Page 3 of I Summoned A Demon For A Date?!
Chapter Two
CHAPTER 2: ALDAINE
One moment I was in my town car heading to close a multi-billion dollar deal, the next I was yanked through space into a fucking summoning circle. A summoning circle that shouldn't have worked. No one had my true name, I'd made damn sure of that over the millennia.
Yet here I was, staring at a curvaceous redhead who'd somehow managed to do the impossible with what looked like a bargain bin spell book. The audacity of this human to summon me with a fake spell had my demon form rippling with rage beneath my skin.
But I'd played it cool. Made the deal. Because that's what demons do. We make deals.
As the deal snapped in place between us as we shook hands, I gripped her hand tighter than necessary and pulled her abruptly into the summoning circle. Her other hand smacked against my chest as she attempted to not fall forward any further. Her eyes widened as she stared up at me, fear perfuming the air and making me hard at its sweetness.
Fuck me. She was my mate.
The realization slammed into me with the force of a hellhound to the chest, making my demon form surge beneath my skin with possessive need. This impossible, infuriating human who'd dragged me from my climate-controlled car with a fake spell from what looked like a dollar store grimoire was my destined mate.
In all my thousands of years, through countless summoning circles and deals with desperate mortals, the universe decided to bind me to this one. The cosmic forces had a twisted sense of humor, and for the first time in centuries, I wasn't the one laughing.
The scent of her fear mixed with something deeper, something that called to the darkest parts of my being, and I knew with absolute certainty that I was thoroughly, completely fucked.
"Your name." I demanded, my voice rougher than intended. My hand was still gripping hers, and I could feel her pulse racing beneath my fingers. "Now."
"R-Rosie," she stammered, trying to pull back. I didn't let her. "Rosalind technically, but nobody calls me that except my stepmother when she's being particularly bitchy."
Rosie. My mate's name was Rosie. The irony wasn't lost on me. A flower name for a demon's mate. Her scent was intoxicating, a mixture of fear and something else. Something sweeter. Arousal maybe?
Interesting.
I forced myself to release her hand, though every instinct screamed to keep her close. "Well, Rosie, you've managed to royally fuck up my afternoon." I shifted into my human form, watching her eyes widen as my magenta skin smoothed into a rich chestnut tone. "I was in the middle of something rather important."
"I'm sorry?" She didn't sound particularly sorry. "I didn'tthink it would actually work. I mean, who succeeds at summoning a demon their first try?"
"No one," I growled, running a hand through my hair in frustration. "It's literally impossible without a demon's true name. Yet here we are."
She bit her lower lip, drawing my attention to her mouth. Fuck, I wanted to bite that lip myself. "So, what happens now?"
What happens now is I figure out how to handle having a human mate while maintaining my reputation as a ruthless demon lord. What happens now is I protect what's mine while pretending this is just another soul deal. What happens now is I try not to bend you over the nearest surface and claim you properly. I had to try to figure this out. A human. It was ridiculous. Even if she was tempting.
Instead of saying any of that, I straightened my jacket. "Now, we discuss the details of our arrangement. When is this engagement party?"
"This weekend," she wrung her hands together. "Saturday night. It's at my family's estate outside the city."
Perfect. A weekend at an estate with my new mate, pretending we're dating while being magically bound together for eternity. What could possibly go wrong?
"Wonderful," my smile was all teeth. "Now, about that modest salary I promised."
I was preparing to leave, satisfied with how the deal had worked out when my new mate dropped what felt like a boulder on my head.
"So, I'll see you Thursday morning then? For the week-long engagement party?" Rosie casually twirled a strand of that enchanting red hair around her finger lookingnervous.
I froze mid-step, my tail going rigid. "I'm sorry,the whatnow?"
"Oh, didn't I mention? It's a whole week of celebrations at the family estate. Stephany always has to do everything over the top." She shrugged those delicious curves, and I couldn't tell if she was being deliberately coy or genuinely didn't think it was important to mention earlier.
Part of me wanted to be furious. The demon lord part that had spent millennia crafting airtight contracts and ferreting out every possible loophole. That ancient, calculating side of me bristled at being outmaneuvered so neatly. But deeper inside, where instinct ruled over logic, my inner demon was practically purring with delight at how cleverly our mate had played this little game. Such cunning deserved appreciation, even admiration.
Wait. When had I started thinking of her as my mate?
Oh right, the moment I'd touched her hand and felt that snap of connection. Like a key sliding home into a lock I hadn't known existed. That instant of perfect recognition I was deliberately not mentioning because she already had a mountain of family drama to deal with. Adding "destined to be bound to a demon lord" to her list of concerns seemed cruel, especially when she was focused on surviving her stepsister's social warfare. No, that particular revelation could wait until she wasn't quite so overwhelmed.
