by Trina M. Lee
“What isn’t he up to?” Falon scoffed, giving the interior of the nightclub a scrutinizing once over. “It could be anything, but there’s no doubt it’ll be nasty.”
“I’m going. It could be a chance to get the feather we need.” An invitation like this would have instilled great fear in me not so long ago. Now, though I was wary, I was also excited.
“You’re crazy, you know that?” Falon wiped a piece of imaginary lint off his pants. “Not the good kind of crazy either.”
Out of sheer curiosity, I dragged the tequila bottle over and sniffed the contents. The noxious fumes burned my sinuses and had me recoiling in regret. Wishful thinking. “As if you can tell the difference. You like crazy.”
A hint of a smile adorned Falon’s face. Because it was so rare, it drew my gaze. He did a lot of smirking, not so much smiling. “I don’t like crazy. Crazy likes me.”
“Sure it does. Keep telling yourself that.”
There was no such thing as having a normal conversation with Falon. Not for me. We could sling barbs at each other all night and never run out of insults and backhanded compliments. It would be nothing short of a miracle if we pulled off this little scheme.
“So that’s your big plan then?” Falon asked. “Walk into what is clearly a trap for all of us and hope you can swipe a feather and use it before Shya figures us out. He’s clever. Don’t assume you can outsmart him.”
“Yeah, that’s my plan. Do you have a better one?” I countered, a challenge on my face. “And I don’t need to outsmart him. Just have to take him by surprise.”
Falon didn’t look so certain, but it wasn’t like we had any other choice but to go. Finally he nodded and leaned forward, propping his elbows on the table. “Have you ever considered using that succubus seduction on him? He’s one tough fucker, but it might work. If you can make him your love slave, you’ll have the best shot at getting a feather. He might not even notice.”
There was no keeping the disgust off my face. What Falon had just suggested had never crossed my mind. There wasn’t a single part of me that wanted to be intimate with Shya on any level, even if it was to achieve a necessary feat.
“Not in a million years,” I said, shaking my head so that a strand of blonde hair caught on my lip-gloss. Brushing it away, I pursed my lips and shuddered. “I can’t do it. Just the thought makes me want to crawl in a hole.”
“No dry heaving though? I think I’m insulted.” Falon swiped the bottle of tequila and took a swig. A sour expression twisted his perfectly sculpted features into something comedic. “This is nasty shit. I didn’t tell you to fuck Shya, just seduce him. Or can you not take things only halfway?”
Once again, thanks to the whole deathly pallor aspect, I was grateful that blushing wasn’t a vampire trait. “Of course I can take things halfway. I do it all the time.”
When Falon merely raised a brow in doubt, it was my turn to be insulted. I often seduced my human victims, encouraging their desire so I could feed on the heady energy. I never had sex with any of them nor did I want to. Because he was looking at me like I was full of shit, I couldn’t help but respond to his unspoken challenge.
Holding his gaze, I propped my foot on the booth between his legs. My four-inch boot heel rested against his nether region with just enough pressure to cause him to suck in a breath. I released my hold on the power that was always roiling about inside me, letting a little slip from me to splash over him like a sudden wave.
He tensed but never moved. His eyes betrayed him though. That was where I saw the reaction as his pupils dilated in response and desire crawled through him.
“You’re a despicable creature,” Falon muttered, though his tone lacked venom.
A playful grin lit up my face. “So I’ve been told.”
Because I wasn’t content to stop with just a small display and because I now hungered for things no human victim could give me, I took it further. Keeping my gaze locked on Falon’s, I ran my tongue slowly over my lips and pushed out of my seat. I climbed up onto the tabletop and crawled across to his side. Not once did I break eye contact or staunch the flow of power running between us.
He made no effort to stop me as I settled myself in his lap. He was already hard though we’d barely touched. Face to face, the tension between us grew thick enough to walk on. I loved it.
I ran a hand along the side of his neck, tracing a finger over the throbbing pulse there before reaching to grab a fistful of near-silver fair hair. Falon’s head fell back against the booth as he gave in to my manipulative touch.
“Is there a point to this little display?” he asked, gripping my hips to adjust my position atop his erection.
The mystical force that surrounded him was heavy with desire. It taunted my hunger for power. I drew it close, basking in the way it wrapped around me like a blanket of bliss. “Seems to be.” My wicked laugh poured fuel on the flames burning between us. I rose up a few inches, just enough to torment him a little.
Leaning in close, I ran my tongue over his jugular and found it disturbingly hard to keep from sinking fangs into the pulsing vein. This torment was not one sided.
Falon released a strangled breath and pulled me back down against him. “You’re playing with fire, wolf.” The warning in his tone only fed my predatory urges.
“Promise?”
Falon’s hands tightened on my hips. “Better watch it, Alexa. You run the risk of becoming predictable.”
I sat up straight so I could watch his face. His smirk was back in place. So I punched him. It just kind of happened. My right hook caught us both by surprise.
“Predictable, huh?” I questioned. “Did you see that coming?”
Wonder lit up his face, as if he didn’t know if he should be mad or impressed. “What the fuck was that? You’re deranged.”
My gaze was drawn to the blood that welled up at the corner of his mouth. The cut had already healed. Unable to resist, I leaned in and captured the scarlet drop with my tongue. That small taste was loaded with an otherworldly essence that packed a punch of its own.
Fireworks went off inside me as Falon’s blood stained my tongue. It was such a tease. I wanted more.
He brought a hand to my face and kissed me, a deep, delving exploration of my mouth. Then against my lips, he murmured, “You know what your problem is? You’re a victim of your own power.”
There was no arguing that. At times, I was, but only with those I got a rush from. I’d never done this with a demon and didn’t think I wanted to risk it. What if it really messed with me? Or worse, what if I liked it?
“You think I can’t stop?” I pulled away and started to climb off him. “I told you I can take things halfway. You’re a tasty treat, Falon, but you’re not the best I’ve had. Not by a—”
“What the fuck are you guys doing?” Jez’s sudden appearance startled us both. She grabbed my arm and dragged me out of the booth, none too gentle. “Oh, no way. Not on my watch.”
Falon snickered, amused at having been caught by the feisty leopard. “Don’t blame me. I came to talk about this.” He pointed at the invitation on the table. “She’s the one who got carried away. Good thing you came along when you did. She probably would have screwed me right here in front of all these people.”
Jez didn’t find Falon as funny as he found himself. With a shake of her head, she shot us each a glare. “It wouldn’t be the first time.”
“Hey,” I protested, ignoring Falon’s keen interest in that statement. “That only happened once.”
Being reminded of the intimate encounter Arys and I had shared in this nightclub drew my gaze to the table where it had taken place. Ah, memories. So good and so fucking bad.
“We’re going to this fucked up party.” Jez slapped a hand on the invitation and thrust it at Falon. “All of us. There. You’re done talking about it. Now beat it before I have to get nasty.”
The spell had been broken, but the effects remained. I felt mildly buzzed, like the pleasant tingle af
ter a shot of alcohol, though stronger, more potent. It left me wanting more. Denial wasn’t my strong suit.
Falon appraised Jez and ultimately decided he didn’t want to tangle with her. His silver gaze landed on me. “This isn’t over. Now I owe you one.”
Without giving me a chance to fling a retort back at him, Falon grabbed Willow’s abandoned tequila and disappeared, leaving me to face Jez’s wrath.
Hands on hips, she pinned me with an accusatory stare. “What the hell, Alexa? I leave for ten minutes, and you’ve managed to chase Willow away and rub all over the cock of the one person you need to stay away from right now.”
I shrugged. No point arguing. “That’s how I feel prying the phone out of your hands when you call Arrow or the keys when you try to go meet him. This is what we agreed to, right? Thanks for having my back.”
“You don’t mean that. If I hadn’t come back, you’d have fucked him senseless.”
“Maybe. Maybe not. But you did come back, so now we never have to find out.” After the rush of playing with Falon wore off, I would be glad she’d been there. I turned into a cat with a mouse with him. He’d become my favorite victim, and I knew it was because I didn’t feel bad about using him for my own personal pleasure. He was the one person I could feast on and feel no guilt.
“Let’s go home.” Jez tugged on my arm, and I let her pull me toward the exit. “There’s too much temptation here, for both of us. Maybe we can get in a run before sunrise.”
Going for a run was not what I wanted to do. However, once I was wolf and moving through the forest, I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else. “Ok, let’s go.”
The Wicked Kiss was in good hands with Josh running the bar and Justin manning the door. It was safe to step away. Besides, being there just made me miss Kale in a painful way.
We left the city and headed down the highway toward Stony Plain, the small town I’d called home for so many years. The further we got from Edmonton, the more I began to feel like myself. As we turned into the tree-lined driveway, I felt the first sense of calm I’d experienced all night. My wolf was deeply attached to this land.
I felt something else as well. A cool spark of power and awareness. Arys.
Shaz’s car was in the driveway. What were the two of them doing here? I shot a questioning look at Jez who shrugged and shook her head. Her lack of verbal denial made it feel like a set up.
Jez did a good job avoiding my gaze as we made our way inside. Suspicious. With every step my unease grew. When I found Arys and Shaz sitting in the living room, alarm bells went off in my head.
“Hey, Lex,” Shaz greeted me. He’d barely spoken to me since seeing the video of Falon and me together.
Arys’s silence spoke louder than words. He regarded me with calm blue eyes that revealed inner turmoil. On the small table next to the couch sat two of Shya’s invitations. Shit, not Shaz too.
“What’s going on guys?” I asked, feeling awkward.
Shaz patted the couch beside him. “Come sit down. We all need to talk.”
I turned to cast a scathing glare at Jez who avoided me by digging through the fridge for something to eat. It became impossible to deny. Three of the people I loved the most had set me up…for a fucking intervention.
Chapter Three
“Is this for real?” I gaped at each of them in turn. “What the fuck, guys?”
My temper went from chill to explosive in a matter of seconds. Jez did all she could to pretend like she hadn’t been involved. She disappeared into the walk-in pantry and rummaged around. Shaz met my eyes but glanced away quickly, looking to Arys to diffuse the bomb. Arys regarded me from his place in the corner easy chair with a calm demeanor, but the intensity in his eyes revealed that he’d expected my reaction.
“Alexa, sit down.” He gestured to the spot on the couch beside Shaz. “This doesn’t have to turn into an argument. Let’s talk rationally. We’re all family here.”
There were many ways I could react now, and I was torn between all of them. The tension had been mounting among the three of us for some time now. My death and transition had fed it.
“Aren’t you supposed to be with Gabriel?” I asked, my tone sharp.
“We rescheduled.”
The silent challenge in Arys’s eyes cut the tether on my already short temper. However, the calm determination Shaz exuded gave me the strength to keep my mouth shut. As they’d requested, I took a seat on the couch with Shaz, putting enough space between us to allow us both to feel secure in our personal space without making it weird.
“Ok, I’m sitting.” I leaned back and crossed my arms. It was impossible not to feel defensive. “Talk.”
Again Arys and Shaz shared a look, a silent communication that revealed the new depths of their strange relationship. They were able to read each other, speaking without words. I watched them, ice in my stare, wondering again when I’d become the odd-one-out in this little threesome.
Arys met my gaze, and he softened. “There’s nothing I’d like more than to let you adjust in your own way at your own pace. However, time is not a luxury you have. There’s a lot of attention on you right now. You’ve got to be ready for anything. You should feed your hungers in a manner that meets your needs without compromising your mental faculties. The best way to do that is with us.”
Of course. It came as no great surprise that this was the angle Arys would take. I chuckled. “Is it really though? You’re asking me to victimize you both repeatedly. I’m not sure you’ve thought this through, Arys.”
“Trust me,” he replied. “I have. The three of us work well together. You can’t deny that. And it’s not as if we won’t all be getting something out of it.”
“But it changes the dynamic between us. You guys aren’t supposed to be prey. I don’t want to see you that way.” My protests sounded hollow, and I wondered somewhere in the back of my mind if perhaps I was victimizing them already. As the thought occurred to me, I became keenly aware of the strong scent of wolf.
“You already do,” Shaz broke in. Despite the casual slump to his posture, he thrummed with tension. “The only thing that got us sleeping together again in Vegas was you making me prey. I’m secure enough as a wolf and a man to accept that. I told you then that I was in this for the long haul, and I’m telling you again now.”
We’d been over this too many times already. I wasn’t going to argue. Shaz knew I thought he deserved a better life, without me. I fell into his green eyes. Emotion swallowed me, and I fought to keep it from showing on my face.
I shook my head, trying not to focus on the steady beat of Shaz’s heart. “I love you both, but I’m not cool with making you guys my victims. It feels like it’s too soon.”
“Nobody’s victimized. Not only can we build the power to mind-shattering heights, but we all get off doing it. How can that possibly be wrong?” Arys allowed himself a small, mischievous grin.
“Just like that? We get naked and pretend like everything is normal?” Suspicion had me narrowing my gaze in scrutiny. “What’s this really about? Is it because I ran to Kale instead of you guys? Is it my rising body count? I can’t help but feel there’s more to this than you guys wanting to meet my needs.”
Arys had the nerve to look offended. “Of course we want to meet your needs. We all have needs that can be met with what we’re suggesting. It’s not like we haven’t done it before.”
Jez, watching the exchange from the kitchen, fake coughed, “Falon.”
I shot her a glare and dragged a finger across my throat in warning. She snickered and popped a Cheeto in her mouth. I whipped a couch pillow at her, pleased when it hurled through the air as a blur, slapping the next Cheeto out of her hand.
Shaz frowned, then nodded. “There is more to it. I’ve been thinking. You said I was treating you like damaged goods, that I wanted to turn you into my ideal version of you, and you were right. I had the chance to walk away from this, and I refused, aware that staying also means accepting you as you are
now. And I do. I want you to know that.”
Listening to Shaz talk, it was so apparent that he was deluding himself. This arrangement among the three of us had never been what he wanted. How long would he keep fooling himself? I hoped that joining the Doghead pack would make him see what I’d been trying to tell him. He didn’t belong with Arys and me. There was something better out there for him.
Letting him go was not what I wanted. It was what he needed. I wanted him to be happy, but I wouldn’t force the issue. He would have to see it on his own. When that day came, it would break my heart.
I found myself growing angry at Arys for going along with this charade. Gritting my teeth, I managed to say, “I think it’s best to let things happen naturally. Forcing it doesn’t feel right to me. I understand that you guys care, but I’ll let you know when I’m ready.”
There was nothing more to say on the matter. It was a ridiculous subject. I spoke to Arys, trying to keep my tone neutral and pleasant. “Can I talk to you alone for a minute?”
“Really, Lex?” Shaz asked. “Is that necessary? Just say whatever it is that you have to say.”
“Yeah, Lex. Just say it. We’re all friends here.” Jez spoke between mouthfuls of junk food. She tipped the bag up to her lips and accidentally poured crumbs on her face. Living with Jez was going to get old fast.
“Fine.” I stood up because I couldn’t sit still and I wanted to stare down at Arys while I lectured him. “You’ve got a lot of balls to come here unannounced and pull this shit on me. I told you how I felt about dragging Shaz further into our mess.”
“He’s here of his own free will.” Arys gestured to Shaz who nodded in agreement. “We’re both here because of what we think is best for all of us. Don’t be so suspicious.”
I faced off with the vampire who was, in every way, my other half. We were keeping a secret from Shaz to protect him when he joined Doghead. If we all ended up back in bed together, that secret would come out somehow. I wasn’t willing to risk it, and it pissed me off that Arys was.
