Winging over the hole in the floor, my clawed feet settled on the ember covered wood outside the blistered white paint of the two inches of wood keeping Sage alive. Kicking out with a demonic foot, the door shattered. The fire roared as air was sucked through the newly created portal. Flames danced at my back, rushing toward the source of fuel, but I blocked their ingress with my wings until it balanced out. I took one step inside the bathroom and shifted, Sage unseen behind the drawn wet plastic curtain.
"Sage!" Her hand was hanging over the edge of the tub.
I pulled back the curtain fearing the worst, but she blinked up at me under the spray of water.
"Kara?" Her voice was raspy. Even tucked in the bathroom, she had breathed in an ungodly amount of smoke.
"Hang tight." I reached up and tore the curtain from the rod, covering her with it, and wrapping her up in it as best as I could when I scooped her up in my arms.
She thrashed against my chest, but her words were unintelligible through the plastic over the cacophony of burning building.
Not daring to shift again, I walked out of the bathroom and dropped through the gaping wound in the floor down to the studio. Giving a war cry, I charged toward the front and jumped through the window and flipped us over the rubble, tumbling out into the street at the feet of the firemen and angry looking police officer.
Giving him a thumbs up, I closed my eyes and let my head fall back against the cold concrete.
"–the fuck were…thinking? You…have died. Get…EMTs over here! You…them soaked…" The lieutenant's voice was fading in and out as the sound of my pulse drowned him out.
A cooling spray of water washed over us. The familiar flames disappeared as my clothes were doused. I started to calm and then shiver as the wetness mixed with the cold air of the Massachusetts fall. I would be fine in a few minutes, but if I jumped up and told everybody I was fine, they wouldn't have believed me anyway. I lay there as they loaded Sage and me up on separate stretchers.
"Are you okay?" Daniel whispered in my ear.
I nodded and gave him a knowing look. He sighed in relief and squeezed my arm before his features crumbled in despair.
"It's okay, Daniel. It's just a building."
"I know. But you worked so hard."
"We did. But we can rebuild it."
He nodded as the EMTs pushed him out of the way and wheeled me toward the ambulance. I pushed away the respirator and snarled when he tried to put it back.
When I was loaded, they started to shut the doors, but were stopped by the lieutenant as he slipped inside. He plopped down on the seat next to my gurney and let out the breath he'd been holding.
"That was the bravest thing I've ever seen," he said, and treated me to a disdainful look. "And also the dumbest. She would have been fine until the ladder truck got there."
"You're full of shit. The floor was about to give out, and the window in the bathroom was too small for her to fit through, let alone a big burly fire fighter."
"I know. But I'm supposed to say stuff like that to keep people like you from doing stupid shit like that." He crossed his arms over his chest and cocked an eyebrow at me.
"But people like me rarely listen to people like you. I did what I had to do. She's my friend."
"And I'm sure she's going to be very grateful. I don't have to lie to you anymore. If you hadn't done what you did, she'd be dead."
I sat up and flashed him a smile, resting on my elbows behind me. "Which is why I did it. Damn, I stink." I sniffed the air, grimacing at the smell of burnt clothes and hair. At least I wouldn't have to shave my legs any time soon. The pink flesh was already healing visibly through the holes that had burned through. I'd be good as new by the time we got to the hospital. If I could have slowed down the process, I would have. But it wasn't an ability I could control. The only thing that would slow it was holy water, and asking to stop by a church probably would have set off more questions than my miraculous healing. Either way, there was going to be questions I needed to start coming up with excuses for.
The lieutenant narrowed his eyes at my legs, stared, got up and ripped open one of the holes in my leggings. "How are you not burned to a crisp?"
The EMT in the back with us, who had been ignoring us for the most part, actually protested. "Take it easy! She's probably in shock and covered in first degree burns. Back off, Lieutenant."
"Do her legs look burned to you?" He motioned at my legs.
The EMT moved down, and I felt his eyes travel over them from ankle to thigh. Gently, he trailed a finger over the pink flesh. "That's not possible."
I decided to play dumb. "What's not?"
"You're not even blistered…"
"Of course not. The firemen doused me with water, and I didn't stop running the whole time."
"Lady, your pants were melted to your legs."
"I was wearing lotion?"
"Made out of asbestos?" He blinked at me like I was an idiot. My plan was working.
I just shrugged, leaned back, and closed my eyes. If I pretended to sleep, I wouldn't have to answer any more questions I had to pretend I didn't know the answers to.
Just as the sirens were getting on my nerves, we pulled in front of the emergency room. I was whisked inside and put into the room next to Sage. How they could call it a room with curtained walls, I didn't know, but at least it gave me the opportunity to get up and check on her when nobody was looking.
"Kara?" Her voice was two octaves below mine and sounded like she had mistaken insulation for cotton candy.
"Shhh. You're going to be fine. Don't talk."
"Thanks."
I just nodded and rubbed my knuckles gently across her cheek around the oxygen mask plastered firmly to her face. "Get some rest. I'm sorry about all your stuff."
"I was too tired to unpack the car. Being lazy finally paid off. All I lost was some clothes and a toothbrush," she croaked, and gave me a plastic covered smile.
"We'll go shopping when you get out of here. My treat."
She nodded, knowing better than to argue.
"But your studio…"
"Can be rebuilt. I had a hefty insurance policy on it. We'll be fine."
"Ahem. Actually, I need to talk to you about that."
I turned and glared at the lieutenant, who had been eavesdropping. "I'll talk to you later," I told Sage, and gently touched her shoulder, going back to my room. "What about?" I closed the curtain after the lieutenant followed me.
"On the record. Do you have any idea how the fire started?"
"No."
"I'd ask you if you had a beef with your friend, if I didn't watch you rush into a burning building to save her."
"You think I started the fire?"
He sat down on the green plastic chair next to my bed and rubbed his face with his hands. "You did just mention a hefty insurance policy."
"I just bought the freaking building and poured my life into it. Of course, I did. I'm not stupid."
"Maybe business wasn't as good as you'd hoped?"
"After being open for a day? Come on, Lieutenant. You know you're barking up the wrong tree. Why do you even think this is arson to begin with? Maybe it was just faulty wiring?"
"Three empty gas cans behind the studio was a pretty solid clue."
"Oh. Yeah. I could see how you might have drawn that conclusion. Were there any prints?"
"The building is still on fire, Mrs. Dell. Stuff like that is going to have to wait."
"Kara."
"What?"
"My name. Call me Kara. Mrs. Dell is kind of stuffy Lieutenant…"
"Grindel."
"Like the monster from Beowulf?"
"I think that was Grendel."
"Close enough."
He sighed. "Josh. Just call me Josh."
Grinning at him, I hopped back up on my bed. If we were going to have an unpleasant conversation, at least I could be comfortable.
He just shook his head at my acrobatics. "You're sure you're human
?"
I blinked in surprise. "Whaaat?"
"I'm kidding. But you should be burned to a crisp and unable to move. Hopping up on a hospital gurney should be a little more difficult than you're making it look."
"Strippers are very…flexible."
"Of course, they are."
"I could give you a demonstration some time…"
His cheeks matched the color of my freshly healed legs before he turned around and darted through the curtain.
"Huh. That wasn't a no."
Chapter 18
Waking up sandwiched between Daniel and Brady was the absolute highlight of my existence since we'd moved to Bickering. I was nuzzling Daniel's shoulder and Brady's arm was draped over the two of us.
"Good morning," Daniel said with a smile, and kissed the top of my head.
"Yes. Yes, it is." I groaned lazily and pushed my ass back against Brady's hardness. His soft snores spoke volumes. He was still sound asleep, but his hips were grinding himself against me out of pure instinct. It didn't get any more primal than that.
I was content with the grinding and the warmth, but Daniel slid his hand over my hip and grabbed a handful of flesh, pulling my cheeks apart and exposing my wetness to Brady's probing. He didn't slip in, but the tip of him slid over my moist lips and then pulled back, rubbing me in just the right way.
I cooed and pressed my forehead to Daniel's.
"Is he inside you?"
"No."
"He's always had terrible aim." He laughed softly, brought his hand back over my hip, and ran his fingers through my pubic hair, exploring on his own and trying to get to my clit between my thighs.
"Feeling left out?" I lifted my leg and opened the gates for him.
"No. Just trying to help."
I gasped as he reached between my legs and guided Brady inside me. "Fuck."
"He is now." He smiled at me and let his lips graze mine in a gentle kiss.
Brady found a sleep rhythm and started grunting in pleasure. His arm slipped between Daniel and I, and pulled me against him as Daniel returned his fingers to my enlarged clit and began tracing lazy gentle wet circles over it. Closing my eyes, my moans matched Brady's as I gripped Daniel's cock in my hand and began stroking. Officially, the best morning ever.
"This is so hot, I'm not going to last long," Daniel whispered, and kissed me again.
I grinned as I pulled away from the kiss. "Get on your knees and feed me my breakfast."
"What do you want to eat?"
"Sausage and cream." I tugged on him roughly.
"Your wish is my command. And pleasure."
Slowly, he pulled away and did as I asked, moving quietly. I was practically drooling by the time the head of his cock reached my waiting lips. My hand returned to his cock and pulled him to me as I sucked him into my mouth and ran my tongue over his sensitive head. Brady's hand shifted to my hip, and he snaked the other one beneath me, gripping me firmly around my waist as he picked up the pace of his thrusting.
"Good morning," he said with a chuckle.
Popping Daniel from my mouth, I answered, "It is now," and resumed my ministrations. Lust filled the room, and I sucked it in with every bob of my head and thrust of Brady inside me. Breathing through my nose, I was gasping for breath when I felt the familiar tingle in my favorite place. Letting out a groan as my own orgasm raced through me, I tilted my head back and let Daniel slide free as he started ejaculating in my open mouth.
"Holy fuck, that's hot." Brady slammed himself against me, and I felt his cock throbbing as he emptied himself inside me as the three of us rode it out together.
Brady was the first to pull free. I let go of Daniel and rolled on my back, smiling at the ceiling and utterly content. Brady's hand slid over my chest and squeezed my breast, pulling me toward him. My eyebrows rose as he kissed me, covered in Daniel's cum, without even pausing to consider it. Hot, wet, and salty kisses might have just become my new favorite as he devoured my mouth.
I started whimpering into that kiss when Daniel parted my legs, and his lips devoured me below.
Breaking the kiss, my head ground the pillow as my back arched off the bed. "What is going on with you two?"
"A little agreement between gentlemen." Brady rested his head back on his pillow and watched me in the throes of ecstasy.
"What kind of agreement?"
"Well. We both agreed that our lady should always be super clean. So, we agreed to always clean up after ourselves or each other."
"Holy fuckballs, that's a good agreement." My hips started bucking as Daniel's tongue invaded me.
"We thought you would like it." Brady sucked my nipple between his lips and grazed the tip with his teeth.
"Don't nibble. Bite."
He sucked more of me into his mouth and closed his teeth down on my flesh as he pinched the other between his thumb and finger. Pain and pleasure melted together, and became this extraordinary thing that smothered me before it exploded inside me. I screamed their names as my voice took on a demonic timbre while I came and came and came. Finally, I couldn't take any more and gently pushed their heads away simultaneously.
"Wow."
They were both grinning at me like idiots. Beautiful, loving, gorgeous idiots. My fools.
∞ ∞ ∞
"Fuck." A tear actually rolled down my cheek.
"Maybe the inside looks better than the outside?" Karen tried to peek inside through the blackened remains of the window. "Nope." She sighed and stepped back, giving me a sad look. She saw my tears and hugged me on the street in front of Silhouettes.
"What are you going to do?"
"Rebuild. I just… I just got the fucking place opened, and now it's going to be months before I get this place fixed back up."
"It might take that long to get the insurance money."
"You're a regular ray of fucking sunshine, Karen."
"Oh, sweetie. I'm sorry. I'm just letting you know what to expect. That's what friends are for."
"Sugar coat that shit."
"I will."
I kicked a piece of broken window toward the ruined building. "Maybe I should just buy another building and fix that one. Then just recoup my losses with the insurance money."
"But then you'll be fucked if your insurance claims fraud."
"God damn it, Karen."
"Sorry. Come on, I'll buy you a coffee while we think about it." She gripped my arm and headed us back up the street toward the Dunkin’ on the corner.
"You said if the insurance claims fraud. Just out of curiosity, why?"
"Oh, it's all over town that three gas cans were found behind the studio. Most people are saying arson, but I've heard the fraud word a couple times, too. I wouldn't worry. I know you didn't torch your own place."
"Really? News travels that fast here?"
"Half the neighborhood dates cops. Is married to cops. Or just has a side cop. They like the handcuffs."
The image of a hunky lieutenant flashed through my mind, and I grinned. Then another one of him cuffed to the headboard of my bed. "Yeah. I can see that."
She pulled the door open with her free hand and pushed me inside the warm, coffee scented corner of heaven. "Usual?"
"Yeah. Thanks," I answered.
"Grab us a table."
"'Kay."
I meandered through the crowded restaurant until I found a relatively clean table and plopped my ass down, rubbing my eyebrows in hopes of easing the tension headache I'd developed.
Yes. Demons get headaches. We're usually better at giving than getting, but it still happens.
"You look like you could use something a little stronger than coffee."
Blinking in surprise, I looked up. I recognized his voice, but it was still a shock to see the Lieutenant Grindel standing over me, a half-donut in one hand and a thermal mug of coffee in the other.
He saw me staring at his breakfast. "Not one donut joke, or I'll arrest you."
"On what charge?"
"Unlicens
ed stereotypes."
"It's not a stereotype if it's true. Sit?"
He nodded, giving me an uncertain smile as he set his coffee down and pulled out the chair. "Come to survey the damage?"
"That I didn't cause? Yes."
He sighed and took a bite of his sour cream donut, washing it down with a swig of coffee. "For the record, I never thought you did. But I had to ask."
"Fair enough."
"Oh. Who's this?"
"Karen, meet Lieutenant Grendel."
"Grindel." He shook his head and turned, offering Karen his hand until he saw her overburdened with coffee and a bag of donuts. "Here." He took the two hot cups of coffee and set them on the table.
"Thank you, Officer." She smiled at him, sitting down in the chair next to me and sliding one of the coffees in front of me. "There's your devil's brew."
"Devil's brew?" The lieutenant cocked an eyebrow.
"She drinks that shit black. Like some sort of monster. Doesn't appreciate the finer points of cream and sugar."
"I like cream. Just not in my coffee." I grinned at Josh from across my lid as I took a long swallow.
He almost spit his. Karen just stared at me with her hand in the bag of donuts.
"What? It's delicious on raspberries."
"That's where you were going with this? Really?" Karen shot me a dubious look.
"You've never had jizzberries?" I grinned at her and watched the color drain from her face. Mission accomplished.
Lieutenant Grindel was rubbing the tension headache from his forehead. "I was glad I ran into you," he muttered.
"Was?" I chuckled. "Were you happy to see me, or was it business?"
"Business, I'm afraid. The fire inspector is definitely ruling it arson. Know anybody who would want to torch your place?"
"Hmmm. Boyfriend's ex. An angry soccer mom. Parents of my daughter's boyfriend. The one cashier at the grocery store I called a cunt because she smashed my bread. The principal's secretary, the president of the HOA's wife, the bitch in the flower shop across the street. Oh! And my second-grade teacher. But she's dead, so I don't think it was her. Unless she crawled up from the pits of hell…but no. That seems a long way to go just for a little payback. It was only her cat. She got another."
Succubus Soccer Mom: A Reverse Harem Tale Page 17
