Page 79 of The Devil She Knows
Daphne laughed, obviously forced, the sound discordant, like someone had dropped a set of wind chimes on the floor. “When have I ever given you a straight answer? They’re not really my thing.”
“Don’t do that.” Sam’s voice was strained, irritation,frustrationcreeping in. “You’re using humor as a shield again.”
“Are you going to psychoanalyze me some more, Samantha?”
She gritted her teeth. “No, I amtryingto have a conversation with you, one you seem hell-bent on not having for some reason.”
“You want to talk about it? Fine. We’ll talk about it.” Daphne shifted, sitting back stiffly against the headboard, hands resting on her thighs. She stared steadily at Sam, expression stony, jaw set. “Demons, we’re beholden to one contract at a time.”
Sam frowned. “What does that mean?”
“It means that until a contract is fulfilled or voided, I can’t broker another deal.”
“Fulfilled, meaning—”
“All wishes used, soul TBC. To be collected.”
Her heart thundered inside her chest. “And voided?”
Daphne rolled her lips together and knotted the sheets between her fingers, balling her hands into fists. “Renderednull. An extension of executory consideration. It’s what happens when the damned becomes the decedent before fulfillment of the contract. Until either of those conditions is met, I cannot enter into any new contractual agreements. It’s like a … like a noncompete clause.”
Sam’s head spun. She took a tremulous breath in through her nose, held it for a moment, and let it out slowly, trying to quell the sudden queasiness in her stomach. “So, you’re saying that until I—”
“Yes, Sam. Okay?” Her chin dropped and she drew in a ragged breath. “Until you … until you move on, I can’t.”
Sam reared back and blinked.
“Okay. So … you’ll keep being a demon until I kick the bucket.” Sam nodded to herself. “I’m sorry.”
Daphne frowned sharply. “You’resorry?”
She shrugged. “You’ve spent the last two thousand years collecting souls. You were so close to fulfilling your end of the bargain, you could taste it. Correct me if I’m wrong, but you seem … well, burned out. Pun not intended.” Though, come to think of it, Daphne did redefine the termmillennial burnout. “Now you’re going to have to wait another … I don’t know. Average life expectancy is what? Eighty? Granted, I could get hit by a bus tomorrow—”
“Sam.” Daphne scowled. “If we could refrain from discussing the possibility of your accidental, imminent demise, I would appreciate it.”
Reaching out, she tugged on the sheet until Daphne relaxed her grip enough to let Sam take her hand and slot theirfingers together. “You seemed excited to be free, is all I’m saying.”
“Iam.” Her pale brows knitted together. “Iwas, I …” With a wince, Daphne trailed off. “It’s complicated, Sam.”
Complicated.Maybe Dad was onto something, because she was starting to hate that word. “Could youuncomplicate it for me?”
“I’m ademon, Sam. You’re not.”
Okay, and? “Is that frowned upon? Forbidden or something?”
“Or something.” Daphne stared down at their hands, biting her lip. “Sam, I’m immortal. I’m not … I’m not going to age.”
“Oh.” Sam felt a pinch near her heart. “And I will.”
If Sam was lucky enough to live long enough, she was going to get wrinkles and go gray, and one day, probably sooner than she thought, all the time spent on her feet in the kitchen would catch up with her joints. It wouldn’t matter that Daphne had two thousand years on her; Sam would look old enough to be her mother. Hergrandmother.
“Whatever you’re thinking,” Daphne said, all but strangling Sam’s fingers, her grip was so fierce, “stop it. Over two thousand years I have walked this earth. The allure of a pretty face alone wore off for me ages ago. Do I think you’re beautiful? Yes,obviously, and if you have to question that for even a second, I may flay my flesh as penance for ever giving you reason to doubt my affection.”
Her throat ached and she had to swallow twice before she could speak. “That’s a little extreme, don’t you think?”
“It’s not.” Daphne brought their joined hands to her lipsand laid the tenderest of kisses on the back of Sam’s knuckles. “But, Sam, understand that even the most breathtaking of blooms pales in the face of a comet in the sky. The once-in-several-lifetimes explosion of a supernova.” Daphne clutched her hand so tight her bones creaked. Sam reveled in the ache. “If you think your looks are what make you beautiful, you’re wrong. You could have no arms and no legs and slither about blindly on your belly like an eel and I would still find myself utterly and completely enchanted by you. You, Samantha Cooper, are a phenomenon. The passage of time? Matters little to me. But it will matter to you.”
“No.” She shook her head, vehement. “It won’t. I don’t care if—”
