Thirteen
Jerry
T he knock at my door bright and early the next morning had my heart racing in excitement. Kat had been by earlier—she was an early riser—to pick Tom up, and I was glad for her offer to pet sit. While I adored Tom, I really did want this weekend to be just about Eshim and me. I wanted to give him all my attention, because I knew that would get harder to do once we got back to work.
I pulled the door open, and smiled at Eshim. His blond hair was perfectly styled as ever, and he was dressed in faded jeans and a Henley that clung to him like a second skin. My outfit was similar with light blue jeans paired with a navy turtleneck. I'd left my hair loose, and I smiled when Eshim reached out to gently tug a strand.
"You look stunning," he said, and I stepped aside to let him in.
"You don't look so bad either."
Eshim chuckled, and I turned to him once I'd closed the door. "So where are we going? Are we driving?"
"I rented us a cabin in the woods a few miles out of town. It's stocked up for the weekend, and there are hiking trails all around if we feel like spending some time outside."
"That sounds amazing," I said, and he held a hand out, brow raised.
"Shall we?"
Blinking, I placed my hand in his, and he grabbed my duffle bag with his free hand. I turned toward the door, but he tugged me closer, then wrapped his arm around my waist.
"Eshim?"
"Hold on," he murmured, and I grabbed his hips a moment before our surroundings flickered and started to blur. When everything cleared up again a few seconds later, I realized we weren't in my living room anymore.
"What the..." I mumbled as I stepped back, then instantly stumbled over my feet. Eshim grabbed me, then led me toward a small couch.
"Careful, it can feel a little dizzying to humans the first time."
"What was...what was that?"
"It's how demons travel. The most accurate description would be teleportation."
"You can teleport someone else too?" Holy fuck, what couldn't he do?
"Well, yes. That's how we got here, remember?"
"Don't be sassy," I grumbled, and he chuckled.
"Are you okay? I should've told you what I was going to do first, right? I'm sorry."
"It's okay. I feel better now."
I did feel steadier, and I proved it by getting to my feet and turning to take in the room. The walls were all rustic wood, the floor creaky but well-maintained. There was some abstract art on the walls, a small flatscreen on a cabinet opposite the couch, and the front door and window on one side and a door leading deeper into the cabin on the other.
I walked over to the window and peered outside, the chirping of birds greeting me along with the warm sunlight. A breeze blew in through the window, cool and smelling of grass and leaves. I couldn't remember the last time I'd been surrounded by nature like this. I needed to do this more often.
"Do you like it?"
We should do this more often.
"I do. It's cozy, and hiking sounds fun. Maybe later, though."
"We can go whenever you want. We'll have three whole days here. And we can come back anytime."
If it were up to me, we'd spend every weekend here. I had a feeling Eshim would want to do just that if I said it out loud, so I didn't. Eshim hadn't said no to a single request I'd made, and I was a bit worried about what that meant. I knew it had nothing to do with me being his boss, but even as his mate, I didn't want to have too much power over him. I wanted to know he felt comfortable saying no to me, but I didn't know how to ask him that.
The mature thing to do would be to come right out and ask the question. Or I could make increasingly crazy requests and see how he reacted...
Nope. I was in my thirties for fuck's sake. I was old enough to know better than to play stupid games like that.
Time to bite the bullet.
"Eshim?"
"Yeah?" He glanced over at me, and the sunlight fell on one side of his face, making his hair gleam and his blue eyes shine like there were stars buried in their center. Fuck, he was so damned beautiful. "Jerry?"
I blinked, then realized I'd completely blanked on what I wanted to ask him. What was I...oh, right.
"Uh, I wanted to ask you something, and I need you to answer honestly, okay?"
Eshim's brows furrowed, and he nodded, then took a step closer to me. "I would never lie to you, Jerry. Not now that you know everything."
Nodding, I rolled my eyes at myself. "It's nothing bad—I promise. I'm making a big deal out of it. I just wanted to ask...if I ever ask for something you don't feel comfortable with, you'll say no, right?"
If anything, Eshim's frown deepened. "What do you mean?"
I twisted a strand of my hair around my fingers as I tried to find a way to explain what I was trying to say. Which was hard when I wasn't sure myself.
"I just mean that if I ask to do anything that makes you uncomfortable or pushes past your boundaries, you'd tell me instead of trying to accommodate me."
Eshim tilted his head, still confused. "You mean sexually?"
I blinked. Ah, this was why people preferred the stupid games. This was painful.
"Well, yes, but other things too. Like, I want you to enjoy the time we spend together too. I don't want to do something I enjoy if you aren't enjoying it too."
Eshim's eyes widened, and then he smiled, a bright, happy smile that made me smile automatically. "Oh, that makes sense! Sorry. And yes, I understand. I love spending time with you, and seeing you happy makes me happy. But yes, if you suggest something I don't feel up to, I will say something. I promise."
Feeling like a weight had been lifted off me, I exhaled and rested my forehead on his shoulder. I made a happy sound when he wrapped his arms around me, and for a few moments, we just stood there, soaking in the sunlight and basking in each other's warmth.
Eshim
My Jerry was a bit of an overthinker. It was cute, but not when he was making himself anxious doing it.
Once his heart had calmed down to a steady cadence, I pulled back and smiled down at him. "So, what would you like to do?"
Jerry gazed at me with pursed lips, then took a step back. "Will you show me your true form again?"
I blinked, then searched his face, trying to decide if he really meant it. His heartbeat was still steady, and his face showed nothing but curiosity and a hint of interest. But still...
"That thing goes both ways, right? You'll enforce your boundaries too?"
Jerry smiled, then leaned closer and pressed a chaste kiss on my lips. "I promise."
Nodding, I took a step back, then let the human illusion fall. Jerry's lips parted, and his heart picked up speed, though he didn't look scared.
I stayed where I was, not moving a muscle as Jerry stepped close again. In this form, I was almost a foot taller than him, and he had to tilt his head up to meet my eyes. My arms hung loosely at my sides, but I was so very tempted to pull him closer, to wrap him up in my arms and pull him into a kiss.
While my face was similar to a human's, there were little things about it that were clearly inhuman. My eyes were a little bigger, my nose a little farther from my eyes, and my lips were plusher, my teeth a little sharper. As much as I pretended to be every day, I wasn't human. And Jerry could see that.
Jerry reached up, and I forced myself to stay still as he placed a palm on my cheek. His thumb ran over my prominent cheekbone, and I pressed into his touch just a little because I couldn't help myself.
"You're magnificent," he murmured, and I blinked. Did he mean that?
I scanned his face, and the interest on it was clear. His eyes were bright as they roamed over me, his touch soft as his hand slid lower, cupping the side of my neck as he leaned closer.
"Please kiss me," he whispered, his gaze steady as it latched onto mine, and I swallowed hard before carefully cupping his hips with my lower hands.
Leaning forward, I gave him time to pull back, but all he did was go up on his tiptoes and tilt his head up. Humming under my breath, I pressed my lips to his, and Jerry moaned softly as his hand tightened on my neck.
I kept the kiss light because feeling Jerry's lips against mine in my true form was so much more intense than I'd expected. Kissing Jerry in my human form had been amazing, but this? I could lose myself in this feeling, forget everything except Jerry.
Pulling back, I gazed at him in wonder as he caught his breath. I'd known how strong feelings could get with a fated bond. My friends had told me about it, and I'd seen it in the way they interacted with their mates.
Yet none of it had prepared me for the way I felt about Jerry. I wanted to keep him safe, to wrap him up and hide him away from the world, to make him all mine. I wouldn't actually act on those impulses, but they were there, and they were strong.
"Eshim?"
I blinked, then realized I'd been staring at him for who knew how long.
"Yes?"
Jerry smiled, smug satisfaction rolling off him, and I loved it. What could I do to make him look like that all the time?
"Do you think we can sit on the couch?"
"Sure!"
He took my hand in his and tugged me toward the rather small couch. I used a bit of magic to make it sturdier, but didn't change the size. Why would I, when the small size allowed me to sit closer to Jerry?
"Can I ask you something?" Jerry asked once we were settled on the couch, and I resisted the urge to tell him he already had. Instead, I merely nodded, and shifted a little so I was facing him.
"Do all demons look different? I mean, I've only seen you and Lux, but the two of you look nothing alike."
Taking his hand in mine, I gave it a light squeeze, careful of my strength. "Yeah, most of us do. I don't know if I or the others told you this, but demons were once human or supernatural. Demons were created from the souls of people who'd died in the human realm. For some of us, our demon form is a reflection of what we were before. Fressia, for example, must've been a snake shifter of some kind. We don't really remember our first lives, but our demon forms are a mix of that and whatever shape the magic decided on."
"So no two demons look alike?"
I eyed Jerry for a moment, worried about overwhelming him with too much information, but he merely seemed curious.
"No, actually. There are three demons who are older than the rest of us. They look pretty alike for the most part. Mammon, the demon who went bad, is one of them."
Jerry had a thoughtful look on his face as he nodded, and he took a moment to seemingly absorb everything I'd told him.
After a minute, he sat up, then climbed into my lap, making me suck in a breath.
"Jerry?"
"Kiss me," he requested, and there was no way I was saying no to that.