Darkest Sins (Perfectly Imperfect #9)

There is no answer, just the steady sound of his breaths. I crack one eye open and find him watching me. His head is bent, our faces are barely inches away.

“You were there, weren’t you?”

“Yes.” He holds my gaze, unblinking. Waiting for my reaction.

“Why?”

“Too many people. Too many potential threats. I needed to know you were safe.”

“I don’t need a guardian angel,” I whisper and lift my hand to trace the line of his chin with the backs of my fingers. Hisbreath brushes my hand as he leans into my touch ever so slightly.

“Good. Because that’s not what you got.”

“And what did I get?”

He dips his head until our noses almost touch. “A demon, tiger cub.”

A small smile tugs at my lips. I can still hear the rumble of the passing cars on the street below, but the traffic has lessened. It must be well into the night by now. My dark protector looks away, turning to stare at the night sky.

Tranquility descends, and my eyelids feel heavy. I should probably head back inside, to bed, if I’m to be of any use tomorrow, but I can’t make myself leave. Closing my eyes, I let his scent and closeness envelop me.

“Are you sleeping?”

“Trying to,” I murmur.

“Letting your guard down while you’re with someone you don’t know isn’t wise.”

“Are you planning to hurt me?”

“Never.”

“Then, I’m good.” I adjust my blanket and close my eyes again. “Just for the record, you make an excellent pillow, demon.”

“Is that . . . a compliment?”

“Definitely.”

He’s so warm, and being snuggled into him feels like I’m leaning up against a furnace. But even outside that cocoon of body heat, he makes me feel comfortable. Protected. And notonly in a physical sense. Secure to say what’s on my mind. Safe to just be . . . myself.

Drifting into a blissful haze, I’m dimly aware of the regular world that continues to turn. The less-than-empty streets. A siren in the distance, breaking the hum of traffic. The not-quite stillness of the night.

“You don’t have any pets,” he says in that broken voice.

“Nope.”

“Why?”

“Because, keeping an animal indoors means keeping them confined. Almost like a prison. There’s nothing worse than knowing your life has been relegated to a box, and no matter how pretty that box is, it’s still a cage. Maybe one day, if I have a house somewhere outside the city limits, and a big yard where they could roam free. Maybe, I’ll even have horses.” I chuckle sleepily, remembering my dad’s comment on horse insemination. “What about you?”

“I don’t really have an opinion about animals.”

“You don’t have an opinion?” I snort.

“No. Animals are just nuisances. Things that come across my path from time to time. They don’t interest me, so I ignore them.” He rests his chin on the top of my head, and a shiver of awareness runs down my spine. “But I think I’m becoming partial to felines, tiger cub.”

“You don’t look like a cat guy to me.”

“I don’t like animals in general.”