Page 163 of This Life of Mine

At the time, I’d assumed he meant professionally. Like his name—hisrealname. His background. His father’s life.

I never once considered he meant physically. I never imagined it meant no face, no way to connect a person to the job. The realization clicks.

“It all makes sense.” I blink.

Alex stands there, staring at the gear, like he’s disappointed that it didn’t put itself away before I arrived.

“I assume you have a lot of questions.”

“I do—“

Suddenly, a light bulb goes on in my head right when I’m about to list off the number of questions.

“Oh, my God,”

I remembered…EJ

His expression turns wary.

“What?”

I point at him. “That was you.”

“What was me?”

“EJ.”

Alex blinks once. “What about EJ?” he growls.

“The night he swore some demon ninja was standing in his living room.”

Alex goes completely still before closing his eyes in defeat.

My eyes widen. “Thatwasyou.”

His silence tells me everything.

I clasp a hand over my mouth. “No way.” I laugh.

“Lina.”

“EJ thought he was hallucinating!” I say, still laughing hysterically.

“He was extremely high,” Alex says.

I double over laughing. Unable to breathe at this point.

“He spent twenty minutes trying to convince me a six-foot-something masked man with the voice of a demon was in his house and then disappeared.”

Alex pinches the bridge of his nose.

“He thought he dreamed the whole thing.”

“He wasn’t supposed to be awake,” Alex confirms.

“He told me how you commanded him to go back to sleep…and he did.”

Air. I need air. I’m seconds away from peeing myself.