Chapter 38 Chapter 38
Valerie couldn’t help herself—she was attracted to him despite knowing he would never care about a human woman.
He leaned in, cupping her cheek. A sense of longing filled her chest, hoping he would kiss her, but she was disappointed. Maxwell’s eyes widened, something akin to horror flickering through them before he flinched back as if he had burned himself.
He distanced himself and took a step back. Valerie’s heart sank at his reaction. Clasping her hands in front of her stomach, she attempted to hide her sadness.
“Did I do something wrong?” she asked, unsurely.
“No, I just…” he trailed off, running a hand through his silky hair. “I don’t think we should do this after what happened last time.”
“Oh.” she said, regret flashing over her face before she buried it under a fake smile. “Thanks for accompanying me tonight. I had a lot of fun,” she added after a pause and fled to her bedroom.
He watched her walk away from him, a deep red color overtaking the blue of his eyes.
—
It was almost noon on Saturday when Valerie finally emerged from her bedroom with tangled hair and a yawn. She had slept in after going to bed late yesterday.
Now, however, she stood in front of a mostly empty fridge, not finding anything she could use to make lunch or late breakfast, whichever you wanted to call it. Sighing, she decided to go grocery shopping later, but first, she made herself a cup of coffee and joined Maxwell in the living room. He was playing video games on his PS4, not looking at her when she sat beside him.
“Morning,” he mumbled, focused on the level he was playing. It looked like he was winning.
“Good morning,” she replied, sipping her coffee. Mochi didn’t need long to join her, sprawling itself over her lap and asking to be petted. She smiled, holding her cup in one hand and running the other through its glowing fur. “Cutie,” she whispered, prompting its ears to perk up attentively.
“I’ll go grocery shopping soon,” she said after she finished her coffee. “Are you joining me?”
“You’re always asking when I’m busy.”
“Alright, I’ll just take Mochi with me. The biggest grumpy cat here is obviously occupied,” she teased, receiving a sinister look she ignored. “Come on, kitty, we’re going out,” she grinned, the demon running after her, its tail moving back and forth in excitement.
They left the apartment and headed to her car. She chose a supermarket that wasn’t too far away since she wanted to be home again soon.
Mochi followed her like a shadow, interestedly glancing around but behaving itself. Valerie sometimes thought it had better manners than a certain other demon and smirked to herself.
She strolled through the supermarket, throwing various items in her shopping cart. At one point, the kitty jumped up and let itself be driven around on the cart. “You’re my little sunshine,” she told the feline, ignoring the weird looks she received from the people around her.
Her strange behavior soon caught the attention of two people who then decided to approach her. When they stepped in her way, Valerie faced two attractive men with different shades of blond hair.
They were studying her with interest, and she wondered what they wanted. Should she be worried?
“Can I help you?” she asked, surprised when Mochi meowed at them. Realizing that the men could see the demon, she almost had a heart attack.
“We were just wondering why a human is shopping with a demon, acting like it’s a pet,” the one with the lighter hair color grinned. “It’s a rare sight to see… We also sensed a familiar demonic aura that seems to originate from you.”
Valerie wasn’t sure if she could trust them, but oddly enough, the mark on her wrist didn’t ache, which meant they were safe to be around, no matter how strange they acted.
She had begun to trust the warnings of the bond’s magic, and since she received none, she didn’t see a problem with talking to them.
“You’re demons, aren’t you?” she asked.
“Yes,” the light-blond man smiled. “I’m Hunter, and this is Gareth.”
“I’m Valerie,” she introduced herself.
“Do you by any chance know Maxwell?” Gareth asked.
“Yes, you could say that…” she answered, unsure if she could tell them about the bond.
“Ah, so that’s why he hasn’t shown himself in hell since forever,” Hunter said, exchanging an amused glance with Gareth. “We were looking for him because it got boring without him around. We’re light demons too, and we consider ourselves family.”
“If you want to see him, I can take you where he is,” she suggested. Valerie was surprised by how friendly they behaved towards her, a human, when Maxwell had initially been the opposite.
“That would be great,” Hunter smiled, his cheerful expression reminding Valerie more of an angel than a demon.
She accompanied them to the checkout, where she paid for her groceries, noting that the two demons mainly bought sweets.
They sat in her car, Mochi getting comfortable on Gareth’s lap as Valerie drove home. She couldn’t wait to see Maxwell’s face when she brought two demons home—and two of his friends, no less.
“Here we are,” she said after they had left the car and entered the apartment building. They walked up the stairs, and she unlocked the door, letting them in.
“I have a surprise for you, demon,” she yelled, and he didn’t take long to answer.
“I doubt you could surprise me, human.”
Gareth snickered and exchanged a sly glance with Hunter. They sneaked into the living room, and when they entered, Maxwell turned to look at them, his eyes widening.
Valerie had never seen him so caught off guard and snorted. She would have taken a picture of his face if she had her phone anywhere near her. It was hilarious.
“Surprise.” Hunter grinned.
“What the fuck?” Maxwell sputtered. “Where did you come from?”
“Hell,” Gareth snickered.
“You don’t say,” Maxwell countered, rolling his eyes at them, but he seemed happy to see them. “Come here and sit down; we have a lot to talk about.”
He switched off the TV and made space for them while Valerie lingered at the door. “Can I offer you something to drink? Coffee?” she asked.