Demons Like It Hot (Demons Unleashed #2)(59)

Serah snorted in laughter. Matthias loved her laugh. He’d miss it when his mission was done and she never wanted to see him again. “Phantoms? Seriously? I would have thought ghosts would be demons too.”

“Ghosts and phantoms are spirits that never made it to judgment. They need guidance to be led to heaven, hell, or limbo.” Matthias turned to Rafael. “How soon can you have them in place?”

“About an hour, two at the most.”

“Excellent. I can stay here and monitor things as well.” Matthias drew his gaze to Lucia. “What about you? What do you plan to do, Lucia?”

“Lucy, damn it. I’m staying here. I don’t give a crap what Daniel or his reclusive producer has to say about it.”

“Speaking of producers, has anyone researched her?” Rafe pulled out his BlackBerry and punched some buttons.

“Not yet. I only have her name. Sally Lohman.” Matthias had been just about to enter her name into the search when Edie invaded his space earlier. “I’ll do it once we’re done here.”

“I’ll do it,” Lucy chimed in. “You need to focus on Serah.”

Matthias stifled his chuckle. If he focused on her any more than he already did, he was done for. “I will stand guard. I, too, do not give a damn what anyone has to say about it.”

“I’ll be back in two hours,” Rafe said. “Hopefully Nigel and Rupert are still at their usual haunt.”

Serah rolled her eyes. “Ghosts have weird names.”

“They are over two hundred years old.”

“Thank God I wasn’t born then.” She covered her mouth, a wide blush filling her cheeks. “No offense.”

She was so adorable when she blushed. So pure. Matthias steeled himself. She was too pure for the likes of him. “None taken.”

“None here, either. I’m used to Serah’s idiosyncrasies—Ouch! Sorry.”

Lucy removed her tennis-shoe clad foot from Rafe’s. “Don’t even say that hurt.”

“You keep getting stronger, and I won’t know what to do with you.” Rafe swept Lucy into his arms and gave her a searing kiss.

“Oh, I think you know full-well what you’d do.” She gave him a playful smack on his arm.

Matthias tried to control his frown. If only he could have such a relationship. So open and free. But he didn’t wish his baggage on his worst enemy. He scraped his fingers through his head and angled his gaze to the ceiling.

“Your excessive use of PDA is making Matt here jealous.” Serah crossed her legs and gave a sneaky smirk.

“I don’t see any portable digital assistants here.” Matthias drew his brows together, consternation filling his face.

Serah blew out a breath and shook her head. “Public displays of affection. Jeez. How can you be so knowledgeable about computers and technology, but not common terms used by humans?”

How could she read him so well? Frustration replaced his consternation. “Talking and sending messages in codes is silly. I prefer to spell out words in their entirety.”

“OMG! I N-O!” Lucy said with a wide grin.

Matthias groaned. Serah shook her head in her hands. They had more in common than he thought.

“Well, now that we’ve cleared the air, I better go hunt down those ghosts.” Rafe stood and stretched out his legs. “I think I’ll take that sofa next time.”

Matthias extended his legs, putting his arms behind his head. Human furniture wasn’t made for demons obviously. “Unfortunately, it’s no more comfortable here.”

Serah crossed her arms, a challenging expression clouding her face. “Are you telling me I should special-order my furniture from now on?”

“Just a friendly suggestion,” Rafe said. “But I’ve really got to go. See you all later.”

Serah grabbed her arms and huddled tight. Matthias would have offered her his jacket if he had one. “Something tells me I should have brought my coat. This chef jacket just doesn’t cut it when you all decide to use my office as a portal.”

“It only lasts a minute or two. Besides, it’s Michigan. Aren’t you used to the snow by now?”

“Just because I’m used to snow, doesn’t mean I have to like it.”

“Amen to that,” Lucy said with a chuckle.

Rafael nodded. “Good point.” He closed his eyes and held his arms up high. “Bundle up. I’m heading out. Time to head on over to Kirby Road.”

“Kirby Road?” Lucy shuddered. “Poor ghosts.”

“Yeah, you’d think spirits with such dignified names as Rupert and Nigel would choose a more stately area to haunt.”

“They hang out at the homeless shelter,” Rafe explained. “Even though they’re ghosts, they still find ways to volunteer their time.”

“Charity is charity, whether someone can see you or not, right?” Serah smiled. “I wonder if they were there when I was serving soup last weekend.”

Rafe shrugged. “Maybe they were.”

With that, Rafael closed his eyes and raised his arms high. “Portals of limbo and hell. Take me to the corner of Plainview Boulevard and Kirby Road.”

With that the winds began to swirl and kick up around them. Icy gusts wailed and whistled as the temperature in the room dropped.