Chapter 14
Fourteen
Pythor
I glanced down at the box of cookies—I'd asked Eshim for an emergency batch—I'd brought, and wondered if it was enough.
I was having dinner with my mate's best friend and her daughter, and I wanted to make a good impression.
They were the two most important people in Codie's life, and their opinion of me mattered a lot.
Taking a deep breath, I knocked on Codie's door, and heard his familiar footsteps draw close as he opened the door, a smile on his face.
"Hey," he murmured, and I smiled back at him.
"Hi, thanks for having me. I brought cookies," I said, shaking the box, which made his smile widen.
"I won't say no to cookies," he said, stepping back so I could come in.
I waited for him to lock the door before following him inside, feeling unusually nervous. I'd lived for centuries, and yet I couldn't remember ever feeling as nervous as I repeatedly did ever since meeting this man. I wondered if the other demons with human mates shared my experience.
"Hello, Vanessa," I greeted when we reached the kitchen, and she glanced up, giving me a smile. Her pink hair was in a ponytail, and her blue eyes sparkled as they met mine.
"Hey, Pythor. Glad you could come."
There was no way I'd ever say no to an invitation from Codie, but I'd been trying not to come on too strong about our bond, so I didn't say it out loud.
A girl poked her head around Vanessa, and I smiled down at her, assuming she was Alia, Vanessa's daughter.
I'd gotten pretty good at guessing the ages of children since I started working at the center, and I estimated she was somewhere between eight and nine years old, with eyes the same color as her mom's and warm brown hair.
"Thank you for inviting me," I said, then nodded at Alia. "Hello, you must be Alia. It's nice to meet you."
"Nice to meet you too! You're big," she commented, making me smile.
"That I am. Does it scare you?" I asked as she approached me, going to my knees so we were closer in height.
She shook her head, then reached up to tug at my hair, a curious look on her face. "Nah. You're like a big teddy bear."
"Oh?"
"Uncle Codie said you make him feel safe," she said, as if that cleared everything up, which it did, at least to me. Her teddy bear must make her feel safe; ergo, I was Codie's teddy bear. I didn't mind one bit.
Codie's cheeks were pink, and he was glancing anywhere but at us, telling me he hadn't said those words to Alia and hadn't realized she'd heard them.
"Well, I'm glad, because I want him to always feel safe."
Codie's eyes slid to mine, and I hoped he knew I meant every word. He swallowed hard, then glanced away, while Vanessa watched with an unreadable expression on her face.
As we ate dinner, Vanessa asked me all kinds of questions, and I fielded them all to the best of my abilities, making sure to remember the backstory I made up for myself in case she brought it up at a later date.
I didn't enjoy lying to someone who meant so much to Codie, but I couldn't tell her the truth.
By the time two hours had passed, we were in the living room, and Alia was close to falling asleep curled up against Hella.
"We should go. It's getting late," Vanessa said, eyes on her daughter, and Codie hummed.
"Okay. Be safe."
"We will be," Vanessa assured him, but I could still see the worry lining his face.
I followed them to the door, and once the two were in their car, I snapped my fingers, putting a ward around their car that would keep them protected.
"What did you do?" Codie murmured, and I glanced over to find his dark eyes on me.
"Just making sure they have a safe trip."
He gazed at me for a long moment as we stood there in the doorway, Vanessa's car already gone, and I let him, unsure what he was looking for but knowing I'd happily bare my soul to him if that was what he asked for.
"Pythor, I..." Codie started, then trailed off, and I waited patiently, but he shook his head. "Never mind. Would you like to stay a while longer?"
"Sure."
We went back into the house, and Codie put on a movie as we sat on the couch with Hella spread out over our laps, eager to be petted by both of us.
Codie was silent as we watched, and I couldn't help sneaking glances at him. He seemed lost in thought, but I didn't question him. He'd talk when he was ready to, and until then, I'd just keep him company.
When he started nodding off, I urged him to go to bed, and he nodded sleepily as he got up and stumbled off to his bedroom after turning off the TV and wishing me a mumbled "Good night," apparently uncaring about the fact that I was still here.
It made my chest feel all warm and fuzzy, this simple display of trust.
I lingered for a moment, waiting until I heard him slide into his bed before teleporting back to my place, smiling when I heard his familiar music start up. How was it that a sound that had irritated me so much a few short weeks ago now made me fall asleep with a smile on my face?
Codie
Ever since dinner last night, I hadn't been able to stop thinking about it, about Pythor.
My conversation with Nessa had unlocked something in me, and then Pythor had gone and protected Nessa and Alia like it was the easiest thing to do. How could I not like him?
I was still abso-fucking-lutely terrified, but I was tired of letting my fears run my life. Pythor had helped me deal with my fears so much. Wasn't this just another way to do that?
If I ever had a shot at a relationship again, I didn't think I'd find someone better than him to try with. Pythor was warm, kind, and patient, and he might be exactly what I needed. If only I could be brave enough to let myself have him.
I didn't think I could do it without telling him everything, though. I needed him to know what'd happened to me, to know exactly how damaged I was before I even mentioned trying a relationship, which was why I'd invited him over after he finished at the center for the day.
He'd be here any moment, which was why I was starting to rethink the whole thing. What if I told him, and it changed how he saw me? What if he no longer wanted to be my friend, let alone anything more?
I shook my head, knowing that was my fear speaking. In my heart, I knew Pythor was better than that, but sometimes my fear's voice could be much louder than my heart's.
A knock at the door made me jump, and I hurried over to it before stopping short. I knew Pythor was on the other side, and for a brief moment, I entertained the idea of sending him away, but then I shook my head. No. I had to do this.
Taking a deep breath, I reached up and turned the locks, removed the chain, then opened the door.
Pythor smiled at me, but his smile dropped when he got a good look at my face, making me wonder what look I was sporting.
"Are you okay?"
I nodded slowly, closing the door behind him and locking the door up. While he could just teleport straight into my house, he didn't do it because he didn't want to startle me. Just one of the many ways he looked after me without being obvious about it.
"I wanted to talk to you about something. Let's sit."
Pythor followed me into the living room, then sat down on the other side of the couch as Hella hurried over to join us, her head falling into my lap as she settled her lower half on Pythor's.
He sighed fondly as he gave her a few pats, and I buried my fingers in the fur on her scruff, gripping the loose skin as I tried to gather myself.
"Codie," Pythor murmured, clearly sensing my distress, and I swallowed hard.
"I wanted to tell you. About what happened," I said, and he blinked, realization crossing his face.
"Are you sure? You don't have to tell me unless you want to."
I nodded, knowing he meant it. He hadn't once asked me, even though I knew he must be curious.
I'd never told anyone important to me about what'd happened that night, not in so many details.
Vanessa was my emergency contact, so she'd been called by the hospital and knew enough through the doctors.
I'd also told the cops, not that that was much use.
But even Vanessa didn't know all the details, and I preferred it that way.
"Would you like me to refrain from touching you?" he asked before I could start, surprising me.
"Huh?"
"I want to hold your hand, but only if it'll help," he said, and I grabbed his hand, which'd been resting on Hella's flank. He covered my hand with his instead, the warm grip anchoring me to the present, and that was all I needed to start speaking.
"It was the opening night of my first gallery display, almost a year ago now," I murmured. Well, ten months and three weeks, but who was counting? "I was so excited. It was like a dream come true, you know?"
Pythor squeezed my hand, keeping me in the moment as my past tried to rip me back to that night.
"There were drinks, and those crazy small snacks, and people seemed to really like my paintings.
It was the best night of my life." If only.
"But then I met this guy. He flirted with me a little, then asked me out, but I said no.
I wanted to focus on my art, on my career, and I was perfectly happy with hookups when I needed to let loose.
I didn't want to be tied down. Anyway, he left, and I didn't think much of it. "
I took a shaky breath, wishing I could just end the story here. Meeting Pythor's eyes, I knew he wouldn't mind if I did, but I had to keep going. I had to tell him everything.
"Later, I got a cab home, but the guy's tire blew before we could reach it.
Now I can't help wondering if he planned it somehow, put something on the road to make it happen," I wondered, shaking my head.
"We were pretty close to my place, not this one.
I had an apartment before. I decided to walk the rest of the way, not yet aware of how much danger lurked in the dark. "
Pythor squeezed my hand, and I focused on it, on his warm skin, on the comfort I could draw from it.
"I'd barely walked for a minute when... when someone grabbed me.
He dragged me off to an abandoned house, and I realized he wasn't alone.
There were five of them, all big, terrifying men, and one of them was the guy who'd flirted with me earlier in the night.
He was... he was angry I'd rejected him, and he wanted to teach me a lesson. "
I fell silent, not having the strength to explain what happened next in detail.
I was sure Pythor could draw the right conclusions from everything I'd said.
"They took turns," I mumbled, my voice barely above a whisper as Pythor's hand squeezed tighter around mine.
I had a feeling if it wasn't my hand he was holding, he would've broken it.
I could almost feel the rage wafting off him, and somehow it gave me the strength to keep going.
"When they were done, he stabbed me in the stomach, and they left me there to bleed out.
I somehow managed to drag myself out onto the road.
Almost got run over before the driver realized I was hurt and called an ambulance. I woke up in the hospital."
I slumped back, as if I was a puppet and someone had just cut all my strings.
Hella reached up, licking my chin as she tried to comfort me.
I gave her some scratches with my free hand, unable to look over at Pythor.
I was afraid of what I'd see on his face.
Sure, he was angry, but was he also disgusted? Did he pity me? Think I was damaged?
I didn't want to know.