His low words made my heart pound faster. Annoying demon.
I didn’t want to talk about how dangerously attractive he was.
If I was an angel, I should be immune to his appeal.
Also, vampires shouldn’t bite me. I should be able to put my elbow through a window without ending up with a million painful stitches.
Pain shouldn’t bother me. No, I should like it.
But instead I was this delicate preemie, or whatever, without any super powers other than seducing Dorian so well that he’d paid to get rid of me.
Like that made sense. If I was a seductress angel, I should be cold-hearted and intentional about it.
I should mind-control him and the masses.
Ridiculous. The White Rabbit had to be wrong about me.
And yet, I had eaten Regis. And attracted more demons than the usual human.
My whole candy crew was demonic except for Toby? Shudder.
I spent the entire time waiting for our order puzzling over things. Also being distracted by how good he smelled, and how he watched me with perfect attentiveness.
“You’re thinking very loudly,” he said, looking at me like I was something to devour. He was probably just hungry.
“I don’t understand why you made me your queen. Also, do you remember your mother? Also, what do demons eat?”
He hesitated while he considered, then said, “There are various demons who consume various things.”