Demons of the Sun (15 page)

“Flush it,” she said.

“It’s dead. It’s not like it’s going to come back to life and crawl out of the trashcan.”

“I don’t want to see it because then I feel like it’s on me.” She shuddered again and goose bumps broke out across her skin. “Just flush it please.”

He tossed it in the toilet and flushed it.

Persephone put her hand on his arm and leaned in, watching until the spider was gone.  With her standing so close, in nothing but a towel, he could hardly breathe. His heart thumped like crazy, and he wanted to make a move, then wondered if she’d think he was a creep for making a move right now.

She smiled at him. “Thanks.”

He seemed to have lost the ability to speak, so he nodded.

Her eyes met his, and the sound of his rushing pulse filled his head. “Um, I kind of need you to go now, so I can get ready,” she said.

Of course. He was standing there, gawking at her like a moron, practically drooling, and she was waiting for him to get the hint and go. But he couldn’t think straight anymore. “Right. I’ll just…” He gestured toward the door.

“Don’t worry. I’ll hurry so we’re not late.”

Jax slowly backed out of the bathroom. “And if you need anyone to kill anymore spiders, you know where to find me.”

“Yeah, I’ll just scream if I need you.” She pushed the door closed, and he heard the lock engage.

If you need anyone to kill anymore spiders, you know where to find me?!
He smacked his forehead with his palm. Why did the girl mess him up so bad? Like last night. It was his thing to sense demons, and he’d been so distracted she’d had to point them out the second before they attacked.

He needed to pull it together, or else the girl he was falling for wouldn’t have the protection she so badly needed. If that happened, he’d never forgive himself.

***

Persephone stared at the contents of her locker, wondering how she was possibly going to get through today’s classes. Once again, Adrastos had failed to come to her in her dreams, and she desperately needed to talk to him about her nightmares and what the demon had said about her being their queen.

“Hey.”

Persephone recognized Dean’s voice and twisted to face him. “Hey.”

His eyebrows drew together. “You doing okay?”

“Yeah, I’m okay.”
In the way that I’m not at all, but I can’t talk to you about it because you’d think I was psychotic.

“You look sad. Is it Jax? Because if he did something then I’ll…Well, I’ll go tell him to leave you alone, ignoring the fact he could easily crush me.”

“I appreciate that.” Persephone glanced at Jax. He was pretending to give her space, standing a couple yards back, but his eyes were following her every move. She returned her attention to Dean. “As for Jax, he’s kind of growing on me.”

“I guess he’s okay if you go for that whole strong, good-looking type.”

Danielle seemed to appear out of nowhere. “All girls go for that type, bro.”

“They don’t want the scrawny but loveable guy who spends too much time playing videogames?” Dean exhaled. “Guess I’m never going to land a girlfriend.”

Persephone nudged him with her elbow. “You’re forgetting how awesome you are at soccer. Girls love that.”

Eyebrows scrunched, Danielle shook her head. “Um, no they don’t.”

“They do when next season rolls around and he’s starting on the varsity team.” Persephone looped her arm through his. “Come on. Let’s take a stroll down the hall. I’ll see which girls are shooting me the evil eye, then we’ll know who’s into you.”

After Persephone got Dean talking to Lucy, a cute girl in her pre-calc class who hadn’t been giving the evil eye but lit up when she saw Dean, Persephone wandered back down the hall. The little things—like talking about classes, joking with Dean and Danielle, and trying to set him up with Lucy—helped her feel human again. They helped her remember why it was so important to overcome the demon part of her that kept rising to the surface.

That’s it. From now on, I’m not going to let my nightmares or any stupid demons get to me.

Jax was leaning against the wall near their class, brow furrowed, tapping his pen against his lip.

Now cute Warriors who kill spiders for me, those are a different story.

He straightened as she neared, and relief flooded his features. “I thought you ditched me again. Then I’d be worried
and
bored. At least the last time I went to high school I got to use my sword during classes.”

“So go do something else.” Persephone dug her keys out of her pocket and extended them to him. “Come get me at the end of the day.”

“Oh, I thought…I was trying to give you space, but I can give you a little bit more if I’m still annoying you.”

“You’re not annoying me. I just thought that since you were bored, and you know…” She glanced around, then leaned in and kept her voice low. “Since demons can’t come out during the day anyway, you might want to get away from it all for a while.”

A slow smile curved his lips. “I don’t annoy you anymore?”

Returning his smile, she said, “Well, you’re not this second anyway, and that’s quite an accomplishment for you.”

“Just admit it, I’m growing on you. Your life would be boring without me.”

“It’s definitely been…eventful since you entered my life. I’ve done more fighting in this last week than I have in years. And I’ll admit you came in handy with that whole spider thing this morning.”

“Oh, not with fighting the demons, but with the spider.” All humor drained from Jax’s face. “I’m sorry about last night. I’m the one who’s supposed to be watching out for those kinds of things, and I got distracted. I won’t let it happen again, I promise.”

She’d never seen him look so unsure of himself, and while his arrogance had driven her crazy at first, she realized it wasn’t so much arrogance as confidence. And he looked lost without it. She grabbed his hand and squeezed it. “It’s not your fault. Demons are out there, and we have to deal with it.”

“But I can usually sense them earlier. There was something different about those demons last night, and I can’t quite put my finger on it. Still, I should’ve sensed them. I was just caught up in”—his eyes locked onto hers, a combination of protectiveness and desire filling them— “other things.”

Her heart picked up speed, swirling up the conflicting emotions she always felt when he looked at her like that. Suddenly, she was having a hard time remembering what they’d been talking about.

That’s right. The demons and how he thinks he’s the one who messed up.
They’d come for her, and she didn’t want Jax feeling bad for something that was her fault.

“If it wasn’t for all the training we’ve been doing, that attack would’ve gone a lot worse,” Persephone said. “But everything turned out okay. We took care of them, just like we’ll take care of any other demons who cross our path.” 

The words were supposed to make Jax feel better, and while she hoped they did, the truth of them hit her hard. They would run into more demons, and she needed to get the evil inside her under control before it happened.

Of course that was one of those stupid easier-said-than-done things.

As they ate dinner, Persephone looked across the table at Jax, and thought about how much her life had changed since he’d shown up. She didn’t feel so lonely anymore. It was a relief to be able to talk about her Sentry job and what really happened to her parents. Training had also made her feel more secure in her calling, like she actually might have a chance. In fact, she found herself looking forward to their nights together. Plus, he knew how to cook, which had added variety to her meals. She smiled a lot more lately, too.

“What?” Jax asked.

“Nothing.” Since he’d caught her staring, she searched for something to say. “Burgers were a good idea.”

“Glad you like them.” One corner of his mouth kicked up. “Couldn’t have done it without your excellently sliced cheese and tomatoes.”

“Are you mocking me? Because as you pointed out, I’m good with a knife, and that might not end up so well for you.”

Feigning innocence, he threw a hand to his chest. “Me? Mock the dangerous Persephone Katsaros? I wouldn’t dare.”

“Good. And don’t you forget it.” The words would’ve been a lot more threatening if she could’ve kept a smile from breaking free.

Persephone scooted out her chair, grabbed her empty plate, and headed into the kitchen. She placed her dish in the dishwasher, then, noticing the mayo was still out, put it away.

She spun away from the fridge and almost slammed into Jax, who was coming from the opposite direction. She grabbed his arms, barely keeping herself from falling. “Whoa.”

He placed his hands on her hips to steady her. “Sorry. I didn’t realize you were going to do a ninja move away from the fridge.”

“You know me, I don’t mess around, even when I’m doing the dishes. Not to mention this kitchen’s so tiny, it’s almost impossible not to run into you.”

A flirtatious grin curved his lips. “I say we start hanging out in the kitchen more, then.”

Her heart skipped a beat as she stared up at him. The way he was looking at her left little doubt about what he was thinking.

And now she was thinking about it, too.

All the air went out of the room as he slid his hands behind her, pulled her against him, and lowered his head toward hers.

The moment before his lips made contact, Persephone dropped her forehead to his chest. She froze like that, knowing what was about to happen was going to ruin the easiness between them.

“Talk to me,” he said, voice soft.

With his arms around her, she couldn’t think clearly, so she stepped back, out of his grasp. “There’s someone else.”

“Dean?”

Persephone shook her head. “It’s not Dean.”

“Well, I haven’t seen anyone else around.”

“We’re…” Here’s where things got tricky. She wasn’t about to fill him in on all the difficult-to-believe details. “It’s a long distance relationship, and it’s been going on for years. I’m sorry if I misled you. You’re here, and obviously you’re attractive, and you’re a good guy…” She dropped her gaze to the floor. “But I’d just be using you, while thinking about someone else.”

He took a step toward her, closing the gap between them. “Use away, then.”

She put a hand on his chest to push him back, but she couldn’t seem to get the energy to push. He was warm, his eyes were on hers, and he was right in front of her. In her waking hours.

His hand came over hers, and her heart thudded. She couldn’t deny his offer was tempting. But it was a bad idea. It would hurt Adrastos. And Jax. And most likely her, too.

She pulled her hand away, hating how cold it suddenly felt, and crossed her arms so she wouldn’t be tempted to reach for him again. “I love him, Jax. And he loves me. You and me, we’ve got our purposes in life, and we can work together, but that’s it. There can’t be anything more.”

The muscles along Jax’s jaw tightened. “If this other guy really loved you, he’d be here protecting you.”

“He loves me enough to be out there fighting, making the world safer. Plus he knows I can take care of myself.” Being in the same room as Jax was suffocating, and she needed to get away before she had a full-on break down.