Page 7 of Knight’s Salvation

Eve snorted. “Okay, stop digging. And anyway, Brent needs someone to throw him off balance every now and then.” She looked back at Mia. “Chay’s a good friend of mine, actually. I got to know her when Lazarus and I were staying with Brent. I can’t believe she kept you a secret.” She pursed her lips.

Crap. Had she gotten Chaya in trouble? “Like I said, she’s protective of me.”

Eve didn’t look appeased in the slightest. “Hmm, wait till I talk to her later.” She threaded her fingers with her mate’s. “Walk me and Kate to her room? We’re going to get her settled in.” She turned back to Mia. “I’m sorry to leave you on your own. We don’t usually get two new arrivals at once. Will you be okay?”

James stepped closer. “I’ll keep an eye on her. Make sure she doesn’t get lost.”

“Excellent. I’ll be by in the morning to welcome you properly.”

Mia couldn’t take her eyes off the couple as they left. Lazarus wrapped the fingers of one of his big hands around the back of Eve’s neck and leaned in to kiss her temple. The way he touched her was possessive. Sure. Their eyes met and something passed between them, something only they knew, and Mia felt an irrational tug of jealousy watching them together. She’d never had that. Nothing even close. Had never allowed herself to.

“So what’s your power?” James asked.

Caught openly staring at the couple, Mia jumped and, dammit, she flushed for the third time in less than twenty minutes. That had to be some kind of new record for her. “It seems to center around heat and fire.”

James’s brows lifted. “Cool. Mine isn’t half as exciting.”

“At the moment it’s a little volatile. I hope the trainers here can help me get a better handle on it.”

He grinned and dimples creased his cheeks. His dark eyes were warm. Nice. “All demi-demon powers, no matter what the ability, manifest in a similar way. We just have to learn the best way to harness it in each individual. You’ll have full control in no time.”

“You make it sound so easy.”

He grinned at her sarcasm. “It won’t be a cakewalk, but it won’t be reaching the summit of Everest either.”

“Okay, got it. So what are we talking? Stairs to the top of the Eiffel Tower, drunk and in six-inch heels?”

He laughed. “Sounds about right.”

She liked James. There was nothing terrifying or intimidating about him. It was the first time since she’d made the decision to come here that she’d felt at ease. “How long have you been here?”

“Close to two years now. I chose to stay after my training. Now I help with the new demi when they’re brought in. I’ll be one of your trainers.”

She relaxed, not even realizing until that moment how tense she’d been. James’s confidence in her gaining full control morphed that restless kind of sadness she’d been carrying around into a thrill of excitement. “How long is no time? I’m kind of keen to get on with my life, or, you know…start one.”

“It can’t have been easy knowing what you were all this time, waiting for that ticking time bomb inside you to detonate.”

That’s exactly what it’d been like. “Yeah, you could say that. Sometimes ignorance really is bliss.”

His warm gaze held hers and softened further. There was interest there. She didn’t know why it surprised her, but it did. And not in a bad way.

He slid his hands into his pockets. “So it’s nearly dinnertime. You wanna eat together?”

He was a good looking guy, tall, kind—and he knew exactly what she was. Perhaps she didn’t need to wait to leave this place to start her new life after all. “Sure, lead the way.”

His grin upped in wattage, and he settled his hand on her lower back in an intimate way that felt very nice and led her back out into the hall.

The large dining room was filled with people when they walked in. Knights, trainers, and demi like her. Most were already seated, and everyone seemed to stop what they were doing and look up as soon as they’d crossed the threshold, all eyes coming to her. The head freak. A pretty impressive title in this room of people.

Great.

She’d hoped coming here, among people like her, would make her feel less of a mutant. Apparently not. She focused on the only other familiar face in the room. Rocco lifted his chin by way of greeting, a big, goofy grin on his handsome face. She waved back.

James touched her arm. “Sorry, you’re a bit of a novelty. As far as we know, there have never been full-blooded demi-demon siblings before, and the fact your parents were in a loving relationship is, well…unheard of.”

Now she felt crappy for feeling sorry for herself. Most of the demi in this room would have had tougher childhoods than she could even imagine. At least she’d known what was coming. She’d also had a sister and mother who loved her.

“Sure. I get it.” Still, it sucked just a tiny bit.