Page 28 of Demon Unleashed

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Enya was prepared for everything. She’d dressed accordingly. Gone was the dress, which was ruined by green demon blood anyway, and gone were the high heels that had nearly killed her. She wore boots that hid a dagger—a second one was stashed away in her leather jacket—and her hair was braided again. She’d thought long and hard about how to confront Eric about his shady background—because it had to be shady if he was using somebody else’s identity—and decided that she couldn’t wait until morning. She had to talk to him now, catch him by surprise so he didn’t have time to make up a story to explain away her findings.

On her way to Eric’s condo building, she remained invisible. Only once she’d entered his apartment did she make herself visible. It was dark and quiet, past midnight, and seeing that there were no lights in the living area, she walked to his bedroom. The door was closed. She looked down to her feet. No light coming from the bedroom either. Eric had to be asleep. Not wanting to make any noise to announce her arrival, she stepped through the door.

Her eyes had already adjusted to the darkness, helping her recognize Eric sleeping in the king-sized bed. The sheets were covering his lower half. His chest was naked, and judging by the contours of his body beneath the thin sheet, he slept in the nude. For a moment she simply stood there and looked at him, watching his chest rise and fall with every slow and steady breath. He looked so peaceful, so innocent. But looks could be deceiving. Eric was a liar, most likely a crook and a conman. But he was also fearless, had saved her life only hours earlier.

Don’t get soft now, she chided herself. He lied to you.

There could, of course, also be an innocent explanation why he was using another person’s name. Perhaps he was in witness protection. It was the only explanation she would accept.

You’re stalling.

She hated it when her inner voice pointed out the obvious. It was time to confront him. Time to find out the truth.

She inhaled and took a step toward the bed. Her boot kicked against a shoe and pushed it against the bedframe, making a sound.

It took barely a second before Eric jumped out of the bed, brandishing a blade in his hand, and slammed her against the wall, the dagger already at her neck. He blinked. “Enya?”

Almost immediately, he pulled back and lowered his weapon. But she’d already seen enough. Her pulse raced, her heart beat into her throat, and adrenaline shot through her veins. This had to be a dream. No, a nightmare. This couldn’t be true.

“Fuck! Sorry,” he said, and ran his free hand through his ruffled hair. “How did you get in here? I didn’t mean to scare you. But you gave me quite a shock.”

She glanced at the dagger in his hand, then back at his eyes. His green demon eyes. There was no mistaking them. She’d seen plenty of demon eyes to know for certain. Eric was a demon. She’d slept with a demon. Let her guard down with a demon. Enjoyed his hands on her, his cock inside her.

Slowly, hoping he wouldn’t notice, she moved her hand and slid it into her leather jacket, where she’d stashed her dagger, but she noticed him follow her movement and shake his head.

“I suppose the secret’s out. Forgot to change my contact lenses before I went to bed. The old ones must have dissolved by now. How careless of me. But then, I wasn’t expecting you to break into my place in the middle of the night. What happened to dinner tomorrow night?”

Finally, she found her voice again. “News flash: I don’t date demons.”

A sly smile played around his lips. “Correction: you fucked this demon. And you liked it.”

It was true, but the thought disgusted her now. “Don’t flatter yourself.”

“You wouldn’t be in my bedroom in the middle of the night if you didn’t want more of the same. I’m game.” He looked down to his groin.

Big mistake. She used the split second to pull her dagger from her leather jacket and press it to his neck. As if he’d expected her move, his dagger was at her throat an instant later. But he didn’t press the blade into her throat, didn’t break the skin with it, only held it there as a warning, while he took a step closer and brought his groin flush to hers. His cock was hard. It appeared demons got sexually aroused by danger. No surprise there.

“Step back,” she ordered him.

“Make me.”

She pressed her blade harder against his neck, but he neither flinched nor budged.

“You knew I was a Stealth Guardian from the moment you met me. So what were you planning? Huh? The demons we fought tonight… they were a setup, weren’t they?”

“I saved your life, didn’t I?”

“After endangering it.”

“I admit trying to gain your confidence by saving you was part of my plan, but when that third demon showed up and nearly killed you, my priorities changed—”

“Bullshit! How stupid do you think I am?” She gritted her teeth. He was still playing with her, still playing the suave seducer. But it wasn’t working anymore. “So you wanted to impress your leader by bagging a Stealth Guardian, is that it? You figured I’d be easy prey.”

“I don’t think you’re easy at all, Enya. In fact, you’re a very complicated woman. And as I said before, I love complicated women.” He let his demon-green eyes roam over her chest. “As for your body… I’ve never had bet—”

“Don’t! You’re disgusting! You’re a fucking demon!”