Heart of the Demon

by Cynthia Garner

  Finn tilted Keira’s head. God, she tasted better than anything he could remember. Sweet and spicy at the same time. He licked across her lips and dove back in.

  Her tongue twisted around his, surging into his mouth when he retreated only to tempt him back to her when she withdrew. He forged forward. She suckled his tongue, drawing him deeper, making him groan as his cock hardened.

  Her fresh heather scent made him crazy with need and her touch, soft and hungry and searching, made him ravenous. Leaving her mouth, he worked his way down her throat, stopping at the pulse pounding beneath her silken skin. He rested his lips there for a moment before touching the tip of his tongue to the spot.

  He had to get her under him. Now. He pulled away. “Bedroom,” was all he could manage through a throat gone tight with lust. There was something else there, too, something he didn’t want to look too closely at. Something far more tender, but tenderness just got in the way.

  “Yes.” Keira’s eyes held a gentle blue glow that threatened to enthrall him even without her using any fey glamour on him.

  Finn swept her into his arms and carried her to her bedroom, where he set her on her feet next to the queen-size bed. He placed a kiss on the corner of her lips and eased off her clothing, his eyes narrowing at the sultry picture she made. Pink-tipped breasts billowed above a narrow waist and generous hips. He reached up and gently removed pins from her hair, letting it cascade over her shoulders and down her back in fiery waves. A rough groan left him. With economical movements he took off his clothes and then urged her onto the bed. He kissed her, his tongue sweeping between her lips to mate with hers.

  Her hands came around him, fingers flexing into his back. She moved her legs and he slid between them, his cock stiff against her belly. He kissed his way down her throat, closing his eyes at the silkiness of her skin. Scattering kisses across her chest, he tongued each nipple to stiffness before kissing his way down her flat stomach.

  His hands parted her thighs just a little wider, his fingers stroking a long caress in the folds between her legs. She jumped when he touched her, jerked against his hand, a sharp cry of pleasure escaping her.

  He pushed a finger slowly inside her tight, hot sheath. At once her muscles clenched around him, velvet soft yet firm and moist. His own body throbbed and swelled in response.

  Her hips pressed forward. Finn thrust another finger into her, stretching her, preparing her. More than anything, her pleasure mattered to him. Her velvet folds pulsed for him, wanting, demanding, and he fed that hunger, pushing deep, retreating, thrusting again so that her hips followed his lead.

  “That’s it,” he breathed against her stomach. “Just like that. I want you ready for me.”

  “I am ready for you,” she panted, her slender hands grasping his hair, trying to pull his face up to hers.

  “No, you’re not. Not yet.” His mouth found the triangle of damp curls at the juncture of her thighs. Her breath hissed out as his tongue tasted her, his name a whispered plea. He lifted his head to look at her. “Open your legs wider. Let me have you.”

  To his surprise, she clamped her thighs together. Her grip on his hair tightened. “I don’t want you playing nice, Finn. I want you inside me. Now.”

  Who was he to argue? He reared up and braced himself with his palms against the mattress on either side of her arms. “Condoms?”

  “It’s not like either of us can get STDs,” she murmured. “And it’s the wrong time of the month for me to get pregnant.” She stroked one finger down the middle of his chest, circling around his navel.

  His eyes widened as sensation jumped straight to his straining cock. He groaned when her hand curled around his erection.

  “I want you inside me,” she said. “Now. Naked. Skin on skin with nothing between us.”

  Her thumb swept over the tip of his cock, spreading the silky wetness over the fat head. With a gasp, he pulled her hand away and knelt between her legs to guide his throbbing shaft to the entrance of her body. She was unbelievably wet. Any worry he’d had that he would hurt her if she was unprepared went away.

  He punched his hips forward, saw the ruddy tip of his cock slide past the slick folds of her sex and felt her, tight and hot, close around him. The sensation shook his control even further.

  “Keira!” Her name burst from between his clenched teeth. He grabbed her firm ass and lifted her as he slid in another inch. “Tell me you’re all right.”

  “I’m fine. I’d be better if you’d hurry it up,” Keira gasped, her eyes bright, her hands sliding around him to clutch at his back.

  Finn laughed, a short, sharp burst of sound from a throat tight with need. With a hard flex of his hips, he buried his cock deeper. It had been like this the first time they’d come together. Their joining brought him pure ecstasy. It was all he could do to keep from ravaging her. Lowering his head, he flicked his tongue against the taut peaks of her breasts. The action tightened her body around him even more.

  “I feel full, like you’re part of me,” she whispered. “But I want more, Finn. I want all of you.” She slid her hands from his back down to grasp his buttocks.

  “Me, too,” he gritted his teeth and surged forward. Her sheath was slick, hot, velvet-soft, and so tight it was about to kill him. He buried himself deep, withdrew, thrust again with slow, easy strokes. He watched her face. When he saw passion glazing her eyes, heard her soft pants, carnal pride filled him with satisfaction. He loved seeing that look on her face, loved knowing he was the one putting it there.

  Finn pumped his hips faster, gliding in and out of her, deeper with each stroke. God, she felt so good. So tight and hot and wet. He tilted her so he could thrust even deeper, wanting her to accept every last inch of him, as if by her body accepting his she could look past the facade he presented to the world and see him.

  He buried himself to the hilt and moved his hand to her swollen clit. In seconds he felt the spasms of her climax beginning. “I’ve never felt like this.” He needed her to know how he was feeling, what she meant to him. “Ever since I had you that first time, I’ve thought about only you.”

  Her dark blue gaze snagged his. Desire and something deeper flared in her eyes. “I need you, Finn.” Her fingers dug into his buttocks as her hips rose to meet his. Soft gasps escaped her as his hips surged forward, his rhythm faster. Harder.

  With her silky wetness wrapped around him, he was beyond any pretense of control. He moved his hand against her clit again, and Keira cried out. Her body bowed, heels digging into the mattress, fingers digging into his flesh. Finn felt the strength of her inner muscles gripping him in the intensity of her orgasm. He pumped into her frantically, the explosion ripping from his balls through the top of his head.

  When he could make his mind work rationally again, he eased out of her, groaning as her inner muscles clung to his sated cock. He tucked her against his side and blew out a sigh. Finally he had her where he wanted her—in his arms, limp and sated.

  “Can you stay?” Keira’s voice, soft and sleepy, held hesitancy.

  The only other time they’d had sex, she’d been reluctant to have him stay, mumbling something to the effect that snuggling allowed emotions to creep in and ruin a good thing. Finn was a little shocked, but happy, that now she wanted him to linger. He wanted Keira like he’d wanted no other in all his years, even with the doubt this rogue business had thrown into the mix. They couldn’t go on ignoring it, and he knew they eventually needed to talk about it. But not now.

  Now he was going to hold his woman. He rubbed his hand up and down her arm. “I’d like to stay,” he murmured. When she rubbed her cheek against his chest and then placed a kiss on his shoulder, he let out a sigh of contentment.

  After a few moments of silence, she said, “This is nice.”

  “Hmm.” He pressed his mouth to her temple.

  She tipped her head back to meet his gaze. Slender fingers stroked his side in an absentminded caress. “I used to think if we spent time like this, cuddlin
g after sex, it would complicate things.”

  “And now?”

  “Now I think cuddling after sex will definitely complicate things.” Her smile was tinged with sadness. “But I can’t help myself. I’m addicted to you, I guess.”

  “You’re not alone in that.” Finn stroked his fingers through her hair before wrapping several thick strands around his hand. It was like holding silken fire in his palm.

  He hadn’t been averse to their relationship growing more intense, no matter what he might have told himself. But he’d never really been certain how she felt about him. He wasn’t willing to risk his emotions only to have her reject him. He’d gotten enough rejection from his father over the years to know he didn’t want more of the same from a lover. Treading lightly was called for. “I care about you, Keira. You have to know that.”

  She rested her face against his chest. “Sometimes I think you do, but then I’m not sure.” The warmth of her sigh drifted over his skin.

  “Be sure.” He tightened his arms around her a moment. He wanted to ask her what she was doing in the rogue group, wanted to come clean about his own role.

  He especially wanted to confess to her that he wasn’t capable of the cold-bloodedness she thought he was, but then he’d have to reveal that Caine was still alive. He’d also have to reveal the only reason he was part of the group was to stop Liuz at Caine and Lucifer’s behest. But he couldn’t take the chance. She had joined this group for a much different reason and he wouldn’t have his mission, and his chance at freedom, be ruined. Rising up on one elbow, he smiled as she grumbled at being dislodged from her comfortable position. He stared down into her lovely face. “We’re cut from the same cloth, you and I,” he said. “We both have, or have had, occupations that have us walking a fine line between right and wrong. Some of your empathic abilities mirror abilities I’ve honed over the years.” He wasn’t going to tell her he was a chameleon demon without consulting Lucifer. It wasn’t like he needed his father’s permission, but being demon was like being a member of a secretive sect, so he wanted to make sure he wasn’t divulging the wrong information. “I know that there are reasons we shouldn’t be together. But for now, don’t ask me to walk away from you, Keira.”

  She cocked an eyebrow and the smile that curved her lips bounced in her eyes. “Didn’t I ask you to stay only a few minutes ago?”

  Finn’s lips twitched and he settled back against the pillows. “That you did.” He sensed the good in her, the part that wanted to leave the old life behind. A goodness that he could use in his life. Her beauty—of face, body, and spirit—did for him what the paintings at the art gallery did. Gave him peace among the violence he was surrounded with every day. Above that, though, he was attracted to her for her sense of humor, her wry wit. Even her habit of poking fun at him held him enthralled. But for the sake of the mission, he had to remain silent.

  “Look, why don’t we—” He broke off as his cell phone rang. He sent her an apologetic look and rolled out of bed to retrieve it from the back pocket of his jeans. A glance at the display showed him it was Nix. “Excuse me,” he said to Keira and moved a few feet away. With his back to her he connected the call and brought the phone to his ear.

  “We need to see you,” the half demon, half vampire said in a no-nonsense voice. But he heard the underlying tension in her tones. “Now.”

  That tone of voice was one he couldn’t argue with, but he did anyway. “Can’t it wait?”

  “It can’t. Get here as soon as you can.”

  “I’ll be right there.” He ended the call and turned to face Keira, meeting her questioning gaze. She’d moved to the edge of the bed, as unconcerned with her nudity as he was with his. “I have to go. It’s something to do with Lucifer.” He quickly dressed then came to stand in front of her and rested his hands on her slender shoulders. Then he bent and pressed his mouth to hers, once. Twice. Three times before he tore himself away. “God above, you’re addicting.” He lightly rubbed his thumb over her lips. “I’ll see you later.”

  As he made his way to his motorcycle, he cursed the interruption even while he felt grateful for it. He was never one who’d been comfortable talking about his feelings, and it was even worse now that things were so mixed up.

  The next week and a half could not go by fast enough, though he knew the danger would escalate. And when this was all over, and he’d been shown to be a fraud where the rogues were concerned, what would that mean for him and Keira?

  Chapter Eleven

  Keira stood at the door, in jeans and a T-shirt, the tile floor cold against the soles of her bare feet, and watched Finn swing one long leg over his bike. She’d wanted to tell him she’d joined the rogue group at Caladh’s request, that she was one of the good guys. By all the gods how she had wanted to confess. She wished she could explain that she was there to stop them, not help them, that in order to put an end to Stefan’s idiocy she had to assist them in the short term. She wanted more than what they had, but she couldn’t risk the mission, or her heart. She believed him when he said he cared for her. She could see that in the way he looked at her, the tenderness he displayed while they were together. But Finn only thought of himself and would never be able to give her what she needed emotionally. She had to be prepared to be the one to walk away when the relationship stalled, which she was almost certain it would do.

  Even as she believed that deep down, where it counted, Finn was good in spite of the violence that surrounded him, she also believed he didn’t want to change. And until he figured that out about himself, she couldn’t trust that he wouldn’t betray her if she told him the truth. So she’d kept quiet.

  And it wasn’t as if she was the only one with secrets. She watched him rev up his bike, the sound echoing throughout the neighborhood. When he waved at her, she summoned a smile and lifted her hand in farewell. Of everyone she knew Finn was the best at skullduggery. As he pulled away from the curb, the thought of following him to see what he was up to flitted across her mind. Before she could talk herself out of it, she turned back inside, locking the front door behind her, and grabbed her purse as she headed to the garage. Because she was barefoot she had to move the driver’s seat forward before she could back out. Within a few seconds, she was heading down the road after him.

  She did her best to keep a few cars between them so he wouldn’t know he was being followed. She’d never really done this before, but she watched a lot of television. When he turned into a subdivision, she pulled over to the curb and waited a few seconds, her heart pounding like bongo drums in her throat, before she made the same turn.

  It took a few minutes of driving around the neighborhood before she saw his motorcycle parked in front of a territorial-style house. The outside was adobe with an arched entryway leading to a large courtyard. The front door was red and had just swung open as Keira stopped across the street. She didn’t recognize the woman who greeted Finn, but they didn’t act like lovers. She was glad of that. The two of them might not have made any declarations of love, but they had made progress. She didn’t like the idea that he might love or care for someone else.

  Of course, he would never have sex with her while he was in love with another woman. He, at times, seemed more werewolf than demon, because he was as faithful a hound as any wolf she knew.

  Knowing she wouldn’t be able to hear what was going on inside, she made a mental note of the address and drove back to the main road. Caladh hadn’t been returning her calls, and she not only wanted to talk to him about the misgivings she was beginning to have about this whole thing, but she also wanted to find out what was going on, why she suddenly seemed persona non grata with him. Maybe if she could corner him at council headquarters he’d agree to set a meeting with her, just to get her out of his hair.

  Her agenda set, Keira drove to the main council building and parked in the rear. She stepped out onto the pavement in her bare feet and popped the trunk with her remote. She reached inside and pulled out a pair of yellow heels. B
ecause she sometimes needed to take off her shoes to feel the earth beneath her feet, and she’d ended up losing more than one pair that way, she always kept a few extra in the trunk. Now she was glad she had.

  After donning the shoes, she walked around to the front of the building. As she pushed open the door, she immediately had to step to one side as a black-clad security officer pushed past her. Other security guards milled around the entrance to the main chamber. Voices came from the big room, some shouting, and she thought she also heard weeping.

  One of the officers, a big fey warrior named Conal, walked past her and locked the front door. On his way back he stopped and frowned down at her. “What are you doing here?” he asked.

  “I wanted to see Councilor Caladh,” she said. She glanced around at the chaos. “What’s going on here?”

  “You’ve arrived just in time for us to go on lockdown,” he said. “Lucky you.”

  She shot a look at the door and then stared at him. “I gathered we were on lockdown when you locked the door, boyo,” she drawled, trying to hold on to her patience. “Why are we on lockdown?”

  “Deoul has been murdered.”

  Shock ripped through her. The president of the council was dead? Murdered!

  Conal motioned to one of the guards. “Stay with her,” he instructed and walked into the main chamber.

  “Wait!” Keira took two steps forward only to be stopped by the guard’s big hand wrapped around her arm.

  “Sorry, miss,” he said. From his scent she surmised he was a feline shapeshifter—a lion, she thought, though of the African or American variety she couldn’t say. She’d always had trouble sorting them out until, of course, they actually changed into their animal forms.

  “Fine,” she muttered, jerking her arm from his grasp. “Can I at least sit down?” She motioned to the row of chairs against the wall nearest the door.

  “Of course.”