Wicked After Dark: 20 Steamy Paranormal Tales of Dragons, Vampires, Werewolves, Shifters, Witches, Angels, Demons, Fey, and More

by Mina Carter

  “Shooting me will not kill me,” he said, “but it might hinder me from being able to stop them from harming you.”

  “I’m confident I will get them before they get me.” Normally, she would’ve been confident she could shoot them all before they had any chance of getting closer to her, but she knew she wasn’t up to it at the moment. “If you want the damn license, keep it. Just get the hell out of here.” She cocked the gun to let him know she meant business.

  Moving with supernatural speed, he’d taken the gun from her, crushed it in his fist, and tossed it at her feet before she realized he’d moved. “Sorry. I’m not willing to bet your life on it.” His voice was filled with just as much irritation as his eyes. “What’s wrong with you? You’re not well.”

  “I’m well enough to make you regret fucking around with me.” She glanced down at the gun. “And for destroying my gun.”

  “If you promise to behave I’ll get you another one to play with.” He seemed to be hesitating with a decision as he ran his hand through his hair, and then he grabbed her arms and pulled her close to him. “We’re leaving.” He wrapped one arm around her and started toward his motorcycle. “I’m not going to hurt you. Don’t make this more difficult than it needs to be.”

  She didn’t have any reason to believe he wouldn’t hurt her, but she did have every reason to believe he would. Why else would he force her to leave with him? She wasn’t about to allow him to take her anywhere. “Let go of me.” When he continued to drag her along, she reached into her jacket. “I’m not going anywhere with you.” She pulled her knife out and stuck it into his side.

  Wincing, he clenched his jaw, but he didn’t let go of her as she’d expected. Instead, he turned her around and gripped her shoulders. “That was not nice at all.” Grunting, he pulled the knife out and tossed it onto the ground. What really shocked her, however, was that even though she knew he was mad, he didn’t release her to strike back. She would’ve had a chance to get away if he would’ve retaliated. He just held her close to his body, his grip on her shoulders firm and yet gentle. “I told you I wasn’t going to hurt you. I just need to talk to you.”

  Just then, she heard the back door to her boutique open. She turned her head and saw Brianna walk out. “What’s happening? Mia, are you okay?”

  Mia’s heart stopped. “Go back inside!” From the corner of her eyes she saw movement and turned her head. The other men were moving toward Brianna. “Do it now, Brianna—go inside!”

  Mia’s stomach churned. Brianna’s sightless gaze was fixed on the three men, and she wasn’t moving to go back inside. She was actually moving further away from the building. Mia couldn’t allow Brianna to get any closer to the other men. She had to do something. She looked up at Eli. Like it or not, she needed his cooperation. “Please … she can’t see.”

  He glanced over at Brianna and then looked down at Mia. “What?”

  “She’s blind, you dumb son of a bitch. Just let me help her.”

  Lowering his eyebrows, Eli frowned. “Damn it.” Then his expression softened, and he nodded. “Fine. I’ll help her for you.” He turned his head toward the men. “Get the fuck away from her!”

  As if they hadn’t heard him, the men continued to move closer to Brianna. She felt Eli hesitate. She knew he planned to help Brianna, but at the same time he didn’t want to release her and risk her leaving. “I’m not going anywhere,” she said, hoping it would convince him to help Brianna.

  Just then the sound of another Harley caught her attention. Eli turned his head. It appeared Brianna had also heard it because she turned her head toward the sound and smiled. Mia knew what her smile meant. It was Nikolas Drake.

  Eli turned away from Mia and went perfectly still. Mia knew he was searching for Nikolas’ identity. “I don’t think she will need my help.” Eli yanked Mia’s arm and pulled her to his side. “We’re leaving.”

  Mia tried to pull her arm out of his grip, but it was useless. He was too strong. “There’s no way in hell I’m leaving her with them.”

  “You know she’s fine. Her mate is coming for her.” He yanked her hard. “And he’s pissed.”

  The sudden explosion of sharp, bone-deep pain that shot through her entire body nearly brought her to her knees. “Shit.” It was so intense she actually felt lightheaded and nauseous. “Let go of me.” Digging in her heels to slow him down, she bit the pain back, refusing to allow him to see any sign of it.

  Eli stopped. “Damn it.”

  Mia followed Eli’s gaze. A dark, smoky shadow of a tall man with broad shoulders on a Harley took substance at the entrance of the alley. Mia released a sigh of relief. She knew beyond any doubt that Brianna was safe. At that moment it was the only thing that mattered.

  The atmosphere was charged with fury, as though electricity thrummed through the air. Mia sensed Nikolas was aware of Eli, but he gave no outward sign of it. Somehow the knowledge that he didn’t consider Eli a threat entered her mind. She didn’t hear Nikolas’ voice in her mind, but she knew it was him sharing the knowledge with her.

  Nothing about Nikolas’ powerful presence was subtle, and yet, he didn’t rush. He simply got off the bike and walked straight toward Brianna. “Don’t touch her,” he warned in a voice that was only slightly more than a whisper.

  One of the men, apparently stupid enough to think he could use Brianna as a shield, grabbed her from behind. Brianna didn’t seem to notice. She just continued to focus her sightless gaze on Nikolas, though the man had wrapped his arm around her neck and yanked her to him.

  Mia smiled. There was no fear in Brianna. None at all.

  “You wish to die.”

  Mia glanced at Nikolas when he spoke. It was definitely a statement rather than a question. Nikolas smiled, but there was no humor in it. It was cruel. Merciless. Murderous. “So be it.” Nikolas never stopped walking. Eyes burning red and power in the form of fire swirling around him, he lifted his hand and waved it toward the men.

  It happened fast. If Mia had blinked she would’ve missed everything. The man that had his arm around Brianna’s throat was thrown back several feet. Then, when he attempted to stand up, all three of the men screamed at once as they burst into smoke and flames.

  There was nothing left. No flesh. No bones. No ash. Nothing of them remained.

  Mia heard the deep, thundering sound of more motorcycles, this time several of them, and she felt Joseph’s familiar touch as he searched her mind to assess the situation. Why the hell do I have to find out from Nikolas that you’re in trouble?

  Trouble? What are you talking about? I’m just hanging out with a friend. But it’s good that Nikolas came to visit Brianna. She’s missed him.

  I will never hear the end of this. Do you even care a little tiny bit about my reputation?

  Nope. Not really.

  She felt something change in Joseph. He’d identified Eli, and it bothered him. Get away from him, Mia. His voice was perfectly calm, but she knew better. She felt what everyone else couldn’t. He was mad as hell and very close to losing control.

  I would rather not. He’s actually kind of cute.

  Eli yanked her arm again. This time the pain that surged through her body and her bones was too intense to hide. In fact, if he hadn’t immediately wrapped his arm around her to support her weight, she would’ve landed flat on her ass.

  Stop screwing around, Mia. Get the hell away from him. He’s dangerous. Joseph’s voice was still perfectly calm, as if he didn’t have a care in the world, but she felt his anger and frustration boiling over.

  Really? I didn’t notice. What the hell do you think I’ve been trying to do? Her pain was intolerable at times, especially if her body was jostled around before she had a chance to brace herself.

  “I’m sorry,” Eli said. Mia realized to her surprise that he really was. She saw guilt in his eyes. It was odd. She’d just stabbed him, and his friends were dead. Why the hell would he care if he’d hurt her? By the look on his face, she knew he was conf
used, since he hadn’t grabbed her hard enough to hurt her.

  “I am not angry at you for stabbing me. You were scared. And that was my fault. I followed you into an alley and cornered you. Honestly, I am proud you chose to fight rather than run. I hope in the future, as long as it’s not me, you shoot before the man has a chance to take your gun.” Pausing, he smiled at her. Well, honestly, rather than a smile, it looked more as if he were baring his teeth. Not that the upward curve of his lip wasn’t sexy, because it was. “And I told you those men weren’t my friends. I do not care that they’re dead. I am actually quite pleased he killed them.”

  She hated that he was able to hear her thoughts, but what made her even more uncomfortable was his moving his massive, solid frame closer to her. Looking up at him, feeling the heat of his body against hers, she felt utterly susceptible to him. He was pushing beyond Joseph’s presence to move more freely in her mind. To her shock, she couldn’t stop him, though she tried.

  “I didn’t know you were injured. I would’ve been gentler. Tell me how it happened,” he said.

  Part of her wanted to tell him anything he wanted to know. She opened her mouth, but luckily some other, stronger part of her refused to give him any information. To say she was confused was a serious understatement. He was a threat to her, and yet she actually sensed his need to shelter her, to protect her from the source of the pain. Deep down, though, what bothered her most was his ability to move freely in her mind when Joseph was merged with her.

  Then it happened. She knew he saw the truth a split second before he said, “It’s not an injury. You’re dying.” She saw pain in his eyes, genuine pain, for her, for him. She was swamped with his deep sadness. As a result, she felt her heart breaking for him. It didn’t make sense. All she knew about him was that he was dangerous. Knowing that, how could she feel any empathy for him?

  All of a sudden, she realized her mind was reaching out to fully merge with his. She tried to stop it, but she wasn’t strong enough. Then, to her horror, she moved closer to him, intimately pressing her body against his. She’d never encountered such a powerful compulsion.

  Joseph! In that instant, calling out to Joseph wasn’t a conscious decision. It was a reflex. She knew he was her only hope.

  Eli bent his head. His mouth was close enough to hers that she could feel the heat of his breath on her lips, and it ignited a flame of desire deep in her belly. She wanted to touch him. She wanted to kiss him, taste him. She knew he was creating the longing in her. But knowing it meant nothing when she couldn’t stop him from controlling her mind and body by flooding her with sexual longing for him.

  “This is a game you do not want to play,” she whispered between clenched teeth.

  “This is not a game,” he growled, his lips pressed against the corner of her mouth and his arms circling her.

  Just then, something enormous slammed into her and filled her. The inferno of lust Eli had created was extinguished, and it was replaced by strength. She felt Joseph’s power thrumming through her body and mind, freeing her from Eli’s compulsion.

  Shoving him, stepping back, she blinked up at Eli. She couldn’t believe she’d almost kissed him. She couldn’t believe that, even under a compulsion, she’d wanted to kiss him.

  For a second, everything, even her breathing, went still. Was Joseph angry at her? Don’t be silly. He was with her, in her mind and body, his calm presence comforting her. It was my fault. He had your mind and body under his control. The wind picked up, and then, pricking her skin, the atmosphere was charged with pulses of electricity. It will never happen again. She felt the words whispered against her ear even though he wasn’t there. She believed Joseph. He wouldn’t say it if he didn’t mean it.

  Lightning flashed and thunder rumbled in the distance. Looking up at the sky, she took a breath and released it slowly. It thrilled her that Joseph was coming for her. It felt good to know he was ready and able to defend her when she wasn’t strong enough to defeat the bad guy.

  Mia looked straight into Eli’s eyes. “You should get your ass out of here.” Why the hell was she warning him?

  “You will be disappointed if you expect me to run away from the demon.” He shook his head and reached out to touch her, but she moved to dodge his hand. “You don’t belong with him. I’ve been searching for you for a very long time. You’re a part of me. I am a part of you. You feel it. You know it’s true. And whether or not your demon likes it, I won’t give you up now that I’ve found you.”

  “He will kill you.” It was a fact. Joseph wasn’t about to play nice with a male attempting to stake some type of twisted claim on her. He would never share her with any man.

  “I look forward to him trying. The only reason you have anything to do with him is because he has been deceiving you. I’m disgusted but not surprised he has kept the truth from you. He wants to keep you to himself. For that, I can’t blame him.”

  Okay. Now she was really baffled. She wanted to know more, but she knew it was only a matter of minutes before Joseph was there with them. With each passing second, she felt him getting closer. His power was unbelievable, but she knew it was his anger that fueled the storm raging all around and the tremors vibrating deep below the ground. “If he knew … I don’t even know you. Why would I listen to anything you say?”

  “You are like me. You are lycan. Search your soul for the truth. It’s there. You are not like Joseph Payne. You do not belong to him. You belong to me.”

  “A werewolf?” She was so shocked she didn’t bother to inform him that she didn’t belong to anyone. Normally, she would’ve been all over that one.

  When he nodded, Mia looked down at his side and followed the trail of blood leading to a pool of it at his feet. He was losing too much blood. He had to be getting weak from it. She’d seen how easily Nikolas had killed the other men. Surely, Joseph would kill Eli just as easily. Eli had to know it too. Why wasn’t he leaving? Oddly, she realized she wanted him to leave. She wanted him to live. She wanted to see him again.

  It occurred to her that she’d lost her mind.

  To give herself a chance to regain her bearings, she looked around, checking to make sure Brianna was okay. Nikolas was still with her, staring at Brianna as if nothing of any importance was going on. Mia really hoped, for Brianna’s sake, that Nikolas had finally gotten over the notion that he would be more harm than good to her. She didn’t understand why Nikolas was so hard on himself. He was a good and kind demon. He would never do anything to intentionally harm Brianna, but he didn’t seem to notice that his self-doubt was tearing Brianna’s heart to shreds.

  “Give the license back to her and get the hell out of here.” Joseph appeared from out of nowhere, and somehow he’d managed to get in between her and Eli.

  Joseph’s power and strength thrilled her. His presence was always exhilarating to her. The thought of belonging with him, to him, was wonderful in a twisted sort of girly girl way, but women like her didn’t belong to men. She had her own identity and her own agenda. Plus, she wasn’t a romantic—she knew what she felt when she was around him was just too good to be true.

  Her mind was such a jumbled-up mess that she was thankful he was there. Just being near him was slowly easing her pain. Even though he wasn’t physically touching her he was supporting her weight. She actually felt his arms holding her. It was unusual for her to want to feel the arms of a man protectively holding her, but it was beyond want. She needed him to hold her at that moment. He knew it. She knew it. But as far as she was concerned, no one else ever would.

  “Joseph Payne, it’s such a tragic shock to see you alive.” Eli’s voice was thick with resentment. “I thought your wife killed you.”

  “You know better.” The tone of Joseph’s voice was very low. It carried a dark harshness that revealed his temper was explosive. “You’ve been following me around for months.”

  “Not you.” Eli shifted his gaze onto Mia’s face. “Now would be a good time to ask him why he hasn’t told y
ou the truth about what you are.”

  “He told me,” Mia lied. She believed either Joseph had his reasons for not telling her or he didn’t know. She also figured it was also possible Eli was lying about it. Of course, she had every intention of questioning Joseph later, but now wasn’t the time.

  She had the silliest desire to move closer to Joseph, to get under the shelter of his arm. It was a stupid longing. She shrugged it off. She was just tired, and even though his presence was easing the brunt of her pain, her body still ached.

  Everyone needs to be loved, to feel loved. It’s not silly or stupid to want to be comforted in the arms of someone who loves you. And just like that his arm was around her and he was gently pulling her closer to him. She didn’t resist.

  Eli looked down at her. “You’re pathetic. You’re nothing but his puppet.” His smile was as cruel as his words. His eyes burned with raw hatred. “Are you seriously weak-minded enough to stand here and defend a demon that has used deception to keep you as his pet?”

  No. It wasn’t hatred. It was pain. He was lashing out at her because she’d hurt his feelings by finding comfort in Joseph’s arms. It was something Joseph would never do. He would rather feel the pain than give it to her.

  “Perhaps I was wrong. I would not want a woman with no backbone,” Eli growled.

  Mia opened her mouth to respond, but she stopped short. She was irritated by the insult, but she figured Joseph was even more pissed when a gust of wind roared past them.

  “How dare you insult her?”

  She wasn’t the type of woman to sit back and wait for a man to defend her honor—she preferred to defend it herself—but she wasn’t a fool. One wrong word from her would spur Joseph and Eli into a fight she didn’t want to witness. Sometimes it was best to allow males to work out their differences.

  “It’s the truth.”

  Obviously, Eli had a death wish. Mia felt enormous, violent waves of power flowing from Joseph. Strange, copper-colored flames surrounded Joseph, surrounded her. She knew Eli could feel Joseph’s mounting rage, but by the look on his face, Eli wasn’t even the slightest bit worried about it. In fact, he appeared to be ready and eager to fight and die.