Demons Prefer Blondes (Demons Unleashed #1)(81)

With a resigned sigh, she cranked the faucet off, the pipes groaning in response. Thus ended the shortest shower ever recorded. Not that she was complaining. The faint scent of Rafe and all his sexiness still clung to her.

“Mmm,” she said, bringing her arm to her nose. A wide smile spread to her lips as the exotic spices wafted. But enough orgasms already. They had a mission. They needed to return the chest. And when that was done, she would help find Rafe’s sister. She owed it to him. Dominic Duvane be damned. He didn’t know Lucia Anne Gregory, succubus extraordinaire. Yeah, she may have only been a succubus for a few days, but she had a lifetime of powers at her disposal—and now a kick-ass katana.

She would kick some serious ass.

Shuffling out of the shower, she grabbed a towel and patted herself dry. What in the hell were those two talking about? Putting her ear to the wall didn’t help. They must have soundproofed the room.

With a resigned sigh, she made her way through the door that adjoined the bedroom. Throwing on a pair of purple yoga pants and a sweatshirt, she swiveled to the bedroom mirror. Hair no longer wet, she gaped in silence. If she knew she’d have instant self-drying hair, she wouldn’t have bought that fancy blow-dryer last weekend.

“Unbelievable,” she breathed out, scraping a hand through her hair. To her delight, it flipped out around her face. Screw that. It was more than surreal. It was magnificent.

She twirled a lock of hair around her finger and made her way out of the bedroom. Tuning her ears, she strained to catch the two demons’ conversation.

“So how do you plan to storm Belial’s castle?” Rafe’s voice, although muffled, carried down the hall.

Now that’s what I’m talking about. She would storm right alongside them. A determined grin spread across her lips. She wouldn’t take no for an answer.

With a flourish, she stole into the room. “Castle storming? Count me in.”

“I think not,” Rafe said, placing his hands on his hips. “You’re lucky I’m letting you in on this mission.”

After a quick roll of her eyes, she raised her chin defiantly. “Oh yeah. We’ll see about that.”

The friction in the room spiked and energy crackled. She loved their little spats. Rafe’s silver eyes swirled and his jaw twitched. So predictable, but it was part of his charm.

“Oh my, did you feel that?” With a shake of his head, Dominic gazed down at his arm. “My arm hair is standing on end. That’s some electricity between you two.” He turned to face Lucy, his smile apologetic. “Storming Belial’s castle is my mission and my mission alone. The Fore-Demons requested it.”

“If the Fore-Demons told you to jump off a cliff, would you?”

Dominic shrugged. “We’re immortal, you know.”

Another demon with a strange sense of humor. It took a couple of seconds for those words to register. Immortal? Then again, Rafe, himself, was over four hundred and fifty years old. “Does that mean I am too?” She’d read enough vampire novels and spent enough time with Rafe to know that immortality wasn’t all that great.

Noticing her nervousness, Rafe edged closer and raised her chin to meet his gaze. “We don’t know. One thing’s certain though.”

She rolled her lip between her teeth. “What’s that?”

“Your life energy is strong. If you’re not immortal, you will still live a very long time.” His gaze was warm and reassuring—as much as it could be in this situation.

With a nod, she flashed a bright smile. “Hopefully not long enough that I’ll need to resort to identity theft.”

“Identity theft?” Dominic threw back his head in a loud guffaw. “We’re demons. We make our own identities.”

“Wow, comforting,” she mumbled. “But don’t you think storming a castle all by your lonesome a suicide mission, even for an immortal?”

Dominic shrugged, his wavy sandy hair brushing against his brow. “It very well may be.” He turned to his friend. “Everything appears okay. The Fore-Demons will be pleased.”

“The Fore-Demons can kiss my ass.” After all they’d put Rafe through over the centuries, they needed to do a lot of it.

Sidling next to her, Rafe wrapped his fingers around her arm in a steely grip. “Lucy, not now,” he whispered.

“These Fore-Demons don’t scare me.” she stood proud. When this situation with the chest was settled, she would give that council a piece of her mind. “I don’t like the way they make their decisions.” Then again, if it wasn’t for them sending him here, they would have never met.

“It’s worked since the dawn of time, Lucy.” Dominic’s lips curved into a friendly smile. “May I call you Lucy?”

“Yes, it’s what all my friends call me, and a friend of Rafe’s is a friend of mine.” She offered him her hand. “I suppose I’ll give this elusive Fore-Demon Council the benefit of the doubt—for now.”

Rafe’s friend took her hand and gave it a hearty shake. “That’s all I ask. It was a pleasure to meet you, Lucy, daughter of Lilu.” He turned to Rafe, his expression serious. “I’ll let you know if I learn any more of your sister.”

“Thanks, Nic.” With a nod, Rafe and Dominic grabbed each other’s elbows and squeezed. Oh! A secret handshake!