by Maya Daniels
“I would’ve ripped off his joystick and fed it to him,” says Remi casually.
I widen my eyes at her. “You wouldn’t, and as I said, there’s something wrong with him. It’s not like him. I would bet my life that he doesn’t like me, much less want me. Maybe something really went wrong in his head from the accident,” I add, quietly shaking my head.
“Of course, because everyone comes away from accidents with an erection and sticky fingers while trying to force themselves on you.” Jezzinta rolls her eyes. We’re sitting on plush pillows thrown around a cozy living room. I stretch out as much as I can. My body feels as battered as my soul, like I’ve lived a few lifetimes in a matter of a week.
Remi is sitting across from me, a solemn expression shimmering from her eyes. “What?” It’s unnerving to see her looking at me like that with those ancient eyes of hers.
“What makes you think he wasn’t like that always? People are good at pretending to be not interested and normal in order to blend in, then when you least expect it, they’ll strike. Like vipers.” There are no emotions in her voice while she talks, but she’s studying me.
“I’m not a little girl, Remi. I think I’d know if a man is interested in me that way. I’m telling you, there’s something fishy going on. Yes, okay. He loves making me sweat and be uncomfortable. I can’t deny that, but I’m neither naïve nor a fool to not notice if there was an attraction there. I feel everyone’s energy, remember?”
I’m tired and all I want to do is have a nap, but we need to stop talking about penises and sticky fingers so we can come up with a plan for our next steps. Surely by now, Thomas is out of his frozen state and is looking for me. “Can we talk about something productive for a while, please? For example, what do we do now?” I glance at both of them in turn.
Remi looks at me for a few more seconds with those eyes of hers—it’s unnerving, I’m telling you—then she turns to Jezzinta. “When did you get into town, sister? I thought your mother had other plans for you.”
“Lilith is stern and headstrong. I’ll give you that much,” says Jezzinta, all serious now. “But she loves all her daughters, no matter if we’re her sister’s vessel or not.” She quickly looks at me and then back to Remi. “She saw it coming, you know, as soon as word got out that Inanna is changing her game.”
“And what? Now she wants to join, too?” asks Remi with her left eyebrow raised. “I find it hard to believe she’ll want to get her favorite daughter involved if there isn’t something in it for her.” Remi stretches and folds her arms on her chest, looking suspiciously at Jezzinta.
“No one wants Tiamat to get her hands on the tablets, Remi, and you know that as well as I do. I don’t know why we’re even having this conversation. I almost had that demon Pazazu cornered and sealed when she called me to come here. I’d say it was perfect timing, considering Alexia would’ve been waiting on her next reincarnation if I’d gotten there a couple of minutes later. The sap was standing there like an ornament while the warlock choked the life out of her.” She shakes her head and stands up. “It’s tea time for us sophisticated creatures. Do you ladies want to join me for a cuppa?” she asks over her shoulder while walking towards the kitchen.
We’re in a beautiful little cottage-style two-story house situated in the middle of a wooded area just outside of LA. We drove here in Jezzinta’s Nissan Micra, a cute little silver car that she apparently brought over from the UK with her. I’m lucky Remi decided to take the back seat or I would’ve had to put my legs in my pockets. The house looks and is much bigger on the inside than it does on the outside. Very strange. To my right sits a nice fireplace with beautiful, intricate metal around it, and when I look closer, I can see the carved figures of lovers embracing in many different positions. All around them there are vines twisting and turning through bodies with tiny little roses blooming on them. It’s magical craftsmanship that reminds me of the sanctuary close to the temple where I was initiated as a vessel.
“Whose house is this?” I ask, climbing to my feet. “I think I need a shower before I do anything else. I feel yucky. Jez, can I please have a cup of strong black coffee as well and no sugar with the cup of tea? I need it.” Remi chuckles even before I hear Jezzinta yell from the kitchen.
“Eww, coffee is disgusting. What on earth is wrong with you Americans? That dirt water is beyond me!”
“I’m not American, FYI,” I say, laughing. “And coffee, my friend, is the elixir of life, unless you want me walking around like a zombie with a bitchy attitude.”
“Never argue with a Brit about tea, sister. You’ll never win.” Remi is still laughing.
I shake my head and follow Jezzinta in the kitchen. It’s a beautiful homey-looking kitchen with mahogany cabinets and a big six-burner gas stove on top of a double oven, just like my grandmother’s. Sadness creeps in but I push it away. I want to tell them what Thomas was gloating about, but not now. First, I need to wash the day from me first.
“Can I have a shower and then we have the tea—and coffee?” I add the last with a grin on my face. Jezzinta scrunches her cute little nose but smiles.
“Go ahead. It’s up the stairs, on your right. And walk through the house, sap. You should know what’s where. It’s your house, after all,” she says as I walk away.
Her words stop me in my tracks. “Say what, now?” Gaping at her, her eyes crinkle and light up with humor.
“Close your eyes before they fall out of your face! You’ll need them.”
She laughs even harder at what I’m assuming are my eyes going even rounder. Her laugh rings clear and feminine like twinkling bells. Since my voice is quite deep, I’ve always admired women with that sound. I can’t stop the smile that stretches my lips.
“Jez, you’re not making sense. I would’ve known if I had a house here. I assure you this is not my house, and I hope whoever owns it doesn’t come here and put all three of us in jail.”
“No one is coming here but us, sap. Margaret had this house built for you when you were a child and asked my coven to look after it. She figured the less connection it had to you, the better, but if you ever needed it, you’d always have a place to stay.” She looks up from the teapot she pulls out.
“That woman did everything possible and impossible to make sure you’re safe this time, Alexia. She stood up and argued with gods and demons alike to protect you. I don’t know about the rest of them, but I can tell you Lilith admired her for it, and that’s why we agreed to look after this place for you until you were ready to use it. It’s protected with the most powerful spells and sigils. Since your blood was added to the foundations of the house, no one can enter the perimeter unless they’re human. Of that you can be certain.” She smiles but I can see the sadness she’s trying to hide—the same sadness I’m hiding myself.
“I thought it’d be for nothing, to be honest, just like always. I guess even I underestimated her love for you.”
The weight of her words hang over me, but I’m not sure what to say, so instead of replying to that, I tell her, “I’ll have a shower now, then I’ll come join you again.”
The warm water running over every inch of my body and hair is like heaven. It washes away all the worries, stress, and negativity from days past and I lift my face up to it. Just breathe, I tell myself. As my hands glide over my sore muscles, it’s like new ones are replacing them. I feel better, stronger, and more like myself. Well, myself from a long time ago, when all the shit life has thrown my way didn’t happen. Water always does that for me. As I’m washing out the shampoo, I almost think there are four hands in my hair. While mine wash the hair, the other two hands massage my skull with strong fingers. I can’t help the moan that falls past my lips.
“You always do that when I touch your hair, my love,” a deep, masculine voice whispers in my ear. Goosebumps cover me from head to toe instantly. I open my eyes and turn around so fast I almost slip on the tiles, but I catch myself just in time. There’s no one there, but now my eyes are bur
ning from the shampoo. I splash water in my face, berating myself for being an idiot. A man in the shower. Out of thin air. Right!
You are pathetic, Al. It’s been long, but that doesn’t mean you should start having imaginary friends.
I’m angry at myself. Is five minutes of peace too much to ask for? Obviously, even being a vessel doesn’t change the fact that I’m nuts. My celibate state is my own choice, though. I don’t like a man touching me. It’s better for my wellbeing that way. Besides, no one wants to touch this Al. They wanted the Al with her hair done, makeup in place, dressed in second-skin clothing, arm candy. They want the one who’ll smile politely when she wants to scream, nod when she wants to punch you, and keep her mouth shut when she has plenty to say. Tough luck for them! That Al died not a long time ago and I am the one who buried her. I even had my own ceremony and everything.
Annoyed, I continue with my shower. Closing my eyes, a sense of calm washes over me. No matter how bad things get, the water always does that for me, and I’m grateful. I was told it’s rare that a person can be water and fire elementals at the same time, but it’s not like everything else about me is normal, so why not be a freak in the witch communities, too? I can manipulate fire, but water is more natural, like it’s an extension of me. It takes very little effort for me to use, so that is my go to. I make it wrap itself around me like a blanket and hold me for a while. It helps me feel safe, loved even. I didn’t notice it at first, but the stirring of air at my back makes me catch my breath.
“Ah, no. No more freaking out, just breathe, my love. It’s only me,” the male voice says as his body lines up with mine, pressing to my back. “I have missed you immensely.”
He wraps his strong arms around my waist. Since I’m crazy—as we all established by this point—I figure I will allow it for now even when everything in me says to push him away. Leaning my back into him, he sighs as if I’ve just offered him the world. His arms hug me more firmly and his breath tickles as he starts kissing down my neck. Slow, sensual kisses from the back of my ear towards my shoulder are followed by his tongue tracing the line he made. He nips at me where my neck meets the shoulder and I moan. I have an amazing imagination, obviously. An imaginary lover is much better than one you can find as a living, breathing human. He chuckles and bites my ear.
“No other lovers, my love, breathing or otherwise. You don’t want me to melt the flesh off their bones, now do you?” he says and I laugh.
“Yes, of course, because my imaginary lover will destroy anyone that will touch me. Where were you when I needed you to help me before, huh?” He stills behind me, his arms squeezing around my waist and causing me to cry out.
“I’m sorry, my love, I never wanted to hurt you. I couldn’t find you for a long time or I would’ve been there. While hiding you to protect you, they hid you from me as well,” he says, giving me a soft kiss on my cheek. “I will correct my mistake, of that you can be certain.” There is a promise in his voice that scares me, but this is my imagination, right? So, of course I’d come up with something like that to make me feel safer. That thought makes me relax.
“Less talking now. I have missed you very much. I need to feel you.” Caressing my body like a summer breeze, his fingers glide along my body like feathers, leaving goosebumps in their wake. One hand softly massages my breast, tugging gently on my nipple while the other slides between my thighs and circles my wetness, making me tilt my hips towards him with a loud moan. I lift my arms over my head. My eyes are closed, and I bury my fingers in his hair. It’s soft and my fingers slide through the strands like they are silk.
“When I hear your moan, that sound brings me to my knees, my love. It’s been a long time. Careful, I don’t think I can control myself as I would like,” he whispers, and I the wild hammering of the heart in his chest on my back.
“And who asked you to control yourself, lover? Let’s see what you got,” I say breathlessly.
His hands are driving me insane as I start writhing in his arms. It’s not enough. I need more, but he is taking his sweet time touching, exploring, and caressing. I move one of my arms, thinking I can help him with that, but as I reach between my thighs, he grabs my wrist and pulls it back up.
“There was a time when I used to be the impatient one.” He laughs softly in my ear. “I like this turn of events.”
If he doesn’t do something, I think I’m going to combust any second now. Whining in protest, he finally moves his hand from my breast to my neck and, holding my throat, he lifts my head up so it leans on his shoulder while his other hand moves from between my legs to rest my hip. He tilts me back, his erection sliding between my thighs, but not entering, just gliding between them, teasing me. Pinning me to his body, his teeth find my shoulder and bite down. My body stretches in ecstasy, but all I can do is breathe and moan.
“I love the taste of your skin.” He licks a long, slow line down my neck. “I could spend eternity tasting it.”
“Good for you, but it’s not good for me,” I tell him, and he chuckles.
“You always were a feisty little thing, weren’t you? It’s usually you doing the teasing, so let me enjoy this,” he says.
“There are other things to enjoy,” I tell him.
As if he had enough of it too, he enters me. We fit like I was made for him and him for me, like a key in a lock. My breath catches in my throat on a silent scream while he moans loud and long in my ear. I know I’m about to climax from this alone, but as his hips touch my behind, he freezes. Along with the sound of the water, all I can hear is our combined breathing in synchronized, short, shallow breaths.
“Yes, it has been too long, and I can’t be very gentle this time. Forgive me, my love.”
I am just about to tell him there is nothing to forgive when he moves my hands to place them on the tiles in front of me, grabs my hips with both hands, lifts them up a little and starts slamming into my body like he wants to enter me with his entire being, not just his penis. Oh, and what a glorious penis it turns out to be, I think in delirium. I don’t think I’ve ever felt like this before in my life. He keeps at it with a fast, even rhythm and all I can do is hold on to the wall like my life depends on it. Maybe it does, who knows? But what a way to go, right? I’m close, oh so very close, but I just can’t pass that thin little line that will take me where I need to go. As if reading my mind, he leans his head towards me and bites me hard on my shoulder. Millions of stars and colors explode behind my closed lids and I convulse in his hands for who knows how long. Through the haze of my ecstasy, he calls out my name like a prayer on his lips as he pulses inside me, which brings another orgasm that shakes me to my core. When everything is over, I lean my head on my hands on the tiles, breathing heavily like I just ran a marathon. He leans his head on my back, and we stay like this for a while, trying to breathe while still joined as one.
“I think we are about to have company,” he says, laughing. “I had better go now. It’s not the right time for me to be seen. For their sake, not mine,” he adds. He kisses me gently on my back, then I don’t feel him anymore.
There is a knock on the door.
“Hey, sap, did you drown in there? You need a hand or CPR or something?” Jezzinta calls from behind the door.
“I’m coming in a second, almost done!” I yell, still attempting to catch my breath while my mind is trying to understand what the hell just happened.
“Okay, tea is getting cold,” says Jezzinta.
The sound of her footsteps tell me she is walking away and I swear I hear her say, “I thought you already came twice. I guess three is the sacred number around here,” with laughter in her voice, but as nuts as I am, I could’ve imagined it, just like the amazing lover I imagined that I think messed me up for any man out there. The sad part? I didn’t even imagine his face. I have no idea what he looks like. The only thing I remember is a heart-shaped tattoo on his forearm. How pathetic is that!
I turn the water off and grab the towel to dry myself. My body
is deliciously sore, unlike previously, like I truly made love to a man. It must be because it’s been a long time, and it’s not like I’ve taken the time to take care of that aspect myself. As I start putting my bra on, I look in the mirror and freeze. There, on my right shoulder, are traces of where his teeth held me. They’re fading as I watch, but that brings dread to my stomach. Did this really happen? Was he really here? As if that wasn’t scary enough, the blood drains from my face and my eyes look too big in the mirror where I’m staring at myself.
What the fuck did I just do?
Chapter 9
“You look refreshed, sister,” Remi says, but she has a strange expression on her face. Then I realize she’s trying very hard to keep a straight face.
I look at Jezzinta and her eyes aim down as she says, “Yes, very refreshed!”
“Yeah,” I mumble. My mind is still spinning and I have no desire to socialize at the moment. As I’m about to tell them I am tired and am in need of a nap, they both burst out laughing, and.
I jerk my head from one to the other. “What? What’s so funny?” I snap, and they both stop and look at me with raised eyebrows.
“Easy, killer, we just didn’t take you for a screamer, that’s all. You know, when you were taking your tension out in the shower? By the sound of it, it’s been awhile, huh?” Remi wiggles her eyebrows.
“Oh, fuck.” I know my face is turning all shades of red. Great. They heard the whole thing. Things can’t get any worse.
“It’s okay, sister, we all need to take care of business from time to time, especially when there’s a lack of time for any type of relationship.” Jezzinta is trying to make me feel better, but it’s not working. I can’t tell them right now. I need time to think, so I change the subject.
“Yeah, a long time. Anyway, I’d like to know what our plan is, and I could kill for a cup of coffee.” Walking to the pot, I try not to look at them.
