“Alright?” He knits his brows, a hint of sneer on his lips.
I can’t help but laugh. “You don’t seem that bad for a devil. Not that I’ve met a lot of devils.”
“Your neighbor is literally a succubus.”
My face scrunches. “Okay… but I didn’t know that. And succubi are different from devils, right?”
Rosier nods. “They’re born of a union between a devil and a human. Witches, usually, for obvious reasons.” He smirks, squeezing my thigh under the covers. I bite my lip, trying not to read too much into his touch, but he notices. “What are you thinking about?”
I’m quick to make up something. “If your Father took all his souls with him when he passed then, who do you have under your control?”
Rosier clears his throat. “If you ever actually come up with an interesting contract, then you will be my first soul.”
I blink, then grin. “I’ll be yourfirst?How cute.” I giggle. “I’m honored.”
Rosier’s lips are tight. “That’sonlyif you come up with an agreeable contract. Otherwise, there are plenty of other humans who would be willing to make a deal with me.”
“But how many of them will be interesting enough?” I retort, my grin still plastered across my lips. He says nothing. I pester him further, fluttering my eyelashes. “Who else could possibly be as clever as me?”
His body shifts below me before he wraps his arms around me. “Go to sleep, Minnie.” He rests his chin atop my head, and he whispers, “I’m not accustomed to this being held like this.”
I shiver, not sure where the rush comes from. Maybe it’s the simple fact that he’s a devil, that he’s not of this world.
This tenderness is as temporary as it is intoxicating.
I close my eyes, my cheek pressed to his chest.
Again, he says to me, “Sleep, Minnie.”
It’s a command I happily follow.
CHAPTERTWELVE
MINNIE
I wakeup before my alarm to send an email telling the office I won’t be in. I’ve got enough sick days saved up that it shouldn't be an issue, and if it is, then I guess my lifelong fear that a day off would ruin my life wasn’t unfounded. Email sent, I shut off my alarms and flop back into bed.
I wrap Rosier’s arm around myself like a blanket. To my surprise, his arm pulls me closer to him, like I’m his favorite plushie. I have to stifle a laugh at the image of him holding some big fluffy pink teddy bear.
When I open my eyes again my phone is ringing. Rosier and I blink away sleep, but Leaf seems to think the sound is some sort of doomsday alarm because I can hear him running around.
“Make sure your cat doesn’t destroy my apartment…” I mutter as I tap Rosier’s shoulder. He rolls out of bed, muttering Leaf’s name over and over while I pick up the phone. “Hello?”
“Hey.” I recognize Amber’s voice immediately. “Are you at work? You don’t sound great.”
I rub my eye with my palm. “I’m home, and I just woke up.”
“Wow. Proud of you. Last time you took a day off you were vomiting.”
“You know, I probably still could have made it into work if Gramps hadn’t insisted I stay home.” I’m only half joking.
“Can I come over?” Amber asks.
Neither of us say anything for a few moments. Rosier walks back into the room holding Leaf and scratching between his ears.
“I know I’m probably the last person you want to talk to right now,” Amber admits. “Keeping that secret killed me inside…”
“Do you feel better now that the cat’s out of the bag?”