Page 23 of My Demon Assistant

Eshim

"Goodmorning,sir!"Igreeted Jerry as I placed a dish with two cookies and a mug of coffee on their usual spots on his desk, and he jumped. Ignoring his reaction, I continued, "I baked some blueberry cookies this weekend. I hope you like them."

Jerry blinked up at me as if I was a strange being from another world—close enough—and he had no idea how to communicate with me.

"Sir? Everything okay?"

"Everything—" Jerry cut himself off with a shake of his head, then stared at me some more. I fidgeted slightly, unsure if this was the good kind of staring or not.

"Could you close the door for a moment please?"

I'd left it open since I'd just intended to drop off the snacks and coffee, but I nodded quickly and did as he'd asked.

When I returned to his desk, he waved at one of the visitor chairs, and I sat down.

"Are you okay? You were hurt pretty bad last night," he said, and my heart squeezed in my chest. Even though he must've had so many questions, the first one he had was about my well-being?

"I'm okay. Consort Reece healed me completely, and a nap was enough to replenish my energy."

Jerry blinked, and I wondered what that was about. Then he nodded, and seemed to pull himself together.

"Everything we talked about last night. It was all real, right?" Jerry asked, and I nodded. "You're a demon." I nodded again. "And so are Lux and Fressia."

"Yes. The three of us and another nineteen demons were stationed here to protect humans from the dark souls and Mammon."

Jerry nodded, and then asked, a touch hesitantly. "What about the other part?"

My heart skipped a beat. Did he mean... I decided to play dumb. "The other part?"

Jerry narrowed his eyes at me in a way that told me he wasn't fooled. "Yes. The part where you said we're...soulmates."

"Fated mates, but yes, I suppose that works too," I said, leaning forward in my chair. Jerry watched me with an air of caution...and hope, and I didn't know if I should push him about this, or just wave it off like it wasn't a big deal.

"Tell me about fated mates. Not us, just in general. What does it mean?"

Nodding, I crossed my arms on his desk, and his eyes flicked to my forearms. I'd folded up the sleeves to under my elbows because they were too damned restricting, and I bit back a smile as I flexed just a little, enjoying the way he eyed me.

"Fate," I started, and he jerked his eyes to mine, his cheeks going the lightest shade of pink. "Fate is a powerful being. They can see the threads that tie us together, and they bring people closer and cross their paths in the hopes that they'll recognize their mates and find their happiness with them."

Jerry squinted. "I thought Fate decided who would be whose partner."

I shook my head. "Our souls decide that. They're like...puzzle pieces. And only Fate can see the edges and figure out which pieces fit together the best. Humans can't recognize their mates, but have you ever come across a human couple or polycule who seem perfectly in sync? Deeply in love?"

Jerry thought for a moment, then nodded.

"It's possible they're mates and don't know it. Fate helps humans cross paths with their mates just as much as they help supernatural beings. Humans just have a harder time recognizing theirs."

"So...what? You took one look at me and knew I was your mate?" he asked, a little skeptical, a little hopeful.

"Actually, it was the first time I heard you laugh."

"What?"

I smiled as I remembered that day, how completely unexpected it'd been. "I was on a call with Lux, just shooting the wind, and then I heard your laugh in the background, and I just knew."

"Oh," Jerry murmured, staring at me like he had no idea what to say.

"Lux told me you were struggling to find a new assistant, and I wanted to help you and be closer to you. I don't really know much about human dating, and I was worried coming right out and asking you out might not work. I wanted to get to know you, and support you in any way I could. So, I decided to apply for the job."

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