Chapter 76 Chapter 76
Thorne’s lips quivered and formed an optimistic smile, the sole sight of it already reassuring her. “I can easily see that this is weighing on you, and I can assure you that it’s the same for him. He is good at hiding his feelings, but I’ve known him for centuries, and it’s not that hard anymore to read him.”
“And what do you think I should do? I’m at a loss right now. I’ve apologized, and we’ve been spending time together, but nothing ever changes,” she whispered desperately, already feeling the tears coming.
“You need to make him understand that you appreciate him and that he means a lot to you. How about you give him something special? That’s what I would do in your stead,” he suggested.
“Gift him… something,” she mumbled as her thoughts began to run wild. She had gifted him a new silver chain before, but he didn’t need another one, so that wasn’t an option. What else could he need? Maybe a new game for his PS4? Then again, he already had so many, and she didn’t know which games he liked to play anyway. Valerie put a finger to her chin, her eyes roaming through the restaurant, over tables and people, until they came to rest on a waiter who carried desserts. Her eyes lit up when she got an idea.
“I… I think I know.” she sputtered, almost knocking her chair over when she leaned forward excitedly. “Maxwell loves strawberry shortcake. I could make one for him.”
Thorne smiled to himself, amused at how happy she was all of a sudden. He found her eagerness to get along with Maxwell very endearing and wanted to support them both every way he could. Of course, he’d never tell his grumpy demon friend, but Thorne found them very cute as a couple. He was one hundred percent sure that they weren’t even official yet, but that could change.
“I’m sure he’d be happy about that,” Thorne replied lightly. “He’s going to shower you with kisses.”
The teasing tone of his voice had her blush bright red in a second, and she hid her face behind her hands in embarrassment. “Thorne, what are you talking about?”
“Huh, I thought you missed kissing him,” he answered, confusedly.
“How did you know that?” she asked, her eyes wide and filled with surprise. The demon smirked cheekily.
“I didn’t know—you just told me, Valerie.”
“I… I can’t believe you.” she said, but couldn’t hold back a laugh. “That was a smart move, I have to give you that.”
“Well, you learn a lot about humans when you spend a few decades on earth,” he grinned.
“That’s a long time,” she mumbled, pondering over it in her head. “You are incredibly good at blending in with humans. I would have never expected you to be a demon. There was not a single thing wrong with you, nothing at all. Maxwell, on the other hand, tells everyone that he’s a demon. He opens his mouth and shouts it in everybody’s face,” she said with a giggle, remembering his encounter with Naomi. “One time, he met my friend and told her that he was a demon. She thought he was doing a roleplay or something.”
“That must have been an interesting conversation,” Thorne laughed.
“It was… I was sweating so hard, fearing she would actually believe him,” she sighed and shook her head. “Thankfully, she didn’t.”
“Would that have been so bad, though?”
“I want to keep her away from all this supernatural stuff. It would do no good to introduce her to demons, ghosts, and…. uh… fairies.”
Thorne chuckled. “Have you ever seen a fairy?”
“No, never. I heard they are very shy.”
“True, they rarely show themselves. Maybe you’ll get to see one… someday,” Thorne said and shrugged. “But they also like to play pranks, so you better not go looking for them. It gets annoying.”
Now he had piqued her interest, her eyes gleaming in fascination. “Really?”
“Huh, why are you so happy about that?” Thorne laughed and shook his head in disbelief. “Fairies are cheeky; they do stuff like misplace your car keys or switch out your shampoo with dish detergent. As I said, it gets annoying to have them around.”
“Sounds like it happened to you before.”
The disgusted curl of his lips was very telling, and Valerie just knew that he must have been the poor victim of a bored fairy once. The idea was so funny to her that she almost cried laughing, prompting him to roll his eyes, but he couldn’t hold back a grin seeing her so happy.
Time passed quickly while they were talking, and after they finished their food, they left the restaurant. It wasn’t that late yet, but the first stars and the moon in the sky were already visible.
“You know what? We should go grocery shopping before we head back… I need to get some ingredients for the cake,” Valerie said.
“Good idea. That way, he won’t notice what you’re planning. Do you have a recipe?”
“Yes, it’s saved on my phone,” she smiled as they walked to his car.
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When she returned home, she hugged Thorne goodbye, thanking him for the beautiful evening.
“Good luck with your plan, I’m rooting for you,” the demon grinned before he left, and Valerie closed the front door, intending to hide the bag with the groceries as soon as possible, but of course, a certain someone was faster.
“What plan?”
She flinched violently, turning around to see Maxwell standing in the doorway. He crossed his arms and scrutinized her from head to toe, gaze briefly darting over the bag in her hands.
“Oh… um… nothing important,” she smiled nervously. Valerie had never been good at hiding things, but now she really had to do all it took because she wanted to surprise him—and surprises had the most impact when the person didn’t see them coming.
“Where did you go?” he asked, not coming closer and watching her from afar. There was a suspicious red hue in his iris.
“We went to a restaurant in the city center,” she said sheepishly and played with a strand of her long hair, curling it around her finger to distract herself from her nervousness.