INSATIABLE BREATH OF DARKNESS

by Candice Stauffer

  “I am like a father to her. You are her mate. Today is her birthday.”

  “She didn’t say anything.”

  “I’m not surprised. Her sister has something for her. You might want to take her.”

  “You were planning to take her?”

  “No. I didn’t say anything to her about it. I have failed to convince her that she is not a threat to her sister. Caleb Stone, the dumb son of a bitch, doesn’t help. He isn’t very friendly to Emily. I’ve considered killing him, but I fear doing so would cause more trouble in the future.”

  “Not if we made it look like an accident.”

  “That’s true.” Demetri nodded. “We’ll keep the option on the table if he doesn’t pull his head out of his ass.”

  ****

  Joseph reached for Mia. Do you miss me, angel?

  Nope. I misplaced my interest in you.

  How can I be in trouble for agreeing with you?

  You’re in trouble for failing to disagree with me.

  What’s the difference?

  Get back to me once you figure it out.

  I would rather take a spanking for this one.

  What’s the spanking rule? Mia asked.

  I haven’t resorted to taking two this week yet.

  You only have one left.

  That’s fine. We’ll settle up later. First, I wanted to let you know Adam is on his way with Hanna.

  That’s good.

  Along with trouble. Adam is heading to Wicked Sensations. He’s working on something with Demetri to draw Evolved out. I need to meet him there in case he stirs up too much trouble. Demetri will be hanging around outside the boutique to make sure Kazimir doesn’t make a move on Hanna.

  If that’s true, you’d better get your sexy ass here and walk Anne back to the hotel. I don’t want to place her in the middle of a war.

  He wrapped his arms around her from behind. “I knew you missed me.”

  She turned in his arms and linked her hands at the nape of his neck. “Maybe a little.” She pulled him closer and kissed him. It was an amazingly slow, gentle, tender kiss. He always kissed her like a man deeply, completely in love with his woman.

  “Come on,” she took his hand and led him out of her office. “You look wonderful, Anne.” She nudged Joseph.

  “It’s a great look on you.” Joseph looked at Mia. “Hanna’s here.”

  “It’s a good thing you stopped by.” She handed Anne’s bags to Joseph. “You can help Anne get her things to the hotel. She needs to get back. Larissa is taking her to get an ultrasound today.”

  “That’s wonderful.” Joseph took the bags. “Let’s get you back so you can meet up with Larissa and get to your appointment.”

  Anne nodded. “Thank you.”

  ****

  “Did you here me, Hanna?” Adam asked.

  “Sorry.” She faced him. “I missed it. What did you say?”

  He parked the car and looked over at her. “Are you feeling okay?”

  “Yes.” She nodded. “I am fine.” She glanced around and realized they were right outside Mia’s Boutique. “I was…” She couldn’t remember the drive at all. The last thing she remembered was getting in the car. “I was just daydreaming.”

  “You’re sure?” he asked, placing his hand on her thigh.

  She glanced down at his hand, realizing that his touch made her feel uncomfortable. “Don’t look so worried, Adam. I told you that I was daydreaming. It’s not such a strange thing to do.” She looked up at him, wanting to convince him that she was fine because she needed to get away from him. “Don’t make a big deal about it.”

  He got out of the car and walked around the front of it to the passenger side. He opened the door and offered his hand to her. Her stomach rolled the instant she placed her hand in his. She got out of the car and pulled her hand from his. “I’ll see you soon,” she said, turning away from him.

  “Wait.” He caught her arm to stop her. “Demetri will be keeping an eye on the boutique while I’m at the club. You know how to reach me. Let me know if you have any trouble.”

  She nodded. “I will.” She turned away from him again and opened the boutique door before he could stop her.

  “Hello.” Mia greeted her at the door.

  “Hi, Mia.”

  “I’m so happy you’re here.” She locked the door and turned to face Hanna. “Ever since Adam told us about you, I’ve been looking forward to getting together with you.”

  “How long have you known Adam?”

  “Not long. But he has been Joseph’s friend for centuries.”

  “Joseph is a demon?”

  “Yes.”

  “Do you ever…I mean, does it ever scare you to be with him?”

  “I have never had a reason to fear him. He’s intense and crazy powerful, but I know he would never hurt me. He would die to protect me. Are you afraid of Adam?”

  She shook her head. “No.”

  “It’s okay if you are. Hanna, are you okay?”

  “Yes.” She shook her head. “No.”

  “What’s wrong?”

  “I can’t do it. It’s…”

  “Intense?”

  “That’s putting it mildly. I have to get away from here, from him.”

  “You can run, but he will find you.”

  “I don’t know what to do.”

  “Don’t try to figure it out just yet. They can be crazy intense. But trust me, it’s as hard for them to figure us out as it is for us to figure them out.”

  “I know. I don’t know what’s wrong with me. My head is entirely messed up. I find myself comparing him to other demons I’ve encountered. They were terrible. Cruel. It’s wrong for me to judge him based on things that happened to me in the past.”

  “It’s completely understandable. You’ve been through hell. It’ll probably happen again. Just remember that you are the center of his universe. It has its frustrating moments. Especially concerning your safety. But it’s worth it.”

  “They’re so powerful. They’re gods. You realize that, right?”

  “Shh.” Mia raised her finger to her lips. “Whatever you do, keep that opinion to yourself. Their egos don’t need to get any bigger.”

  Hanna smiled. “I don’t understand what I have to offer him other than trouble.”

  “Give him some time and he’ll show you. In the meantime, let’s find you a new wardrobe for him to buy.”

  “I’ve never really been good at picking clothes out.”

  “Let me help you.” Mia smiled. “It happens to be one of my favorite sports.”

  “Sure. If you don’t mind.”

  “Not at all. We’ll have a great time picking out the perfect style for you. Being demons, the guys always look so hot. I like to keep Joseph on his toes. Women are always checking him out. I do my best to make sure he’s busy checking me out.” She paused. “Or that he’s keeping his eyes on me because other guys are checking me out.”

  Hanna laughed. “That’s just a little twisted. I love it.”

  “Let’s get started.” Mia motioned for her to follow.

  A young girl who appeared to be around three to four years old walked out of the dressing room area. “Aunt Mia, I need to talk to Uncle Joseph. I have an emergency.”

  “Hello, Megan. Do your mom and dad know you’re here?”

  “I can’t talk to them right now. Is uncle Joseph here? I need to talk to him. I have an emergency and he isn’t in his office and he won’t answer his phone.”

  “He will be here in a little bit. You can wait for him, but I need to call your mom and let her know you’re here. She’s probably worried about you.”

  “She thinks I’m in my room. You can call her but don’t call my dad. He’s being impossible.”

  “That’s a deal.”

  Mia picked up her cell phone. “Hello, Caylee. I’m just leaving a message to let you know that Megan is here. She’s going to hang around and wait to talk to Uncle Joseph about her dad being imposs
ible. I love you, and I’ll talk to you later.”

  “What did your dad do?” Mia asked.

  “He took my laptop. He didn’t have a right to do it. Uncle Joseph gave it to me. I know he’ll make dad give it back to me right away.”

  “Why did he take it?” Mia asked.

  “He’s mean.”

  “What were you doing with the laptop before he took it?”

  “I started a blog.” Lifting her chin, she smiled. “Uncle Joseph showed me how to do it.”

  “What kind of blog?”

  “It’s a support group.”

  “For?”

  “Kids dealing with unfair dads.”

  “That’s interesting. Has Uncle Joseph seen it yet.”

  “No. I was planning to surprise him with it next week. I don’t understand why dad takes everything from me. He never wants me to do anything fun. Not ever.”

  A man walked through the front door. No. Not a man. A demon.

  Megan turned to Mia. “You called my dad?”

  “No. Just your mom.”

  A woman appeared at the man’s side. “I sent dad to bring you home.”

  The girl lifted her chin. “I am not coming home if he’s coming with us.”

  “Go outside and get in the car, Megan.” The man pointed at the door. “We’re going home.”

  She shook her head. “I’m waiting for Uncle Joseph.”

  The woman pointed at the door. “Get moving.”

  Megan crossed her arms over her chest. “Not until I talk to Uncle Joseph.”

  “Do you want me to start counting?” asked the man.

  She lifted her chin. “If it makes you feel better, why not?”

  Grumbling beneath his breath, he walked over to her and picked her up. “Thanks for looking out for her, Mia.” He turned and headed for the door.

  “Anytime.” Mia smiled at the woman and inclined to her head toward Hanna. “This is Hanna. She’s Adam’s mate. Hanna, that was Haden and this Caylee. They are Megan’s parents.”

  Caylee extended her hand. “It’s nice to meet you, Hanna.”

  She shook her hand. “It’s nice to meet you, Caylee.”

  “I hate to rush out, but I should probably give Haden a hand with Megan. I’ll see you both later.”

  Hanna watched her walk out the door. “That was painful to witness.”

  “Megan happens to be the reason Joseph and I will never have children.”

  “The little girl is a demon?”

  “Very much so. She’s a little terror. She has the ability to use many of her powers. No one is really sure why or how she’s able to use them at such a young age. We all do our best to help out with her, but Haden and Caylee have their hands full. It’s just too much power for such a young child. She gets bored easily. She’s very smart but immature.”

  “Does she have any friends her age?”

  “Not one. She can’t be around human children because she’s too impulsive.”

  “That’s sad. I bet it would help if she were able to have friends her age. It would be a distraction.”

  “It could also be dangerous. She would never actually try to hurt another child, but she could easily do it without a thought.”

  ****

  Adam opened the door and motioned for Gabe to go before him. “After you.”

  “I understand you need tons of practice to impress Hanna, but I refuse to be a prop for you to refine your gentleman skills.” He glanced over his shoulder. “Don’t ever open a door for me again. It feels weird.”

  “A simple thank you would’ve sufficed.” Adam stepped to Gabe’s side.

  “Don’t hold your breath waiting for it.” Gabe walked over to a table and sat down. “Or maybe we should both hold our breath. It reeks in here.”

  “It does have a raunchy taint to the atmosphere in here.”

  Gabe looked up at Adam. “Aren’t you going to sit your ass down.”

  “I figured since I opened the door for you that you would pull the chair out for me.”

  “Duck if I ever pull a chair out for you because it’ll be coming at your head.”

  Adam sat down across from him. “You sure are grumpy. How about a bet to make our date more interesting? How long do you think it’ll take for one of these bloodsuckers to react to the spell I transferred to myself? I give it fifteen minutes.”

  “None of them seem to care you’re here.”

  “It hasn’t been fifteen minutes yet.”

  A waitress, a nasty, foul smelling tainted vampire, placed her hand on Gabe’s shoulder and pressed her ice-cold lips to his jaw. “Are you looking for a drink, a ride, or both?”

  “Get the fuck away from me,” he whispered between clench teeth.

  She backed away and glared at him. “No demons are allowed in here.” She walked away from the table.

  “You just blew our cover. We aren’t supposed to be demons. You know it’s only a matter of minutes before some idiot comes over here and tries to give us the boot.”

  “It wasn’t my fault. The bitch fucking touched me.”

  “Speaking of touchy, feely things, Joseph told me that Larissa is leaving town.”

  “You have every right to let Joseph get as touchy and feely with you as you like. It’s none of my business.”

  “You don’t care that she’s leaving?” Adam asked.

  “It’s none of my business.”

  “Joseph asked if you would follow and keep an eye on her.”

  “Send someone else.”

  “What is going on with you?”

  “Apparently, we’re sitting in this little corner of hell waiting for your tracking spell to attract attention.” He paused. “Hopefully it will happen before that skanky tainted vampire has us booted out.”

  “She’s your mate.”

  “You’re wrong.”

  “You’ve taken an interest in her.”

  “That means nothing.”

  “Why are you lying to me about it?”

  “I’m not.”

  “Then you’re lying to yourself.”

  “Drop it, Adam,” Gabe growled.

  “If I don’t.”

  Gabe got up and walked over to the bar.

  Joseph sat down in Gabe’s empty seat. “Any luck?”

  Adam shook his head. “Nothing yet.”

  Deep in thought, Adam rubbed the bridge of his nose. He couldn’t figure out why Gabe wasn’t willing to claim her. He knew Gabe would get more and more volatile until he did. He was afraid of something. But what? It suddenly occurred to Adam that perhaps Gabe was protecting her from himself.

  You are not your father.

  Gabe turned to face him, rage burning in his eyes. Let it go.

  “What the hell did you do to piss him off?” Joseph asked.

  “He’s not mad. He’s in denial.”

  “Larissa?”

  “Yes.”

  You’re nothing like your father.

  Very faint bluish white flames began to move over Gabe’s skin. Damn it, Adam. You need to let it go.

  “You’re sure he isn’t mad. You do notice he’s getting a little hot under the collar, right?”

  “He’s fine,” Adam explained. “We’re working through something very important.”

  Leaning back in his chair, Joseph folded his arms behind his head. “I think you should stop working through it.”

  You’re getting yourself worked up for nothing. You need to man up and claim your mate, Gabe.

  ****

  Joseph wasn’t surprised when Gabe knocked the table over and slammed his entire body into Adam. They’d fought many times before. It was one of their father and son bonding rituals. Being a hardened warlord surrounded by danger and violence twenty-four seven, Adam’s fathering skills were extremely unconventional

  I told you to stop.

  Adam got to his feet. This is good.

  Gabe swung, his fist connecting with Adam’s jaw.

  It doesn’t look like it’s goin
g good for you. Him maybe. But not for you. Joseph lifted and set the table on its legs with a wave of his hand.

  Adam charged Gabe, tackling him onto a table and breaking it. We’re working through it.

  Joseph glanced around the club. He wasn’t surprised to find the tainted vampires and rogue wolves watching and keeping their distance. He spotted Rowdy and Jax observing the fight. Clearly, judging their smiles, they were amused.

  Joseph conjured a nice cold beer in a frosty mug and bowl of extra buttery popcorn. Whose side do you expect Rowdy and Jax to take if you fail to work this matter out in a timely manner.

  They’re undercover. They’ll stay out of it.

  Really? Because it looks like their taking bets.

  Gabe slammed his fist up into Adam’s chin with enough force to hurl Adam back a few feet. Stop talking to me. You’re distracting me.

  That was a damn powerful uppercut. That had to hurt like a bitch. Leaning back in his chair, he lifted the mug to his mouth and took a few swallows. Do you ever regret teaching him to fight?

  I told you to shut the fuck up, Joseph. Adam grabbed Gabe’s collar in one fist and slammed the other into Gabe’s jaw.

  Glaring at Adam, Gabe reached up and rubbed his jaw. He reached out with blurring speed, snagged Adam’s collar in his fist to prevent him from stepping back, and head butted him. When Gabe released his collar they both stumbled back a bit.

  I need an aspirin after witnessing that one. Sparky isn’t sparring, Adam. You’re going to end up in serious trouble if you keep farting around and pulling your punches.

  Adam held his arms to the side. “Are you done?”

  “Not even close.” Gabe lunged for him and, bending over and wrapping his arms around Adam’s waist, he lifted him and threw him over his shoulder.

  Adam flew several feet and landed flat on his back hard. He started to lift his head, but then let it fall back to the floor for a few seconds. “Shit.”

  You just shot to hell the theory that no question is a dumb question. Are you playing possum to draw him in close? If so, I want to go on record saying I think it’s a very bad idea. I don’t think he’s quite ready to let you throw in the towel.

  Adam stood up and stretched his neck and back. His eyes, including the whites, turned solid black, he lifted his lip in a snarl. “You’re really starting to piss me off.”

  “Good.” Gabe said, as he approached Adam. “Maybe now, kicking your ass will be worth it.”