Sweet Peril (The Sweet Trilogy #2)(37)

I let myself into my room and went straight to the bed, falling facedown. What had I done? Lying there, I replayed the entire scene, starting with the surprise of passion we’d unleashed. In that moment when I’d shut off all thought, the physical intimacy had been more than welcome. And yet, there had been something missing. It was nothing physical, because Kope was the total package, and the boy could definitely kiss.

But there’d been no spark in my heart to ignite me. No fluttery feeling of triumph had bloomed in my belly. Only one person had ever made me feel that way. I reached up and touched the necklace Kai had given me.

A sick sensation filled my stomach. This was not fair to Kope. I saw now that love could not be stopped, forgotten, or transferred, no matter what schemes the mind and body devised.

I rolled over and climbed down from the bed, thinking a shower might help. When I closed the bathroom door and caught sight of myself in the mirror, my eye was drawn to two spots on my neck. I leaned toward the mirror and gasped. Hickeys! This had to be some cosmic joke. Had Kope seen them when we were walking back? No way. He hadn’t even blinked in my direction. Kope would die if he saw them.

I squatted down, feeling dizzy. Guilt surged up at the thought of Kai finding out. But why should I feel guilty? Kai had given Kope the green light. Regardless, he would never find out about this kiss because I wasn’t telling a soul, and I knew Kope wouldn’t either.

A knock at the door had me forgetting everything and jumping to my feet with my heart in my throat. Had Mammon or Flynn found me? No way. Maybe Kope wanted to talk. I sent out my hearing but the visitor was silent. I slipped out of the bathroom and tiptoed to the door to look through the peephole. It wasn’t any of them; it was Dad.

I flung the door open and he pressed a finger to his lips, shaking his head to ward off any greeting. When he turned to face me, darned if his eyes didn’t go straight to my neck, which I’d stupidly forgotten about in my astonishment at seeing him.

Oh, holy mortification. I slid a hand over the marks and felt myself turning beet red as he glared at me. His eyebrows tightened. I imagined him yelling inside his own head: I thought I’d chosen to send you off with the safer of the two boys!

Yeah, well, little did he know that he’d sent me packing with a Lust Neph after all. I sure wasn’t going to tell him. I sat on the bed, pulling my knees up. I rested my chin on my forearms, hiding my neck.

Dad scribbled a message on the notepad from the desk in the corner. He tore it off and flung it on the bed.

Azael couldn’t come—had to do rounds. I’m going to surprise Mammon and get him out of town for the night so you can meet with his kid. He’ll think I’m here to track down a rogue dealer who fled the U.S.

I reached out a hand for the notepad and pen, which he handed over, frowning again at my revealed neck.

Thanks for the heads-up. Let me know when it’s safe for us to go to Flynn.

He took the note, read it, and nodded. I lay my head on my arms, sighing. Dad sat down next to me and rubbed my back for a second. When I leaned toward him, he put his arm around me. For a demon, he was pretty sweet. I guess he had been an angel at one time, after all. I considered asking him about Neph having double sins, but decided now was not a good time. We stayed like that for a few minutes, until he patted my arm and stood. He scribbled something and tossed it at me.

No sex before marriage.

Oh, ha-ha. I crumpled the note and threw it at his chest before burying my face in my knees. He chuckled and went in the bathroom, flushing the papers.

I waved him off as he left, then sent Kope a cryptic text message about going back out tonight for round two. As soon as I sent it I blushed from head to toe. I meant round two of talking with Flynn! But surely Kope knew that. I flopped over onto the bed, depleted of energy.

I should have tried to nap, but there was no way that would happen with my brain in a tangle. I showered and then watched television, waiting to get the “go” from Dad.

Hopefully this break could clear away the weirdness between Kope and me so we wouldn’t be distracted when we spoke with Flynn.

Three hours after my father left, I received a text: Good 2 go till tomorrow.

I let out an obnoxiously loud sigh. “Hey, Kope,” I called to him through the wall, knowing he’d be listening for me. “Time to go. I’ll be over soon.”

I got up to get ready. It was a good thing I healed fast, because the two spots on my neck were barely visible now, and after applying some makeup, they didn’t show at all.

Now I had to face Kope. My friend. Who I kissed today.

He opened the door to his room before I had a chance to knock. We looked at each other for a long moment before he turned away, stepping into the hall and closing the door behind him. We walked in silence down the corridor on the squishy paisley carpets.

“I figured we could just get a cab,” I told him as we approached the elevator. He nodded. Earlier in the day I’d mentioned taking one of the cool trains, trams, or buses, but the fun touristy mood was now gone.

When we got on the elevator he practically crammed himself into the corner farthest away from me. There was really nowhere to look except down because the walls and doors were all mirrors. We accidentally made brief eye contact once in the panel’s reflection. The tension was as palpable as the silence. We sped through the hotel until we were outside around other people, breathing fresh air, with plenty of city scenery to keep our eyes busy.