“You know,” Eva said, “I feel better talking to you about it. I think my mom was right. It’s putting my fears to rest.”
“That’s good.”
“Yeah, I mean, can you believe I thought I saw you with giant bat wings?”
Ash jerked upright on the bed.
“I was convinced for days that I’d seen you with wings. And red skin. And big horns. Whodoesthat?” She laughed.
His hand clenched around the phone. “What else did you see?” He tried to keep his tone even.
“It was so bizarre. You were a giant, and you had these humongous black wings and so did your brothers. No, except the blond one had angel wings! And then there was an ugly monster thing, like a gargoyle, and you cut its head right off before your brother magically lit it on fire! Cold-blooded murder by beheading and mystical flame. Right before my eyes.” She chuckled. “I think I must have passed out from shock and had a really vivid dream.”
Asmodeus stared at the wall with his mouth open.
How in the hell had she seen any of that? There should have been no way. Glamor prevented humans from glimpsing the supernatural world. In a high-stress situation or after repeated exposure, yes, it was sometimes possible for them to catch glimpses of something they shouldn’t, but not like this.
Maybe Eva would have seen a flash of claws, or a shadow cast by wings on the floor, or the flickering apparition of the gargoyle in her peripherals, but no way should she have been able to witness the entire scene clear as day. No way. There was only one explanation:
Eva had the Sight.
How in the fuck did she have the Sight? Whatwasshe?
She doesn’t know, he realized, and he managed to relax infinitesimally. There was no way she knew what he was, or she’d never have spent five minutes in his presence without trying to perform an exorcism or stab him with a consecrated blade.
So, somehow, she had the Sight without knowing she had it, though it seemed impossible that she wouldn’t have seen something in the past and figured out what was happening by now. Supernatural creatures were everywhere.
Perhaps she’d been born with it, he hypothesized, but because she hadn’t developed it, her Sight hadn’t been triggered until she’d seen something big—like, say, four greater demons and a gargoyle facing off. Maybe she was the descendant of a blood-born witch. That was a reasonable explanation.
Was that why she could see through his curse?
The thought struck him like a lightning bolt to the brain, and his eyes got wide. If so, the implications were enormous. Maybe he could seek out other witch descendants for bed partners from now on and actually enjoy sex again.
The thought was strangely unappealing, which was odd considering the three thousand years he’d spent obsessed with it. But... he’d already enjoyed sex again. Sex with Eva. And he wasn’t feeling any particular desire for anyone else as long as he could have her.
“Ash? Are you there?”
Shit, this meant he was going to have to be extremely careful around her from now on.Ifhe saw her again. He really shouldn’t. It was asking for trouble.
If she saw anything else, she would likely refute the conclusion she’d drawn about having hallucinations and question if it was real again. And if that happened, he’d probably have to kill her because she could start blabbing to everyone that she’d met the great Asmodeus, and that would make it a lot easier for the Hunter to find him.
Yeah, so they probably ought to have used fake names like other demons who came to Earth, but whatever.Sorry, not sorry.
If all that happened and he had to kill her, he’d be in even bigger shit than he already was for escapingandkilling an unsanctioned human. Not to mention, he liked Eva and killing her wasn’t exactly at the top of the list of things he wanted to do to her. So he should definitely stay away from her.
But the sex, a little voice whispered.The sex is so good.
His eyes closed involuntarily just recalling the feeling of sinking into her hot, tight body while she moaned his name, watching him with so much desire in those deep gray eyes.
Fuck no, he wasn’t giving that up yet. No way.
“Ash, hellooo?” Eva sighed. “Look, I’m sorry if I freaked you out. My mom told me I should tell you, and I guess I got a little carried away, but—”
“I’m here,” he said, shaking his head to get back in the game. “I was thinking.”
“About how you wish you’d never met Miss Crazy Pants?”
“No. Just wondering if you’re descended from a witch.”
