Page 27 of Hooked on a Demon
“Much appreciated,” Walter says, though his tone is questionable. “I’m Walter Graves.” His hand extends, and he steps toward Declan, who closes the distance.
Declan’s free hand lands on Walter’s shoulder in that special bro-handshake-way, as he clasps Walter’s extended hand. “Declan Grace. Nice to meet you, sir.”
Walter laughs, letting go of Declan’s hand. “Sir? I don’t know the last time someone called me, sir. Walter is fine.”
“Well, nice to meet you, Walter.”
“Same.” He turns to Eliana. “The room is all yours, take your time. Give me a holler when you’re ready to head out so I can lock up behind you.”
“Will do. Thank you again,” she says to Walter’s already disappearing form. Turning back to Declan, she casts her eyes away, as if she’s afraid to make eye contact with him. “He’s a funny man.”
“Hmm. Seems it.”
“Shall we go in?”
“That is the reason we’re here,” he says, winking at her.
Oh, Hades. Did I wink at her?
She lets out a little giggle, and it’s the most adorable sound. Light and happy—like the early morning birds chirping with the sun as it comes up. The demon within him practically bounces inside, wanting to come to the surface to see her. To be near her. But he shoves him back down.
“Let’s go then,” she says, smiling at him before she leads them into the auditorium.
CHAPTER16
Eliana
Eliana pauses inside the door and allows Declan to walk ahead of her. She’s seen this space a hundred times before, dancing here as a young child and many times as an adult before she moved away. It’s one of her favorite stages, if she’s being honest. Most people think she’d love the big stages. The ones that celebrities and the public pay buckets of money to see the big names perform on. And before moving back home, she’d agree with them. But she’s always loved this stage. It feels more personal and more intimate to be in a venue like this. The ability to see most people’s faces is unmatched.
“This space is…” he pauses, his voice full of awe, “fantastic. Seriously, it’s beautiful,” he finishes as he turns back around and faces her, stressing the wordbeautifulas his gaze takes her in.
Eliana looks away, unable to handle the look he’s giving her. It tells her stories of longing. Desire. Potential. It’s too much.It’s inappropriate, she chastises internally, reminding herself that he’s her brother’s best friend, and they are here on business.
He can’t keep looking at her like that. “You can’t keep looking at me like that,” she says, more to herself than to him.
“Like what?” he asks, stepping up to her.
Her cheeks warm. “I didn’t mean for you to hear that.”
“But now you need to tell me,” he says playfully, rocking back onto his heels. “Like what?”
Despite the pull she feels to look up and drown in those crystal blues of his, she keeps her gaze down, focusing instead on the pattern of the carpet in the aisle.
His hand hesitates between them for a moment before he places his curved index finger under her chin and gently lifts her face to look at him. “Like what?” he asks again, his voice turning husky.
Her eyes find him, and it’s over. She has no more resolve to withstand him. “Like you want me. Like you want to devour me.”
He gives her the tiniest of smirks, and it’s the sexiest fucking thing she’s ever seen. “Maybe I do.”
Heat floods her body, and her knees go weak. If she were prone to swooning, now would be the perfect time to do it because holy Hecate, he is looking at her like he wants to do so many naughty things to her.
“We can’t,” she whispers, barely able to find breath under the weight of his heated gaze.
“Says who?”
“Everest.”
She catches the shift in his expression at the mention of her brother’s name. It’s gone as quickly as it appeared, but it was there—that slight recognition of the barrier between them. He sidesteps it, saying, “I’m pretty sure he’s never told me no. At least not explicitly. So I don’t see the problem.” He finally removes his finger from under her chin and gently clasps her hand.
