Mark of the Sylph (Demons of Infernum, #2)

by Rosalie Lario

  “You slept with her,” Maya whispered.

  “Yup.” He let out a humorless chuckle. “Some friend I was, huh?”

  She shrugged. “We all make mistakes.”

  “Yeah well, Leviathos didn’t see it that way. He came over to return something I’d forgotten, and he found us in bed together.”

  “Oh, Taeg.”

  “He flipped. Had every right to. From that moment on, he hated me more than anything. No matter how many times I apologized, he swore revenge.”

  She made a soft noise, but she spoke without a hint of judgment. “I can understand him being angry, but from what I’ve heard, it sounds like he’s gone overboard. Even if he did love her, that doesn’t merit trying to destroy an entire world.”

  Taeg shook his head, daring to meet her eyes. “He doesn’t see things the way you and I do, Maya. He’s always had an envious nature and this... it seemed to unhinge him. It changed him completely.”

  “Whatever the past, it doesn’t excuse his actions, Taeg. And you’re not responsible for them.”

  Right. If only he believed that.

  “You’re not,” she repeated firmly. “No matter your faults, you’re a good man. Don’t ever doubt that.”

  Had she actually said that to him? He examined her face, so open and giving. So unlike the prickly Maya he’d first met. His chest constricted. The Maya he was seeing right now, she might be his undoing. “You know, coming from you, those words mean a whole hell of a lot.”

  She smiled at him and licked her lips, her eyes going unfocused. She inched a fraction closer.

  Oh, man. This was crazy. Just a short time ago she’d wanted to kill him. Now she sat here, looking very much like she wanted him to kiss her. And damn, he wanted to. So badly.

  Breathing in deeply, he straightened his back before he could give in to the insanity.

  Maya’s eyes glinted and she momentarily ducked her head. But when she looked back at him all she said was, “Are you going to bring me back to my apartment, now that I’ve agreed to help you?”

  Yeah, that would be the smart thing to do. But for some reason, he was reluctant. Maybe because in many ways she seemed so vulnerable. Or maybe because she was so important to his mission. He couldn’t even tell anymore.

  “I’m heading upstate to visit my friend who speaks Welsh tomorrow,” he finally said. “I thought you might like to come with me. Since you don’t have to work for a few more days, it only makes sense for you to stick around until then.”

  “I do have school, you know.” When he didn’t reply, she groaned. “Fine.”

  Inwardly, he sighed with relief. In a few days she could go back to her place and he’d come to her when he needed her. But for now, he wanted her here. Whether that made sense or not.

  “You can take the bedroom,” he told her.

  “You’re not going to try and tie me up again, are you?”

  Taeg opened his mouth to make a smartass retort, but in the end he only said, “No. Good night, Maya.”

  She nodded and stood, heading into the room before closing the door.

  He stared at it for a few moments, as if he might be able to use X-ray vision to see inside. You can be a real dick sometimes. Maya had poured her heart out to him tonight. Had confessed things she’d never told anyone. Her whole family had been stolen from her—her parents and her younger sister—and she’d only been ten years old herself, for devil’s sake.

  She’d shown him a softness he bet she rarely let through. And now here he was, ready to take her down the rabbit’s hole again. Repaying her kindness by throwing her headlong into danger. Because he needed her. Right now she was his only hope of destroying the Book, and Brynn would never be safe until that happened. He couldn’t betray Keegan. Not again.

  As alluring as Maya was, as much as he ached to be her knight in shining armor, he couldn’t. His other mission was too important. Family came first. If he managed to destroy the Book, then he would focus on getting revenge for Maya. Until that happened, he needed to keep his distance emotionally. He might not be able to give her problems the focus they deserved, but at least he could keep himself from seducing her. All he could promise right now was hot, dirty, casual sex, and something in his gut told him she wasn’t a casual kind of girl.

  Yet, after a mere three sleepless hours, Taeg cursed himself for vowing to stay away. Because damn it all, she was right next door, and he couldn’t close his eyes without imagining them together. And he knew he couldn’t go to sleep without unintentionally dreamscaping with her. He was too weak where she was concerned.

  Funny thing was, the biggest turn-on wasn’t Maya’s smoking body, but her fierce and fearless attitude. She’d taken on a group of demons today, for devil’s sake. The woman had metaphorical balls of steel, and that was sexy as hell.

  She needs to rest. And she sure didn’t need his sorry ass dreamscaping with her while she was trying to do it. He told himself that over and over. But eventually the inevitable happened. He fell asleep.

  Once again he stood at the house from last night’s dream, breathing in the palpable terror in the air. The demons were here.

  Damn. She couldn’t keep reliving this. It would drive her insane.

  He walked down the dark hallway and into the living room, heading toward the potted plant Maya huddled behind. Kneeling in front of her, he placed his hand under her chin and forced her to look up. “Maya, stop.”

  Her image morphed, no longer that of a frightened girl hiding in her house but the full-grown, luscious Maya he knew. Very slowly, the panic in her eyes receded, replaced by relief and, if he wasn’t mistaken, pleasure. She wore one of the outfits he’d packed for her, a slinky black nightgown that ended at mid-thigh. Her lips curved into a welcoming smile.

  “Shit.” When he rose to his feet and turned away from her, he noticed they were back in his bedroom. He stalked across the room, coming to a stop in front of the window. The image of her as a woman was so at odds with the terrified little girl he’d seen that he didn’t know how to react. How had she survived the agony of that horrifying night without losing her mind?

  But then, with a whisper of fabric, she stood right behind him.

  “What’s the matter, demon?” Her seductive voice sent a shiver of longing down his spine. As if she sensed it, her fingers trailed down the same spot. “Don’t you want me?”

  Taeg turned to face her. “You know that’s not it.”

  Maya lifted a brow at the clear proof of his desire. “Obviously not.”

  Her hand reached out to cup him, fingers closing around his girth, and he let out an involuntary hiss. She looked up at him with a mixture of allure and vulnerability that made his blood boil. “Taeg. Make me forget.”

  Oh devil, he wanted to. But hadn’t he just resolved to leave her alone?

  He caught her hand and drew it away with a muffled groan. “We shouldn’t.”

  “It’s my dream.”

  Yeah, and she really thought that, didn’t she?

  He examined her face. Eyes half-glazed with desire. Lips moist and parted. Her heavy breath forced his attention down to where the hardened pearls of her breasts poked against the fabric of her nightgown. He had a feeling few people, if any, had seen her clad so provocatively. That she even had an outfit like this pointed to a smoldering sexuality deep within her, one she no doubt preferred to keep hidden under a layer of bristle. What an enigma she was.

  “Damn, Maya, you’re breathtaking,” he admitted.

  She smiled, then caught her lower lip between her teeth. “Please, just for a little while, make me forget.”

  It was her plea that did him in. Here, in their shared dream, there were no responsibilities. No consequences. Here, maybe—just maybe—he could act on the way he felt. He drew his arms around her, closing the distance between them. She lifted to her toes when he lowered his head, and her parted lips brushed against his in a butterfly kiss that shook him to his very toes. When the tips of her full breasts brushed
his chest, he couldn’t help but groan. Her tongue reached out to glide along the seam of his lips. He cupped the lush fullness of her ass and lifted her so he could press his arousal against the juncture of her thighs.

  “Taeg,” she sighed against his lips.

  Taking her mouth in a deep, erotic kiss that only hinted at all the things he wanted to do to her, he stumbled a couple of steps forward. As could only happen in a dream, those few paces were all it took to get them to the bed across the room. He laid her back onto it and covered her body with his own.

  “Don’t leave me,” she whispered.

  As if he could.

  Resting his full weight on her, he forced himself to continue kissing her slowly, when all he wanted to do was lose himself inside her in a mad rush. He broke the kiss and sat back onto his legs so he could look down at her. With her face flushed and body heaving under her slinky nightgown, she had an earthy sort of beauty even a goddess would envy. “You’re exquisite, Maya.”

  Her eyes fluttered open. “Taeg—”

  “Shush. Let me look at you.”

  For a moment he feared she would protest, but in the end she licked her lips and watched him from behind half-shuttered eyes. When he’d looked his fill, he tugged the thin straps of her nightgown down her shoulders, baring her full breasts to his view. “Beyond exquisite.”

  He stroked them, running his thumbs across the taut buds. He couldn’t resist leaning down and tugging one nipple into his mouth. She moaned as he ran his tongue around the bud, then lightly scraped his teeth across it.

  She thrust her fingers into his hair and tugged him down hard. “More.”

  He broke away with a hoarse laugh.

  “Don’t get greedy now.” Sitting back again, he ran his fingers along her pubic bone, now barely covered by her gown. With one quick jerk, he tugged the fabric up around her waist, baring her delectable body. A low groan escaped him at the sight of her slick, honeyed flesh. He ran his forefinger along the seam of her parted folds, borrowing her moisture, then slid his finger inside her. “Wet for me?”

  “Don’t tease me,” she replied. Her inner walls closed around him, and suddenly he wondered who was doing the teasing. Damn, how he ached to be there. Not just that. He wanted this to be real, not a dream.

  “Do you remember how I told you I could turn into air form?” he asked her.

  She opened her eyes to shoot him a look glazed with desire. “Yes.”

  “Would you like to see it? Feel it?”

  Maya didn’t respond, but if the narrowing of her eyes and ratcheting of her breath was any indicator, the answer was yes.

  With a grin, he dissipated into air. His molecules dissolved into air particles that burst across the room. There was no pain, only a sense of lightness and the easing of pressure from his physical form. He was now colorless and undetectable, and the feeling was beyond exhilarating.

  His clothes fell onto Maya. She gasped and lifted to her elbows, looking around the room.

  He concentrated on squeezing the air particles into a tight ball, then aimed it at Maya, forcing a burst of air across her body. His clothes billowed off her, floating to the ground. She moaned at the sensation and fell back onto the bed.

  While he didn’t have the same level of sensation in air form, he could still feel. It would be akin to a whisper of breath along his body, if he still technically had one. But to Maya, he would feel like a breeze. One that could run along her flesh at will. And right now his mission was to make her body go into pleasure overload.

  §

  In the dim recesses of her mind, Maya recognized she was dreaming. But it was one she hoped would never end. Taeg had dematerialized right before her eyes. He’d simply gone poof, his clothes falling down to cover her. After that, a delicious wind had fluttered them away.

  As if a million fragments of air individually stroked her, a breeze blew across her nipples, tugging and twisting them, while light strokes of wind brushed her legs, arms, and stomach. She panted and moaned, instinctively squeezing her thighs together. Already on the verge of a climax.

  Although she knew this was a dream, she couldn’t help but wonder—could he do this in real life? The intensity of the air increased as it brushed her entire body, making her flesh quiver and her knees tremble. She moaned and arched her back at the onslaught of sensation. It was enough to send her over the edge. She cried out as she convulsed, splintering into a million little pieces...

  And awoke.

  “Holy hell.” She focused on her surroundings. She still lay in Taeg’s bed, with the covers tight around her waist.

  That’s right. It wasn’t real.

  Laughing quietly, she sat up and smoothed the hair plastered to her sweaty forehead. That had been the wildest dream she’d ever had. Had she actually cried out in real life? She hoped not. But then, something told her Taeg would have come running if she had.

  Thank goodness. If he had come in to check on her, how would she have explained that? She had a feeling he would have taken one look at her flushed face and guessed she was dirty dreaming about him. He might have even tried suggesting they bring the dream to life.

  Scary thing was, if he had, she wasn’t sure how she would have answered him.

  With a low groan, Maya lay back down in the bed. How was she going to get any sleep now?

  §

  Taeg came awake with a start. Dream-coitus-interruptus once again. “Oh fuck.”

  If he had known Maya would wake up as soon as he’d made her come, he would’ve taken much, much longer. That had been amazing. To feel the whisper of her hardened nipples against his air form. Hear her naughty little moans of ecstasy. Fucking orgasmic. Only thing was he couldn’t come while in air form. Which left him with a huge problem now.

  He kicked the thin sheet off and yanked his boxers down, closing his hand around his erection. He was so hard it hurt. Three pumps was all it took. He came with a tortured groan, thinking of Maya the whole while.

  Yeah, so much for keeping his distance.

  Taeg let out a deep sigh as he rose and headed to the bathroom to clean up. They were going to have a real problem if he couldn’t sleep without dreamscaping with her. As delicious as it was, it wasn’t exactly restful sleep. Already he felt the effects of sleep deprivation from the last two nights.

  How was he going to keep his hands off her when he could all too easily remember how gorgeous she looked when she came? He’d never wanted anyone as badly as he wanted Maya. And that spelled trouble, pure and simple.

  Chapter Eleven

  “You seem to think I’m some sort of miracle worker. I’ve already given you all the information I have.”

  Leviathos stifled a curse at Garin’s words. He examined the information the shifter had placed in front of him. “You’re sure this is the woman?”

  Garin nodded from his seat across the table. He picked up a handful of salted peanuts from the small, dirty-looking bowl set in between them and tossed them into his mouth.

  Leviathos stifled a shudder. It had been Garin’s idea to meet at this seedy hotel lobby. He normally wouldn’t be caught dead in a place like this. The devil only knew how many unwashed hands had touched those peanuts.

  “I tracked her scent back to her apartment and broke in,” Garin said. “There were photographs there that matched the description you gave me, and hers was the only scent I picked up on. She definitely hadn’t been there for over a day. I looked up the records and she’s the owner of the apartment.”

  “Maya Flores,” Leviathos mumbled. Well, this didn’t make much sense. Nestled among the pile of documents was a birth record, one that lacked the distinctive watermark of an Otherworld forgery.

  “She’s a human,” he said to Garin. “What could Taeg possibly want with her?”

  “Beats me.” Garin shrugged and grabbed another handful of nuts.

  Leviathos shuffled through the thin file of information Garin had hastily compiled. “What of this adoptive mother—Helen Rossum?�
��

  “She died a couple of years ago and left the apartment and all her belongings to the girl.”

  Leviathos backtracked to the adoption papers Garin had found. “It says here she wasn’t adopted until she was eleven. What happened before then?”

  “Don’t know. I got a contact back in Mexico. He can do some digging around, see if he finds anything on her.”

  “Do that.” Leviathos was onto something here. He could almost taste it.

  “You know, you might be getting worked up over nothing.” Garin lifted his beer to his lips and took a long swallow. “From what I saw of this girl in her photos, she’s one major piece of ass. Maybe he’s just getting his freak on. Wouldn’t be the first, or even the millionth, demon to do the dirty with the local human population.”

  “No.” Taeg wouldn’t be associating with a human unless she had something to offer him. A one-night stand, sure. Immoral whore that he was, he no doubt had plenty of those. But this was quite obviously not that. He might not be Taeg’s best friend anymore, but that much he still knew. He’d be willing to bet on it.

  “Suit yourself.” Garin shrugged carelessly. “It’s your dime. I can research her as much as you like. In fact, I wouldn’t mind getting acquainted with the broad up close and personal.”

  Leviathos set the file down and looked the shifter dead in the eyes. “You’re not to touch her, got that?”

  Garin bristled. “What do you care?”

  “If she’s of some use to Taeg, she might be useful to me.” And maybe with her he could break Taeg once and for all.

  “Ah.” Garin gave him an understanding nod and a wink. “You want to tap that, too, huh? Don’t blame you.”

  “Stop thinking with your dick for one second, will you?”

  “Right. Sure. Tell yourself whatever helps you sleep at night.”

  Leviathos ignored him He didn’t care in the slightest what Garin thought. And if the woman turned out to be useless, Garin could have her for all he cared. But if she was capable of something special, well, perhaps he could find a way to exploit that.