Page 116 of Demon with Benefits
“We have to get out of here,” he said, forcing his attention to more pressing matters. “Val will regenerate from the feeding and come after us.”
Iris nodded and started collecting her discarded clothing. There was no water for them to wash, so Meph sacrificed his boxers for clean-up duty and went commando under his sweats. Unfortunately, he didn’t have a shirt because Valefor had taken it when he’d carved half his skin off, the bastard. The wound had mostly healed now, leaving behind a bare patch of tattoo-free skin that looked decidedly incongruous.
“Where’d you get pants?” Iris asked, eyeing him as he pulled them on. “Unless you had them on all along?”
He couldn’t help laughing. “Like my demon wears pants? Have you seen him?”
“Well, what does he wear, then?”
“I dunno. The cloak of evil.”
She snorted. “And what’s under the cloak?”
“More evil.”
Her eyes rolled. “So where did the pants come from?”
He decided to stop messing with her. “The magic of a major shift takes clothing and other items on the body with it. A minor shift, like Ash’s demon form, for example, doesn’t have enough magic to do that, so the clothes rip if they get in the way. But in my case, they just kinda... poof. I’m lucky ’cause otherwise I’d lose all my piercings too.” He poked his tongue at one of his lip rings.
Her eyes widened. “I didn’t think of that.”
Meph went to stand at the mouth of the cave and surveyed the landscape. After draining Valefor and stealing Iris, his demon had flown them up to the mountains behind Val’s lair, outside the castle walls. It was a strategic place to hide. Because of the view it afforded of the valley, it would be easy to spot anyone coming after them. His demon might be deranged, but at least he had some sense.
Iris pulled on her leggings and hoodie—hishoodie, he noted with a pointed look—and came to stand beside him. He pretended to grumble about it, but really, he liked the look of her wearing his clothes. It felt like a claim.
“You don’t have a shirt?” she asked, and he shook his head. “You want your hoodie? I’m also wearing your T-shirt underneath.”
He shot her a look, which she returned with a sheepish smile. “Nah, it’s cool.”
She looked down at the tears in the front. “Sorry it got wrecked.”
“I want to rip Valefor’s fucking head off.” Not because he cared about the hoodie. Because of how close those claws had come to Iris’s soft skin.
She looked over the valley. “You and me both.” And then she turned to face him, and her eyes lit up. “Let’s do it, then.”
“Huh?”
She pointed at the castle in the distance. “Let’s go back there, rip his head off, and burn the pieces.”
Meph’s jaw dropped. “Did you hit your head again?”
“Think about it. I’ve tapped into my cool powers. If the glowing thing starts again—and I know it will when I need it—I’ll be untouchable. I saw Lily fall into a huge pit and get up without a single scratch. Valefor won’t be able to hurt me. And you can shift back into your demon form. Val screamed like a baby when you turned on him. He’s terrified of you. Between the both of us, he doesn’t stand a chance.”
Meph was still staring at her. “You’re definitely concussed.”
“No, I’m not!” Iris threw up her hands. “Look, I’m tired of that asshole. I was so mad at him for years, so full of rage. Now that I’ve faced off with him, I can see he’s just a slimy old horse face, and he isn’t worth my time. I’d be happy to leave him here to rot and never think about him again, but he threatened Lily. He threatened to tell Lucifer where your brothers are hiding. He threatened to hurt you and me and everyone we care about. Meph, hehasto die.”
Shit, but she was right.
“Killing demons—permanently—is against the rules,” Meph reminded her. “No one gives a fuck about the weak ones, but a demon like Valefor... we’d be in deep shit.”
“You’re already in deep shit for escaping Hell. What’s one more crime to add to the list? Plus, how would anyone be able to prove it was us?”
Meph’s eyes narrowed. She had a point, damn it, but he still didn’t like this. “Iris, if I shift again, there’s no guarantee I’ll shift back.”
“That’s bull. You half shifted for sex and—” She stopped. “What was that anyway? How did you do that?”
“I dunno.” He frowned, trying to recall the moment when his demon had surrendered him control. Except... it hadn’t happened untilafterthe sex.
