Page 11

Chapter

Eleven

Instead of mailing the earrings and hotel key back to Luca, Bran Bran had demanded to personally deliver them and there was nothing I could say to stop him.

Mom just sighed and shook her head as I tried to convince him otherwise and I’d finally given up, letting him do what he wanted.

After my date with Mason, I went on the date with the gay alpha who had thanked me several times for at least going out once with him and had promised that I could call on him for a favor at any time. He was very sweet and we had a lot of similar tastes in music and movies, so the date had gone by amazingly well.

As I finished applying mascara for my date with Prince Liam, Trey knocked on my bedroom door.

“What’s up?” I asked him as I put my makeup away and grabbed my purse. “I’ve got a date to go to.”

“I came to give you your belated birthday present,” he said. “I apologize for the delay.” He held out a small black box that looked suspiciously like a jewelry box.

“You guys already gave me a necklace,” I reminded him. Though I didn’t need to remind him since I was still wearing it. I’d debated taking it off last night, but when I touched it, it had felt warm and familiar and I didn’t want to take it off.

“I remember,” he said with a smile as his eyes darted down to the necklace. “But that was a courting gift. This is a birthday gift.”

Opening the box, I blinked at the ornate brass key inside. “What is it a key to?”

He winked and said, “You’ll find out on our date tomorrow. Have a great night, Lily.”

He knew I hated surprises. He had no doubt given it to me right before my date with Liam on purpose, to try to distract me. Even as an adult, he was such a brat.

Shoving the bratty prince out of my mind, I focused on the elven prince I was headed to see.

Originally, I was supposed to go out with Kayden tonight, but Liam only had tonight available, so Kayden agreed to reschedule our date.

“I’m off to my date,” I announced as I walked out the front door.

“Have fun!” Mom called back.

“Bring back a slice of cheesecake!” Dad called out as I shut the door.

While Mom had called to set up the days and times for the dates, the men were the ones who chose where and what we were doing. Of the ones scheduled so far, ninety percent of them were lunch or dinner dates.

Prince Liam was not an exception. He’d made a reservation at one of the most expensive restaurants in the city, the one with the best cheesecake ever. I had already planned to get Mom a slice, since it was her favorite cheesecake.

I climbed into the back of the SUV and my eyes widened when I found Kayden in the driver’s seat. “Where’s Ezio?”

“It’s been determined that you are, like your mother and grandmother, a magnet for trouble, and that my father is, and I quote my mother, ‘too old to deal with all the shenanigans.’ So, I’m your assigned guard for the day,” Kayden replied, a smug smile on his face.

“No,” I said and started to climb out of the car.

“The demons were far too interested in you for us to not notice,” Kayden said quickly. “King Caleb has requested I go with you in case more demons show up. I’ve been studying the demons since I was a child and know the most about them, so I’m your best option.”

Growling, I said, “Fine, but you will stay on the far side of the restaurant and will not interrupt us unless my life is in danger. Do you understand?”

He nodded and started the vehicle. “I understand.”

It didn’t escape my notice that he wore a nice pair of slacks and a button-up, silk shirt with the sleeves rolled up, exposing his forearms. Did he know that was one of my favorite things? Or had he guessed? Or was he just … naturally sexy? Well, I knew the last question was definitely true.

“Look on the seat beside you,” he said after he’d been silent as we drove out of the hybrid clan territory.

Frowning, I looked to my left and my eyes widened at the sight of an envelope with a red bow atop it. How had I not noticed that when I’d climbed in?

Opening it, I pulled out two tickets to a concert in two nights. Front row seats to one of my favorite bands.

“Is this the plan for our date?” I asked, giddy excitement coursing through me that I failed to hide in my higher pitched voice.

He nodded, smiling slightly.

“How did you get tickets like this last minute? They’ve been sold out for a year.” I knew as I’d tried to buy them.

“I have my ways,” he answered vaguely. “The rumor is that while you were at college, you didn’t do anything fun. I thought we should rectify that.”

I hadn’t done anything fun during college.

“Sounds great,” I said and put the tickets back into the envelope.

“How was your date with Mason?” he asked.

“He didn’t tell you?” I asked back. When we were younger, they had told each other everything.

“He’s been busy since then, so we haven’t really had time for idle chit chat.”

“Demons?” I asked, worried.

“And other things,” he replied vaguely.

Why were the demons showing up so much more often than even five years ago?

“How many variations of demon creatures have you encountered so far?” I asked.

“About one dozen,” he answered.

“That’s not that many,” I whispered and tapped my mouth as I considered the kind I had seen.

“If you are interested in learning more about demons, we have a book which we use to record the information we learn and some drawings as well.”

“I would love to read that,” I said immediately.

“Come by the house one of the days you’re not being courted and we’ll show you,” he said.

He was totally pulling at my insatiable curiosity, and I was one hundred percent going to fall for it.

“I’ll check my schedule,” I said and gave him a huge smile in the rearview mirror as he, meeting my expectations, looked back at me with a scowl.

He didn’t talk to me the rest of the drive, which was fine because it gave me time to text Maya and apologize for being so busy. She demanded a girls’ night, so I sent a message in the group chat I had with Mom, Great Aunt Leona, and Nana Jolie asking for their availability. While they weren’t our age, they were a ton of fun to hang out with and always held the best girls’ nights.

“We’re here,” Kayden announced as he put the vehicle in park, got out, and opened the door for me. He held out his hand to help me out, and I accepted with a smile, ignoring the thrill that ran from his fingers up my arm.

After I smoothed down my dress, I straightened my back, and walked into the restaurant.

The host bowed deeply and led the way to the back, to a private room where Liam was already seated. He was handsome, regal-like, and wore a grey suit that was definitely tailored just for him. His long, silver hair was tied back with a silver butterfly clip, exposing his pointed ears.

When he saw me enter, he stood, walked to me, picked my hand up, and kissed my knuckles. “Good evening, Princess.”

“Thank you for your request to dine with me, Prince Liam.”

He pulled out my chair and pushed it in as I sat. “Only a fool would waste such a rare opportunity as to get to know the elusive and gorgeous hybrid princess.”

Laughing softly, I set my napkin on my lap, and said, “I don’t think I’m elusive.”

The waiter came to my side and asked, “A drink, Your Highness?”

“Your best sparkling wine, please,” I requested, “with two cherries, no stems inside.”

“I shall return at once,” the waiter said, bowed, and rushed out of the room.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Kayden move to a corner near the entrance to the private room, taking his place as guard.

“So, tell me about yourself, please,” Liam requested.

“What would you like to know?” I asked. “I’m the adopted daughter of King Caleb and Queen Ember, a hybrid with an animal form of a snake, and I just graduated from college.”

He shook his head, eyes full of light. “Not the tidbits the media shares about you. Tell me something about you . Something the media wouldn’t know.”

I hadn’t been asked something like that before. Pondering, I said, “I absolutely hate onions and asparagus.”

He laughed, and the sound was so melodic I swore I heard bells. “That’s definitely not something I expected you to say.”

“Tell me about yourself,” I said.

Smirking he answered, “I’m a Prince of Elves, third in line for heir, love water skiing, and have an animal form of a sparrow.”

A sparrow? How interesting.

“And you’re not terrified to be considering mating a snake?” I asked and set my chin on steepled fingers with my elbows resting on the table.

“We are not our animals,” he said. “At least, not all the time.”

That had been a clever way to get around answering my question. So, I let it lie.

“I saw the demon fight at the mall,” he said.

My eyes widened. “There’s video of it?”

He nodded. “Someone was videotaping you with the alpha you were shopping with when it happened and captured the entire thing.”

Oh, boy. Why hadn’t anyone told me?

“Ah, I see,” I replied since I didn’t know what else to say.

“Your strength in snake form is truly remarkable. And your speed in general. It was impressive to watch you. Most of the elvish women I know would have simply run away in fear.”

“Well, you have to remember how I was raised,” I reminded him. “I wasn’t given the luxury of a quiet life. Aside from my college days.” No one knew about the few events that had happened while I was away, since they’d occurred off campus and had not been recorded.

“Which is what makes you so fascinating,” he said. “You are beautiful, smart, and humble. You took time to sign the little girl’s book and even drew her a little cartoon character.”

“It’s part of my autograph,” I explained.

“So, what is your plan or goal for the future?” he asked. “Aside from finding a mate, obviously.”

“To help my parents with their businesses to ensure the financial stability of our clan. That’s why I went to school for business administration.”

“And will you, like many of your female family members, opt for a multi-partner relationship or will you be monogamous?”

“Honestly, I’m not sure,” I admitted. “I’ve had both monogamous and triads approach me for courting and I can’t say I have a preference as of yet.”

He leaned back and stared at me silently for a moment. Just long enough for the waiter to return with my drink and take our order.

“I have to ask, why are you interested in me? You have your pick of women, not just because you’re a prince, but because you are handsome and kind. Why throw your hat in the ring?”

“I’ve truthfully had a crush on you since we were teenagers,” he admitted. “I went to the same high school as you.”

My mouth dropped. “What! How did I not know that?” How had I not noticed another royal at our school? Especially, a handsome one like him?

“I’m two years younger than you,” he explained with a smile. “Plus, you always had Prince Trey and his friend around you. So, I assumed you were basically spoken for. When I heard from my mother that you were back from college, single, and looking for a mate, I thought perhaps it was fate or at least a chance for me to try.”

Every single word he had said was true. Wow. I had known that keeping Trey and Mason around me in high school was likely the reason I didn’t get asked out much, but I hadn’t really cared then. I wasn’t looking for a mate then. Poor Kayden was too young to go to high school with us, but he’d made up for the age difference by learning to be one of the strongest alphas, able to hold his own with Mason and Trey against almost any partner. My dad still wiped the floor with them, though.

“I appreciate your honesty,” I said. “It’s … refreshing.”

Our food came and I took the time eating to think about my choices.

Yes, I had feelings for the trio, and while they were back and had explained the misunderstanding, that didn’t completely erase the hurt. And, just because we had been friends when we were younger didn’t mean we would be great together as adults. They were often traveling all over the world to hunt demons, which left the question of how often would they be with me, and if our goals even aligned.

There were plenty of other mice in the pantry, as Mom liked to say.

Liam was handsome, kind, and more likely to stay close to me. I didn’t know enough about him yet or know if there was a connection between us, but there was plenty of time for that.

“What is your goal?” I asked once I’d finished my food.

“I am very unlikely to become king, so I would like to move across the ocean and open a small business there to live a quiet life. Although I may be spoiled currently, I prefer a simplistic life.”

“So, this restaurant was because you thought it was something I would prefer?” I asked.

He laughed softly. “Yes, and a way to impress you.”

The cheesecake I had ordered to take back to Mom arrived. I stood and said, “It was nice talking to you tonight, Liam. Would you like to do something a bit more interactive next time?”

His eyes widened a moment, but he quickly smiled. “That sounds lovely.” He picked my hand up, kissed my knuckles, and said, “I look forward to seeing you again, Lily.”

The necklace warmed against my chest and I put a hand up to it, worry causing me to grab the cheesecake box and hurry out past Kayden and out to the street, following the feeling.

“Where are you going? What’s wrong? Did he do something?” Kayden fired off the questions so fast I couldn’t have even answer if I had wanted to.

Clenching the necklace in my hand, I turned down the next alley, and froze as I saw a black portal.

Kayden cursed and pulled out his phone. “How did you know it was here?”

I felt a pull towards the portal and started to walk towards it.

Kayden pulled me back. “What are you doing? Don’t get close to it.”

“Have you ever tried to peek through?” I asked curiously, tilting my head as I inspected it.

The black portal was a swirling vortex of smoke.

“Of course not,” Kayden growled.

“What if I shift into my snake form and just peek my head through?” I asked, turning to face him. “I can leave ninety percent of my body on this side and you can hold me and pull me back if something happens. I could wrap around your body to help you pull me better.”

“Absolutely not! Do you want to die?”

“We don’t know that I’d die,” I countered and canted my head as I continued to look at the portal. “The demons go back through it.”

“What if they don’t have oxygen there?” he asked.

“They don’t suffocate when they’re here, so their atmosphere must be similar.”

“There could be one of the bull-men standing on the other side, ready to chop your head off with one of their axes,” he snarled.

“Why hasn’t anything come through yet?” I asked and peered closer at it.

“Sometimes they open and nothing comes out,” he answered.

“Nothing, or something so small you miss it?” I asked him. “How often do you find portals just … open?”

“Very rarely.”

“Is there an average amount of time that it stays open? Do demons get cut in half if they’re partially through the portal when it closes?”

“Lily! You are not going through the fucking portal!” he shouted at me, his voice echoing in the alleyway.

The portal closed and the draw disappeared.

“Come on, let’s go home,” I said and turned around. He thought the conversation was over, but as soon as I was home, I was going to start my own demon researching. Something told me that the key to figuring out what was going on with the demons was only going to be learned by going through one of the portals.