Chapter 13 Chapter 13
Valerie was mesmerized. However, she quelled the traitorous sensation and focused on what was truly important: No matter how amazing this demon kissed, he was a spawn of hell, and she would rather die than give in to him. With this thought in mind, she found the resolve to shove him away.
“Stop it, Maxwell.”
“Why? I know you enjoyed it,” he drawled. The smirk on his sinful lips made her resolve crumble to dust. Even though her desire was quickly rekindled, she fought it down. Maxwell aimed to get under her skin, and she wouldn’t let him. He was merely a filthy demon—manipulating people, fabricating sweet lies and false promises was what he did best. She couldn’t trust this selfish bastard.
“I didn’t,” she retorted. “Reed is a better kisser.”
He scoffed, deeply offended. “How dare you compare me to a lowly human?”
“Just leave me alone, Maxwell.”
“You’re forgetting something important here,” he said, his fingers trailing over her collarbones, resting over her heart, and feeling its nervous thumps. ”Your life is mine. I will never leave you be.”
Valerie couldn’t hold his heavy gaze any longer and glanced at the floor instead. She wanted to be rid of him; he was a curse, the worst she could have possibly encountered. When she mustered up the courage to meet his eyes, the anguish on her features caused him to fall silent.
“My life belongs to me and no one else.” She turned on her heels and fled to her bedroom in an attempt to distance herself from him. Sitting on the edge of her bed, her back slumped in utter defeat. Valerie fell on the mattress and stared at the ceiling. It blurred when desperate tears welled up in her eyes. Her predicament drove her to the brink of insanity—coexisting with a demon was quite literally hell on earth.
They were too different to get along with, and he wasn’t willing to work together to solve their issue. Valerie yearned for her old life, the one where she had no clue about the existence of supernatural beings.
Caught up in her thoughts, she never noticed the translucent cat sneaking up on the bed. The demon jumped on the mattress, making a strange sound similar to a meow but somewhat distorted. It snuggled up against her, lying down right next to her body. Valerie rubbed her teary eyes and studied the unexpectedly friendly demon. She rolled on her side, embracing it, and the cat rewarded her with a soft purring, not minding her touch at all. Valerie developed a soft spot for the little demon since it reminded her of her pet, which had died years ago. Part of her still missed her cat Rika and longed for the company of an animal.
“You’re a cute demon, aren’t you?” she whispered, the cat’s ears moving as it listened to her voice.
Valerie stayed with the feline for the following hours, unable to get up and face Maxwell again. Considering how easily he had wrapped her around his finger, she was uncomfortable around him. He seemed to know exactly what he needed to say and do to seduce someone. Even the change in his tone of voice had been alluring, and consequently, she hadn’t fought him at all. No, she had eagerly returned the kiss and was disgusted by herself for enjoying it.
“Damn it, this guy is unbelievable. I should have taken Reed up on his offer and gone home with him yesterday,” she mumbled, waking the demon cat when she moved around on the bed. It yawned, showing a row of disturbingly sharp teeth, and gazed at her, tilting its head. “You know, I should give you a name. I can’t just call you cat. That’s what Thorne would do… I’ll need some time to think of a suitable name, though.”
Reaching for her smartphone, she unlocked it to see several texts from her friends Hope and Naomi. She skimmed over them and replied, telling them she would meet with them soon—whenever she would get away from Maxwell without him following her… This was a severe problem; it couldn’t go on like that forever. She needed space and privacy sometimes.
Lastly, she saw a text from Reed, a smile blossoming on her face as she read it. He wanted to meet her again today—it was precisely the distraction she needed. Although she would never openly admit it, the memory of the kiss she had shared with Maxwell haunted her, no matter how hard she forced herself to forget it. It was dangerous to have these thoughts about a bloodthirsty demon, about someone who despised humans like her… Thus, Valerie replied to Reed’s text and added many cute emojis and hearts. A new message soon popped up on her screen, prompting the corners of her lips to quirk up. They would go on another date today.
Half an hour later, she said goodbye to her little demonic friend and tiptoed to the door, not encountering Maxwell anywhere. Sneaking outside was almost too easy, but Valerie figured it was her lucky day and didn’t question it. The young woman didn’t take note of the steely blue eyes following her every move. If she hadn’t covered up the crest on her wrist, she might have seen its golden shimmer as she left the apartment building.
—
Valerie hummed a cheerful melody, her mood brightening the farther she got away from the apartment and her annoying roommate. Maxwell could rot in hell for all she cared; she wanted nothing to do with him. He should show more understanding towards her, maybe try to help her instead of throwing stones in her way, but he only cared about her health because of himself. He was the definition of selfish and didn’t make the slightest effort to hide it.
Her thoughts circled back to Reed and his sunny smile. She looked forward to meeting him, even though she had just seen him yesterday. Developing a crush on him hadn’t been planned, but now that it had happened, she was elated. It had been a long time since she had last felt this way towards someone. Her last relationship had ended in a disaster, and remembering it made her heart clench. It had been a messy break-up after Uriel had betrayed her trust, and ever since then, she had been reluctant to get close to men she didn’t know.
He had been violent with her, often hitting her for no reason, and for a long time, she had been scared to break up with him, fearing he would kill her in one of his rages. Her friends Hope and Naomi had helped her to get away from him, urging her to file a restraining order.
They had accompanied her and supported her until it had been done, and Valerie had never seen Uriel since then. She didn’t know where he lived now, if he was still in New York, and she hoped she would never cross paths with him again.