Page 290 of The Spider Queen
I blinked. “I’m here indefinitely?”
“Yes.”
“Here. Forever. With you,” I whispered.
“Not as my prisoner, Stella,” he said. His voice sounded like it came from every crevice of the cavern. I was swaddled in it. “As a balm.”
I felt his pain and lust as if they were my own. I closed my eyes, trying to battle against it. There was a rush of air at my neck and my eyes opened. Lucifer was gone and I was alone. I was both angry and relieved.
I was trapped—and my good sense told me not to try and leave the way we’d come in; I wouldn’t survive the heat. Lucifer had been the buffer.
And I was relieved because I no longer felt the aching, blinding lust I had felt in his presence. And what the hell was that about, anyway? Me, attracted to the Prince of Darkness? Or had he manipulated my feelings? I wasn’t at all sure what he was capable of, but he’d clearly had no qualms about demanding me in the form of payment for saving my mother’s life.
Mother.
And just like that my rage was back again. Only this time, it was a tidal wave of wrath. How dare he? What did he expect me to do for him? He’d called me his balm. Did that mean he wished me to ease his pain? Did he really think I was capable of that? Dealing with human emotions was one thing, but the ruler of Hell?
I swallowed.
There was that pesky little attraction that was between us. Like a live wire. I’d never felt anything like it before, not even on a smaller scale. Not for a human male. But to feel it for an evil fallen angel?
Did he expect me to…
Would he take away my choice? Would he render me inert, like when he’d tried to put me to sleep? Would he use my body whenever he wanted?
If that was what he’d desired, why hadn’t he taken me yet? Instead, he’d left me alone in safety. He’d claimed it was so I could figure out my own feelings, reconcile everything I remembered, but what if he’d needed the space away fromme? Maybe he felt things he didn’t want to feel. Maybe he was taken by surprise.
Was that even possible?
I flopped back onto the bed and stared at the cavern ceiling, mentally making a note to ask him when he deigned to show up again. But for the moment, there was nothing more I could do.
So, I did the only thing I could. I rolled over, grabbed a pillow, and tried to sleep.
Something wet dribbled on my cheek. I cracked open an eye and let out an involuntary scream. A dog the size of a cocker spaniel was looming over me. That hadn’t been what had terrified me. It was the dog’s three heads, six brown eyes, and three tongues just waiting to lick my bones clean that scared the living daylights out of me.
There was a chuckle, followed by, “Down, Cerberus.”
The three-headed dog whined but then dutifully listened and jumped off the bed.
“He’s harmless,” Lucifer said, coming to stand by the bedside. He’d somehow found a shirt.
Unfortunately.
I wiped a glob of drool off my face and sat up. “What are you doing here?” I mumbled.
He smiled. “I live here.”
“Are you ever going to let me see the sun again?” I asked. “Or did I piss you off when I jumped from the room in the clouds? Is this my punishment? To be kept underground? I’m not a mole.”
“You were far more charming the first night we met.”
“Pot, meet Kettle.”
He let out a low chuckle. Cerberus whimpered and wagged his three tails. “Fancy a nighttime walk?” Lucifer asked.
“Is it still night?”
He nodded.
