Deviant Attraction: A Dark and Dirty Boxset

by Bene, Jennifer

  “Sir—”

  “Not yet, hold it.” Rick mercifully stopped rubbing her clit in that impossible-to-resist rhythm that he had long ago mastered, but he only drove himself inside her harder. She focused on riding the edge of the pleasure he was giving her, arching her back to let him thrust deeper. Her fingers were wrapped tight around the chains, the tingling in her fingertips a testament to the strain she was putting on the cuffs, but she ignored that. The spiral of pleasure rushing up her spine was a roar in her ears, her breath coming in hard pants and whimpers as she maintained a frayed edge of control. His voice finally, mercifully, growled against her shoulder, “Fuck, yes, come for me. Come.”

  He stilled inside her, and she let go, his cock kicking as she came hard. A white-wash of pleasure and endorphins and peace pushed through her, and shoved away all of the devious magic. She felt dizzy when the shivers began to subside, and her hands were stiff on the other side of the cuffs, but Rick was already detaching her from the chains. He knew what he was doing though because he’d released her ankles first so she could get her balance before her arms came down and the rush of blood made her sway. Rick laughed as he scooped her up and walked the few steps to drop her on the bed, her joints a languid mess.

  “You are incredible, baby.” He grinned and leaned over her, parting her lips with his tongue as he kissed her deeply. She moaned against his mouth, stretching out on the bed and wrapping her arms around his neck. He climbed onto the bed with her, settling in between her legs. Every inch of their skin was pressed together, warm and damp with sweat. Rick smelled like cologne, and wine, and that masculine scent of hot, male skin that made Heather want to climb on top of him and go for round two. When she rolled her hips up against him he laughed and slipped his hand between them. “You want to come again, pretty girl?”

  “I— oh fuck…” She arched off the bed as his fingers began that sinful movement over her clit once more, and she was panting as he rocketed her close to orgasm again. She kissed him hard and he returned it, then she was coming. The tingling rush flooding her, leaving her gasping obscenities as she tightened her arms around his neck — but he didn’t stop. His fingers kept moving and she was too sensitive, it was too much. When she tried to close her legs he pushed them apart with his knees.

  “Again.”

  “Sir, please, please!” Heather whined, begging as he somehow wound her body up to those heights of tingling ecstasy. It was a razor’s edge of pleasure, vicious and biting and still so fucking good.

  “Come on, I want to watch you come one more time. Look at me, baby.” He was grinning when she opened her eyes, and the devilish look in his eyes threw her over the edge again.

  “Fuck!” Heather arched her back hard, her muscles shaking, and he finally removed his fingers so she could breathe. He had his head tilted down, watching as her hips rolled underneath him as the waves of pleasure crashed and receded. Then he smiled and pressed his fingers to her lips. She licked them clean without guidance, and as soon as he pulled back he was kissing her, tasting her. The focus was on her, every single time. Her pleasure, her safety. Her. It made a warm bubble fill all the empty spaces left behind as the orgasm retreated. “That was…”

  “Amazing? I know. It always is with you.” He laughed and she did too, shoving his shoulder playfully as he relaxed the pressure on her thighs and rolled to his back. She settled her head on his chest, coiling her hair back and away from her so she could cool off. They were both sticky and hot, but there was nowhere else she’d rather be at that moment than feeling the rise and fall of his chest beneath her cheek. Heather felt the stupid grin on her face, and she pressed a kiss to his skin.

  “I love you.” The words tumbled out before she could stop them, and she felt Rick stiffen under her. For a terrible moment she felt like she’d ruined it, ruined all of it, but then his hand traced her cheek and he tilted her chin up. Instead of panic, or irritation, she saw relief and a quiet smile. His dark eyes were warm on hers.

  “You know, I love you, too. I was wondering when you’d finally say it.” He grinned playfully and she smacked him.

  “What?! What about you? You haven’t been making any declarations.” Her cheeks hurt from smiling so hard, but she didn’t care as she looked up at him.

  “Easy for you to say, you’re not dating someone who can literally set them on fire with their mind. I generally try to avoid surprising you.” He pressed a kiss to her forehead so she knew he was playing, but then he looked almost shy. “And, for what it’s worth, I’ve been saying it to you in your sleep for months. Obviously my attempts at subliminal messaging have worked.”

  “Months?” Shock hit her, and Heather watched as he shifted under her stare and cleared his throat.

  “Uh, yeah… I’ve known for a while. I mean, I kind of knew the first time you left. You were all I thought about, no one else was who I wanted, because they weren’t you, and — well, I love you, Heather.” The sweetness in his expression made him look so young and nervous that her heart actually fluttered. Who knew that was an actual thing?

  “I think I’ve loved you for a while too, Rick.” She smiled and pushed a strand of hair off his forehead. “You’re perfect, and I really don’t deserve someone as phenomenal as you are to me, but I’m glad you took me back. For the record, I don’t plan on going anywhere.”

  “Thank God for that, at this point I’d probably end up in an institution for venting to a bartender about how my witch girlfriend broke my heart after setting my apartment on fire and playing earthquake with my living room—”

  “Hey!” She shoved him and he laughed and rolled on top of her, pinning her back to the bed, and her breath caught in her chest.

  “I’m serious about how I feel about you, Heather. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for you.”

  “Even buy me a cauldron?” She blushed, and she had to crack a joke as she looked up at him because she had never been great at being serious. It made him smile though and he kissed her. It was slow and warm and an intense connection as she moaned against his lips. When he pulled back she was breathless again.

  “If you ever actually want a cauldron, yes, I’ll buy you a damn cauldron. Maybe then you can rescue your aunt’s business, you know, bring back the real potions.” He grinned, but she only sighed because the real world was creeping back in as the BDSM faded into the backdrop of their lives once again. The real world where Cambridge Herb & Tea Co. wasn’t doing as well because their teas and herbs had stopped actually working.

  “Right, maybe I should look into that.”

  “Aww, baby, I was only joking. That’s not your responsibility and you know it. If the business closes, we’ll find you another job, it’s okay.” He released her hands and kissed her again, settling on his pillow and opening his arms so she could return to his chest.

  “I know I can find another job, I just wish it wasn’t such a problem for the rest of the family.” She sighed against him and he hugged her to him.

  “You don’t need to think about it tonight, pretty girl, just sleep.” He leaned down and pressed a kiss to her hair and she felt him smile. “Before you go to sleep though, say it again.”

  The grin moved across her lips despite the heavy feeling in her chest. “I love you, Rick.”

  He sighed with pleasure. “I really love you too, Heather. Now, come on, sleep, we’ve both got work in the morning.”

  * * *

  “So, will you just come to dinner with us?” Theresa was pouring tea into bottles and sliding them towards Heather across the table. Heather groaned as she screwed another lid on and grabbed for a freshly filled one.

  “Theresa—”

  “Come on, Heather, what am I going to do? Rip his head off?” Theresa rolled her eyes. “It’s not like I can cook him if he makes me mad, or treats you badly. I’m just your cousin, no super powers anymore, and I deserve to meet the guy you’re living with.”

  “I know you want to meet him, but I just don’t want to release the coll
ective attention of the Pritchett women on him just yet. He might run screaming for the hills.” Heather shrugged, looking up at Theresa to find her cousin looking sad.

  “He has to know you have a big family, I doubt you’ve lied to him about that. Although you probably haven’t told him that we used to kill people.” She swallowed hard, and Heather felt sympathy for her cousin. Now that the power was gone, Theresa had started feeling guilt, and so had a few other members of the family — but there was nothing to do for it. No way to atone except to live a better life, which Theresa was clearly trying to do.”

  “Maybe,” Heather hedged, and Theresa sighed.

  “Please? I want you to meet Brian and a double-date will be perfect.” Her cousin was blushing, actually blushing, and it took Heather aback. Theresa was never nervous, she was the one who loudly talked about personal business in very public places and then snapped at people who tried to shush her. If she was acting this concerned over the guy it had to be serious.

  “You really like this guy, don’t you?”

  “Yeah… I do.” She was staring intently at the glass bottle in front of her as she poured, keeping those trademark blue eyes down. A twinge of guilt settled in Heather that she’d been so viciously protective of Rick that she’d refused to let anyone meet him. He hadn’t even met her mom yet.

  “Well, tell me more about him!” Heather smiled reassuringly when Theresa’s head popped up, her eyes widening.

  “Um, he’s— uh, cute?” They both laughed and then Theresa shrugged and continued, “He’s in medical school, and wants to be a pediatrician. He’s just such a nice guy, and he’s the kind of guy I would have looked for after I had enough daughters for you know who. I mean, I used to be so strict with myself. I’d never date a guy more than a few times, because I didn’t want to fall for them. Even if I liked him, I’d just stop answering his calls, or I’d find some dumb reason to break it off. You know what I mean?”

  Heather nodded slowly, breathing out as she remembered the tension of what it had been like to even be seen with a man when the Pritchetts were still on the hunt. “Of course. I get it, I do. It’s why after everything happened I went back to Rick — he was that someone special that I couldn’t risk hurting.”

  “Exactly. Brian is the kind of guy I never would have let myself get close to, he’s the kind I would have run in the other direction from before, and now? Now, I can date him, I can fuck him — and, holy shit, he’s fantastic in bed!” Theresa dropped her head back and they were both laughing again. It reminded Heather of how they had been as teenagers, chatting about boys in their classes. “I can just be normal with him, and I’d really like you to meet him, even if you don’t trust me around Rick.”

  “Aww, Theresa, that’s not it. I’m just — I’ve just been really paranoid. Like, I’m worried at any moment something messed up is going to happen and I’ve been terrified that the closer he is to our family the closer he’d be to ground zero if everything blew up.” Heather finally said the words out loud that had haunted her since she and Rick had started getting serious. It wasn’t really Theresa, it was their whole family, their whole history. For once, Theresa looked thoughtful instead of launching into a loud response that would have had one of their cousins stepping into the back. Her cousin chewed on her fingernail, sitting back from the bottles of perfectly normal chamomile and mint tea.

  “I understand that, I really do. I— you know, I’m really falling for Brian. It’s why I want your opinion on him. You’ve always been more level-headed, smarter than me. Before we get really serious I just want to know he’s as good as I think he is.” Theresa snagged one of the open bottles of tea and took a drink, which made Heather sigh and roll her eyes. The store would never be profitable if Theresa kept pinching free stuff. “I worry that the things the family has done, the things that I have done, could come back on all of us. After you know who took the magic back, I’ve been worried she was going to return and finish us all off. But I realized I can’t just refuse to live my life out of fear, and Brian is good to me. He’s hot, and smart, and for some reason thinks I’m hilarious instead of annoying.”

  “That’s a miracle.” Heather grinned and Theresa stuck her tongue out at her.

  “It is a miracle, but you’re still a bitch for saying so.” Theresa laughed. “Anyway, you can’t hide Rick forever, especially since it’s obvious how serious you guys are, and you’re going to have to let the Pritchett ex-witches out of the closet some time.”

  “Fine! We’ll go on a double-date, but if you embarrass us I swear I’ll fill your body wash with dye and send you on your next date with Dr. Hottie looking like a smurf.”

  “Really?!” Theresa squealed and ran around the table to hug Heather hard. “Oh my God, this is the best news I’ve had all week! I can’t wait for you to meet him, and for me to meet Rick! Holy shit, this is so great! I’m going to call Brian and see when he’ll have a free night.”

  Heather smiled as Theresa ran off to grab her purse, but Theresa’s words lingered. She’d been afraid of a backlash from Herja, that was true, but Heather had also been living in fear that her magic would be discovered and ruin everything for everyone.

  But living in fear wasn’t living at all, and she was done with it.

  She had to live her life. It had been the last thing Herja had said to her on that insane night, but Heather hadn’t done much to actually follow through on the idea other than getting back with Rick. Everything else in her life had basically remained the same.

  Same job.

  Same lies.

  Same avoiding her family.

  It was time to step up to the plate with life, and stop hanging out on the bench waiting to see if it would sort things out for her.

  * * *

  Two Weeks Later

  “First, I meet your favorite cousin and her boyfriend, and now your mom and step-dad. It’s almost like you’re getting serious with me.” Rick grinned at her from the driver’s seat as they pulled up to her mom’s house. The windows were ablaze with light, and butterflies filled her stomach as the car rocked to a stop. “Baby, I’m joking, give me a smile?”

  Heather forced a little smile across her lips before pushing out a breath. “I’m sorry, I’m just nervous. I mean, my mom is doing so much better since the magic left, but I haven’t even really mentioned you to her? She was surprised when I told her, and I feel bad for not saying—”

  “Hey, it’s okay, I get it. If my parents weren’t in Kansas I would have introduced you to them first. The scariest thing my mom will do is try and feed you a second-helping at dinner and insist that you talk baby names with her.” Rick just smiled when Heather’s eyes widened at the mention of kids, and he laughed. “Well, with that reaction, maybe meeting the ex-witch mom is the lesser of two evils?”

  “Haha, you’re so funny.” Heather said it with sarcasm, but she was actually smiling now. The fact that Rick so casually discussed kids with her filled her with a warmth that solidified their relationship just a little more. He reached across the car and squeezed her hand.

  “I know. I’m funny, charming, attractive, intelligent — I mean, I can tell why you’ve been so nervous to have your parents meet me. I’m a nightmare.” Rick sarcastically wiped his hand across his face. “Not to mention how modest I am. You really couldn’t have worst taste in men.”

  “Are you going to be like this all night?” She looked over at him, feeling some of the tension inside her ease at his playful banter.

  He shrugged with an unapologetic grin. “Probably.”

  “Good. Then let’s head in.”

  Patrice Pritchett was vibrant from the second they arrived at the door. Her bright blue eyes were sparkling and she pulled Rick into a hug the moment he was through the door, and Michael had given him a firm handshake before hugging Heather. Her mother had cooked dinner, an elaborate spread of homemade dishes with almost all of the ingredients from her own garden. This season everything had been grown naturally, but her mom
seemed to love digging in the soil the mortal way and getting the earth to grow things for her without the aid of magic. Michael had been discussing his construction business with Rick, who was asking questions and occasionally cracking jokes that had Michael’s eyes crinkling at the corners with the strength of his laughter. Heather got up and grabbed the pitcher of lemonade to refill their glasses, and when she sat back down everyone was looking at her.

  She laughed. “What is it?”

  “We’re just glad to see you so happy, Heather.” Michael’s voice was strong and fatherly, and it made Heather shift in her seat at how warm it made her feel. So much love from a man who hadn’t had to stick around, hadn’t had to adopt three girls as his own, and hadn’t had to stick by a woman who could be so terrifying. Looking at Patrice Pritchett now, it was almost impossible to remember the darkness that had been inside her before.

  “I’ve been so worried about you. The nightmares you used to have when you slept here, I was so worried you’d never let go of whatever happened with Herja that night.” Patrice smiled and Heather choked on her lemonade as she heard the Valkyrie’s name leave her mother’s mouth. She was coughing and her mother leaned across the corner of the table to pat Heather on the knee.

  “Mom! Really? Don’t say her name!” Heather cleared her throat and glanced across the table to see a wary Michael and a nervous Rick.

  “I don’t interest her anymore, darling.” Her mom waved off the concern and smiled warmly. “I am so very happy that you’ve found a man who accepts you, and your magic.”

  The room froze. Rick turned stiff, Michael paused with a fork full of pie almost at his lips, and Heather felt her heart stumble, stutter, and then kick off at a much more rapid pace behind her ribs. Her voice was a hoarse whisper when she finally managed to speak, “M—my magic? What do you mean, mom?”