Page 195 of Fallen Stars

Merissa exclaimed, pressing back into the demon for reassurance, but yet again, when she blinked once more, the Kaosian in front simply looked at her, a pleasant smile on his face as he waited with the tray.

The nag came again—a voice that sounded an awful lot like her mother trying to get through the chaos. And Merissa didn’t want to think about her mother right now.

She shook her head, blaming the cake and took a cup greedily, raising it to her lips.

“I think you’ve had enough,” the demon behind interjected, swiping it from her grasp.

“I haven’t had a drop,” Merissa replied indignantly.

The stranger cocked his head. “You had your cake. You certainly don’t need some of Sagitton’s wine.” He raised the cup in the air in a mock cheer before throwing the contents back himself.

She laughed. The sight was so funny to her, though she wasn’t sure why.

The stranger laughed with her, and the sound was beautiful. So rich. She felt like she was sipping his joy with the ecstasy in the air. He pressed his hand to the small of her back.

“Come,” he said. “Let’s get you some air away from this crowd.”

Merissa gave an unsure smile, looking back to the crowd. But all seemed normal. Outside of Bacchus, she never would have followed a stranger. She was always so cautious and careful.

Fuck it,she thought to herself. She rarely even cursed. Yes, she liked that.Fuck it, she said to herself again, smiling triumphantly as though she had done something monumental, rather than just utter a word that her friends used in every other sentence.

The demon was looking at her strangely.

“You do realise you just said that out loud?”

Normally, she’d feel embarrassed. Instead, she threw her head back and laughed.

“Gods, it just feels so good,” she said, as he pulled her along to the edge of the square and into a small alley. They slowed, a canopy of grapes above them, decorated with cobwebs and small, floating jack-o’-lanterns.

There was a stone bench, and Merissa suddenly wanted to lie on it. She did, draping her body over it as she looked back to the stranger.

“What feels so good?”

“Not caring.” She stopped herself, raising a finger in the air. “Sorry, not giving afuck.”

The stranger snorted. “You’ve definitely had too much charm.”

Merissa laid her head back, her eyes fluttering closed again as she felt the charm pound in her bloodstream. It was so mischievous, so delicious.

“So you don’t usually have such a filthy mouth?” he asked, standing over her. She smiled, eyes still shut.

“Depends on your definition.”

She flicked her eyes open to gauge his reaction. Her own charm was completely out of control now, the one she desperately tried to tamp down every day, swirling around the stranger and coating them both in that strange mix of seduction and sweetness that seemed to reside in her.

“I think you’re trouble,” he murmured.

Merissa grinned, lacing her fingers with his as she pulled him down onto the bench, moving her legs so he could sit.

“Trouble is the last thing anyone has ever called me.”

The stranger’s lip quirked. “No, I bet you turn men to putty in your hands.”

She didn’t know what bravery possessed her. All she knew was the charm was giggling hysterically in her ear and that her own charm was penetrating her deeply, encouraging her. “Do you want to find out? Do you want to make love to me?” she asked.

The stranger inhaled deeply, his head falling back and eyes closing.

Merissa rose and crawled forward. Her mind wasn’t thinking, and it felt so blissful to just follow the movements of her body, to not ask herself what she was doing, to admonish herself, or compare herself to her mother.

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