Chapter 191 Chapter 191
“Valerie.” Maxwell hissed surly, curling his lips in distaste. “Don’t ignore me.”
“Huh? Oh, I’m sorry,” she smiled sheepishly. “What did you say?”
He sighed frustratedly and ran his hand through his white hair, muttering a low curse. “That damn cat,” he growled. “It always gets in between us.”
Her eyes widened. “Mochi is my cute baby, how would it get in between us?” she asked.
Exasperated, he sighed. “I haven’t seen you all day, so I want you to myself,” he grumbled, glaring at the other light demon.
“Ah, I see. You’re jealous again… because of a cat,” she smirked. “Don’t worry, Maxwell. You’re my favorite demon, so you don’t need to be jelly.”
That shut him up—and it also made him blush a little bit.
During the following days, Valerie was busy with work and planning her birthday party with the demons. She was unsure where they should meet up since her flat was simply too small for all of them. But if they went to a restaurant or a bar together, the demons would draw unnecessary attention to themselves. They weren’t exactly good at hiding their true nature. Xander in particular tended to stick out like a sore thumb with his shenanigans. Valerie wouldn’t be surprised if he started to teleport in front of other humans just to see their reactions.
Maxwell wasn’t a big help in this department and told her to ask Thorne for advice. Apparently, Thorne was the go-to person for problems related to humans and demons. Valerie had relied on him a lot in the past, and now she would do it again. Without a supportive friend like him, she would have been lost.
On Tuesday evening after work, she met up with him in a mall where they planned on discussing her birthday party. Valerie wanted to bring Maxwell too, but weirdly, he excused himself and told her he was busy with something. Like a few days before, he disappeared without telling her where he was going. This new habit of his was strange to her since he also became very repellent when she asked questions about it.
Maxwell accompanied her to the mall and waited until Thorne arrived, but after that, he left. Valerie was extremely weirded out by this. In the past, he used to get extremely jealous when she met with another man in his absence, but now it suddenly didn’t bother him…? It was odd. While she and Thorne walked through the mall towards a small restaurant, the demon kept glancing at her, noting that something bothered her.
“What’s wrong? You have been quiet today,” he commented.
“Maxwell is gone again,” she sighed. “Why is he leaving me so often lately? I thought he would join us for dinner.”
Thorne reacted with astonishment that soon turned to amusement. “Oh, Valerie, don’t worry about him. I’m sure he doesn’t have any bad intentions. Don’t put too much thought into it, alright?”
“You talk as if you know what he’s up to,” Valerie said and looked at him with narrowed eyes.
“Huh? No, I have no idea what goes through his mind,” he laughed and shook his head. “He’s probably gone to hell again… and it’s understandable he wouldn’t take you with him since it’s dangerous.”
“If you say so,” she replied suspiciously, but didn’t pursue the topic any further. They reached the restaurant where they would eat dinner and sat down at a table near the windows. Valerie went through the menu and picked a dish for herself, and Thorne did the same.
“So, about my birthday,” she began. “I want to invite the demons, but I wasn’t sure where the party should take place. Can you recommend something?”
“Sure. There are a lot of establishments in New York that are run by supernatural beings, and they wouldn’t mind having a bunch of demons around,” he said. “If you want, I can give you the names of a few bars and restaurants in the city center. Some of them have private rooms that you can rent for the evening.”
“That sounds great,” she smiled. “Do you think our friends will look forward to it?”
“Sure,” Thorne smiled. “They never say no to a party, and I imagine that they’re all too happy about a distraction. The situation with Mason has been stressing them out.”
“Have they heard anything about him?” she asked, keeping her voice low so nobody would overhear.
“No, not yet,” Thorne uttered. “This guy is elusive, we just can’t get ahold of him, and it drives me crazy. I’m worried about this… Valerie, promise me that you’ll always be careful when you leave the house from now on.”
She nodded. “I will be. Maxwell is usually with me anyway… if he doesn’t randomly leave again,” she grumbled. “He’s been way too secretive lately.”
The corners of Thorne’s lips twitched, but he hid his amusement about the couple well. “Maxwell’s manners aren’t the best, so you shouldn’t be surprised.”
“True,” she said, smiling.
Their food arrived soon after, and they continued to speak about various topics as they ate. When they were done with dinner, she briefly excused herself to go to the restroom. It was next to the restaurant, inside the mall.
She hurried up since she didn’t want to keep Thorne waiting and left the restroom after a few minutes. However, when she turned around a corner, intending to head back to the restaurant, she collided with someone. Stumbling back, she nearly fell but caught herself at the last second. The man she had run into wasn’t so lucky. He spilled his coffee over his expensive designer shirt, muttering a low curse. Valerie froze in mortification, her eyes widening.
“Oh no, I’m so sorry. I didn’t pay attention,” she rambled. “This is all my fault!” Quickly, she searched for a tissue in her purse and offered it to him so he could at least wipe his coffee-stained hands. He accepted it and used it before he crumpled it in his hand.
“You were in a hurry, huh?” he sighed.