Page 23 of Promised to the Demon King (The Demon Brides #1)

Nova smiled in her sleep as she snuggled deeper into Asmo’s firm and broad chest. She subconsciously breathed in his scent deeply. She stretched her arm out, and around his thick waist, her fingers fanning out. The smile felt natural as she slowly awakened, the idea that her dark hero held her all night after he had-- licked her clean. It felt right.

Nova moaned sleepily as she turned to bury her face in his form more.

Why was his firm and built chest suddenly soft and plush? When did he put on a shirt? she thought as she felt the fabric under her bare arm. Last, she remembered, he was bare-chested, not that she would ever complain to an adonis of a beautiful and perfect specimen of a man like Asmo never wearing a shirt. She loved the feel of his skin to hers. His felt thicker, but she liked the contrast when they fell asleep in his bed, wrapped around one another.

Nova pulled her head back slightly, her eyes barely open, only to widen as the realization of things took hold. She was wrapped around her body pillow.

Where Asmo once lay, holding her tightly to his body while she slept, was now a large pillow. Did last night's encounter truly happen, or was it just a dream?

‘Good Morning, you little hussy!’ Roz’s voice greeted her from the other side of the bed.

When Nova rolled over, Roz played comfortably in bed alongside her. Her head pressed into the palm of her hand, her arm bent, as though she had played there on her side, watching Nova sleep for hours. Her face had a knowing smirk, and her red eyes pulsated with mischief.

“Don’t look at me like that!”

Nova whined, throwing her back against the mattress and staring at the ceiling, trying to recall the events in her dream. Her cheeks flushed crimson as she did.

‘So,’ Roz started, her grin turned deviously playful. ‘When is the big day, dirty girl?’

Nova creased her brow in confusion and turned her head to look at Roz questioningly.

‘I just figured with how in love you and that pillow are, there would be some upcoming nuptials soon. After all, you are a good girl. Not the type to give it up before marriage.’ Roz gave her a naughty wink.

Again, Nova flushed.

“Not funny!”

Nova took the pillow she had once curled into and swung it around to Roz. It would not affect Roz since she had no real physical form present.

‘Says you!’ Roz snorted but quickly turned serious again. ‘No, but seriously, Nova. I don’t want any feathered pillow babies running around here until there is a ring on that finger. Do you understand me, young lady!’ Roz mocked with a stern maternal expression. As though reprimanding a loosely moral child.

Nova rolled her eyes and threw back the blanket at Roz as she jumped out of bed.

“So NOT funny!”

Nova huffed and stomped to the en-suite to escape her embarrassment and collect her emotions.

“Was it real?”

She asked herself as she stared at her reflection in the mirror. She wet her toothbrush and went to work, brushing her teeth. Her thoughts still circled Asmo and the previous night with him.

It wasn’t like any dream she’d ever experienced. If it was real, then how? Were sex dreams more vivid and real than normal dreams? She was confused because this was the first sexual dream she'd ever experienced, and everything about it felt real.

Nova had too many questions. She shook her head, spat out the toothpaste from her mouth, and turned to the shower.

She needed to clean her thoughts and body. Then, she caught subtle hints of his scent still on her skin. Wait—was it real? Does this not prove it, or is this the workings of a broken heart and an overworked stress meter?

Confusion filled her as she washed herself absentmindedly. Either real or not, Nova knew one thing for sure: she couldn’t wait for bedtime again. She missed him already.

After her shower, Nova got ready and headed to the kitchen for coffee and breakfast with the guys. This had become their daily routine: breakfast every morning and light banter before they went off to work.

She found herself smiling as she walked down the hallways towards the sound of the guys complaining to one another about the chill in the air.

She looked down at her smartwatch. It was currently plus twenty-eight degrees, and they were bundled up like they were in the middle of a deep freeze. This was her life now. These two men had walked straight into her nightmare of a life and shook some sense and normality into it, no matter how odd they seemed a lot of the time.

“Morning, kiddo!”

Thomas greeted her as he held out a mug of coffee for her. She smiled and noticed he had already added her flavoured coffee cream to it. He always made her coffee to perfection.

“Morning, Tommy.”

She smiled warmly and sipped the coffee. “Mmm—perfection as always. Thanks, Tommy!”

She greedily took another sip of the morning brew.

“No worries, kiddo. How’d you sleep?”

he asked as he plated up the breakfast for her, taking it to the table and seating her next to Allister.

“I slept great, actually. It was probably the best I’ve ever slept, to be honest.”

She smiled, hoping no one noticed her sudden blush. “Good morning, Asmo.”

her heart fluttered briefly at the mention of his nickname. It was unusual that he preferred this nickname, and it was the same as her hunky dream man.

“Good morning, Nova.”

he gave her a heated stare and a grand smile. She’d never believed a man like Allister could smile so big; it nearly stopped her heart when combined with his scent. Why did he smell the same as her dream man? Was this just a coincidence?

Ignoring the flooding questions, Nova dove into her scrambled eggs, bacon, and toast to distract her rapid heart and overly cluttered thoughts.

“So, what's the plan for today with you two?”

Nova asked before drinking the last of her coffee.

Tommy was there instantly, getting her a refill. “Awww, Tommy. Please, come and sit with us. You’re not my waiter.”

Nova smiled, tapping the chair next to her.

“So, what made this past night's sleep the best?”

Allister finally asked, causing a flood of crimson to Nova’s ears and cheeks. She was sure they matched the deep red of her unnatural hair colour; she was so embarrassed. Why did he need to bring it back up?

“Uh,”

Nova internally scrambled while Roz chuckled from her perch on the island's countertop across from the dining table. “The mattress. It’s uh-- comfortable. Yup. It’s memory foam, yeah?”

She pushed an oversized scoop of scrambled eggs and a big bite of her toast to fill her mouth. She can’t talk if her mouth is full.

Allister raised a brow, watching the scene play out before him. She was adorable when embarrassed; he wanted to see more of it.

“Don’t choke, little chipmunk.”

Allister’s tease caused Roz to roar out into laughter.

‘I love that name; you are now little Chipmunk. Yup!’ Roz spoke through her laughter. If possible, Nova went a shade darker.

Sitting next to her, Tommy handed her a napkin for the ketchup on her face. Her mouth was still full, so she could only nod a thank you in response. She could see the amusement in his eyes.

“As for your question, Nova. Allister and I will head to the office for the day. Would you like to come with us?”

Tommy offered her a smile as he spoke.

“No, but thank you. I think I will stop over at my dad’s shop. I miss Dane and the guys there. It’s been a while since I’ve seen them.”

“You mean Luke.”

Allister scoffed and rolled his eyes in annoyance.

Scrunching her brows, Nova turned to Allister in confusion. “No, I will see my Uncle Dane and the guys.”

Luke had sent her a few text messages since he stole her number that morning a few days back, but she made a point to keep things very casual. It wasn’t that she didn’t like Luke. She did. However, it was never romantic. Especially after her dream man, no one could compare to her Asmo.

Just the thought of him and a smile graced her face, and her heart picked up. She wondered if she’d see him again that night.

‘I know what I am doing--’ Roz practically purred as she leaped off the island countertop and sashayed her way to Tommy. She slung her arms around his shoulder and dipped her face into the crook of her neck. She was breathing him in and moaning low, not that Tommy would ever know, but Nova saw it all.

‘I wonder if this meager accountant-looking mortal is able to get this deep and crazy itch within me.’ Nova choked on her coffee as she watched Roz coax and teased the small, awkward man; she was embarrassed for Tommy. He had no idea a sexually aroused imaginary temptress was trying to seduce him. Nova saw Tommy staring straight ahead; his hand started to shake, and his grip on the mug was tense. She wondered if he could sense Roz and her teasing. She was practically spread in front of him on the kitchen table, begging to be sexually satisfied.

Nova made a great effort to focus entirely on the remnants of her toast.

‘I wonder if he wears a pocket protector in the bedroom? He can finalize my taxes right before I--’ Tommy slammed his mug down, causing Roz to smirk and Nova to jump, startled. When she looked over, his face looked in pain, and he was sweating profusely.

“I need to go and get ready for work.”

With that, Tommy pushed the chair out and stormed to his room, slamming the door.

Nova watched the direction he left in, and Roz chuckled low.

‘Do you think it was something I said?’ She imitated a stance of deep ponder, but the smirk on her face told it all. She enjoyed teasing Tommy, and Nova noticed it from the very beginning.

It was an odd match. Roz was stunning, even with a demon-like appearance. She had baby horns and glowing red eyes. Her fangs were constant, but Nova thought she was beautiful despite these traditionally scary features. She was tall, standing five foot ten, and her body was lean and toned. She had long raven black braided hair, and her deep, tanned skin tone had a slight reddish tint to her. There was something about Roz; she had this energy of temptation and sexual awareness. Everything she did was seductive. It wasn’t something she’d noticed as a child, but the older she got, the more she took notice. It was comparable to watching a Disney movie as a child and seeing its innocence, then watching that same movie as an adult, and suddenly, all the subtle implications and suggestive storyline come to a realization. Roz was like that. Since moving into the penthouse, Roz has focused solely on Tommy and her teasing game.

Before Roz could continue her game, she froze before a devilish grin took hold.

‘Looks like Master is demanding my-- services. See you in a bit, little Star.’ With that, Roz disappeared, but her laughter lingered a few more seconds longer before fading away as well.

Nova couldn’t figure out one thing: Who was her Master? Did imaginary friends have superiors?