Demon Moon

Whatever Fia had experienced, it obviously wasn’t the same as Savi had in Caelum.
    Savi pulled on her jeans, then shrugged into her white cotton shirt and left it unbuttoned. “Was it that good? What he did to you?”
    Fia’s gaze unfocused. “Yes. I think. Afterward, I was completely blown away and shaky, but trying to pretend I wasn’t. But when he was feeding from me—” Her brows drew together, and she shook her head. “I don’t really remember. Maybe it was too good; now it feels absolutely unreal.”
    So were demons and Guardians and vampires. Given that reality had shifted so drastically in the last year, Savi had no idea what that meant.

    When Savi pushed through the locker room door, Colin was leaning against the opposite wall with his hands tucked into his pockets, an easy smile on his lips, and a predatory gleam in his eyes. “It was that good, Savi.”
    She couldn’t conceal the flush that rose over her neck, but she didn’t need to feign her laughter. “You just lost all of the progress you made this week. You could’ve at least pretended you didn’t eavesdrop.” And she shouldn’t have assumed he’d remained in the gym waiting for her.
    He placed his palm over his chest. “You wound me, accusing me of such.” His smile faded. “You should indulge your curiosity.”
    She looked away, tried to steady her heartbeat.
    He gave a short, self-satisfied laugh. “Your line used to be: ‘I did that once.’”
    Her breath caught painfully, and she glanced back at him. “That bordered on ‘complete ass.’”
    He stilled. “So it did. I shall try not to triumph over my small victories, sweet Savitri.”
    Surely it’d be like trying to deny himself blood—but at least he didn’t falsely apologize for it. “Not aloud, anyway.”
    The corners of his eyes crinkled with amusement. “Yes.”
    But if Colin still triumphed as they neared the exit, Savi was certain it left him the instant Michael teleported into the corridor ahead of them and folded his giant black wings against his back.
    She read the sudden tension around Colin’s mouth and eyes; he’d been smiling over Jeeves’s overly formal farewell, but now his lips were stiffly curved, as if he held the smile through force of will.
    The Doyen nodded in response to Savi’s greeting, but his eerie obsidian gaze remained on Colin. There was no differentiation between whites and irises and pupils—just a deep black. They weren’t always so inhuman; why adopt that look now?
    “You are not going in tonight?”
    A muscle worked in Colin’s jaw before he said, “Tomorrow. After sunrise.”
    Though almost impossible to tell, Savi thought Michael’s gaze shifted to her before returning to the vampire. His hand rose, and his fingers moved in the sign language the Guardians had adopted for silent communication. Colin had apparently learned it in the past eight months; Savi had not.
    Colin made a tight gesture of assent, then added sardonically, “I’ve delayed my daysleep this week, intending that it will come upon me quickly after I leave tomorrow. If you take me, please wait until I am fully asleep. And remove my head first; I’m certain curators at The British Museum would like to pickle it for posterity.”
    Michael remained silent for a moment, then sighed and disappeared.
    Savi blinked and listened for a pop of air rushing to fill the Doyen-sized vacuum; but as always, there was none. Nothing worked as it should with these Guardians. She glanced at Colin and found him watching her with a raised brow.
    “I’m trying not to,” she said, and pressed her lips together.
    If his laughter was a bit strained, she barely noticed—not when he took her hand in his and tucked it into his elbow, holding it clasped there as they continued outside. He wasn’t as massive as Michael or Hugh, but there was no mistaking the lean strength of his muscles under her fingers—the result of an active lifestyle when he’d been a human, not magic. “You may ask. But allow us to reach the privacy of the car first.”
    The scent of his cologne clung to his jacket—and she thought she detected a deeper, warmer scent beneath. Male skin. Had her senses been enhanced along with her strength? She hadn’t noticed any difference before now. “May I ask others on the way?”
    “Such as?” He guided her around a hole in the asphalt.
    “What did an aristocrat’s son do that gave him a laborer’s hardness?” She squeezed his taut