Nodding, she turned and went back to the van. The door creaked as it opened, and her slight figure made the jump inside. “At least there won’t be any traffic,” she said, and the door thumped closed.

The rumble of the van echoed against the abandoned buildings as the engine turned over. I felt Pierce’s presence beside me, and together we watched her pull away. The sound of the van quickly vanished, and we were alone. Sort of. Ku’Sox was here somewhere.

Nervous, I rubbed my palms together and breathed in the last of the exhaust fumes. “You don’t think they dropped us off at the wrong beach, do you?” I asked, and Pierce took my shoulders and turned our backs on the bay to look up to the hills of San Francisco. From here, everything looked normal, if a shade quiet and with the air markedly clean. If I had to do this with someone, I could do far worse than Pierce.

“Rachel,” Pierce said, the depth of the emotion in his voice stopping me cold. He was going to say something, overcompensating for his part in getting me cursed. But I was a demon and he had devoted his life to killing them. I didn’t want to hear it.

“Wait,” I interrupted, turning to find that he was too close. I didn’t move as he reached to steady me, his hand not falling when I found my balance. His dusty hair was all over, making him look endearing as he squinted from the wind off the bay. The slant to his eyes was determined, and I knew he had the strength to back up whatever he deemed a worthy task. He thought he loved me, even forgiving me for having prevented him from killing Al, and it was breaking my heart.

And I will cry when I go because I could love you forever.

I couldn’t love him. It would destroy him slowly, and I didn’t want that.

I leaned toward him, wishing I didn’t stink of the ever-after and demons. He blinked as he saw my intention, and his hands moved, one sliding behind my neck and the other holding firmly to my fingers. My head tilted and my lips opened. They met his in a shock of ley line, and I quivered.

I felt a tear slip out as Pierce held me, space between us as we kissed, leaving me aching when our lips parted. I didn’t know why I’d done it, except that I might die today. At least I’d die in the sun.

“Pierce,” I said softly, our kiss ended but our foreheads still touching. “I can’t—”

We shifted apart, and he put a finger to my lips. I could taste his salt, and I blinked fast.

“I know,” he said, his eyes flicking behind me to the water for a moment as if unable to hold my gaze. “Don’t say it,” he asked. “Wait until the sun sets tonight, and if we are both here to see it, then my heart will break knowing you are safe and yet not to be mine. If you are gone, then my heart will break knowing that God has taken you home, because there is no way in hell that that demon Ku’Sox is going to kill you. I won’t allow it.”