When Hunter Meets Seeker: (An Arcane Society Novel - Paranormal Demon Romance)

by Betty Shreffler

  “It’s one of the overflow rooms for when we’re busy.”

  “Dex?”

  “Yes?” he whispered as he eagerly pawed at her jeans.

  “I think we have a problem,” she said breathlessly between kisses.

  “What? The fact that every time I see you I can’t keep my hands off you?”

  “Well, okay, that’s not a problem. I mean us, we’re like sex addicts around each other.”

  “I’m still waiting for how that’s a problem.”

  Her breath quickened as his kisses continued along her neck. He admired her breasts as he lifted her shirt over her head. The hungry look in his eyes stirred the already building anticipation between her thighs. His impassioned lips covered her mouth as he wiggled her out of her jeans. His eyes roamed over her cuts and bruises.

  “Tonight we’re going to talk about how you got these. I want to know who I have to kill.”

  His words warmed her. “He’s already dead. I was in a car accident. A shadow walker tried to kill me.”

  Dex’s brows creased as he gently caressed her skin as if he could remove her wounds with his touch.

  “I want to talk more about that later. Right now, this moment is for giving you nothing but pleasure.”

  He lifted his shirt and unbuttoned his jeans, releasing his erection. He pulled her naked frame around his hips and laid her on the small bed. He dropped his jeans and left them behind him as he climbed above her. The scent of her irresistible desire reached his nostrils. He took her in his arms and eased himself in, filling her, giving her the release her body craved.

  He leaned into her ear as he held her firmly beneath him. “I want you to be mine. We’re done playing games, Anya. I want you…tonight and every night.”

  She arched her back as his thrusts quickened. He plunged deeper and then steadied his brisk pace, rubbing her just right until her breathy moans grew louder and more immediate. She clung to him as her body convulsed, pouring her hot silk over him. He tilted his head back as his own euphoria claimed him.

  As she smoothed out her shirt and hair he leaned in behind her, running his hands along her shoulders and arms. He gently kissed her collarbone, sending a shiver of pleasure over her body.

  “Your markings. They weren’t visible before. What changed?”

  “I’m not human, Dex. I’m a mix between a handuit and vuall demon. My markings remained after my accident, after…”

  Relief and trepidation filled him. “After your wings came out. You went through your transformation during the accident. Most of us demons don’t know we are one, unless we’re told early on. Otherwise we learn the hard way—through the transformation. It’s when our ability reveals itself. Transformations can be triggered in different ways. Evidently yours was your accident.” He saw the confusion and fascination in her eyes. “I’ll explain more tonight. Clearly this is new to you.”

  She nodded, affirming his thoughts.

  He kissed her softly, reluctant to pull away from her in this vulnerable state. “I’m sorry I have to leave you. I don’t want to, but I have to get back to the office. Will you be okay?”

  “Really, Dex? I’m not a fragile female. I’m good with what just happened, really good. I’m looking forward to seeing you again later.”

  Dex’s chest loosened. He thumbed her lip before kissing her. “Those your friends out there?” He nodded toward the main floor.

  “Yeah.”

  “You attracted to any of them?”

  Anya laughed. “No.”

  “Good, dance with them all you want, but don’t let anyone else touch you or try to take you home. I’d prefer not to lose my job over bashing in the head of an idiot who gets too handsy with you.”

  Anya bit back a smile.

  “You think I’m kidding?” He leaned in and kissed her with his possessive need resting just below the surface. “When I want something all to myself I don’t like to share.”

  She looked up at his sexy, dark possessive eyes. She pulled him in close, wrapping herself in his warmth, taking his fiery lips against hers.

  “I like that you’re a little jealous, a little possessive. It’s sexy.”

  Dex caressed her cheek as his eyes roamed over her. “Want me to walk you out?”

  “No, I know the way.”

  She slapped his backside when he turned toward the door. He turned back toward her and grabbed her in his arms again, kissing her with raw intensity.

  She exhaled as their lips parted. “Apparently someone likes a little kinky.”

  He ran his fingers through her hair, giving it a tug at the end. “You have no idea.”

  He laid warm kisses along her neck as his hand grazed her hip, squeezing it tightly and pulling it against him.

  “See you tonight. Behave yourself while you’re out there. I’ll be watching.” He winked before releasing her from his warm and possessive touch.

  Dex returned to the office to find Anya on Greg’s screen. His jaw tightened.

  “Fess up, Dex. What’s the deal with you and Red? We saw you two go into 5B. We were this close—” Greg held his index and middle finger a centimeter apart. “—to watching the live feed.”

  The muscles in his shoulders and back tightened. “You better not’ve watched. I will jack up that pretty face of yours.”

  “I wouldn’t let him,” Al assured him.

  Dex’s shoulders relaxed. He settled into his chair and turned it toward them. “She’s like us. She’s a half-blood demon. She was an Arcane Hunter, but gave it up. She went after Serena because Serena was draining her friend. What she did to Serena was out of instinct and anger.”

  “What was she doing in Carl’s office?” Al asked, concerned.

  “She was given an order and instead of fulfilling it, she came to figure out why she was given the order. The Arcane Society wanted to punish Carl for not shutting down the club by putting a hit out on his brother. She warned him, told him to tell Chris to lay low. She’s on our side.”

  “Once the Arcane Society finds out they have a rogue hunter they’ll no doubt send someone or something after her. Your girl is walking on fire.”

  “They already did, it seems. Sent a shadow walker to take her out. She killed him.”

  “She killed a shadow walker?” Greg asked, surprised.

  “Yeah, she has skills, that’s for sure. She’s a mix of handuit and vuall.”

  Greg slapped his hand on the desk. “Is that what the Arcane Hunters are? I always wondered what the hell they were.”

  “At least that’s what she is. I don’t think all hunters are the same. I know, a hunter killed my parents and he wasn’t what she is.”

  Al nodded in agreement. “They all must have vuall in them or shadow walker in them. You can never sense a hunter, and the ones I’ve heard of all have some kind of hunter’s markings like the one we saw on Red.”

  “Anya.”

  “What?”

  “Red’s name is Anya.”

  “Where’ve you been?” Jackson asked as Anya joined their table.

  Her cheeks warmed.

  “Yep, okay, you don’t need to explain. Joe said your boyfriend interrupted when you were dancing and then you disappeared. I can put two and two together.”

  Anya slid into the empty chair next to him. “Pretty sure the term is accurate. I think we’re officially in some kind of relationship.”

  He leaned in for a private share. “You naughty girl. You’re sleeping with the enemy.” He winked as he leaned back and slid a beer toward her.

  “That I am.” She popped the top and took a swig.

  Thomas leaned over the table. “There’s a couple pool tables around the corner. You guys up for a game?”

  “Definitely.”

  Chapter 15

  After a few drinks, a lot of dancing and pool, she talked the guys into calling it a night so she could get back home. She was eager to get cleaned up and for Dex to arrive. She set out a few candles by her bed and the bathtub. Sh
e turned the water on, put a bit of soap in and then stripped out of her bar-scented clothes. She slid into the steaming hot water. It relaxed her muscles and soothed the wear of jeans on her cuts. She heard her front door open and she tried to contain the grin spreading over her face.

  As he walked through the doorway of her bathroom, she admired the way the light of the candles glimmered across his shirtless toned abs. He didn’t say a word, just watched her eyes admiring him as he finished undressing. She leaned forward as he slid in behind her. He cupped the warm water in his hand and ran it over her shoulder and back before kissing her gently where he’d just warmed her. His wet lips moved to her neck and then pressed gently behind her ear before taking her ear between his lips and releasing slowly.

  She turned toward him, a sensation of pleasure trickling across her skin. He took her mouth in his, flicking his tongue over hers and massaging it with his own. Her arousal surged in her belly and traveled south, sending sparks of pleasure between her thighs. He wrapped his hand around her hip and pulled her closer to him. She could feel his arousal against her backside. He reached around and dipped his hand below the water, running his hand along her thigh before bringing his warm touch inside of her. Between the heated water, her aching need and his sensuous touch, her body vibrated with pleasure.

  She leaned her head against him as he found just the right spot. He kneaded and massaged, drawing the orgasm from her body. He held her against him as her moans deepened. Her body convulsed between his skilled strokes. Her orgasm reached its peak, slipping her into a brief euphoria. He eased his strokes and massaged her gently as he kissed along her cheek and neck.

  She eased back, leaning into his body. He held her close to him as he ran his fingers across her arm and chest.

  “What’s happening between us, I don’t want it to end.” She could hear the fear in her own voice.

  He kissed her softly, massaging along the outside of her breast.

  “It’s not going to.”

  She turned into his chest, lying sideways in his arms. He held her tight and kissed her, giving her body the warmth she’d always longed for.

  “Tell me what happened with the car accident.”

  “I wanted to give up being a hunter. The orders I’d been receiving…the demons seemed to be living normal lives. I didn’t feel like I was protecting innocents. I felt as though I was murdering them. A shadow walker showed up shortly after. I went to my handler asking why a shadow walker would be stalking a hunter. He dismissed my concerns.

  “I traveled to Tennessee to see a longtime friend, my mentor, someone I thought I could trust. He told me what I am. Told me my brother, Leo, that I haven’t spoken to in a couple of years, sent the shadow walker after me. Leo’s now a member of the board and Dillon believed that Leo is dangerous and considers me a threat, because I have an ability that he doesn’t. Dillon wanted to show me what my ability is, but he was murdered before he could. There was an explosion at his house. I barely made it out alive. Two half-blood demons were waiting for me outside. I fought them off and then took refuge in a hotel for a few hours. I went back to Dillon’s to see if I could find out anything else. Someone showed up as I was leaving. I didn’t wait to find out who. I was anxious to get back home, and on the way the shadow walker caused me to flip my Jeep and crash. That’s how I got all these.” She waved her hand over the cuts and abrasions on her body.

  Dex held her close, kissing her forehead and rubbing his hand along her leg, soothing the anxiety that crept into her chest.

  “That’s when you went through the transformation?”

  She nodded.

  “No one ever told you what you were?”

  “No, I was trained at a young age. Taught to see demons as a threat to society. We’re trained on every demon known to the Arcane Society and how best to kill them. I believed I was human, well, I thought I was advanced, but never thought I was a demon myself.”

  “How does that make you feel? Discovering that you’re like the creature you’ve been trained to kill?”

  “I won’t lie to you, Dex. I’m not soft on the inside. I’ve spent a decade hunting demons, killing them. I’ve grown numb to what I am, to what I have to do. Learning I’m one of them wasn’t as much of a shock to me as it should’ve been. I’ve been numb for so long that discovering I’m a mixed demon barely affected me.”

  Dex rubbed his thumb along her bruised cheek, reading her troubled eyes. “You haven’t lost your ability to feel. It’s there, I feel your desire and longing every time I touch you.”

  She took his hand in hers and kissed it. “You’ve given me a reason to feel. I’ve gone years without knowing this kind of intimacy. Now that I have it, I’m afraid of losing it. I’m afraid you’ll learn more about me, that you’ll be repulsed by something I’ve done and you’ll turn away from me.”

  His dark, possessive eyes stared into hers. “I admit I hated you for what you were. I held a grudge against you for something you had nothing to do with that happened long ago. You showed me that there was more to you than the label you carried. You showed me I could trust you. I have my own mistakes I’ve made. I’m a demon, it goes with the territory. I can’t forgive the things I’ve done and not forgive you. I meant it, Anya. I want you to be mine. That means accepting all of you. The good, the bad, and the awful.”

  She leaned forward and kissed him with the passion and appreciation she held inside of her. When their lips parted, she took a breath, still reeling from their kiss. He stretched his arm behind her and released the water.

  “It’s time to get you warm, in more ways than one.”

  He grabbed the towel off her rack and wrapped it around her, drying her before grabbing a towel and drying himself.

  As she finished blowing out the last candle around the tub, he pulled her backside against him, resting his delectable lips on her cheek and neck. As his lips caressed her skin he tugged at the towel, pulling it from her body and letting it fall to the floor. In the darkness, her breath quickened as he quietly and slowly roamed his hands over her shoulders, grazing them along her arms as he breathed into her ear.

  He kissed softly just below her ear, flicked his tongue across her skin as his hands reached around, taking her breasts in his hands. He loved them slowly, massaging them tenderly as his lips blew out soft breaths over her skin. Her hair raised along her arms as her arousal sparked and spread like a wildfire throughout her body.

  His lips grazed her skin, enhancing her already humming arousal. He whispered softly against her. “I want your scent all over me. I want my name escaping those luscious lips.”

  He held her firmly against him as her legs melted. He turned her toward him and brought his hands around her backside and then lifted her legs around him. He moved them the few steps to the counter and set her on it. His lips found hers in the dark, claiming them, giving fire to them.

  He tugged her forward as he leaned in, resting his other hand against the mirror. His hand gripped her thigh as he pressed his erection against her. His kisses took her reeling desire on a mountain climb. He shifted his hips up and down, rubbing his shaft along her, getting her ready to take him.

  Her moans broke loose as her body yearned to have him inside of her. As if her moans were the signal he awaited, he slid inside of her, plunging deep and pulling her firmly against him. He pulled back only to drive harder and plunge deeper. She clung to his solid biceps as he claimed her entire body, taking what she had to give. Her backside slid rhythmically along the counter as he teetered her mounting arousal toward her climax. His muscular body held her tight as he drove into her, exploring the deepest parts of her.

  As her head tilted back he kissed and licked along her neck, nibbling and then biting roughly, but releasing quickly. The mixture of pain and pleasure sent her arousal spiraling. Her moans escaped as needy desperate claims for release. He gave her exactly what her body begged to have. His strong, rhythmic thrusts remained steady as her orgasm spread from head to toe and e
xploded from her body. His own moan escaped his lips as she poured over him, giving his incubus body what it needed to survive. As his thrusts slowed he found her lips, kissing them softly.

  “I’m the demon that should be seducing you and fighting off your infatuation, but you, Anya, have me completely infatuated, completely seduced.”

  His head leaned against hers as their bodies stayed as one. He kissed her again and again until her body tingled with revived desire.

  Waking up to Dex still holding her firmly against his warm body was an incredible feeling. She held his hand in hers and pulled him tight against her. He stirred behind her, leaning his head in close and nuzzling against her neck and hair.

  “I could wake up to the scent of you every morning.”

  His words and warmth spread deep inside her, giving life to the coldest, darkest parts of her. A tickle of fear swelled in her gut. She didn’t want to lose this, to lose him. She’d gone so long living a harsh, lonely and empty life as a hunter. Dex was the opposite of all of that. He gave her something to live for, brought out a softness inside of her that she didn’t know she was capable of feeling, let alone expressing. His tenderness and affection was something she’d always longed for.

  She turned in his arms and pressed her lips against his. His hand gently caressed alongside her arm and waist.

  “How do you feel? I absorbed your arousal several times last night. It wasn’t too much, was it?”

  She could still feel his touch all over her body, smell his musky scent on her skin, still feel him between her thighs, and she didn’t want any of it to go away.

  “I’m fine.” She was less than fine. She was exhausted, but she wasn’t going to complain. Not after a night like they’d had.

  He studied her face before kissing her forehead and lifting a leg off the bed. “I’ll make you breakfast. You need it.”

  Her stomach jumped with excitement. “You can cook?”

  He glanced back at her, giving a handsome devilish grin. “Yes. You seem equally surprised and excited about it.”