Page 53 of All Your Deadly Truths (The Filthy Duet #2)

Kairhyse

A violent sensation crashes over my chest. A wave of darkness and despair so heavy it rips me straight from sleep. I jolt upright, my breath sharp as my hand instinctively reaches out, searching for Xeraphine.

But the space beside me is empty.

The candles that had once flickered, along with the fireplace that had warmed the room, have all burned out, leaving nothing but shadows. It’s still the middle of the night, and while I can see perfectly in the darkness, it’s not the lack of light that has me scrambling out of bed.

Where is my little demon?

Then, I hear it. A soft sniffle coming from the bathroom. The door is cracked open, the light off, but there’s movement inside.

I force myself to steady my frantic pulse. It’s Xera—her scent drifts through the air, grounding me. A quiet sigh of relief escapes my lips, but it doesn’t stop the unease curling in my gut.

I’m slowly stepping toward the door, not silencing my steps. I suppose it’s why I get, “Don’t come in.”

She sounds so tired.

“You taking a shit or something?” I jest, trying to lighten this feeling I’m having.

The soft pitter-patter of her bare feet against the tile tells me she’s moving toward me. I lean against the doorframe, waiting. The moment she opens the door, I’m already parting my lips, ready to crack a joke about a smell that isn’t even there?—

But then I see her eyes. Red, raw, and heavy.

The words die in my throat quickly .

“Nightmare,” she says, likely seeing the worry in my expression. “Another one.”

She’s been pulled from sleep several times over the past two weeks since we’ve been here, though she’s only woken me a handful of times. But this—this is the first time she’s actually gotten out of bed.

Placing my hand against her cheek, she lifts her head, gazing up at me through her lashes. “Did I wake you?”

“Unsure, you weren’t making noises that woke me. But something tugged me to wake.” I step closer, gently cradling her other cheek before pressing my forehead to hers.

“I should brush my teeth.” Her comment gives me pause. “I’ll be right back.”

Before I let her go, I press a kiss between her brows.

Waiting outside of the bathroom door while she flushes the toilet and gets herself cleaned up, my mind wanders. “Are your nightmares of what happened?” The water shuts off, and she sighs. “Or, of something else?”

I think she groans into a towel, but I’m not entirely sure, it’s just muffled.

“Something else,” she finally responds, and as she steps out, her arms wrap around my neck before she leaps into my arms. I don’t hesitate—my hands move beneath her thighs, holding her securely as she buries her forehead into the curve of my neck.

This is… endearing.

“Back to bed,” she demands playfully.

Don’t push…

“Always telling me what to do, little demon.” I turn us back as she requests.

Don’t push her…

Swallowing, I rest her on her back and go to lay beside her, but she doesn’t release my head.

Don’t ask, Kairhyse, leave it .

Laying between her legs, I rest my head onto her chest, listening to her heart that’s steady. There’s no lingering sense of dismay, or pain; she’s back to normal—well, as normal as any psychotic Succubus can be.

“Xera?” I know better than to do this. I’ve always had to allow her to offer her feelings and never push for them.

She whispers a “Yeah?” Her fingers draw through the strands of my short hair, causing me to hum in content.

I hate hesitating , but who she is matters so much more than my insatiable need to know how to help her.

“The nightmares,” I murmur, not confident about going through with the question. “Can you tell me about them?” I’ve never heard her speak during them. When she’s woken me before, it’s only been with gasps or the desperate clutch of her hands, as if needing reassurance that I’m still beside her.

Her hand slowly ceases stroking through my hair.

“Do I have to?” I can tell she wants me to tell her no. Hoping that I’ll back down from the question. However, there is a lingering scent that also feels different, as if she’s fighting with her feelings of wanting me to push.

“Yes.” I lean my head back and kiss the center of her chest, across her breast before resting against her again.

She grumbles. “I want to go back to sleep…”

“Close your eyes and talk to me then.”

She takes a deep breath. “While she had me…” As she talks, I move my arms under her, wrapping them around her waist and gripping tightly.

“I’d fall into this weird state where a version of you would be.

There were some points you’d leave me alone, and once where you kicked me out.

The last time I was there, you never showed up… It was right before you found me.”

I don’t know what version of me she saw in those moments, because I can’t imagine ever pushing my girl away, but maybe, in some way there was a reason. Or maybe it was just her own self-doubt twisting things, making it feel like I was the one wanting her to go.

I won’t ask, because chances are, she doesn’t even know the answer herself.

“These are different though.” I state it plainly, not really questioning it. Xera has never been sick around me—not once. The fact that she just threw up is significant, something I won’t ignore.

“Yes.” That singular word is filled with more suffering than I’d ever felt from her. “When I reach over for you, only your head is with me in bed.”

Oh, Xera…

“She’ll try to take you from me. It’s why I’ve kept the trio of assholes around…

” Her fingers glide through my hair again, slow and soothing.

She shifts slightly under me, and when I feel her tail curl around the small of my back, I breathe out a quiet laugh through my nose. “It’s why I haven’t killed Niyla.”

“Niyla is younger than I am, I highly doubt?—”

“I’m not doing it for her strength,” she cuts me off.

“I’m doing it for another body to use as a shield to what is mine.

” My small smile turns toothy. “I’ll command her to stand in front of you and Syd to give me a split second to keep you alive.

The same with Brice. The same with that Fallen.

” She hesitates briefly before continuing, “Anyone… anyone but yo u two.”

“And Mister?” My hand trails up to her chest, right above her breast to rest against her beating heart. I know we haven’t found him, but I’m confident we will. That feline is just as much attached to her as she’s of him, even if she’d never admit it.

“Yes, and my cat.” A rough grip on my hair has me lifting my head up. “Hungry?” She’s deflecting now, steering the conversation away. Even though I’d love for her to keep talking through it, I don’t push.

Moving up while releasing her, I hover over her. “For you?” I enjoy taking my little demon, and I know that having me ravage her is equivalent to Sydni cuddling up to watch a movie. “Always.”

That doesn’t mean I wouldn’t rather just hold her until she falls back asleep.

To sink into her embrace and keep her in my arms, letting go only when the sunlight finally pulls us from the warmth of the sheets.

I’ll never complain about our constant sex, but I can tell she’s hiding behind her comfort zone, shielding herself from whatever it is she’s really feeling.

Fear .

I think it’s time I stop letting her be comfortable.

The moment she tries to tug me down to her, I put strength behind my arms, resisting her pull. Her eyebrows knit together in confusion.

“Let me hold you while you fall back asleep.”

Her lips part at the middle, eyes searching between mine.

Rolling onto my side, I pull her opposite of our position. Her body now resting between my legs, her head against my chest.

She releases a breath. “Oh…” Her word is laced with worry, questions, and I swear I can hear relief . Squeezing her hands under me, she relaxes.

I place a kiss on the top of her head.

My hand moves to her back, dragging my nails along her skin while brushing her hair to the side to give me full access. The small bumps that rise have me smiling, equally relaxing with her.

A few moments pass in silence when I whisper, “Goodnight, baby.”

There’s no response, and as I gently slide my hands under her arms to lift her head and settle it on the pillow beside mine, I notice her eyes are closed. Carefully, I shift her to rest on her side, bringing her leg across my hip as I wrap my arms around her, holding her to my chest.

I release a soft hum, close my eyes, and follow her into sleep.

The sunlight that pours into the bedroom has me groaning.

I passed out hard, holy shit. I’m not surprised that the space beside me is empty. I vaguely recall hearing Xera say something like ‘ I need coffee’ and then the bed shifting. First, I thought I was dreaming, but now that she’s not here, it’s clear I wasn’t.

I lift the covers off and make my way to the bathroom. I brush my teeth, run a hand through my hair, and slip on a new shirt and a pair of shorts.

The moment that I’m walking down the hall that is lined with photos of my family, I hear my little demon talking to someone.

“I can kill you without even a thought.”

It’s Brice that answers. “I’m aware.”

“Then don’t be an asshole.” That mouth of hers, fuck, it makes my dick hard.

I lean against the wall, peering into the kitchen and seeing Xera resting her elbows on the island, the Werewolf on its opposite side sitting in a high-top chair. “People wonder why I don’t fucking ask for help, and instead, just take it.”

“Then take it.” I also just realized, he has no shirt on—what the fuck ? “You asked me, remember that.”

The twitch in my little demon’s nose is all-telling Brice is skirting a dangerous line. I don’t see Sydni, and I’m concerned that without her here, my girl will slip up and kill the man her princess has come to… like.

“I have no choice. I can’t with Sydni, or Kai—I refuse to use your master?—”

“Friend. He’s not my master,” he growls.