Demons of Desire Read online

  Okay, that wasn’t so bad. I glared at Ourson, just to make sure, and got the feeling from his expression that he was being honest with me. Biting me aside, he’d always seemed like an upfront kind of guy.

  “And what sort of support would you provide to them?” I forced my voice into a neutral tone, to prevent my disbelief from showing. Slight distrust aside, Ourson was my friend, and I didn’t want to insult him or his family.

  “We can assist them in funding business ventures, or in funds for coven activities. It’s not just money, though. There have been times in the past when being a witch or a magician was dangerous. We’ll protect them, shield them from groups or individuals who may do them harm.”

  This didn’t sound too bad. My fears laid to rest, I gave Ourson an impulsive hug. Surprisingly, he returned it, ruffling my blond hair as we parted.

  “I’d rather work with witches,” he confessed with a quick glance at Jordan and her friends. “Mages are powerful, but they tend to be self–serving. Modern witches have more honor, especially those that follow the Wiccan path.” He frowned. “You do think this Jordan witch is honorable, don’t you? I trust your opinion. Succubi are good judges of character.”

  I bit back a laugh. I’d never thought myself particularly skilled at determining motive or the character of anyone — human or otherwise. Ever since I’d found out what I really was, I’d swam in a sea of suspicion. Still, I trusted Jordan, and if I did, then a vampire could certainly trust her too — as long as they didn’t get bitey.

  “She’s honorable, but if she suspects you’re not, all deals are off. Got it?”

  Ourson’s eyes were serious as they met mine. “Got it.”

  Everyone quickly scattered to their various posts after exchanging cell phone numbers, and Irix drove me back to his beautiful brick house. We didn’t exchange so much as a single word the entire way there, and it was bliss. I nearly dozed off in the passenger seat, my head against the cool glass of the window, feeling the soothing rumble of the Audi through my tired muscles. Once there, I staggered up the steps, shedding clothes as I climbed.

  After freshening up in the little hallway bathroom, I headed straight for the bed. Irix was there, putting a bottle of water and what looked like a plate of cookies on the nightstand. I swear, this guy was better than the service at the Hilton.

  “I’ve got to run out for a few hours,” he said, his back to me. “I’ll make reservations for tonight and text Darci the details. Call me if you need anything.”

  Yep, definitely better than the Hilton. Something in me twinged with disappointment that he wasn’t going to curl up with me in bed. I yearned to feel the strength of his arms around me, the long length of his thigh draped across my legs, the brush of his hair against my shoulder. It was probably for the best, though. I doubted we’d get much sleep if we fell into bed together, and I desperately needed rest.

  “Thank you.”

  He turned, his eyes shadowed and somber. “After dinner, we’re going to find you someone. I won’t take ‘no’ for an answer, Amber.”

  I knew exactly what he meant, and my stomach plunged. This thing between us was so new, and I wasn’t sure what would happen introducing our demonic needs into the relationship this early. Somehow I had hoped it could just be the two of us, no matter how impractical and impossible that situation would be. We needed others, the pair of us. Monogamy would never be part of our lives.

  “You can’t exist solely on the energy I transfer to you, elf–girl.” He smiled, but it was a tight, grim sort of smile.

  “I know.” My mouth was like dried cotton as I replied. I did know, but the reality of our situation didn’t make me feel any better.

  He was in front of me in two quick paces, kissing me quickly on the forehead. “Sleep. We’ve got a busy night ahead, and eleven more spots to repair tomorrow.”

  I watched him leave, closing the door behind him. His parting words were like a shot of adrenaline, leaving me exhausted yet filled with restless insomnia as I crawled between the cool, soft sheets. Eleven more. Shit, how was I going to do that?

  * * *

  25

  I floated into consciousness with the warmth of skin pressed along my backside. An arm curled around my waist, angling upward to cup my breast with a long–fingered hand. I rubbed along Irix’s body like a cat, purring as sleep fell from my mind.

  “Better?”

  The hand at my breast slid gently around the base, a finger flicking lightly at my nipple. My breath hitched, and I leaned into his hand, enjoying the languorous feeling of waking in a man’s arms.

  Irix chuckled. “I take that as a yes.”

  His lips trailed down my neck and across my shoulder as his fingers tortured my breast with feather–light touches. I reached a hand behind me, trying desperately to reach an equally sensitive part of his anatomy, but my position only allowed me to stroke along the lower part of his waist and across the hard planes of his hips to the powerful thighs pressed against mine. He murmured in appreciation, and I caressed the length of his leg, feeling the springy roughness of sparse dark hair and taut muscle.

  “Ah, my elf–girl, you tempt a demon beyond every rational thought. I’d love to spend the evening driving you to the edge so you make that little squeaking noise, but we have dinner reservations.”

  Only one thing penetrated my fog of sleepy desire. “I do not make squeaky noises!”

  “You’re right.” His fingers stroked the sensitive flesh on the side of my breast, and a serpentine shift of his body brought the firmness of his erection against my ass. “It’s more like a whimper. The kind of noise a little puppy makes when it’s rooting for its mother’s milk.”

  That wasn’t much better, but by this point I didn’t care. He could have compared me to a shrieking harpy and I would have ignored it.

  “Of course I look and sound like I’m having some kind of cardiac event. Or possibly being eviscerated by another demon with horns. Did I ever tell you how much I hate horns?”

  It was hard for me to reconcile the sultry demon who drove me to orgasmic insanity and this playful, funny one. He seemed to be both at once right now, his hand roving lower to stroke tantalizingly close to where I really wanted it to be. My body lit up with sensation like a sparkler on the fourth of July, and I struggled to keep my mind on his words.

  “How do you know what you look and sound like?” I couldn’t imagine one of his entranced humans would have had the nerve to make such an unflattering observation of the incubus.

  “Oh, I know. Some demons are very fond of mirrors — humans too. Walls of them, sometimes on the floors and ceilings. It’s rather a mood breaker to watch yourself during la petite mort, let me tell you.”

  My laugh came out as a very unsexy snort, and we both snickered.

  “Oh, I like that as much as the puppy noises,” Irix teased, tickling me lightly across the stomach. “But we need to get going. Darci will be there soon, and you’re leaving in a few days. I know you want to spend time with her.”

  I did. Sighing, I pulled myself away from his warmth and slide out of bed, looking for my clothing. Crap. I should have gone to Darci’s. None of my clothes were here besides the jeans and t–shirt I’d worn all day. With the heat, I’m sure they were a bit ripe.

  “No, in the closet. While you were playing Sleeping Beauty, I picked up a few things.”

  I opened the closet door, convinced there would be a miniscule black dress, or a skin–tight backless number in fire–engine red. Instead, beside a row of shirts and pants, hung a flowing white dress. It seemed to be one long, thin piece of fabric, wrapped halter–style across the bodice, cinching the waist, then widening into a knee–length skirt that slit up the side to where my hip would be.

  “Ooo, pretty!”

  “It’s as close as I could come to what elven women wear in Hel without causing you to be arrested for indecent exposure. Not that you couldn’t smile your way out of that.”

  I’d been told that the
elves generally felt more skin should show than cloth. My stepsister had to be strongly persuaded to cover her breasts and rear end after spending her entire life among the elves.

  I slid into the dress after searching in vain for clean undergarments. There was no way to wear my bra with the backless style, but a pair of panties would have been welcome. I eyed the ones crumpled on the floor with my dirty jeans and wondered if I had time to wash them in the bathroom sink and blast them with the blow dryer.

  “Oh no you don’t.” Irix watched me intently from the bed, the sheets a tangle around his legs, his chest bare in the orange glow of sunlight streaming through the windows. “It’s commando for you tonight, my elven princess.”

  I stuck my tongue out at him and sashayed into the bathroom, fully aware that his eyes followed every move of my hips. A spare hair tie from my purse gave me a tousled up do, but I’d have to go without makeup. I glanced in the mirror, thankful I’d always had a clear complexion and that my eyelashes were a few shades darker than my golden hair.

  Irix was shrugging into a shirt when I walked back into the bedroom, his pants unfortunately already on.

  “Well, this is as good as it’s going to get.” I announced.

  He glanced up, his eyes warm as they did a slow tour of my form. “Good thing, or you’d be leaving a trail of dead bodies in your wake. You’re beautiful enough to stop a man’s heart, little half breed.”

  I laughed, flattered and a bit embarrassed. “Well, the sneakers are going to ruin the effect, unless you intend for me to go both commando and barefoot?”

  “Dear girl, never doubt my attention to every detail.”

  The demon grinned as he lifted a shoe box from the end of the bed and handed it to me. Inside was a gorgeous pair of peep–toe pumps — cream with gold soles and heels. I slipped them on, marveling at the comfort even though I stood on my tiptoes, a good three inches taller than I had been.

  We stood for a moment, admiring each other. The incubus was breathtaking in simple slacks and shirt, his sable hair loose and brushing his shoulder. Even in jeans, he looked like he should be standing on his yacht as it drifted on a turquoise sea. The perfect fit and high quality of his clothes emphasized that air of casual wealth. But it was his face that really captivated me. A wayward lock curled from his forehead along sculpted cheekbones to tease the corner of his mouth, and I could hardly tear my eyes away. Part of me wanted to bail on Darci and have Irix slowly slide the dress from my body. A vision of him on top of me, my legs around his waist, gold heels digging into his hips flashed across my mind. Delayed gratification always made sex all the better, and we had all evening to let the tension build to its crescendo. With a little luck, we’d be so frenzied we’d never make it to the bed. Sex on the staircase was one of my favorites.

  “We better go.” My voice husky with desire.

  Irix extended his arm gallantly, one corner of his mouth quirking up in a lopsided smile. “Only if you promise to tell me all those naughty thoughts going through your mind just now. I nearly changed my mind watching the look on your face.”

  I snaked my hand inside the crook of his arm, laying it lightly on his hard bicep. “Tell you? I plan to show you.”

  Lust danced in his golden eyes. “Oh, even better!”

  * * *

  26

  There’s a storm alert.” Darci’s tone was excessively casual as she popped a shrimp into her mouth. A drop of garlic butter hovered for a second on her full lower lip before she licked it off with a sexy swipe of her tongue.

  Gavin’s eyes snagged on his girlfriend’s mouth before he reluctantly tore his gaze away to his own meal. He’d gotten off work early and joined us to make the evening a couples’ date. “No worry. It’s just a tropical storm, and it looks like it’s going to clip southwest Florida and peter out in the Gulf.”

  “Wasn’t this one of the tropical depressions over the Bahamas yesterday?” I didn’t know much about hurricanes, but something moving that fast seemed a bit concerning to me.

  Gavin shrugged. “It’s hurricane season. This kind of thing is regular as rain. Unless there’s a change in the storm track, or an upgrade in status, it’s just business as usual for us.”

  Darci and I exchanged a quick glance. Something about this storm bothered me — badly.

  “That is fast.” Darci stiffened, lowering her voice. “Katrina went from a tropical storm to a category three in one day, then four the next. This could be nothing, but we should be prepared in case there’s an evacuation announcement. Even if this turns out to be nothing, there’s another one right behind it.”

  She was skirting the issue because Gavin didn’t know about our paranormal status, or the magical sabotage of the bayous, the levees, and at least one dam. I ran the numbers in my head. A tropical storm near southwest Florida could easily veer into Mexico, die in the Gulf, or slam into Galveston or Louisiana. My skills were in plants, not weather. I was totally out of my element.

  “Fifty–miles–per–hour winds with gusts at seventy–five around Key West,” Darci commented, her mouth a grim line. “As Gavin said, nothing to worry about. Now.”

  I read between the lines. It was a lot to worry about. With everything we’d seen, these Crimson Moon folks were primed for a hurricane to reach New Orleans. Who’s to say they’d leave it all up to fate? They could negate my healing of the cypress trees, implement devastating spells in both dams and levees. Would it be beyond their abilities to influence weather? It wouldn’t take much to grow a tropical storm to a hurricane, and change the trajectory toward New Orleans. If they were truly powerful… .

  My mind raced through various environmental classes to remember historical typhoons and hurricanes. A category six in the Philippines not so long ago had losses of over six–thousand lives with massive property damages. New Orleans was still fragile from recent storms. That along with the magical compromises of their defenses could result in even greater losses. My stomach twisted. If these people had the ability to control weather, the entire city could be leveled — with damage that wouldn’t be easy to recover from. The population hadn’t yet recuperated to pre–Katrina levels. This kind of disaster might mean the end of the city. Surely that wasn’t what Crimson Moon wanted? They just wanted to change the course of the ley lines, not destroy the town. But if the ley lines were their only goal, why did their preparation seem excessive?

  Irix reached out a hand and ran his fingers along the bare skin of my thigh, squeezing my knee. In spite of the location of his hand, his touch wasn’t seductive. The warmth of his fingers rubbing gently across my knee was reassuring. I could count on him to protect me, to keep me safe, but it wasn’t me I was worried about. In spite of his surprising tenderness, he was still a demon. He might care for me, but I couldn’t expect him to care about any of the humans in the city, or their property. Hopefully I wouldn’t have to test his morality. With any luck, we’d catch the people responsible and strengthen the city’s defenses before the storm came anywhere near us.

  I struggled to turn my mind away from topics we couldn’t discuss in front of Gavin, longing to ask Darci how the vampires and Jordan’s crew were doing. This was a double date. What topics would be safe, non–paranormal ones?

  “What does your school schedule look like this fall?”

  Darci grinned. “Cake walk. Senior year, girlfriend. I’ve got a few core credits then my independent study. I’ve applied for an internship with the mayor that would be twenty hours per week, then full time after graduation. Keep your fingers crossed for me.”

  Irix leaned forward. “Amber said you were planning a career in public service. Are you looking to get into the city council, mayoral, state rep/senate, or the federal level?”

  I gave him a suspicious look. With demons, there are no innocent questions. I doubted Irix was making small talk. Why was he so interested in Darci’s career plans?

  “If I can manage to get this internship, then I’d like to stay at the mayor’s office for a few
years to make connections and learn the ropes.” Darci glowed at the prospect. “When the timing’s right, I’ll start out with city council, delegate, or board of education, then with some luck be elected mayor. My end goal is governor. I’m not interested in a federal position at the moment. I’d like to influence grass roots changes right now, and then move into higher–level politics. My ultimate goal is to advocate for Louisiana and New Orleans.”

  I felt a twinge of envy. Darci had always had her future mapped out — driven and ambitious since the first moment I’d walked into that dorm room and laid eyes on her. Me? I had no idea what the heck I was going to do with my life. A year younger than Darci, I’d be graduating this coming year too, after leapfrogging my way through high school and college. It was a little late to still be waffling on a career, but I’d never been able to see past graduation. I liked plants, but could hardly make a career out of going to people’s houses and causing their tulips to bloom.

  “It all hinges on this internship then?” Irix asked.

  I pulled my attention from my own career, or lack of, and concentrated on Darci. My friend had a happy, eager grin that creased the dark skin of her cheeks. She only got that look when she was in love, or discussing her political aspirations.

  “I’ve got some other alternatives, but it would really jumpstart my future. These positions are super competitive, though, and it takes more than just good grades and a background in leadership to get them. My family isn’t well connected, even though we’ve been in the city for generations. I’ve got a good shot at it, but I’m not going to give up if someone else gets the position.”

  Darci was always pragmatic. She might not get the internship. It meant so much to her, and she’d give it her heart and soul. It killed me to think that some snot whose parents wrote big campaign contribution checks might win out over my friend. Irix rubbed his hand along my thigh, and a feeling of peace warred with my anxieties about Darci’s chances at her dream job, and the unfairness of the world.