I really wish he’d stop doing that because a crack has appeared in the smooth, polished dark crystal floor. It’s a shame because it was so perfect before.
‘Come closer, minion.’ Lucifer’s voice drops to a scarily gentle whisper, and he beckons me with a claw. I shuffle forward, wrapping my tail around my hips for comfort, knowing whatever he’s about to say isn’t going to be good.
‘Jade Jameson knew exactly what she was doing when she took your half-assed workaround and let you finger her pussy.’ He smiles evilly. ‘Now you fucking her has sealed the deal.’ Leaning closer, his sulphurous breath clouding my face like smoke, he jabs a claw at my chest. ‘HER. SOUL. IS. MINE.’
Hearing Lucifer spell it out makes it all too real. Jade now has to spend eternity down here with this fuckwit. Because of me. Because I couldn’t control my dick. I need to tread carefully here. Appeal to his kinder nature. He doesn’t really have one, but I have to try.
‘The thing is, my lord,’ I say beseechingly, ‘things have gotten a teensy bit out of control. But I was hoping that you could grant an exception? Please? Jade doesn’t deserve...’
I know as soon as I’ve said it that it’s the wrong thing. Lucifer lets out a piercing shriek that sounds like a million rats dying, and it bounces around the chamber and seems to amplify. I scurry backwards, cowering, covering my pointy ears. Jeez, I’ve really caught him on a bad day.
He puffs up his chest. ‘How dare you! I am Lucifer. Prince of Darkness. Lord of the Underworld. I do not grant exceptions. Now fuck off and do your job, Sebastian. Or I will uncreate you!’
He pounds his pitchfork, making the cavern shake alarmingly and obsidian rocks fall, which I think is a bit unnecessary. OK, OK, I get it. You’re the dude with all the control. There’s no need for dramatic scare tactics.
I nod and bow and scrape, promising to get back to work and be a better little devil for him.
As I’m hauled back to the surface by grunting demons, I realise I’ve really screwed Jade. Literally. I was hoping Lucifer might turn a blind eye to me getting it on with her, but he’s obviously cracking down on our relationship in case love starts appearing. If a human falls in love with a devil once they’ve made a deal, their mortal soul can be saved. And there’s no chance he wantsthathappening.
But I doubt Jade is in love with me. Or that she could ever love me. Or that a Care Bear is going to win her heart. Not if she knew what I really looked like.
Sleeping with Jade didn’t get her out of my system. It’s made it so much worse. I need to end it with her and go back to fucking desperate models.
24
JADE
WhenAshandIcome back into the office, I’m expecting to see Sebastian lounging on my desk, kicking his roller skate. But there’s no sign of him.
‘Looks like lover boy’s skated off into the sunset,’ drawls Ash.
‘Shut up!’ I snap, collecting the Care Bare and the concert tickets from the desk drawer and stuffing them in my shoulder bag. I should really finish that article about Echo Ministry, but it can wait. Talking to Sebastian is more important. Whatever he wants to discuss isn’t going to be pleasant, and I feel sick with nerves. In romance movies and books, bad conversations always happen after the protagonist has had really good sex with someone.
‘Tell Danny I wasn’t feeling well and went home if he asks,’ I say to Ash, who shrugs.
‘He probably won’t.’
I sit on the Tube, racking my brains to get a heads-up on what Sebastian’s going to say—and if it’s bad news. But I can’t fully believe it will be. Last night was fantastic. For him too, going by the noises he was making and the things he was saying before we got interrupted by Kiki. Cuddling the Care Bear, I stroke its soft fur, remembering how alive I felt, so seen and desired by him. I’ve never felt like that with anyone.
But as I exit the Tube at Camden, jostled by the booted and suited and poodle-haired commuters, I realise that I’ve forgotten one important aspect about Sebastian: he’s not human. He’s a devil—and devils lie.
Cold resignation washes over me. The other side of the coin, and the more likely possibility, is that he’s a silver-tongued devil with badass bed skills.It was a one-off.That’s what he’s going to tell me. Even if he feels a teensy bit attracted to me because we get along well, it’s not going to happen again. Plus, why would he waste any more of his precious time with me? He’s got other more beautiful fish to fry.
Now that I’ve faced up to reality, it’s easier to harden my heart. I refuse to be a snivelling wreck in front of him. I want to get in first and be the rejecter, not the rejectee. At least it will give me some dignity. Something that will no doubt comfort me when I’m howling into my pillow at night, knowing that Sebastian’s whispering the same sweet silver-tongued nothings into another woman’s ear.
However, when I see Sebastian lying on my bed with his ankles crossed and his hands propped behind his head, my resolve disappears in a poof of smoke. I drop my bag on the floor, raking my eyes over him. His hair is back to its thick caramel-highlighted glory, and his white T-shirt has rucked up slightly from his stonewashed jeans, displaying a sliver of hard tanned abs. Heat fizzes through my entire body; and the room suddenly feels sultry, steamy, as his warm brown eyes meet mine.
Is it undignified to beg for sex?
I’m sure many important women throughout history have begged for it. Whimpered, in fact.
I swallow. ‘Hey.’
Sebastian’s lips curve crookedly. ‘Hey, gorgeous girl.’
Pushing aside a sudden impulse to leap on him, I force myself to stay where I am. Reminding myself they’re just pretty words. They don’t mean anything.
I wait.