ONE
PORTIA
Portia Flemming lounged on the plush red couch that sat against the back wall of her office. Her eyes were fixed on the big screen in front of her as she watched the security footage for the Hellscape Holiday Resort…her beloved hotel that she ran on Lucifer’s behalf.
The security screens were filled with all kinds of paranormal creatures who had come to the island for some well-deserved rest in a place where they didn’t have to hide who they were.
Witches, demons, shifters, and all kinds of creatures were welcomed at Hellscape Holiday Resort. It made Portia’s true passion and hobby all that much easier to do.
The resort was basically a great way to play matchmaker. As a succubus…a sex demon…Portia knew a thing or two about attraction, connection, and intimacy.
There was nothing that brought Portia more joy than making a love match. There was nothing wrong with spreading a little bit more joy in the world.
Portia continued to watch the screens, keeping her eyes on a particular couple that she had personally introduced. So far, their third day of hanging out was going well. The interesting part aboutthatcouple was their circumstances. She was at the resort to partake in the singles’ activities, and he was there to attend his brother’s wedding. Portia had high hopes for this couple. They would make it; she was sure of it.
“I’m bored,” Lou announced, walking into Portia’s office as if he owned it.
Of course, it didn’t matter that hedidown the place. This was just how Lou was. He’d always been an interesting person, one who took up a whole lot of space in a room. It probably came with being Hell’s ruler.
Lou lay down on the couch he conjured up a little while ago, throwing a hand over his eyes in exhaustion.
Portia watched her cousin with a smile. “I’ve known you a long time, but this is dramatic even for you.”
“I miss that adventure we had with Ruby-baby,” Lou said. “That was a whole lot of fun.”
“Careful,” she warned with pursed lips. “You know you’re not really supposed to intervene in human matters.”
“Well, I didn’t. Not really.” He shrugged.
“I don’t think that giving my niece and her boyfriend access to your portal counts asdoing nothing.”
“I’m not responsible for who Bertha wants to work with,” he interjected. “Besides, look how well that turned out for Ruby. She and Ethan are happy together. Imagine giving that to another couple.” He wiggled his brows.
“Of course, you would use my only weakness against me. You know I can’t resist a good match. Look at those two.” She proudly pointed to the screen. “They’re really well paired.”
Lou clicked his tongue. “That’s not what I meant. I wanna do a matchmaking thing that has some spice to it.”
“You purposefully want to attract trouble to Hellscape Holiday Resort? Because I’ll be honest, I don’t think that will be good for business in the long run.”
“I’m not saying it has to be dangerous. Just … you know. If anything juicy falls into your lap, make sure to keep me in on it.”
Portia narrowed her eyes at her cousin. She had known him for so long that sometimes she could guess his reactions before he even reacted. Now, it felt like Lou was up to something, and there was no telling what. And trying to get information out of Lou would have been worse than trying to take Ocho’s candy corn away.
It just wasn’t worth the trouble. Better let the ruler of Hell have his fun in his own hotel.
“Something juicy,” Portia repeated, laughing. “That’s so very specific.”
“You know what I mean. Something like before.”
Portia turned to face the screens. “I’m sure something is going to turn up. We deal with demons, and shifters, and witches. We attract trouble.”
Lou laughed. “We sure do.” He suddenly stopped laughing and sat up in his seat. “Cousin, isn’t that Alice Gatlin? The witch who helped us on our last adventure?”
“Almost adventure,” Portia corrected. “But yes, you’re right. ThatisAlice Gatlin.”
She stared at the screen, watching as the witch wrung her hands together, continuously looking over her shoulder. Portia frowned. The equipment was top of the line, but the people on the screen were still pretty small, making it difficult to truly know if Alice was as upset as she seemed to be.
“I’m going to go see her,” Portia said, heading for the door. “Something has to be wrong. She just left us not too long ago.”