EIGHTEEN

ALANNA

With a cheerful smile on my face, I knock on the door of Zeron's chamber, a tray containing his breakfast balanced on my other hand. The door creaks open and I walk in, the dark shadows instantly wrapping themselves around me, it tickles though. It feels like they are very comfortable around me and it doesn't feel weird. "Hey" I say to Zeron who is lying on his bed, facing the ceilings. He looks tired but there's a different air around him. He's still a demon and all but, something's changed.

"I brought you breakfast" I say, leaning closer to press a kiss to his temple. A smile ghosts over his lips and I grin. "Help me up" he rasps and I gently bring him to a sitting position with several pillows behind his back, supporting him. His long hair falls over most part of his face and I smile at how adorable he looks right now. My adorable demon. It feels surreal knowing that I had confessed my feelings to him and for the first time since I'd known him, he'd cried his heart out in front of me. I carefully move his hair out of the way and wrap it into a bun. "Z, what are we going to do about my deal with the forest spirit?" I ask and he bites his lower lip, pensively. Damn, that's hot.

"I'll figure it out. For now, I don't think I can take anything into my stomach right now. My whole body hurts and I'm not really hungry at the moment"

"How are you feeling exactly?" I ask and he sighs, his shoulders slumped.

"I feel different and I can't tell if it's a bad thing or not, yet. But if there's one thing that hasn't changed, it's the darkness trying to push it's way to the surface. Alanna, I know you're in love with me and all, but you're still not safe around me" he rasps and I place the tray containing his breakfast on the night stand.

"We've talked about this, Z. Don't push me away. I love you and I don't care that you're struggling. My love will be enough for the both of us" I say and he lays back down on his bed, his gaze resting heavily on me.

"I really don't deserve you" he croaks and I sigh.

"But here I am. I'm here to stay, Z. I'm never going to leave you alone" I whisper and he closes his eyes with his right hand fisted over his chest. I quietly rise to my feet and just as I take a step away from his bedside, he grabs my arm. "Stay" he mutters, his chest heaving. "Please" he whispers and my heart skips a beat in my chest. I slowly lower myself onto the bed and curl up into his side without our bodies making contact. But then, Zeron surprises me by moving closer to me and wrapping his arm around my waist with his head buried in the curve of my neck. I can practically feel the coldness of his breath. But on the contrary, his skin is boiling hot. "Z, you have a fever" I say and I feel him grunt against my skin. "Just stay with me" he responds and I close my eyes, resting my hand on his arm that is now wrapped around my waist. "You make me want to be strong for you" he states and I close my eyes, butterflies filling my stomach. I'm so in love with this stubborn, drop dead gorgeous demon. Beneath all the darkness, I can tell that he's a good person and I just have to make him see beyond his layers and accept who he really is. The knock on the door startles me but Zeron remains completely still beside me, except for the rythmical movements of his chest every time he inhales or exhales. Azalea walks in but freezes when she notices me in bed with her brother. "Wow, this is so shocking. Alanna, what's going on?" She whispers.

"He asked me to stay with him" I respond and her eyes widens. "He seems to be warming up to you. I'm so glad about that. We'll talk later, okay? For now, I'll leave you two to your cuddling session" My cheeks flush pink and she winks at me before leaving the room. With a contented sigh, I close my eyes and soon I'm taking a dive into dreamland.

....

Opening my eyes, I groggily sit up in Zeron's bed. He doesn't seem to be anywhere in the room but his shadows are still hanging around and I can only guess that he's in the washroom. As if on cue, he steps out of the washroom with a white towel wrapped around his waist. My husband is so attractive. He would totally fit as a model for Calvin Klein underwears. He freezes when he notices my gaze. Suddenly, his eyes darkens and heat creeps up my neck. "Like what you see?" He asks in a sultry voice.

Is my husband seducing me?

Well, yeah.

Is it working? Totally.

But, I'm freaking out. What if he wants to consummate our marriage? I'm not ready, yeesh. Or am I?

"Relax, beautiful. I'm just teasing you. With the look you were giving me, I was starting to get the wrong message" he states and I lower my gaze, embarrassed. I remain quiet, unconsciously fiddling with my fingers as he gets dressed. "Shouldn't your maids be dressing you up or something?" I ask and he pauses. "That used to be the case decades ago. But I stopped them from coming to my chambers because everyday, I would murder one of the maids without meaning to. But now that I'm not as ferocious as I used to be, I'm sure I can work that out. You wouldn't mind, would you?" He says with a mocking tone. I clench my fist at the thought of any maid rendering such service to my husband.

"This is shocking. You actually get jealous" he says with an incredulous tone. "No, I don't. I don't get jealous" I protest, clearing my throat. "Well, I'll be damned. I have a meeting with the council elders" he tells me as he buttons up the gold buttons of his dark blue royal jacket. "Concerning?" I say and he tilts his head. "Do you really want to know?"

"Yeah, sure"

He sighs and I rise to my feet to tend to his hair.

"Lochan has broken through the palace wards twice and it is not a good sign. We need to strengthen the wards. We don't know what he's planning yet" I frown as I continue to braid his hair. "If you weren't there, Lochan would've gotten me real good. I was in no position to fight and I don't want that reppeating itself" he states.

"Okay" I breathe and secure his golden crown on his head after finishing with the last of the braids. He rises to his feet and kisses my cheek. "Don't get used to this, human. You still have a long way to go. But, don't worry you're not in my murder list anymore. You interest me and that's good. You should count yourself lucky" he says as I gaze into his eyes that have become so dark they are almost black. He presses a kiss to the corner of my lips, a smirk curving his lips. "You're not scared, good. You might just be my kryptonite and I don't mind. Just don't get yourself killed if I actually do fall in love with you" He spins around on his heels and walks away, his dark blue cloak trailing behind him. I let out the breath I didn't know I was holding and plop down on the bed, a smile on my face. What can I say? I guess I'm so whipped for my demon.