Page 55 of Darkness Defined

“Now? We hang out.” He flopped dramatically against the couch as if to emphasize his declaration.

“And do what?”

“We’re doing it. Not everything has to be about school. Or studying. It’s possible to just chill, you know.”

My eyebrows lifted. “Are you really giving me friendship lessons?”

“Sounds like you need them.” He winked and gave me another infectious grin.

My heart stuttered at that beautiful smile, the one that seemed uniquely reserved for me. I smiled into my glass and stretched out my legs beneath the table, getting comfortable, then we both took another drink.

“Mm,” he began around a mouthful of liquid. “Did you see George almost pop a blood vessel trying to control his disk?”

I laughed as the image of George’s stricken face resurfaced. “Yeah, but it was nothing compared to when Marcie’s zipped off and smacked Thomas. If she wasn’t such a petite woman, I’m pretty sure he would’ve throttled her.”

“It can’t be easy being one of only three girls in the class,” Matt commented as he leaned forward to reach the pitcher. He promptly topped off his glass and mine. “Why do you think that is?”

“Maybe females of our kind are rare? I heard Vera searched everywhere, but couldn’t find more.”

Matt cocked his head to the side and stared off pensively. “Do you think it’s a genetics thing?”

I took another drink and shook my head. “I can’t believe we’re sitting here talking about the genetic heritage of our kind.”

Matt returned his full attention to me. “Would you rather talk about girls?” It was hard to tell if he was being facetious or serious.

“Not really,” I said, sitting up straighter. “The problem is, there’s no way to tell. We’re kind of rare, anyway. And it’s not like it takes two demons to make a demon.”

His forehead crinkled. “What do you mean?”

“Most demons—any demons, really—hookup with other species. We’re kind of notorious for it,” I added, wiggling my eyebrows. We both laughed, and a lightness filled my chest. I refilled my glass.

This is awesome.

“Really? So, both of your parents aren’t demons?” Matt stared at me in wonder.

I shook my head. “Nope, my mom is decidedly human. Were yours?”

He darkened a bit at the question. “I don’t know.”

Determined not to lose this good mood, I powered on. “Neither of Vera’s parents were.”

His eyes widened, and his beautiful mouth fell open. “No.”

“Nope,” I echoed.

“Then how is she a demon at all, let alone one of the strongest?”

“Genetics are weird like that. Apparently, there was enough latent potential on both sides and… viola, super powerful Shadow Demon. To be fair, she did kind of shock the supernatural community. And that’s not talking about all the horrible things she’s done.” I took a sizable gulp as I continued to work myself up. “She can do stuff that no one’s ever seen or heard of, at least not anyone who’s still around can remember. She even taught her teacher a few things, and he’s a level two as well. Which is absolutely wild, since he’s like outrageously old.”

“She said something about that before. Just how old is he?”

“I don’t know. Over a thousand for sure.”

Matt snorted, almost spilling his drink.

“Hey, I thought you said none of that?”

He waved away the scorn and pulled himself back together. “How’s that even possible?”