Page 12

BEAU

M y chest goes fuzzy when I notice Poe’s back. He’s grinning at the three of us.

“That looks like such a comfortable cuddle pile.”

“It is,” Sparkle says, as he pulls me closer. I’m sure he’s doing it to rile Poe up, and I think it’s working. Poe’s eyes narrow on the cat shifter and Sparkle just smirks at the demon.

Creamsicle stretches and hops off my lap to weave between Poe’s legs. He bends to scratch her chin and Sparkle watches, fascinated.

I lean in to him. “Poe loves his kitty cat.”

Poe snorts as he straightens again. “She’s the best.” He holds out a bag to me. “Welcome officially to Hex, Beau. I hope you love it here.”

I take his offering and peek inside.

“I threw in extra candy.” Poe’s face flushes pink. “I know how you like treats.”

“Ugh, you two are fucking adorable,” Sparkle says as he pushes my shoulder.

Poe runs a hand through his hair and looks away. “I just wanted him to have?—”

Sparkle cocks his brow. “Your house is equipped with everything imaginable except for sweets from Warwick’s Wicked Bakery.” He crosses his arms. “And why is that?”

“I just haven’t made it over there this week.”

Sparkle screws up his lips. “Okay, I’ll let it slide. But I’ve already called dibs on taking BB to Wick’s first.”

Poe snorts. “Yes, sir.”

“Ew, no, I’m the one that says that.” Sparkle sticks out his tongue and fakes a gag.

Poe’s brow lifts and they seem to have some silent conversation I don’t understand.

“Shit! What time is it?” Sparkle pulls his phone from his pocket. His hand flutters to his chest. “Thank fuck it’s not so late. I still need to help mama with the kids, then get ready for my shift.” He turns to me. “There’s a lap dance and Sex On The Beach with your name on it if you wanna come visit me?” He bats his lashes and winks at Poe when he growls. “Don’t worry, you can get on that action, too. But you need to drop me off at home before my mom starts to wonder if I ran away.” He turns to me and we hug. “Poe is so smitten,” he whispers, making my cheeks heat. When he pulls away, he takes Poe’s hand and I have to wonder if the demon heard Sparkle’s words.

Poe’s back before I can get the blankets folded again.

“You can leave those. My cleaning staff will wash them up for next time.”

“I don’t want to leave a mess.” I grab my goodie bag and clutch it to my chest. I don’t know how he knew what some of my favorite candies are, but he did. “And thank you for registering me and the goodies.”

He nods and I take his hand. Before I can even blink, we’re in his bedroom again.

“How about we try a round of exposure therapy tonight? Something short. One minute tops and we build from there. What do you say?”

I lick my lips as I think. “Just one minute?”

“Yep. One minute.”

“I haven’t even handled thirty seconds this week.”

“And that’s okay. If you want to talk to someone?—”

“What would I say to them? I’ve told you everything. I do have a few coping skills and sometimes they work, but not in the summer. Not in the season it all happened.”

“Oh, Beau.” He opens his arms and I plow into him. Sparkle spoiled me with all the cuddling today.

“One minute,” I mumble into his chest. “And maybe distract me? Sometimes that works.”

His throat clicks when he swallows. “What kind of distraction?”

We both pull away and I can’t look at him to make my suggestion. “I like grooming. Sometimes Sparkle will bring brushes and combs, and we’ll groom each other for hours. He brushes my hair and I brush his tail until it’s all silky and soft. Sometimes we go upstairs and brush all his siblings. It gets chaotic until everyone has a brush and everyone’s brushing someone.” Until I met Sparkle, I hadn’t been properly socially groomed in so long. I missed it. Edward would brush my hair for a few minutes, but he’d get so tired and I felt bad asking him. I’d do it myself, but it’s not the same. Not at all.

“I have some brushes and combs.”

“I’m not saying it’ll help, but it might?”

“Is this your way of saying you want me to brush your hair?” Poe smoothes a tendril behind my ear.

“Maybe?” I whisper. I stand taller and straighten my shoulders. “Where should we do this?”

“What about we dedicate one of the other guest rooms for this venture? It’ll be nice and cozy.”

“Okay.” I nod sharply, trying to hype myself up. “Stoplight system, guest bedroom. I want Berry and my blankie.”

Poe nods as if I don’t sound like a child. Insecurity twists in my tummy.

“Why don’t you put on something cozy and I’ll meet you three doors down?” He tips his head to the right.

“You wanna do this now?”

He shrugs. “Why not?”

I fidget, trying to come up with an excuse and come up empty. “Okay.” I scurry from his room and drop off my goodie bag before stripping down and pulling on my softest t-shirt that’s so big it goes past my knees. I throw on a pair of shorts for a little more coverage, even though I don’t care what Poe sees. He’s already seen me naked.

I grab Berry and my blankie and squeeze them close as I pad down the hall to meet Poe.

He’s on his phone sitting on a huge bed.

“Are all the beds in this house big enough for giants?” That said, I’m a small guy, so even a full-sized bed is huge to me. I prefer my futon that I’ve made into a perfect nest for my human form.

He looks around and smiles. “I suppose so, but many demons are rather large, so it makes sense.” There’s a paddle brush on the bed and a comb.

My heart pounds. We’re doing this.

“How about you take a seat in the chair?” Poe gestures to a chair covered in red velvet next to the bed.

I follow his direction, clinging to Berry and my blankie. “Okay. Okay.” I whisper to myself. I hold my blankie up. “Can you tie this on the end of the post?” I point to the top of the poster bed. “That way I have someplace to hang if I need to.” Of course I can hang from the curtain rods, but my blankie is familiar.

Poe takes my blanket and holds it with such care as he walks back to the bed. He ties one end and tugs on it for good measure. Next, he grabs the brush and walks back to me.

“Try to relax if you can.”

A nervous laugh bubbles out from me.

“Shhhh, listen to the sound of my voice. And let me know if I’m doing this wrong.”

My hands shake and tears rim my eyes.

“Take a deep breath through your nose for the count of four.”

I do as he says.

“And hold for four.” He drags the brush through my hair and I relax. “Out for four.”

He continues his instructions and I’m lost in his low deep voice and the perfect strokes of the brush. He’s lulling me into this and I know it, but I love that he’s so thoughtful to distract me. I don’t know how long we continue on and I wonder if he’s forgotten the plot. He’s supposed to make it storm. My eyes shut as I listen to his instructions. We’re up to the count of seven now.

I’m so relaxed it’s hard to keep my head up. I’m so focused on Poe’s voice that when a weight drops into my lap at the same time a clap of thunder rings out, I scream and flail, causing Creamsicle to jump and land on my thighs with claws out. I screech again from shock at the sharp kitty daggers digging into my skin as she pounces off me.

There’s a crash behind me and I push to my feet to find Poe had tripped back into a table. I rush to his side while he laughs and flops back.

“Are you okay?” I want to run my hands over him to make sure, but keep them to myself.

“Perfectly fine. Are you—” His eyes narrow on me. “You’re bleeding.” He pushes to his feet and lifts me in the air in a bridal carry. I yelp and wrap my arms around him.

“I’m okay.”

“You’re hurt.” He kicks open the attached bathroom. This one isn’t nearly as large as the one in my or Poe’s bedroom.

“It’s just a couple of scratches.”

Poe sets me down on the bathroom counter and frowns. “I knew she’d probably want to join us. I should have closed the door.” He rummages around in a cabinet and comes back with a washcloth. “Please forgive me.”

“There’s nothing to forgive. It was a…” I try to keep my mouth from twisting into a grin. “Perfect storm of events.”

Poe snorts and runs the water. “I should have closed the door. Next time I’ll remember.”

“Or next time maybe I can hold her? She might help.”

When the water is to Poe’s liking, he runs the washcloth under the stream, then rings it out. His hands are so strong I have to wonder if he’s ever torn washcloths apart from doing that. He lifts the washcloth and nods to my thighs, where thin streaks of blood pool down the sides. I nod and this demon drags the washcloth so gently across my skin I can barely feel the motion.

“Did you kiss a lot of boo boos for the kids in the creche?”

“Sometimes. The generation of kids from the mid-1800s were rambunctious.” He chuckles. “I named them after Greek deities. Then the Roman deities for the next generation. Then I started on with the zodiac. Trees. Finally, the last generation of new crossroads demons I named after southern Indiana counties because the numbers drastically dwindled down and Hex is the place in the human world I’d become fond of.”

“Did all crossroads demons grow up in the creche?”

“No. Only the ones…” He sighs and wets the washcloth again. “Only the ones where the parents didn’t want to raise their children. Most did, but every century found me with more and more demons to raise, so I opened the creche. It was a learning experience for all of us. I taught what I could and as the kids grew older, they helped me raise the younger ones. I did what I could, but I lied so much, too.”

“I don’t know how they can be mad at you for self-preservation.”

He moves to my other thigh in silence. When he rinses the washcloth, the water runs pink.

“Doesn’t look like you’ll need stitches.” He smirks and rubs a thumb over one of the scratches. The act is so intimate I want to grab a horn and pull him down to me. But I won’t. That’s what brave people do and I’m not that. “Why is your heart pounding so hard?” He lifts a hand and places it on my chest. I lean into him, dropping my head on his arm, soaking in his warmth.

“Because…I know what I need to do.”

“And what is that?” He tips my chin up.

“We should try again,” I whisper. Maybe I’m a little tiny bit brave.

“If that’s what you want?” He helps me from the counter and places me back on my feet.

“Yes. We didn’t really get to the storm part. I think we need to have a real go at it.”

“I might have gotten distracted brushing your hair and trying to relax you.”

“And that’s why Creamsicle scared me. I was so into it. I had my eyes closed, and it felt so good.”

“Okay, we’ll try again.”

I lead the way back to the room.