Free A Demon's Desire by Lizzy Ford

before flattening it again.
    “You don’t need to fear me, Emma.”
    “I know, but I can’t help it. My luck with
men is awful. You have nice hands, Tristan,” she said absently. “I
noticed them when we met. I mean, apart from the whole demon eyes
glowing in the dark and morphing from shadows display.”
    “I really like you, Emma, and I adore your
family,” he said. She was quiet. He felt her eyes on him, her
thoughts loud enough for him to hear her debating whether or not
she could trust him. He drove the rest of the way in silence before
pulling off the highway and easing the car into a crowded parking
lot next to a massive building.
    “You’re sure Sissy will be okay while we’re
gone?” she asked.
    “Positive. She’ll wake up soon and be healthy
as ever,” he replied. She ducked her head, hiding the sparkle of
tears in her eyes. He got out of the car and walked slowly around
to her side, giving her a minute. “Do you like miniature golf?” he
asked as opened her door.
    A small smile crossed her face, but she
looked at him quizzically. They walked into the crowded foyer
teeming with adolescents and families. Tristan ignored the way
people moved from his path and the looks he received, instead
approaching the main ticket counter. Emma followed, and he turned
when he reached the end of the line.
    “This doesn’t seem to be your kind of place,”
she said.
    “How would you know?” he challenged.
    “You just seem like a loner who probably
doesn’t like people.”
    “That’s accurate. But I happen to like
fitting in a round of putt-putt when I’m not roasting humans on the
spit in my kitchen. That was what you were thinking, wasn’t
it?”
    She gave a startled laugh, her face reddening
with embarrassment. Her smile pleased him. It faded and was
replaced by a flicker of concern. Sissy and the shadows were heavy
in her thoughts.
    “We’ll get through this,” he assured her.
    “I hope so, Tristan.”
    They played a round of putt-putt. He sensed a
thaw as her smiles came more frequently. He didn’t try to question
her again about her skeletons in the closet, instead distancing
himself. He liked the smiling Emma and wanted to enjoy the moment
away from their worries as much as she did.
    She’ll trust me when she’s ready.
    They played another game of nine holes, and
he was pleased to see her relaxed by the time it was done. They
hadn’t spoken since they started, and Tristan remained wary. No
shadows or darkness dared approach her with him there, and he
suspected she sensed this. After a few hours of quiet enjoyment,
they left. He offered his hand as they walked through the parking
lot. She hesitated but took it.
    “You don’t have to, Tristan,” she said as
they reached the car.
    “Don’t have to what?”
    “Well, court me, I guess. I agreed to your
terms, so there’s no need to … I don’t know, romance me,” she said
awkwardly.
    He raised an eyebrow as he opened her door.
Emma paused between door and car, awaiting his response. Her gaze
was guarded but hopeful. He knew what she wanted him to say, that
he wasn’t doing this because of their deal but because he wanted
them to be more.
    He wasn’t sure he was ready for such a
statement, however true it was. He still had his evil to contend
with. He nudged her, and she sat with a disappointed look. She
rested her head against the headrest, quiet as they left the
parking lot.
    Tristan thought of Sissy. The girl would be
awake in a day or two, at which time he would begin a thorough
cleansing of the apartment. He needed Emma’s cooperation to
discover what had been tagged and the person who tagged it, but he
knew that would take more than a few days to earn her trust enough
for her to tell him.
    “How dangerous are you, Tristan?” she
asked.
    “People have an innate sense of danger,” he
said. “I’m as dangerous as you think I am.”
    “You read minds.”
    “That’s one of my skills,” he said. “Do you
want to know