Page 43 of Demon Hunger
“Somewhere you’ve never been. It’s a crime that you live in New York City and you don’t have time to enjoy what the city has to offer. I hope to remedy that.”
There were many places I hadn’t visited, so I had no idea what he had in store. One thing I was sure of, though… he knew far too much about me, and I knew little about him. It was time to remedy that.
“Have you spent a lot of time here?” I asked.
“Proportionately, not more than any tourist, I suppose. The thing is… I’ve been alive for a long time, so in the end, that proportion amounts to a human lifetime.”
I grunted.
“What?” he asked.
“Looking at it that way, I guess my life won’t amount to much. Proportionately.” This had been a concern of mine from the beginning of whatever this was I had with Drevan. It was the reason Stales and certain Skews didn’t like to date vampires or Fae. No one wanted to start a doomed relationship.
“Your life amounts to everything.” His eyes bore into mine as he spoke the words. And there was such intensity in his voice and expression that I didn’t dare doubt his veracity. Still…
“I will get old and wither away while you—”
He cut me off. “While I worship the ground you walk on for as long as I’m allowed.”
Smoothly, he slid over from his seat to mine. His warmth pressed to the left side of my body, causing me to shiver in response.
“Lucia, I’ve never been in love before,” he confessed.
My gaze snapped up to find a vulnerable expression on his face.
He laid a hand on his chest. “This feeling is so different from everything else. It makes me think that I can conquer it all, even time.”
In high school, I had my share of boyfriends. Once or twice, I imagined it was love, but with Drevan, I learned that what I’d felt in the past was nothing but a shallow attachment. What had sparked between him and me was like fire meeting fire. Nothing compared.
He took my hand in his and squeezed. “Want to conquer it with me?”
Drevan was talking about conquering time, but his proximity was starting to make me afraid about tonight.
“I promise we’ll take it slow,” he said, as if sensing my worries.
I was spared from saying anything when the limousine stopped and I broke eye contact to glance out the window. We were parked in front of a tall stone wall with an arched door carved in the middle and ivy growing at either side. Above the wall, luscious trees and a tall stone tower peeked out, giving me a hint of what lay beyond the wall.
“Is this The Cloisters?” I asked.
“It is.”
Giuseppe opened the door to a crisp night. Drevan stepped out first, and I took his offered hand and followed. We walked through the arched doorway, the paneled door opening all on its own. On the other side, we stepped onto a cobbled path. We followed through a well-illuminated courtyard, and I lost my breath at the sight of the beautiful architecture. There were ornate arches, tile roofs, stained-glass windows, fountains, and more.
The place was deserted, with not a soul to be seen. It was like the time he took me to Coney Island and no one had been at the amusement park.
“No one visits the museum at this hour,” Drevan said, “so it’s all ours. I had hoped we would have dinner at the café, but you may not be hungry after visiting Kody. Perhaps you have room for dessert?”
I nodded. “I can definitely do dessert.”
“Excellent. Would you like to do that first? Or would you prefer to visit the museum?”
“Let’s leave the dessert for last.”
Drevan chuckled, his eyes glinting with a double meaning. My face heated, and my body tingled as if caressed by the rumble of his laugh. There was no doubt my body craved the type of dessert he was imagining.
Stop fighting it, Lucia. You want him. Monster or not. Would it be so bad to give in?
I glanced at him out of the corner of my eye. His sculpture-worthy profile nearly made me stagger. The beauty he projected might not be real, but he sure carried himself with confidence. People who didn’t know him might think him vain, but lately, I got the sense that his attitude might be a front for deep insecurity.
