A Hero in Hiding (Vexing Villains, #2)

by Alice Winters

“Umm… I don’t know about that, but I sure was impressed,” August says while giving me the sweetest smile. How the hell I ever ended up lucky enough to be with the literal nicest man in the world is beyond me. “Okay… it made me a little horny. I just… thought it’d sound weird.” “God, you’re hot,” I whisper. “Thank you. You are very hot as well.”

I don’t need a hero, August. I never did. I need you.”

“Every day that you go out and help people I’m worried something will happen to you which is, one hundred percent, the only reason I go help. I’m going to be honest… I’m not into the whole hero thing. I don’t go out there for them, I go out there for you.

“Saying ‘dear god’ is your issue!” Deus says. “Praise be the demons, you mean!”

“Oh great Beelzebub, I sure didn’t have to work this hard when trying to kill you two.”

“This is Deus. He’s our…” I glance at August, not exactly positive what he is. “Entertainment,” August decides on. “Yes, entertainment.”

August watches him warily before climbing onto the smallest sliver left. He grabs the remote and turns a movie on and for some weird as hell reason, I find it absolutely delightful. Like… I’m being wrapped up in something warm and comforting as they surround me. And that disgusts me.

Ellison shows absolutely no sign of giving a single shit about this.

“This is just… you’re beautiful, you know that?” Deus asks, and Ellison’s face is on fire.

Landon’s forced into the limelight because he loves me and has to deal with shit like Hannah and others questioning who he is every single day. Lex is fucking terrified of his power, and if he had the choice, I don’t think he’d be here either. Deus… Deus just wants someone to care about him and he had the shit luck of stumbling upon us. Even Ellison, who fucking follows the rules as well as you do, sees the issues with all of this and goes behind your back to help us.”

“You want a pair?” “Why didn’t you cut out like an ad or something? Why did you pick the breasts?” Ellison asks. “I cut out the nipples! It’s all fine. No one will notice,” he says, like not everyone has already noticed.

I kind of feel like I should apologize, but I also don’t know how to apologize for such an atrocity.