Chapter 87 Chapter 87
“Hm, not to a demon,” he shrugged, moving closer to cup her cheek with his hand and gaining her undivided attention.
She blushed, and his smirk widened, looking cocky. “I have to say that I regret not taking you for a swim earlier. You look ravishing in that bikini.”
Not having expected this, she widened her eyes. “Thank you.”
“I want to kiss you,” he uttered, leaning his forehead against hers. Just at this moment, the last rays of the sun vanished, and they were surrounded by darkness, but not for long.
Glowing orbs of light came into existence, hovering close to them. They illuminated his face, allowing her to see the silver chain stretching over his slender nose and his plush lips that were very tempting to her.
She smiled and leaned towards him to capture them with her own, feeling his soft skin, relishing the gentle touch. Their kiss was slow and innocent, not as wild as usual when he took the lead, and she enjoyed every second of it. He tasted sweet after having had one or two cocktails, but the familiar hint of cinnamon was still there, just a bit fainter than normal.
She was very close to him, his bare upper body touching hers as he caressed her back, causing her to shudder at the sensation. Sighing contentedly, she buried her hands in his silky white hair, tugging playfully on one of his braids.
They didn’t notice the spectators that had accumulated not far from them, Esther already holding her smartphone in hand to take a sneaky photo she would send Valerie later. Wade and Xander were the first ones who couldn’t keep their mouths shut any longer, laughing and making cheesy comments, but the rest soon joined in.
Maxwell broke the kiss and rolled his eyes, growling slowly in anger. “Can you not annoy me for once?” he snapped and shot them a death glare that only served to amuse them more.
“Look how angry he is,” Wade wheezed, holding his stomach as he doubled over laughing.
“Did we ruin your fun? Aww,” Xander snickered, which prompted Shawn to chuckle.
“You are unbelievable.” Valerie complained, partially hidden behind Maxwell’s taller frame. “Stop it with the teasing already.”
“But you’re so cute.” Esther giggled.
“Does anyone want another drink? I just made some more,” Brian called from the small cabin behind them, carrying a tray with colorful cocktails on it. Valerie didn’t need to be told twice—she loved his drinks; maybe she already had too many, but one more couldn’t hurt, right?
She took a bright yellow one with ice cubes in it, a cute drinking straw, and a lemon slice decorating it. Taking a sip, she found that it tasted just the way it looked; very sweet, but he didn’t hold back with the alcohol, adding vodka for good measure.
“Maxwell, this is so good, don’t you want to try another one too?” she asked, tugging at his hand.
“No, I don’t want another one. You yourself should slow down now,” he said, and observed her closely, seeing that her cheeks were flushed. “Don’t do it all in one go, idiot.”
Her slightly tipsy self didn’t exactly plan on listening to him, and so she took her vodka cocktail and just poured it down her throat like it was water. He glared at her and ripped the glass from her hands, putting it on the table.
“Valerie. What did I just tell you?” he grumbled. He could see the effect of the drink setting in when she began to sway just a little bit, squinting her eyes at him.
“What did you tell me? I forgot,” she giggled. “Silly me, oops.”
Esther kept an eye on her along with Wade and Shawn, who were very entertained by the scene, watching Maxwell’s exasperation grow the stupider she acted.
“Good luck babysitting her, man,” Shawn cackled and patted his friend’s shoulder. Maxwell cursed under his breath and shook his hand off, hurrying after Valerie, who waddled towards the dark ocean.
“This is going to be fun to watch,” Wade smirked, exchanging a glance with Shawn.
Valerie’s fuzzy mind didn’t quite register that it was a bad idea to walk into the water in her state. Letting out a half-choked giggle, she watched as the waves reached her toes, jumping into the shallow water like she was a child playing with rain puddles.
“Valerie.” a familiar voice called out from behind her. “Stay with me, you idiot.”
Turning around, she was met with the reddish glowing eyes of someone she knew all too well. “Hello, demon,” she giggled. He cursed, taking her hand so she wouldn’t run away again.
“Don’t do that.” he hissed.
“What?”
“Walking into the water.”
“But you’re doing it too.”
“I’m not drunk… and I’m a demon,” he said, not knowing a better answer. It wasn’t like she would get it anyway; in her state, nothing probably made any sense…
“Me too.” she said and used her fingers to form pointy horns that she held over her head. “Look. I’m horny.”
“Now is not the time to be horny, though,” he grumbled under his breath. “You’re drunk, sugar. We should go home soon.”
“No. We’re staying,” she insisted stubbornly and pouted. He ran a hand through his messy white hair, not knowing how to deal with a drunk who acted like a whiny child.
“You don’t get to decide. I’m the boss,” he replied with a hint of arrogance in his tone that she thankfully didn’t notice, or else she would have thrown a tantrum.
“Mean,” she complained, suddenly leaning forward to stare at his face. Her eyes came to a stop and lit up. “This. I want this.” she slurred, snatching his chain right off his face before he even knew what she was doing. His eyes widened in surprise, but they quickly darkened in annoyance when she ran off with his treasure.
“It’s mine now, yahaha.” she cackled. “I got it. Maxwell is so stuuuupid.” While she stumbled along the shore, she fumbled with the chain, wrapping it around her wrist like a bracelet. “Whoa, it looks nice.”