“Everything’s going to be fine?” she repeated through clenched teeth. “I don’t think so. I need to go to the hospital. I need a psych evaluation. I’ve obviously gone cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs.”
“No, you haven’t. I’m sorry, but I can’t survive without a human host, otherwise I’ll dissipate into the air like smoke. I had no choice. There were two of you there, you and the cop, and it was a fifty-fifty chance that I ended up with you—although, I’ve got to say, you’re my first female host ever. This should be very interesting.”
She licked her dry lips. Her muscles were so tight she thought they might snap like overused hair elastics. “Did you say smoke? Like black smoke?”
Black smoke had left the dead killer’s body and flew through the air toward her. She’d since dismissed it as a figment of her traumatized imagination, but now…
“You’re a demon,” she said it so quietly even she had trouble hearing it.
“Yes.”
“And you’ve possessed me.”
“If you put it that way it sounds a bit ominous, doesn’t it? I’d rather think of it as ‘sharing living space.’”
It was true. She’d seen it with her own eyes when the serial killer had been killed. The black smoke hadn’t just been smoke—it was the demon he’d claimed to be possessed with. The demon that was now inside of her.
For a moment she was positive she’d faint. The feeling passed, but the steadily growing fear that filled her remained.
“Get out of me,” she said softly.
“That does sound like an excellent plan, but you need to understand, this isn’t my choice. I haven’t been able to exist outside of my host since—”
“Get out right now!” Eden clutched the baseball bat so tightly she was sure she’d get splinters. She put every ounce of energy she could summon from the universe into those four words. She’d never felt so fierce or certain about anything in her entire twenty-nine years of life—and that included kicking her cheating jerk of a fiancé out six months ago. Although, it was still a close second.
She felt rather than heard the demon gasp inside of her—inside her head, her chest, her entire body. As if she’d been punched in the stomach she let out a wheezing breath and doubled over as the black smoke exited through her mouth in one dark, tasteless, odorless stream. She scrambled back from it until she hit the wall behind her and held the bat up as if that would be enough to protect her from Hell itself.
The smoke hung there like a small black rain cloud, unmoving, five feet in front of her, for a few more moments. Then something changed. She watched, stunned, as it began to take on a recognizable shape. The entire process took less than thirty seconds, but it was as if time itself had stopped. She couldn’t move, couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think. All she could do was watch—waiting for a large, red, hulking, horned hell-beast to appear and devour her whole.
THREE
When he finished, he was tall, but not red or beastly—and he looked like a man, not the monster Eden was expecting.
He raised his wide-eyed gaze to hers and blinked. He looked as shocked as she felt. Then he looked down at his hands, holding them out in front of him, before reaching up to touch his face, mouth, cheeks, ears, and finally running his fingers through his black hair.
Full lips peeled back from straight white teeth and he began to laugh.
But it wasn’t a demonically evil laugh. It sounded more like one of sheer joy.
“I can’t believe this,” he said after a moment. He stretched his arms over his head as if he’d just woken up from a long sleep and his muscles were stiff and needed stretching.
“That makes two of us.” She was surprised she could even speak considering how beyond freaked-out she was. Her legs were too weak and rubbery to even consider running. She felt like the girl in Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” video. The one who just stood there, frozen in place, screaming like a helpless twit while her date slowly turned into a werewolf.
Eden didn’t think she had enough air to scream like a helpless twit.
He ran his hands down his sides and across his stomach and chest. He closed his eyes and sighed happily.
She eyed him with trepidation. “Do you want to be alone?”
His eyes snapped open and he looked directly at her. “More than you could ever possibly know.”
The demon had ice blue eyes framed with dark lashes. The blue was a sharp contrast to the darkness of his shaggy hair that was almost long enough to brush his shoulders. He was pale, as if it had been a very long time since he’d felt the sun on his skin. He wore generic black clothes on his tall frame—pants, T-shirt, boots—however, if she’d seen him on the street she might have checked him out. He was inarguably attractive, but that little observation did nothing to help her relax. If anything, it made her tense up even more. His handsome exterior had to be a façade, a trap of some kind—like a Venus flytrap luring its prey to be consumed slowly and painfully.
She tried to see evidence of horns growing from his temples or black, leathery wings stretching out behind him, but visually there was nothing that alarming.
He pushed the unruly hair back from his eyes and smiled at her. “I haven’t been able to take solid human form in over three hundred years. I can’t tell you how much this—hey, watch it—”
He ducked out of the way just before her bat swung through the air where he’d been standing. When she swung again, he caught the bat and easily pulled it out of her grip. She stepped backward, scanning her immediate surroundings for another potential weapon.
His dark brows drew together. “What part of ‘I mean you no harm’ didn’t you understand?”
“It’s not every day I’m possessed by a demon. Sorry if I’m not reacting in the calm, collected way I’m supposed to.” She grabbed a hardcover dictionary and whipped it at him. It made contact with his right shoulder and fell to the ground in front of him.
“Ouch,” he said. Then he grinned again. “Hey, I can feel pain. Not something I thought I’d miss at all, but what do you know?” The grin vanished when she yanked the cord from the wall and threw a phone at him, but he was able to block it with his forearm. “That’s enough pain for today, I think.”
As she was desperately reaching for something else to hurl across the room, he was suddenly beside her.
He grabbed her wrists. “Don’t do that.”
“Let go of me.” She struggled against him, but his strong grip was impossible to break free from.
“Will you stop throwing things at me?”
“Can’t promise that.”
He pulled her closer to him. “Then I’m afraid I can’t let you go yet.”
The demon was very warm and felt so human that if she hadn’t seen with her own two eyes that he’d previously been a cloud of black smoke, she never would have believed it.
He shifted both of her wrists to one hand so he could slowly pull her hair free from its low ponytail and then stroked the length of it against her throat and collarbone.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” she managed, shocked by his bizarre and unexpected behavior.
“Sorry.” His gaze flicked back to hers and his smile widened. “All I’ve been able to do is observe for so long I’d forgotten how wonderful some things can feel. You don’t mind, do you?”
“Yes, I do mind. I’m warning you, let go of me, or… or else.”
“Is that a demand or a request?”
“It’s a demanding request.”
“You’re a very beautiful woman.”
“Uh… thanks. But I’m still thinking you should let go of me. Like, now.”
It was unfortunate that she was no longer struggling against him. That kind of downplayed the force of her words a bit. But being so close to this strangely attractive demon was making her feel… well, strange.
The tingles she’d felt earlier had quickly gathered in one place now, low in her body. An intoxicating warmth began to fill her senses, and her fear was rapid
ly being replaced by something else—a strange and uncontrollable surge of desire, which was scarier and more dangerous since it was triggered by having a demon pressed against her.
“It’s been three centuries since I’ve been able to touch anyone,” he murmured.
“Sorry to hear that.”
He focused on her mouth for a moment. “Or, for that matter, kiss anyone.”
She cleared her throat nervously, certain that he was close enough to easily feel her racing heart rate. “Sucks to be you.”
It actually felt about the same length of time for Eden, even though it was really only six months since she’d kicked ass-face—her pet name for her ex—out of her life. It was one of the many reasons she hadn’t minded leaving her small town for life in the big city.
He leaned closer to her.
Her eyes widened as she realized what he was going to do. “Hold on a moment…”
She wasn’t going to kiss a demon. It was absolutely not going to happen. Not a chance in—
The demon brushed his lips softly against hers.
Well, maybe I’m wrong, she thought.
She wasn’t sure when he’d released her wrists, but his fingers now tangled in her long hair. For some reason her hands were closing in on the small of his back and rapidly heading farther south at about the same moment she opened her mouth to his knee-weakening kiss. In response, he groaned low in his throat as his tongue slid against hers and a lightning bolt of lust slammed through her.
What in the hell am I doing? she yelled at herself from what seemed like a far distance.
She wrenched her lips away from him and moved her hands up from a very firm demon-butt to his equally firm black T-shirt-clad chest to push him away.
A smile curled up the side of his mouth. “Now that wasn’t so bad, was it?”
Eden’s face felt like it was on fire. “I think I’m going to puke.”
The smile held. “I don’t think you really mean that.”
“Get away from me,” she said, only this time it sounded annoyingly breathless.
“Why? Are you going to throw something at me again?” He leaned toward her like a predator who’d cornered his prey.
“Not exactly.” She brought her knee up sharply enough to let him know she was being serious and made contact with a sensitive area that demons seemed to have in common with human males.
“Okay… ow.” Pain registered in his gaze. She slipped out of the demon trap she’d found herself in. He let out a long breath and studied her. “I don’t know what you did to help me take solid form. I figure it has something to do with you being psychic—”
“I’m not psychic,” she said, but didn’t sound very convincing at all. “Well, not really.”
“Keep telling yourself that. Your life will stay nice and orderly that way.” He glanced at the door and at the rapidly setting sun. “I think I’m going to leave now.”
“Don’t let me stop you.” Her voice shook. “Make sure to say hi to Satan when you get back home.”
“Actually, he prefers to be called Lucifer, and he’s not on my list of old friends to look up. However, I’ll keep it in mind just in case our paths cross.”
A chill coursed down her spine. “Go away now. Buh-bye.”
He cautiously reached out to touch the handle and pushed the door open. “I can’t believe it’s this easy.”
“Believe it. Now leave me the hell alone.”
“Thank you for making this possible.” The demon sounded incredibly sincere in his gratitude.
Eden pointed in the opposite direction. “Go away.”
As if summoning something deep inside of himself, he finally swung the door all the way open and walked outside, pausing before he took a few tentative steps into the empty parking lot. Then a few more. Then a few more.
He stopped.
Eden rubbed her eyes, not really believing what she was seeing for a moment. With a shudder, his body seemed to turn darker and transparent.
He didn’t move for a moment, but he suddenly took a shaky step backward, which was enough to solidify his frame again. Then he turned his entire tall, black-clad form around and quickly reentered the office. He leaned heavily against the glass door. There was sweat beaded on his forehead.
“Problem,” he managed.
Every muscle in her body was tense. “Fix it.”
“Not sure I can.” He let out a long, shuddery breath and then his gaze moved to meet Eden’s. “I got out there and couldn’t maintain my solid form.”
“Why the hell not?”
The demon shook his head. “You’re psychic. This is just a guess, but my current ability to take human form must draw entirely from that energy. When I stray too far from your side, I can’t maintain it.”
A fresh line of panic raced through her. She was psychic—even if it was just a little bit. She couldn’t deny it any longer.
But, hell, she could still try. “You’re crazy.”
His Adam’s apple shifted as he swallowed hard. He looked even paler than he had before. “I had solid form until a witch cursed me. I’ve tried searching for her ever since to break the curse, but it’s kind of hard to track somebody down when you have little or no control over your host.”
“A witch cursed you?” she repeated with shock.
“I didn’t think there was a chance to hope for anything else until today.” He looked down at his hands again. “This is so amazing. But… I can’t simply leave your side now.”
“Try again,” she suggested. “Try harder.”
He shook his head. “I went outside and couldn’t go any farther. I felt my energy draining away and then I was drawn back to you like a magnet. I have to stay close to you. You’re my host now.”
“Then you need to find another host,” she said firmly.
“Can’t do that. You’re stuck with me until…” He trailed off.
“Until what?” The thought of being possessed by a demon—impossible to consider only an hour ago, but now the central concern of her existence—was too horrible to deal with.
“Until your death. Or until I find the witch who cursed me. But there is good news in this bleak scenario. I know she’s in the area. I can sense her. It’s why I directed my previous host here—the one before the killer. It was tough, but I could influence his behavior in small ways.”
She’d only heard the first part. “Until my death?”
He nodded. “When you die, I’ll be released and I’ll have to find a new host.”
“But you’re released now. I release you.” She flicked her hand at him. “You can leave any time you want to. Go.”
“I can’t.” He glanced out through the glass doors. “I seem to be bound to your side whether I’m bodiless or not.”
Eden’s frustration welled inside her and threatened to spill over. “I didn’t ask for this.”
“I know.” His brow lowered. “For what it’s worth, I’m not a bad demon, if that’s what you’re thinking.”
Actually, that was exactly what she was thinking. “There are good demons?”
“Before I was cursed it was my job to hunt down the bad ones that had escaped from Hell and bring them back. I made sure no humans got hurt.” He grinned. “See? I’m one of the good guys.”
She was far from convinced. “If you say so.”
He let his gaze leisurely move down the length of her and then back up again, from her tight jeans up to where her arms crossed tightly over her green blouse. “My name is Darrak.”
“I’m happy for you.”
“What’s your name?”
When she chose to bite her lip instead of answering him, he glanced around the room and moved toward her desk where there was a stack of business cards. He picked one up and looked at it. “I will assume you’re Eden Riley?”
The fact that he knew her name made her feel even more ill than she had before. She didn’t want him to know anything about her.
He put the card down and walked again t
o the door to look outside. “You know, it’s been a very long time since I’ve seen a sunset with my own eyes.”
Eden felt overwhelmed and on the verge of hysterical tears. She closed her eyes and prayed for the first time in forever for some divine intervention.
A few moments later, Darrak let out a harsh gasp and her eyes snapped back open. He held a hand to his abdomen, his expression darkening with obvious pain.
Divine intervention? She blinked with surprise. Did it work?
He braced his other hand against the wall. “The sun is gone.”
She glanced outside. The sun had slipped completely beneath the horizon and darkness now spread across the sky.
“What are you talking about?” She grabbed her stapler as a potential weapon and held it tightly to her chest.
He braced his shoulder against the wall. “My form. I can’t hold it much longer. It has to do with the… the darkness. In the human world, light sustains energy, darkness takes away. Even for me.” He clenched his teeth. “I can’t fight this.”
Eden didn’t care how normal this guy looked, how attractive, or how his kiss hadn’t been completely disgusting—she wanted him gone and she didn’t particularly care how that happened.
He clutched his stomach and gasped in pain before sliding a few inches down the wall.
She drew closer and reached out to touch him, but her shaking hand slipped right through his body as if he wasn’t even there anymore.
His eyes raised to Eden’s a moment before his solid form faded away completely and she was looking at the shadowy black smoke from earlier. That immediately reminded her that Darrak wasn’t just a guy in pain that she might be able to help. He was a freaking demon.
She scrambled backward as the darkness began to swirl in front of her. She felt as if it was studying her movements—an evil rain cloud with a personality.
“Stay back,” she warned it. “Or else.”
Or else what? she thought. Or else she’d go get the vacuum cleaner? Or else she’d wave her hands really, really fast and hopefully stop it in its tracks?