INFLAME: (a gargoyle shifter and witch romance) (Underground Encounters Book 8)

by Lisa Carlisle

  She looked up to Danton’s pink-haired mate, thinking she was exceptionally cool, especially after Tracy had taken her shopping at a mall one day. Marguerite had gushed over where they went, what they bought, and where they ate.

  “Maybe after, we can take you out near a lake,” Mattias added. “That’s a good place to practice flying. If you crash, you fall in the water.”

  Marguerite gave him one of her sassy looks. “That’s sure to happen since I don’t have wings.”

  Mattias couldn’t accept that Marguerite wouldn’t be able to fly with them. He’d taken her out a couple of times trying to help her initiate the change, but it hadn’t worked.

  The result of a pairing between different species could be unpredictable. Although she’d picked up the stone transformation, flight didn’t seem to be part of the package. He’d seen the same with the guitarist for the Velvet Cocks, who had only recently discovered his gargoyle blood. He was able to shift partially into gargoyle form, but he didn’t have wings that enabled him to fly.

  “They’ll have to sprout at some point, won’t they?” Mattias said.

  She laughed. “Maybe not. I’m only half-gargoyle.”

  “And half-witch,” Elise said. “A talented one, I might add.”

  Likely, she inherited that from her mother. But, hopefully that was all she’d inherited from her. With Elise raising her, at least she’d had a good role model.

  Marguerite shrugged. “I have the magic from both worlds. What could be better than that?”

  Lucan disagreed. There was nothing greater than flying—except perhaps sex with Elise. Not that he’d admit that to his daughter.

  “Looks like you’ll have to have a kid of your own to teach to fly,” Marguerite teased her uncle Matty.

  “Oh no.” He shook his head and spread his arms wide with a definitive denial. “Don’t look at me for any cousins. I might like being the cool uncle, but fatherhood? Too much responsibility.”

  Lucan resisted a grin. He would have said the same thing last week, but being a father wasn’t so bad. Now that the shock was over, he was looking forward to having more of a parental role in his daughter’s life.

  “I have to go in to work,” he said. “I won’t be back until late tonight, so how about a hug goodnight for your ol’ dad?”

  She rolled her eyes. “It’s only a few hours.” But then gave him a hug and kiss goodbye.

  Her affectionate embrace warmed him, doing strange things inside. Maybe fatherhood had some perks he’d never realized. Sure, so far it had been attached to obligation with multiple side orders of worry and concern, but those little warming gestures made it seem worth it.

  He turned to Elise and arched a brow. “Maybe you can stop by for a drink at Vamps later? Admire my magic as I brew concoctions.”

  “You sound like a witch.” She laughed. “Maybe.”

  He pressed that one hopeful word to his heart. Would her ‘maybe’ turn into a ‘yes’?

  His soul ached for it—one simple word that would bring her closer to him, back into his orbit, so he could breathe again.

  DURING HIS SHIFT THAT night, he caught himself often glancing out onto the floor to see if Elise had come. No sign yet. Just the usual array of regulars either wearing all black or a variety of fantastic look-at-me outfits. Latex was a popular choice. Mistress Mona played hard, fast tracks with striking beats that all but compelled people to head on out to dance. In the past, he’d admired the women’s bodies as they gyrated. Now he searched for just one—the only one who mattered.

  It was strange how quickly he’d grown close to her. Perhaps it was because it was only a short-term encounter.

  Or could it be more?

  This pull toward her was unlike anything he’d experienced. And after last night, he’d fallen even more deeply. She was like a warm, tropical ocean in which he was submerged. He needed her presence to stay afloat. To breathe. To live.

  In the past, encounters with women were simply for fun. He had kept women at an emotional distance for a reason—and that stemmed from Veronique’s curse. How could he ever trust a woman after what she’d done to him?

  But, Elise was different. Caring, trustworthy, and loving. The way she took care of Marguerite showed how she put her before herself. If he was to learn anything about this parenting gig, he could learn from her.

  As the hours passed, the bar area grew more crowded. He dashed back and forth with the other bartender to keep up with the demand. Filling a cup of beer was quick, but vamps had a menu of more complicated drinks with a number of ingredients, which took more time.

  Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a new arrival at the bar. He slid down to the woman and said, “What can I get you?” He knew it was Elise before he laid eyes on her. What was it that signaled it? Her scent?

  That in itself was enticing, an alluring bouquet of nature and femininity. But, he doubted he could detect it among all the other overpowering scents in the club. Aside from the strong odors of alcohol, the perspiration of active bodies on the dance floor was pervasive.

  She gave him a brilliant smile that made him suck in a breath. “A Tempting Fate looks good.”

  Was that what they were doing in this relationship? “Coming right up.” He poured the ingredients for the drink and brought it over to her. “I’m glad you made it.”

  “I heard this place has the hottest bartender in town,” she added with a smile.

  “In which form?” He chuckled. “I’m guessing winged. Stone is too cold.”

  Customers flailed twenty-dollar bills from other areas of the bar. An urge to ignore them rose, so he could spend time flirting with her. He’d bring her outside and show her how much he’d missed her. He’d take her rough and quick against the side of one of the nearby warehouse buildings. And then, he’d lay her down on the beach under the moonlight and undress her body under the soft glow.

  When they finally made it back to the hotel with the over-sized bed and an abundance of soft pillows, he’d take his time worshiping her body as he kissed and licked her from head to toe. His cock stiffened at the prospects of how the night could unravel.

  Ah damn, if he followed that urge, then he’d lose this gig. And after all the time he spent here in stone, it felt good to be able to be an active part of the club. Besides, he was the only supe on as security tonight since his brothers were out with Marguerite.

  “I’ll be back as soon as I can,” he said.

  “Take your time. I know you’re working.”

  He wasn’t able to spend much time chatting with her for the rest of the shift because it was so busy. But just having her present was enough to make him feel something. Whole. Like his upturned universe was somehow steady again.

  No, that was crazy. Why would he think that way? That was more like Danton and his certainty that Tracy was his mate.

  A jolt in his chest made him pause in the middle of pouring a beer. Oh shit. That wasn’t what was going on, was it? He stared at the foam.

  That couldn’t be it. He’d questioned it last night. But, he’d never planned to find a mate. It didn’t fit into his plans. How could it? He yearned to fly and be free and explore the world that had been off limits while he’d been cursed. He had many, many years to make up for lost time.

  He had to get his act together and focused on the drink order.

  But, still, a question nagged at him during the remainder of his shift. Which was better—having freedom at the cost of losing Elise and Marguerite?

  No. That struck him with a hollow ache. One that warned it could be more painfully enduring than the curse.

  After the club closed and the patrons had all left, Elise offered a hand to help clean up, so they could get out of there more quickly.

  He leaned in to whisper a seductive promise, “I’ll make it up to you once we’re out of here.”

  A slight blush suffused her cheeks and she grinned. “Sounds like a splendid use of my time then.”

  They left the club,
arm-in-arm. He’d find his usual spot in the shadows of an alley between warehouses where he could shift and then he’d fly them both back to Salem.

  The moon was high and the sky was clear. The air was cool and calm, good for flying. Before doing so, he had to kiss her. He glanced around to see if they were alone and then listened for signs of people. They’d been interrupted the other night, but out here, the warehouses appeared abandoned for the night.

  He claimed her mouth and pressed her against the brick walls. He pinned her wrists above her head the way he’d done a few nights prior and then kissed her neck as his hands sought out every curve of her body.

  “Oh, Lucan,” she whispered. “Should we head back to the hotel?”

  “Soon.” He reached beneath her dress and tugged her panties aside, stroking the delicious wet heat of her that he so craved.

  As he stroked her, he returned to claim her mouth. Then he found her sensitive bud and applied more pressure until she writhed against his fingers. As she shattered, he kissed her more deeply to muffle her cries of pleasure.

  He slid her panties off her leg and then undid his pants, rolling them down.

  She appraised him from under her dark lashes with that lustful look that drove him wild. “Here?” Her eyes widened with surprise.

  “Here,” he confirmed. “And back at the hotel, and whenever and wherever I can have you.”

  He cloaked them before he covered himself with a condom and slid her back against the wall. He lifted her by the hips and she wrapped her legs around him. He cupped her beautiful ass and positioned her to where he could slide right in.

  As he drove into her, he muttered against her hair. “Oh fuck, you feel so good.”

  “Yes, Lucan,” she purred.

  “I’ve been thinking about you all night.” He slid in and out of her, relishing the delicious tightness of her while clamped around him.

  Her sighs and moans filled his ears as he fucked her against the brick wall, her decadent sounds that were his. All his. Because he wouldn’t dare share her with anyone. It was stupid to think that way with her leaving so soon, but he’d deal with that later. For now, they were together. He’d mark her as his every day and night.

  She stiffened and tightened around him and he knew she was close. He drove in harder and deeper. She gasped and then covered her mouth to stifle her cry out there in the open.

  “Fuck yeah,” he said as she quaked around him.

  And then he was right there, detonating with a blind lust as he followed her into dizzying space where it was just the two of them.

  They recuperated in the alley for several minutes, hearts beating madly.

  When he could breathe again, he said, “That was worth the wait. How about we go to the hotel for round two?”

  She smiled. “Sounds like an excellent idea.”

  “I’ll shift and fly us back.”

  He stripped off his clothes to shift while she readjusted her clothing.

  Once he initiated the change, something odd happened. His skin grayed, but wings didn’t sprout from his back. Magic of the transformation traveled through his body, but it didn’t signal the change to winged form.

  “Something’s wrong,” he said.

  “What is it?”

  “I—” his voice caught in his throat as the muscles stiffened. It wasn’t gargoyle magic flowing through him. It was much darker. This type was too powerful—he’d experienced it before.

  His entire body hardened. Shifting to stone.

  A woman’s laugh echoed off the surrounding brick. He’d recognize it anywhere.

  It was that same evil woman who’d cursed him thirteen years before. Trapped in a statue prison again, he stared through stone eyes at her.

  Veronique.

  She was alive.

  Fury pounded through him. He’d destroy her. He struggled to tighten his hand into a fist, but it was futile. No blood rushed through his veins. His muscles wouldn’t budge.

  He then fixed his cold stare on Elise. If Veronique was alive that could only mean one thing—Elise had lied to him.

  She’d betrayed him.

  Chapter Fifteen

  A PIT OF DESPAIR SETTLED in Elise’s stomach as she stared at Veronique. What the hell was she doing there?

  “What have you done to him?” she demanded. In the corner of her eye, she caught Lucan’s statue form appearing out of place in an alley next to a warehouse, but she didn’t dare take her eyes off her sister. “Why are you here?”

  Veronique had been locked up awaiting trial by the head coven in Paris. Her use of dark magic over the gargoyles was unethical, counter to their coven’s philosophy. She’d likely be stripped of her powers and locked up for some time to come.

  Veronique sneered as she paced through the alley between the warehouses. “What do you care about my business?”

  Elise resisted shirking at her powerful sister’s accusatory tone. Her old usual self wouldn’t have provoked Veronique, but since discovering what evil she’d done, Elise had to stand up for her niece and Lucan.

  She raised her chin. “Since your daughter’s well-being has always been more my business than yours, and he’s her father, I have a damn good interest at stake.”

  “Your interest in the gargoyle is far more personal than you let on.” Veronique’s lips curled into a sinister smile. “I see you’re still taking my seconds, Elise. Clothing and now my ex-lover.”

  Elise glared at her horrid sister, struggling against the urge to strike her. How did Veronique find out about them? Well, it wasn’t as if Elise had been any good at hiding her feelings. Marguerite had noticed. If Veronique had been tracking them, she’d likely spotted a love-struck grin on Elise’s face.

  Veronique raised her hand, palm forward. “How could you betray me like this with him, little sister?”

  Uh-oh. Veronique’s posture was a clear threat. Elise lifted both hands to block whatever Veronique blasted her way. She had less than a heartbeat to detect the blue flashes of the disarming spell that Veronique had cast.

  Elise barely managed to block the magic with a defensive spell. The blue light ricocheted off a brick wall before vanishing. The intensity of the blast knocked her back several feet. She stumbled and almost lost her footing.

  “Cursing him isn’t enough for you?” Elise accused. “You’re going to do so to me, too?”

  “I never let those who betray me get away with it.” Veronique arched her brow and nodded at Lucan in stone form. “He should have warned you.”

  Veronique made a circling gesture with her arm, summoning energy. She hurled a fire ball at Elise.

  Shit. Her older sister wasn’t playing around by launching such a destructive force. Elise called on the element of water to create a shield. The iridescent magic floated before her with shimmers of rainbows reflecting the light. As the fireball smashed into the shield, it was dissolved by the watery magic that swallowed the flames. Heat from the blast still slipped around the shield and warmed Elise’s skin.

  She ran behind a dumpster for cover, not that it would do much to stop a formidable witch.

  “Why are you doing this?” Elise demanded. “Who will take care of Marguerite?”

  “She’s my daughter. She belongs with me.”

  “She deserves more than someone who neglected her all these years. And surely, the high coven will catch up to you.”

  Veronique let out a disdainful laugh. “They’re pitiful.”

  She had to be wily or wise or both to escape. Or, maybe she convinced someone on the inside to let her go.

  “But, it’s not in Marguerite’s best interest to be on the run with her mother. At least, her father took some interest in her.”

  “It’s hardly in your best interest to criticize my parental decisions.”

  The warning in Veronique’s tone sent a shudder up Elise’s spine. She wouldn’t cower to her—not this time. Too much was at stake—Marguerite’s future; Lucan’s freedom. The two people she most loved in t
he world.

  Yes, she loved him. Odd how that certainty flowed through her now of all times.

  But, would she be able to save either of them from her formidable sister?

  Elise had to try. She gritted her teeth and vowed to do everything she could to counter her older sister.

  You can do this, she told herself. Let the light drive out her darkness.

  Elise tapped into the bittersweet love that buoyed her, love for her niece and for Lucan. She mustered all her energy within and pinpointed it into a mirroring spell. After she moved out from behind the dumpster, Veronique unleashed a new blast of magic at her.

  Elise focused her magic to counter the attack. The red lights that sparkled from Veronique’s magic hit the blue swirl that Elise had cast. It knocked Veronique onto her back and she froze, stunned by her own spell.

  Gods, Elise had done it! She’d managed to overpower Veronique. For one brief second, she stared. But, she couldn’t admire her handiwork on her first and only success against her sister.

  Veronique cried and stared at her hands. “My magic,” she lamented. Whatever spell she had cast had disarmed her, at least temporarily.

  Elise turned to Lucan and cast a spell that reversed the curse. The stone seemed to crumble around him like translucent pebbles with gray borders.

  In the next heartbeat, he burst from the stone facade in winged gargoyle form and lunged for Veronique. A primal roar escaped him that echoed with an eerie desperation in the night air—like that of a tortured animal howling in pain, desperate to destroy its tormentor before succumbing to injuries.

  He landed on top of her, his dark gray wings spreading wide and then covering them both like a death cloak. Veronique chanted desperate sounding incantations as if trying to draw upon any dark magic that would help her. Bursts of jagged light darted around them, showing she wasn’t completely powerless. Yet, she couldn’t aim well while they grappled. The dark magic crashed into the brick walls, sending some rubble crumbling, or into the air before fading into the darkness of night.

  Elise took cover behind the dumpster to avoid being caught in the cross-fire. She ignored the stench of garbage as she watched on helplessly, trying to figure out what to do.