Page 26 of January Blues
I did until I felt him harden again. Then I worked him open slowly, using my magic to create oil to slick the way. When I eased into him, I nearly shot my load at the tight heat of him. Our magic buzzed around us as I made love to him, trying to show him with my body what was growing in my heart.
We lay together after, still joined, and breathing hard. “I feel you in my heart, Cody.”
Goddess! He knew just the right things to say to me. “I trust you with mine. Keep it safe, Toth.”
“I will,” he said simply.
Another few minutes passed, and I slid out of him, making him groan. “I’ll get us cleaned up.” I got off the bed and concentrated on using my magic to steal away the evidence of what we had been doing.
“Well done. You’re really getting the hang of your magic.”
Toth’s genuine smile faltered as a knock sounded on the door.
“Sirs? There’s a gentleman here claiming to be Master Cody’s father. Would you come down to meet him?”
January What?
Cody
IfrozewhereIstood. Panic holding me in place.
My father was here? Already?
I hadn’t expected to find out anything about him so soon. I thought for sure that it would take weeks before there was any news. The demon realm wasn’t as large as the human one, but it was still substantial. Clearly, I’d expected the search for him to take a bit longer, to give me time to prepare. I’d only had days with the news I was half demon. Was it too much to expect more time to deal with this?
Toth’s warm arms surrounded me. “We will be down presently,” he called to the concierge on the other side. Our suite had come with a personal butler, an overeager hellhound who was fascinated with my half demon heritage. It wouldn’t surprise me if he had gone out personally to find my father. “Be calm, Cody. This is great news.”
“Is it?”
“Absolutely. If your father is indeed downstairs, then he has dropped everything to come to you. This must mean he is eager to meet you, yes?”
“Huh.” I hadn’t thought of it like that. “You’re so smart. Thank you. That makes everything better.”
“Let’s dress and go meet him, unless you would prefer to do that alone.”
The very idea left me cold and shaky. “No. I need you with me, Toth.”
“Then I won’t leave your side.”
Toth picked out my clothes for me, finding a nice dress shirt that he adapted with magic to fit around my wings. He did the same to the pants he handed to me, making space for my tail that was reluctant to let him go. My mate was patient with me as we brushed our teeth and I tried to tame my brown curls. His hair was darker than mine, falling in loose waves over his forehead. I knew from experience that it was silky. I reached up to brush it from his face, difficult to do with our difference in height. Horns included, he must have been about seven feet tall, where I was probably just six feet with mine.
He grabbed my hand and pressed a kiss to my palm. “All will be well,” he assured me. I gave his hand a grateful squeeze.
We walked down three flights of stairs before we found our anxious looking butler. His dark fur appeared to be standing on end. It covered most of his body and his face was wolf-like. Toth had said hellhounds had three forms: a human guise, the in-between one he was currently in, and full hound with fire breathing and a fire tipped tail. I so wanted to see the other forms!
“Sirs, the gentleman is in there—“ he whispered. He didn’t get to finish his sentence before someone threw the door open, nearly taking the hellhound out.
“Cody! I’m so glad you are here!” Warm arms from a giant of a man encircled both me and Toth. “Quezalintoth, welcome to the family!”
All of my fears melted away in the face of such exuberance. Overjoyed to see me and my mate, this man, my father, was practically bouncing on the spot. This had to be good, right? If he was welcoming Toth into the family, that meant I was wanted, didn’t it?
With a final squeeze, the man stepped back. His skin was a pale red-pink mix that looked lovely on him. His horns arched elegantly over his head before swooping down, the same color as mine. Our wings were similar, too, though his were larger given his bigger frame. He stood slightly taller than Toth, making me feel tiny. His tail flicked back and forth behind him, almost like a dog’s wagging greeting.
Beside me, Toth stood still, looking like a deer caught in the headlights. I couldn’t get a read on what he was feeling. His hand tightened around mine, almost bruising in strength.
“Aren’t you just perfect?” the large demon exclaimed. “You got so many of my traits! Mother and Father will be proud to call you their grandchild.”
He stepped closer, like he wanted to hug me again, and I had to restrain a flinch. All my life, I’d been the outsider. I just wasn’t used to being wanted. “Um… hi, I’m Cody,” I said stupidly. He’d said our names, so he knew who we were. “I guess this means you’re my father?”
