Page 42 of Demons of Eden

I dart forward, reaching up and slamming my hand firmly over his mouth before he can finish. “I donotneed to hear you talk about your brothers’ erections, semi or otherwise,” I inform him. While I’m far from a prude, the words coming from Rio’s lips in particular has my cheeks burning. It has to be the shock. Really, it’s hardly my fault. He should stick to his usual irritated grunts and idle threats.

“I…ill…ite...ou,”he replies with a glare. His words are muffled by my palm, but I get the message just fine. I yank my hand back, a little embarrassed I’d succumbed to such a childish tactic.

“No need for biting. You’re so rabid, who knows what I’d catch off you?” I say jokingly, stepping back and making the decision to lead us into the park in order to find a more private spot to finish this conversation. Not at all because I suddenly need another excuse to look away from him for a few minutes. That the distraction gives my face a chance to return to its normal shade is simply an unintended bonus.

About halfway to the secluded spot I’d decided on heading towards, something odd makes me freeze in place. My brain empties of all thoughts as a bizarre sensation swishes inside of me. It’s more intense than the uncomfortable twisting and flutters I’d attributed to anxiety earlier. I press my hand onto my small bump through my shirt, feeling like I can’t breathe as I simply wait, everything and everyone else around me all but entirely forgotten.

Suddenly, there’s a hand on my shoulder, squeezing, but I can't bring myself to move or say anything, too focused on notmissing this…whatever this is. I need to feel it again to be sure. I mentally plead with the universe for a moment, desperate to know, for confirmation, and yet I still gasp when the swishing returns a few seconds later.

Why does it feel like something is swimming around my tummy, gently bumping into my insides? It’s like I swallowed a damn goldfish whole, and now it’s trying to find a way out. I giggle at the bizarre thought, the sound of my laughter cutting off as Rio’s fingers settle under my chin and tilt my head up. There’s concern written all over his face, and I'd laugh more if it wasn’t truly so unnerving to see it there.

Did my giggle really sound that manic?

“Eden. What’s wrong? Are you—are they…?” he asks, words trailing off awkwardly.

“I’m fine.We’re fine.It’s, uh, I think they’removing,” I answer, feeling surprisingly awed. I knew that babies moved, that they kick and turn, but this? I had no idea it could feel likethis.

“Is that normal at this stage, for them to be moving already? Do the kicks hurt—should we call Suvi?”

“I think so.” I shrug, his hand falling off my shoulder at the movement, making me notice how the other’s still touching my face. “We probably don’t need to call her. They don’t hurt, and it’s not really like kicking. It’s more like…” Struggling to find the words without resorting to weird fish analogies, I take his hand from my face and place it where I’d felt the most intense of the movements.

His hand is slightly wet under mine as I hold it there, and I realise it’s my tears that have caused it. Of course, I’m crying. Again. The only upside is that this time I’m not sobbing at my own ineptitude.

As if sensing the presence of another, my tiny demon makes the most intense of their movements yet. There’s a twirling sortof flutter, followed by what feels almost like a gentle poking prod right where our hands are. I feel Rio jerk in surprise at the movement, but by the time I glance back up to his face, he’s smoothed away any sign of being startled. If there ever had been any.

Almost abruptly, I realise that it’sRiohere with me, not Torrin, Daion, or any of my friends and family. I drop my hand, allowing his to fall away. I’m mortified. I manhandled him into feeling my baby move. Mydemonbaby. The one he’d called an abomination not too long ago…

“I—”

“Eden!?” a bright and cheery, yet clearly confused, voice calls my name.

Unfortunately, it’s a voice I know, and it’s not someone I want seeing this. I’d flee, but I doubt I can convince her later that it was my doppelganger or secret evil twin who ran from her. I don’t really have much of a choice but to deal with this head-on, to try and convince her there’s nothing weird happening here. It shouldn’t be too hard to reframe this situation and avoid suspicion. It’s just a grouchy hunter who hates me feeling the movements of my unborn demon child.

I’m so screwed.

“Alina!” I call back, turning around to face the approaching witch. I put as much upbeat friendliness as I can manage into the one word, hoping that my tears have dried by now. The last thing I need is for our entire coven to know I was crying like a weirdo in the middle of the park. And as our coven’s resident princess, Alina is sure to have no end of people happy to listen.

“It is you,” she replies, clearly relieved not to have been yelling at a stranger as she reaches us.

Fuck. Maybe I could’ve gotten away with running and denial?

“I haven’t seen you in weeks, I swear,” she adds, giving me a weird look. Likely because conversations require actual responses, not just panicked staring like a deer caught in headlights.

“I guess I've just been a little busy,” I force myself to reply, trying to think of the last time I had seen her. Probably at the festival. She’d actually been a part of the group I was supposed to meet afterwards for drinks at Midnight Masque the same night I met Ash. While some of them bailing wasn’t that surprising, given my lack of progress at making coven friends, I thought Alina was too nice to go along with that sort of mean girl shit. She’d always been one of the more welcoming and friendly members. I smother the urge to frown at the reminder of being ditched.

“I can see that,” she says with an excited smile, obviously not picking up on my thoughts. She tucks her long hair behind her ears, glancing between me and Rio. “I can’t believe you’ve managed to keep this a secret!”

“Secret!?” I blurt, practically feeling the panic blazing through my nervous system, setting off every single alarm along its way.

What does she know?

“It’s not a secret, then? So how did I not know you were pregnant? I didn’t even know you had a boyfriend!” she exclaims excitedly, gesturing at Rio.

Boyfriend?

Rio?

Oh Goddess, those two thingscannotbe in the same sentence. Still, it’s hardly as if I can tell her that the real baby daddy is a fucking demon. Shitting fuck. WhatdoI say then? I can’t think of anything; it’s as if my brain has lost all capacity to think rationally, and now she’s looking at me weirdly. It’s been too long without me saying anything, so I need to think ofsomething,anything. I’m about to open my mouth to speak, still clueless as to what I’m actually going to say, when Rio leaves me questioning if I’m having a brain aneurysm.Again.

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