Page 42 of Hot Girls Date Demons

“No.”

She laughs softly.

The sound goes straight to my heart.

Fates, I love that laugh.

Love.

The realization hits me again with overwhelming force.

I love her.

I love the little wrinkle between her brows when she's confused.

I love the tiny scar near her chin.

I love the fact that she talks to patients when everyone else is too busy.

I love the way she snorts when she laughs really hard.

I love⁠—

“Hmm, I should probably be going,” she says.

Every muscle in my body locks.

Going?

Going where?

Away?

No.

Absolutely not.

“Going?” I ask carefully. “Going where?”

“Well, I have a shift tomorrow⁠—”

“A shift?”

“My job?” she says slowly. “I am a nurse.”

Oh.

Her occupation.

Not abandonment.

I can work with occupations.

Worry and confusion war inside me.

I understand my mate had a life before me.

Friends.