Chapter 152 Chapter 152
“Yep,” he replied teasingly, highly amused at her growing exasperation.
“Maxwell. Please wear them.” she insisted and waved them in front of his face.
“I don’t see why I should.”
“Demons have horns!”
“Not where I come from,” he replied sassily and crossed his arms.
She faltered. “What… but you’re from… huh?” she stuttered before her eyes narrowed. “Well, where I come from, demons have horns, so you have to wear this! And also, you can’t deny that Liam has horns.”
“No, Liam has weirdly styled hair,” Maxwell growled. He heaved a deep sigh, slowly coming to realize that she was serious about this, and seeing how well she’d dressed up for this occasion, he found it hard to decline.
“Hand the damn horns over. I’ll wear them,” he grumbled and took them, walking over to the mirror to adjust them. They were curled and black with red tips, and looked just like hers. She’d found this style the best, and so she had bought two pairs.
“They look good on you,” she breathed and blushed when he winked at her.
“Anything looks good on me, sugar,” he drawled arrogantly.
She rolled her eyes but had to admit to herself that this was true. However, she didn’t tell him because his ego was big enough already. He chuckled lowly and approached her to tilt her chin up with his finger.
“Something is still missing, though,” he said, making her wonder what he was talking about. “I have to make sure everyone knows we’re a couple, so no one dares to flirt with you.”
He pulled a silver chain from his pocket, identical to his, and carefully draped it on her nose and cheekbones, securing it behind her ears. “Perfect,” he smirked.
“Should have known you had an ace up your sleeve,” she said, finding it hard to get used to the accessory. She scrunched her nose. “This feels weird.”
“Last time you wore it, you were ecstatic,” he countered smugly.
“Huh, I don’t remember?”
“Well, you were drunk…”
“Oh.”
“It was entertaining, in a weird way,” he replied, amusedly, and shrugged.
Her eyes got stuck on his white braids that dangled over his shoulder. She brushed over them with her fingers, noting that they were a bit messy.
“You know what, before we leave, I want to fix these.” He was confused at first when she guided him to the couch and made him sit down on it.
“Valerie, what are you even talking about…”
She cut him off with a kiss, smiling when his eyes widened. “Shush. Just sit and wait.”
And in his puzzlement, he did just that. She vanished for a moment and returned with a comb. Then she sat next to him and opened all of his short braids one after the other. Raking the comb through his white hair, she smoothened the strands and continued doing so until they were soft and silky.
“I’m jealous of your hair,” she mumbled. “It’s so pretty.” Her movements stopped, and she promptly earned herself a stare.
“Why did you stop? Keep going.” he complained.
“So demanding,” she chuckled and rolled her eyes.
She continued brushing his hair for another minute, but since she didn’t want to be late to the party, she set the comb down after that. Skillfully, she divided the strands of hair into even parts and began to braid them the way he usually wore them. Now they looked neater than before. She assumed he had forgotten to redo the braids this morning, and she noted to herself that she hardly ever saw him without them. Only when he was done showering, he tended to wear them open for a while.
“From now on, you’ll always do my hair,” he decided.
“Oh? You love it that much?” she giggled, fondly smiling at him. Unsurprisingly, she didn’t receive an answer to that, but she saw the way his cheeks were just a tad pinker than before. Anyone else wouldn’t have noticed, but she did.
Valerie finished his braids and secured them at the ends so they wouldn’t come undone.
“Now you look amazing,” she said. He was about to open his mouth, but before he could say anything, she added, “Yes, yes. You always look amazing. No need to remind me.”
“Good,” he answered smugly.
\---
Ethan hadn’t needed long to locate them thanks to Noah’s tip. With the human’s name, he had found her address fairly quickly.
The sky was turning dark as the sun set. Streetlamps illuminated the quiet neighborhood. He walked closer to the building, feeling traces of light magic in the air.
Since Ethan knew that he would alert them both to his presence if he came too close, he stayed at a distance and observed from afar. This way, none of them would sense any danger. They’d be in blissful obliviousness to him stalking them, and that would allow him to strike when they least expected it. He planned on using their biggest weakness against them, and he was sure to win.
\---
Maxwell and Valerie were early when they arrived at the nightclub. The Halloween party that took place tonight had drawn in lots of people who were dressed up more or less fittingly to the occasion. The club was a popular place, and getting tickets had been difficult for Valerie, but Hope had gotten lucky and saved two for Valerie and Maxwell. Hope would come a bit later and bring a group of friends to party together.
The nightclub consisted of several large halls. One of them contained a bar and seating areas where Valerie and Maxwell planned to get drinks to start the night. The furniture, walls, and floors were completely black and illuminated by ruby lights on the ceiling. Halloween decorations covered the tables and the bar.
Valerie excitedly led Maxwell to one of the tables at the side of the hall, where they would be a bit farther away from the other humans. She knew that he didn’t like them. His expression turned sour whenever one came too close or dared to touch him. He was drawing attention with his looks as was normally the case, but this time, the same applied to her. Valerie had put effort into her costume, and it was noticed. The only thing that annoyed her a bit was the chain on her face. She had no idea how he wore that kind of thing every single day. It drove her crazy.
They sat down, and Maxwell smirked when he saw her pulling at it. He cupped her face with his hands, leaning his forehead against hers. “What are you doing, sugar? Leave it be,” he chuckled. “You’re messing it up.”