Harlee POV

Zeev had taught me how to say his True Name out loud. That was dangerous information, yet he had trusted me with it. I hugged my ribs.

"Earth to Harlee!" Josh called rudely. Damn, I'd forgotten I was at work. So much had happened and yet, here I was again...

"Dreaming of your Demon boyfriend again?" Josh sneered.

"He's not-I mean he wasn't..." I stammered.

"You mean you two are dating now?!" Josh hit the roof. "Tell me you're not having sex! No don't tell me! But at least tell me you're using protection! Demons can impregnate women you know!!" Josh was stomping back and forth. "Quick-when was the date of your last period?" He demanded.

"Not that it's any of your business, but my period just ended you perv." I stared him down and he blushed.

"Well that's good. No Rosemary's baby yet at least." Josh muttered. "I still think you should go on the pill or something. Or better yet-get rid of that Demon." Josh demanded.

"I can't." I sighed for the thousandth time. "He has half my soul and can't give it back."

"Demon's lie." Josh spat.

"I don't know about that, but an Angel told us that." I waved a hand.

"Say what?!" Josh freaked out again. "You met an Angel you're still alive?! We've gotta get you away from that Demon!"

"Look, Josh-he gave up the rest of his Grace to save my life. I don't think he's the threat here." I stated bluntly, ignoring him.

"He did what?! Oh my God! Things just keep getting worse the more you tell me!" Josh started muttering to himself but I ignored him again. I felt Zeev's presence before I saw him and leapt lightly over the counter to run to him as he rounded the corner. He opened his arms and caught me mid-leap with a grin. My chest relaxed.

"Good afternoon, My Lady-are you ready to go home?" He asked, ruffling my hair. I frowned at him, shoving his hand away. He knew I hated that, but the gentle smile on his face had me smiling in return in no time.

"Yes please." I groaned.

"Young Mage." Zeev greeted Josh lightly.

"Demon." Josh growled. Kayla laughed as she rounded the corner.

"What, did you two start some D&D group or something?" She asked.

"Something like that." I sighed and tugged Zeev towards the door. He came willingly and slung an arm around my shoulder. I could almost feel Josh bristle behind us as Zeev grinned beside me.

"So what's on today's menu?" I joked as we walked out of the store.

"Hmm... I was thinking I might treat you to dinner out." Zeev answered.

"What?" I asked, stopping in my tracks. He turned to look at me. "Don't tell me you're getting all mushy on me because of the other night..."

"How long has it been since you went out and enjoyed yourself?" Zeev replied. "I know for a fact that you haven't seen anyone since I've been around. You scarcely go out with your friends for more than a few hours, so all you do is work and sleep. Don't you want to live?" Zeev urged. "Just let me do something nice for you." He begged. I sighed.

"Alright-but when I say I wanna go-we gotta go." I responded.

"Understood, My Lady." Zeev grinned. I felt uneasy.

Zeev made me shower and change, the clothes he presented were dressy, but not too much different from my usual fare. I relaxed a little, since he'd just set out a long frilly shirt that could double as a dress that he'd paired with dark slim-legged pants, and dressy but comfortable flat soled shoes. Doable, not over the top. He greeted me at the bedroom door dressed in a casual suit and my jaw nearly dropped.

"Damn." I whispered. It was truly unfair. I knew he looked like a male model because he was a freakin' Demon, but this was wrong.

"Obviously you haven't looked at yourself either." Zeev said greedily, looking at me like he could eat me whole. I shivered. He reached out a hand and brushed the Mark along my jaw. A flash of electricity accompanied by what I looked like through his eyes shot through me. I blushed.

"You're biased." I accused. "Because of the Bond, and the soul thing..." He silenced me by leaning in and kissing me, dropping all his barriers. What was this feeling coming from him? I pushed him back and turned my head away. "It's just the Bond." I repeated. There's no way. How could a Demon be falling for a human? The very human he tried to consume and was now pledged for all eternity to? It had to be the Bond.

Zeev POV
Harlee's rejections stung, burning like poison through my veins. But at the same time, it was accompanied by a sense of determination. If she couldn't believe my feelings for her were more than just the Bond, then I would have to prove to her it was actual love. It may take Millennia, but we had time. I tried to swallow the bitter pain it had caused as I reached for her hand.

"Come, let's go." I murmured to her and stepped us into a deserted street. I pulled her forward towards the crowd up ahead, excitement building in both our chests. It was a street fair kind of thing, one I knew Harlee adored. Her pace quickened and she squeezed my hand tightly. I felt an overflow of warmth through our link. I had done well, and this was better than praise. I felt my heart swell with pride. When we stepped out into the crowd, they parted before us like we were royalty. All eyes were on us, and I heard the whispers and comments about our looks and sudden appearance. Harlee was too distracted looking this way and that, wanting to see and do everything. I laughed lightly and pulled her closer.

"Let's just start walking up one side and come down the other, yeah?" I murmured against her ear, arm wrapped around her chest. She shivered, then nodded eagerly.

We stopped people everywhere we went. Vendors were smitten as she gushed over their wares. She stared longingly at the custard stand, so of course I bought her one, the swirl of ice cream was almost as tall as her head. The vendor had dished out extra because he thought she was adorable. I tugged her away before he could get any ideas. Harlee offered me some of the cone and I took an obedient lick or two and understood why she liked it so much. I was almost tempted to go back for one of my own. She giggled, reading the thought clearly on my face. I ruffled her hair and she shoved my hand away in irritation. I found that endearing, even though I knew it annoyed her. She ended up feigning fullness towards the end and handed me the rest of the cone, even though I could easily tap into our link and tell she was still starving and desired the rest of the cone. She was trying to be kind. I ruffled her hair again and took the cone from her, licking the trail of sticky sweetness that had run down her wrist from her hand. She blushed hard. Time stood still for me for an instant, and then she looked away again, and everything returned to normal.

Down the street from this place was a little restaurant that had outdoor seating. I had checked and it had specialties that included Harlee's weird vegetarian diet. I led her towards it while she objected.

"But the fair!" She cried

"Will still be here. We'll come back-you're hungry." I said gently. "Let's stop and eat and then see what else we can find here." She quieted and let me lead her to a seat outside the restaurant.

Through our link I felt once again the little surge of pleasure as Harlee took note of the menu and she saw I'd been paying attention. She glanced at me surreptitiously.

"Zeev, I just want to thank you for this afternoon." She said quietly. Again I felt the surge of pleasure. It was like Harlee had patted me on the head. I could sense there were other things she wanted to say. That she had noticed I paid attention, that maybe she was wrong, that maybe... She reached out a hand towards mine hesitantly and I froze.

"Hiya! What can I get you lovely folks today?" A waiter interrupted. If Harlee was not in control of my Demonic abilities, I might have melted the person down with my gaze at that very moment. She withdrew her hand and ordered her meal. I ordered a salad to compliment her meal, if she was still hungry it would be available. Things were quiet at our table as the waiter rushed off. Harlee stared into the distance. Her hand reaching for mine earlier-it had been different from our usual touches to quell the ache in our chests. Even now under the table, our legs were entwined, a subtle way of maintaining contact that freed up our hands. But this had been hesitant, shy...

Harlee POV
I collapsed on the bed after changing into pajamas. Zeev appeared beside the bed within a few moments and pulled me against his chest. Though the ragged ache had improved after the Bonding, the two soul fragments still longed to be close, they just had a more tangible tie now that bound them together. Like a string running between two tin cans. The feelings he had were muddling my head.

"I wouldn't be the only one, you know." Zeev told me quietly. "Who ever developed feelings for a human."

"But you're a Demon, you can't experience love like we do." I rolled over to face him. He moved a strand of hair off my face.

"You forget-I possess half a human soul now." He whispered. I blinked. A tumble of confused emotions ran through me.

"Isn't that like weird and perverted then? Like me loving myself?" I joked. Zeev laughed.

"And what's wrong with that?" He ran a hand over my Mark and I shivered. "But no. The longer your soul fragment remains with me, the less 'yours' it is and more 'mine' it becomes. It's still two halves of one whole but..." He placed my hand on his chest. "Can you tell me this is the same soul I took from you?" I flinched. I knew, deep down, he was right. Even the Angel had said my soul was tainted...

"Does that mean you'll one day be human?" I asked, looking at my hand. He laughed again.

"No. But I might be the only Demon with a soul." He shrugged. I closed my eyes. What if he was right-what if that made things different?