Page 59 of Demon's Desire

He laughed. “Whatever you say, little one.” He leaned in and kissed the top of my head.

I blinked as he turned and left. He hadn’t done anything like that before, either when he was possessing guys to talk to me or when he was just himself. I couldn’t help but wonder what gave him the impulse.

“You ready?” the bartender asked, pulling me from my thoughts.

“Yeah.” I nodded, turning back to him. “Can I get one beer and one shot of tequila?”

He turned around to grab what I asked for. A minute later, he set them down on the bar. I started digging through my purse to find my card. “Hey, I just moved here and I’m wondering if you guys are hiring bartenders?”

“Depends.” He shrugged. “You got experience?”

“A year at a real bar.” I nodded. “Plus a bunch of mixing drinks on my own.”

“Then yeah, we’re hiring,” he told me. He grabbed a piece of receipt paper and wrote something down on it. “Email your resumé here.”

I took the paper and put it in my purse as I found my card. “Thank you!” I was about to hand him my card when someone else beat me to it.

“Here, I’ve got it covered.” I froze when I heard that voice and slowly turned to look at him.

“Jackson,” I nodded at him, trying to remain cool. “Thanks.”

“No problem.” He nodded. “Add one more beer to the tab.”

The bartender nodded, thinking nothing of the exchange. I, of course, felt like I was going to scream any second.

“Thank you, but I’ll get my own drinks from now on,” I said, grabbing the shot and the beer and turning to find Kelly. The crowd was even thicker now, so it would be a struggle to find her.

“Do you come here often?” he asked. “Don’t worry, I’m not trying to hit on you.”

“Good, ‘cause you’re twice my age,” I said, trying to catch a glimpse of her. “I’ve been here a few times.”

“You like it?” he called over the music.

“It’s a little crowded for my taste.” I sighed. “What brings you here?” I highly doubted that he would just tell me he was looking for Soul, but it was worth asking.

“Work, actually.” Dammit. Yeah, that was basically the answer I was worried about.

“All right.” I nodded without looking at him. I tilted my head back and took my shot quickly, setting the glass down on the bar. “See you around.”

Without giving him a chance to reply, I pushed my way through the crowd. Kelly was in roughly the same spot I left her. I handed her the beer and grabbed her arm. “Drink that fast. I want you to wait by the stairs. I need to find Soul, and we have to leave.”

“What? Why?” She frowned.

“I can explain on the way home,” I assured her. “Please, trust me.”

I think she could see how serious I was because she immediately nodded. “I’ll be by the stairs.”

As soon as she headed in that direction, I started looking around. Soul wasn’t in the room. I’d know because he was a foot taller than everyone else. That meant he was in the bathroom. I took off in that direction, pushing my way through everyone until I reached the door to the men’s. I stepped inside and saw Soul inside. He looked distressed.

“You can sense him, right?” I asked.

He nodded. “Yeah.”

“All right. Well, you’re a sitting duck in here.” I took a breath and tried to think.

“This is the men’s bathroom, honey.” A guy laughed as he walked past me and into the bathroom. “Whoa, sick costume, man.”

“Can you duck?” I asked, ignoring the guy. “Crouch? Make it to the stairs, and we’re home free. I’ll watch and make sure he can’t see you.”