Read Online Jillian Cade by Jen Klein - Free Book Online

“Exactly.”
    Something inside of me snapped. “I can’t take it anymore. The stalking and the smiling and the—”
    â€œThe what?”
    â€œThe arrogance. I can’t stand the arrogance.”
    â€œIt’s not arrogance. It’s awareness of our connection.”
    â€œDial it back,” I told him. “If you think you found something—a real something—let’s have it. Spit it out.”
    Sky sighed. “Okay, but you have to promise to give me the benefit of the doubt. It’s going to sound crazy.”
    â€œCrazier than a cable TV show starring Bryan Cranston?”
    He hesitated, looking at me. “Todd Harmon was taken by a succubus.”
    â€œMaybe you misheard me,” I said. “Tell me the truth. I’m waiting.”
    â€œA succubus,” he repeated.
    â€œLike I said, waiting. Because it sounded like you said a succubus.”
    â€œRight. It’s a female demon who loves sex.”
    I nodded. “Sounds like Corabelle. She is a female demon who loves sex.”
    But Sky had stopped grinning. In fact, his face had lost any trace of humor. Even his gold-flecked eyes had darkened. “Todd is showing every sign.”
    â€œOf another lay,” I said. “Maybe of some party drugs. Even your bullshit Breaking Bad lie made more sense. How’s that for irony?”
    â€œI’m telling you, it’s succubus addiction,” Sky said. “That’s why he was gone at night and couldn’t focus during the day. Addicts can think of nothing but the succubus who’s infected them. Nothing else can fulfill them.”
    Okay, so Sky was messing with me. I decided to play along, because maybe, at long last, this was a way to glimpse who he really was. “Okay, enlighten me. How do you get a succubus to stop screwing your guy?”
    â€œEasy,” said Sky. “Kill her.”
    â€œExcuse me?” I glanced around in case a passerby had heard his plan for paranormal murder.
    â€œYou know, make her dead.”
    â€œI got that. I just didn’t—”
    â€œDirect sunlight burns them. Like vampires.”
    My hands flung themselves into the air. “That’s it. I’m out of here!” I marched toward my car, fuming. Just my luck that the first guy I’d been attracted to in . . . well, maybe in forever . . . was this guy. And I still wasn’t entirely sure that I wasn’t the one he wanted to make dead.
    â€œWait! Jillian, listen.” Sky caught up to me, rattling off information. “On Thursday, Todd smelled like hellfire, and then he didn’t make it to work. That means he had to have first contact before that, on Wednesday. We know he was at work, and the schedule book showed only one new patient that day. Nine o’clock. Jillian, look .” He grabbed my shoulder and spun me around, then yanked up his sleeve to show me the words scribbled in thick black on his arm. It was a name: Diane Bedloe . “There’s your succubus.”
    I blinked up at him. “You’re telling me the truth right now. As in, that’s actually what you think happened. A female demon sauntered in and kidnapped a gynecologist’s intern.”
    â€œOf course not,” said Sky. “Todd followed the succubus of his own accord.”
    â€œAnd why, exactly, would Todd do that?”
    â€œBecause she kissed him. One taste. That’s all it takes.”
    â€œOkay, let me make sure I’m following.” I started to dig through my bag for my keys. “Wednesday, a succubus named Diane Bedloe masquerades as a new patient and kisses Todd Harmon. Thursday, he has breakfast with Corabelle but then tragically stops sexting her. Corabelle sees him Thursday night. He refuses to give her his sweet collegiate man-love.” I snap the bag shut. “Then he takes off Friday morning to follow the succubus.”
    Sky nodded. He’d been nodding the whole time, in