Dancing With the Devil

Chapter 14

Dante's P.O.V.

"Hey, Dante! Will we meet again?"

Holding back an irritated groan, I give Nero a final two-finger salute without breaking stride or turning to face him as I continue walking away. With the so-called Savior now defeated, I can go back to my shop, kick up my feet, and return to business as usual. My first task at the moment, however, is to find a restaurant that serves decent pizza. To my feet, it seems as though I've walked an entire marathon before I'm finally able to sit down at the counter of a cool place named The Devil's Lair. The second I open my mouth to ask where the waiter's disappeared to, a blazing hot babe bursts out of a pair of doors behind the counter. She skips over to me with a pen and a small notepad in hand.

"Hello and welcome to The Devil's Lair," she trills happily, "Fortuna's finest foodie fan club. I'm Diana and I'll be your server for this evening. What can I get for you?"

"I'll take a sixteen inch prosciutto with extra cheese, garlic potatoes, no olives, and make it crispy," I answer, watching her scribble it all down on her notepad. "And I'd like to be out of here before sundown, if you don't mind."

"Absolutely, I'll get on your order right away," Diana replies, racing back through the doors that I'm assuming led to the kitchen.

Turning around to face the meager assembly of customers, I find myself thinking about something that has significant importance to me. But I can't quite pinpoint it, which frustrates me to no end. It doesn't concern any of my debts to Lady or else I'd be taking more jobs and making an honest effort to earn some more money. Not that I'd actually want to pay her, anyway. I can't think of anything else that it could be, which just infuriates me even further. The sound of a plate being set down on the counter behind me and the familiar, mouthwatering scent of my favorite food drags my thoughts back to the present. Swiveling around in my seat, I find that my order has been rendered in absolute perfection... All brought together by a toothpick in the center with a flag-like piece of paper pierced onto it. Upon closer inspection, I see that Diana's signature has been scribbled on it, including what I'm assuming is her phone number. Looking up, I watch her return into the kitchen with a wink to me. I can't help but chuckle to myself.

"Maybe my luck with women is finally starting to turn around."

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"Is it just me or are you disappearing to get food more often now?"

With my hand on the doorknob, I let out a sigh and reluctantly turn to stand my ground against the disapproving leers of Lady and Trish.

"Well? We're waiting, Dante," Trish urges impatiently.

"Fine, the guilty is charged," I grumble, whipping back around to the door. ""But this demon's still gotta eat-."

"Oh no you don't!" Both women lunge forward, grab me by the shoulders, and drag me over to my chair, forcing me to sit.

"Aw c'mon, babes. I'm hungry!"

"You've got more important things to worry about than food," Lady scolds, holding up a business card in my face. "Remember this, Dante?"

Taking the card, I read it over several times before handing it back to her with a scoff of irritation.

"You tryin' to tell me my weapons aren't sharp enough or something?"

The stunned silence that follows my honest question only tells me that I should have remembered something unbelievably important. To confirm this, Lady storms up to me and delivers an agonizing left hook to my face. I groan in pain, bringing my hands up to shield my face just in the of chance that she decides to take another swing. Before I can even complain, she starts rambling on about something. Can't tell what it is or if she's even speaking in English because she's talking so fast.