"What do you mean I was the mission?" My eyes dart between Kieran and TJ, waiting for answers.

"Victor was a good soldier for Asmodeus for decades," Kieran says. "Then right around the same time he leaves without a trace, he shacks up with you. It's possible it's a coincidence, but more likely... whatever happened between you changed the course of his mission somehow."

"And this mission was to what... kill me? Kidnap me? Eat me?"

"Possibly," TJ says with an unfazed expression. "It's hard to say. Asmodeus always kept his motives to himself. He only told us on a need-to-know basis."

"That's not ideal," Kieran says, his eyes narrowing. "Why would Asmodeus want a human girl dead anyway?"

"You know how he was. If you offended the king in any way, everyone around you would pay the price. Since she'd probably remember if she had wronged the Demon King, she was probably just collateral damage. I assume she kept company with the wrong person—a parent, a friend, a lover?"

Kieran tenses and squeezes the back of his neck with his hand.

I narrow my eyes as I sift through memories, trying to recall anyone I know who could've possibly had anything to do with a Demon King.

My dad has always been the buttoned-up, pretentious type—not exactly the kind of person I imagine Asmodeus would hang with. My mom died when I was four, but from what I know of her she was pretty mild-mannered. Most of my friends and I aren't that close, except Zahra, but we met long after I dated Vic.

Grams? Maybe... but it would have to be a pretty old grudge.

"Did Victor tell you anything about it?" Kieran asks.

"No. I'd definitely remember if he mentioned that he was sent by a super-demon to murder me."

"The better question is: why didn't he just kill her?" TJ says. "Unless that wasn't what he was there for."

Kieran rubs his chin and goatee in his palm.

"He might have been told to get close to her... I'm not sure why."

It figures.

I didn't know Victor was going to turn on me. I didn't know he was a demon. I didn't know he was cheating. So why would I have known that he was only dating me as part of some weird evil demon plot?

I cross my arms on the bar and lay my head down.

"I clearly should have gone for a hard drink tonight," I mumble.

I feel a cold hand graze my elbow and I look up to see Kieran rubbing my arm with his thumb.

"It's gonna be fine, Doll. Asmodeus is gone, okay? And your ex is no match for me." He gives me a flirtatious grin and I can't help but smile slightly in response.

All of this is entirely beyond what I'm capable of processing right now, yet somehow Kieran is still managing to make me feel better.

I let out a heavy breath and try to calm myself by rubbing my thighs with my hands.

"Be right back, Red," Kieran says, stepping away to talk to the other bartender.

I look at TJ and give him an awkward smile.

"He's right," he says. "He's no match for Kieran. Even the strongest demons in large number couldn't take on the King of Lust."

It's kind of sweet that he's attempting to comfort me, even if he's doing it in his own stoic, demon-y way.

Kieran slides back into position across from me and flashes another charming grin my way.

"So... You hungry?" he asks.

"Wha-... me?" I raise my brows and tilt my head.

"Yeah, you. Come get dinner with me."

"I..." I look at TJ, who is of no help whatsoever, then back at Kieran. "Aren't you working?"

"Carrie's covering for me. Let's go." He grabs the lift gate at one edge of the bar, letting himself through before closing it behind him.

I try to come up with a valid reason to say no, one that isn't 'I'm already too attached to you and if we have an actual meal together I won't be able to keep my feelings in check.'

I come up empty and just end up babbling incoherent syllables as he grabs my hand and tugs me to the door. He swings his jacket over his shoulder and pulls me outside.

How did this happen and why can't I seem to say no?

Kieran has one hand on the steering wheel and the other hand casually resting out the window of his faded red GMC pickup truck. Every move he makes has an ineffable ease and confidence to it, like he knows he's invincible.

I guess he kind of is.

We pull up to a hole-in-the-wall taco shop about ten minutes from Pike's. The outside is painted pink and a painted sign above it reads: Fiesta Tacos.

"Best tacos in town, I promise," he says with a smile. He pulls on the hand brake and kills the engine. There's a creak and the slight scrape of metal on metal as he opens the door and steps out.

I pull open my door and follow him. He stops halfway between the car and the taco place and turns to me.

"Are we friends, Red?" he asks. His eyes narrow and he pinches his lips together.

"Frie-... Uh... What?"

The question throws me off. Is there a word for the relationship between a hot lord of demons that you hang out with almost exclusively in a dream dimension—oh, and once made out with and then stabbed?

Is that word friends?

"Are we friends? Because, I kind of thought we were. I like spending time with you. But since I got you in the car you've acted like you're being kidnapped and dragged to your death. You seem real desperate to avoid doing anything with me in public. Am I just your dream booty call or what?"

I open my mouth to speak, but no words come out. I certainly didn't expect the question and, to be honest, it's one that I've been hoping to avoid entirely.

I'm not avoiding Kieran, but I am keeping him at arm's length. This whole thing with Vic taught me that my heart is an idiot that can't be trusted to tell the difference between a nice guy and a literal demon psychopath.

"I guess we're friends, yeah," I say. "This is all a bit new to me, that's all. You're the first demon I've really known... or I guess, technically, second? But I didn't know Vic was a demon when I was dating him. I just don't really know how all of this works."

I could be 'friends' with Kieran, I think. I like spending time with him too, and aside from the intense attraction between us, I don't see any reason why we couldn't be friends.

But that's the problem, isn't it? The attraction. That little voice in the back of my head that says 'I want more.'

It's the same voice that told me Vic was a good choice.

That voice is an asshole.

"Then why are you so hesitant to hang out with me, Sam?" He combs a hand back through his hair and raises the other in frustration. "Do you think I'm gonna sacrifice you on an altar or something? 'Cause I promise I won't... unless you're into that."

He shoots me a flirty smile that I can't help but return.

I'm not about to tell him the truth—that I'm all mixed up inside about him. My feelings for him are starting to bubble to the surface, and the more real that things get between us, the less I can keep those feelings down where they belong.

I like things how they are between us—safe, friendly, non-serious.

"I don't know," I say. "I guess, I just want to be clear that I'm not looking for anything more than that. I said I'm swearing off dating and I meant it. So I'm fine with being friends, I just don't want you to get the wrong idea."

He pinches his lips into a thin line and nods.

"Well I'm not exactly asking you to the prom, Red," he says with a slight smile. "It's just tacos."

Yeah. Of course. I knew that.

He laughs and we continue walking. There's a gnawing feeling in my stomach that I try my best to ignore. I know that's the response I wanted from him, but part of me feels hurt that he didn't even really entertain the idea of actually wanting to date me.

We walk up to the front and look over the menu for a moment. I agree to let him order for me, as long as pork is off the menu. Since I adopted Pumpkin, I haven't been able to look at it the same way.

After a couple of minutes, we're handed our tacos in rectangular paper trays and drinks. We walk over to one of several picnic tables out front and sit down.

I take a bite of my taco and hum with delight.

These really are good.

"Told you," Kieran says with a smirk. "Best in town."

He takes a bite of his own.

"I'll admit, they're pretty good."

"How are you doing with all this... news?"

There's so much happening right now, I'm not even sure what he's asking about.

"You mean my ex being a demon who was only with me because some dead former demon king had unknown ominous plans for me?"

"Sam, you don't know that. We don't know anything for sure right now."

"You said it yourself, it's the only thing that makes sense." I sigh, frustrated with myself for buying into all of Vic's bullshit. "I just have to accept that I'm not the brilliant judge of character I thought I was."

"It's not a personal failing to give someone your trust; it's his fault for abusing it."

"My dad is a psychologist. He works with big corporations. It's his job to vet people for the top positions—CEOs, executives, board members. I grew up around someone who had this uncanny ability to read people and... I know it's dumb, but I thought I could too. I guess that flawless intuition skips a generation."

"So your dad would've known Vic was a demon?"

"No," I huff and scrunch my mouth to the side. "But maybe I could have known that he had ulterior motives. Or that he was cheating. Or that it was all a lie and he didn't love me."

Kieran gives me a look of pity and I hate it.

"Maybe he did."

"Is that even possible? Do demons even have emotions? Can they feel love?"

He flinches slightly and I can tell from his expression that I've offended him.

"I have all the same emotions I did when I was human, we all do."

"Have you ever been in love?"

His eyes dart to the side and, for the first time since I've known him, he looks slightly uncomfortable.

"There are people that I love—my friends, my little sister. But in love... I don't... I don't think so. How... how do you know?"

I shrug my shoulders.

"I don't think I'm poetic enough to answer that for you. You just... know, I guess."

He nods as I take a sip of my soda.

"Wait..." I say. "You have a little sister?"

He chuckles slightly and rubs his neck.

"Yeah she's... I haven't talked to her since... well, it's been decades. I keep tabs on her ever so often."

"Is she a demon too?"

"No she's... still human. Sorry I um..." He clears his throat and shifts in his chair. "I'm not used to talking about her."

It's clearly a sore spot for him, so I decide to change the subject.

"It's fine. Let's talk about something else then."

"Like what?"

"What was your favorite TV show growing up?"

For some reason that's the first question that comes to my mind. He chuckles and covers his face with his hand.

"You're gonna laugh at me."

"Why would I laugh at you?"

He shakes his head and groans.

"Mister Ed."

"What??" I try to choke back my laugh, not wanting to prove him right. "The really old one with the talking horse?"

"Oof!" he huffs, holding a hand to his heart. "Ouch, babe. Really old? You're making me feel ancient here."

I forgot for a moment that he's actually much older than me.

"Sorry, my bad." I give him an apologetic smile and take a sip of my soda.

"Have you ever seen it?"

"No."

"Well, you can't judge it if you haven't even seen it. And the theme song was a fuckin' banger."

I laugh, inadvertently snorting a bit of soda and triggering a coughing fit. I pound my fist against my chest and attempt to clear my throat.

"You okay there, Red?" he asks with a raised brow.

"Just choking to death, don't mind me."

"What about you? What did little Sammy watch as a kid?"

I'm regretting asking the question in the first place, because all of my own answers are terribly embarrassing.

Do I tell him about that weird nature show with the talking lemur? Or that I was a die-hard Jonas Brothers fanatic?

"I don't really remember..." I say, taking a large bite of my taco in hopes that a full mouth will be enough of an excuse to not continue.

"Liar," he teases, smirking. "Your cheeks turned awfully red for someone who doesn't remember."

I chew for a moment and roll my eyes.

"Fine. I was really into the Jonas Brothers tv show."

He lets loose a loud laugh and smacks the table with his palm.

"Aww! That's kind of adorable. Did little Sam have a crush on The Jonas Brothers?"

"Shut up." I shoot him a glare.

"Okay which one, because I will judge you on your choice."

"Joe..." I mumble.

Kieran nods and takes a sip of his drink.

"I'll accept that answer. Why him?"

"I've always had a thing for guys with long hair."

His eyes catch mine and he looks positively smug. I see a smile tugging at his lips and wish I could shove the words back in my mouth.

Just what he needs—an ego boost.

"Oh reeaallly?" He casually pulls the tie from his hair, letting it fall loose.

"Nothing's less sexy than a narcissist."

"I don't know what you're talking about." I can't help but laugh as he shrugs and plays innocent. "When were the Jonas Brothers, anyway? I feel like that was a while ago. Aren't you too young for them?"

"Technically I'm too young for you too."

He bites his lip and scrunches his face to the side like he's debating a smart-ass reply. He shakes his head, though, maybe thinking better of it.

"How old are you, anyway?"

"26," I say. "I know, I'm older than I look."

"Me too." He smirks and we both find ourselves giggling.

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