Shifters in the Shadows: Seventeen Paranormal Romances of Sexy Shifters, Dangerous Vamps, & Things That Go Bump in the Night

by J. K Harper

  “I thought we could get some dinner and talk.”

  That was a sweet suggestion, far different from what she had in mind, and she tried not to be disgruntled as she nodded and fell into step with him as he moved away from the rail. She didn’t have a car, and he didn’t appear to either, so they walked a couple of blocks past the hospital, to a cluster of restaurants, and he gestured for her to pick one. She randomly chose the Indian restaurant, knowing they had good curry, and they walked inside.

  The restaurant was only half-filled, and they found a seat easily by one of the windows. “What’s good here?” asked Bach as he opened his menu.

  Naiya opened hers as well. “My favorite is the beef in curry coconut sauce, but it’s spicy.”

  He winked at her. “I think I can handle some heat.”

  After placing their orders, she leaned closer to him, lowering her voice so only he could hear. “Is it really full of flames and hot all the time in Hell?”

  He shook his head. “Not at all, though it’s an effective tool for intimidation, and we’ve bought into the stereotype to reinforce our badass image. The underworld’s pretty mundane, just like Earth or the other dimensions. They each have their pros and cons, but it’s home. As a high-caste demon, I have all the freedom I need or want, unlike the poor saps in the lower castes. I’m going to venture a guess here that the disparity in equality would be the thing you’d hate the most about the underworld.”

  She had the strangest urge to ask him to take her to see it, but quickly stifled it. Humans rarely ventured into the underworld voluntarily, and witches were just as skittish about the idea. She might be fascinated by the idea of seeing his home world, but not enough to arrange a private tour.

  After that, the conversation moved to lighter topics, and the time seemed to fly by. Before she knew it, she had finished dessert, and they were ready to pay. After dealing with the check, they moved out of the restaurant, and she shivered. Twilight had given way to full dark, and the temperature had dropped a few more degrees. It was a welcome warmth to feel his arm wrap around her, the heat pouring from his body warming her more efficiently than the best heater. She snuggled closer, not entirely because she was cold, and laid her head on his shoulder. She was debating the wisdom about inviting him back to her home when he spoke first.

  “What do you do with yourself in the evenings when you aren’t at sorority parties or working at the hospital?”

  “I study.” She couldn’t quite meet his gaze as she said that, not wanting him to see the deception there.

  He frowned down at her. “That’s not all you do, is it? There’s something you’re not telling me.”

  She shrugged, feeling a little embarrassed. “It’s nothing really. It just sounds… I don’t know, kind of silly, I guess.”

  He frowned. “What sounds silly? What’re you talking about?”

  Making an impulsive decision, she stepped away from his embrace to take his hand and started leading him away from the restaurant, toward the seedier neighborhood in the area. As they entered the rundown location, he stepped closer and tucked his arm around her in a protective fashion. She leaned closer to him.

  “What are we doing here? This place isn’t safe.”

  “Most people leave me alone. They know me.” As though to emphasize her point, they passed a young woman in a short skirt and ridiculously high heels. She nodded in Naiya’s direction and gave her a smile before returning her attention to the corner, where she was obviously anxiously awaiting her next customer.

  “That’s Celia. I healed her a few months ago after one of her johns got rough with her.”

  He frowned deeper. His disapproval was obvious when he looked down at her. “You’re using magic to heal these people? If they tell anyone, you could be in big trouble with the Council. They might even send a Negen to haul you in.”

  She shrugged. “These people are so downtrodden that no one would believe them anyway. They’d dismiss it as drug abuse or mental illness. But if a Negen is called for, I imagine my sister’s boyfriend would be embarrassed to arrest me.”

  He looked intrigued. “Your sister’s dating the Negen? A Negen, I mean?”

  She nodded. “His name’s Liam. I don’t know all the details, because Serafina’s unexpectedly hush-hush about it all, but from what I can gather, she screwed up a spell and needed Liam to bail her out to maintain the balance between light and dark. He came to help her, and he never really left. They’ve been together for the last couple of months, and I’ve never seen her happier.”

  “And the guardian? Does he seem happy?” He asked the question in a board tone, as though he didn’t really care.

  She answered anyway. “From what I can tell, Liam seems very happy with Serafina. I kind of envy them sometimes. It must be nice to find the person you’re meant to be with and have him actually be there instead of turning out to be a gigantic asshat.”

  He winced. “You sound a little bitter there. Speaking from experience?”

  She shrugged. “My ex-boyfriend was a piece of work.” Tears pricked her eyes, and she blinked them away. “He was a cheater and a liar, but he didn’t deserve what happened to him.”

  His expression was blank. “What happened?”

  She hesitated for a moment, deciding it didn’t matter if she told him the full truth. He already knew about the existence of magic. “Something or someone turned him inside out. Literally. I didn’t see it, thank goodness, but I heard it was a huge mess and among the most disturbing things one of my friends had ever seen in her career as a nurse.”

  “Maybe he deserved it more than you realize.”

  She stumbled to a halt, putting a hand on his arm to stop him as she looked up at him. “I don’t care what he’d done. He didn’t deserve that. If being a cheater and a liar was all the criteria that qualified to be turned inside out, half the population would be walking around with their entrails on full display.”

  His lips clamped shut, and he seemed to want to argue for a moment, but then he shrugged instead. “You’re the one who knew him.”

  She started walking again, and he fell into step beside her. “So you can see why romance isn’t my top priority, and why I’m not eager to give it all another chance.”

  She was thankful when he changed the subject.

  “So how do you do your healing deal?”

  She reached into the backpack she’d worn slung over her shoulder, having carried her scrubs and hospital shoes out with her as she did every day. Inside, she found a bottle of water and brought it out. Flipping open the cap, Naiya sprinkled three drops in her hand and murmured the words that would turn it into a compass. The water coalesced before swinging to the right, and she walked in that direction, aware of his solid presence only a step behind.

  The compass led them to a man curled against the wall of an alleyway. He was probably no older than his mid-fifties, but he must have lived a hard life on the street, and he looked a lot older. He was curled up on himself, holding his jaw in his hand as he moaned. Naiya approached cautiously, knowing from previous experience that people could lash out at the least provocation, not even realizing she was there to help them before they tried to attack or rebuff her. She kept her voice soothing as she knelt down from him a few feet away, careful to keep all but the soles of her shoes from touching the filthy alleyway. “Are you all right?”

  He groaned, and his eyes opened. He seemed startled by the sight of her, and he shook his head. Another moan left him, and tears squeezed from his eyes. “Hurts,” he moaned.

  She nodded. “I’m sure it does. If you want, I can help, but you have to promise not to tell anyone that I did so.

  He looked skeptical even in his agony. “What are you talking about?”

  “May I touch your face?” At his hesitant nod, she duck-walked closer so she could reach him, lightly brushing her fingers along his jawline until she found the spot where he was hurting. She sent magic through her fingers and into his body, feeling the pl
easant tingle of power coursing through her. He visibly improved in just a few seconds, and she pulled her hand away once she could no longer feel the hotspot of pain. She smiled at him. “Is that better?”

  He looked odd, and he smiled at her, revealing a mouthful of broken and dirty teeth. No wonder he’d been in such pain. “Are you an angel?”

  She grinned at him. “Something like that. Remember, you can’t breathe a word of this.”

  He shook his head. “Doubt anyone would believe me anyway. Thank you, my guardian angel.”

  She nodded at him and stood up, issuing a word of parting before she moved on. Once out of his sight, she reached into her backpack for some hand sanitizer and wipes, quickly cleaning her hands. “Let’s see who else we can help tonight.”

  Bach seemed bemused by her actions as he followed along behind her, not speaking much. Either he was afraid of disturbing her concentration, or he was holding in a tirade. Judging from the vibrations in his aura, he was probably trying to gain control of his anger. She was certain she knew exactly what was bothering him—that she was putting herself at risk with her actions, and she was frequenting a neighborhood that was terrifying to anyone.

  It frightened her too, but she also had magic to protect herself. As long as there was water nearby, she could draw power from it. That was why she carried a bottle of water with her at all times, just in case she didn’t find an easy source. She hadn’t blundered into the idea blindly or without giving it careful consideration, but in the end, she was drawn to the people to alleviate their suffering whenever possible. It was what she was training for, but was also her special affinity. Water was her source of power, but healing was her gift.

  She tended to three more patients before realizing how late it was getting, reluctantly breaking away from the last person she’d helped, receiving a thankful smile from the older woman, and moved beside Bach. When he made an obvious route back toward the safer part of town, near the hospital, she didn’t offer any protest. She often healed only one or two people a night, and tonight she’d helped four. It had been easier with Bach there, because he was a safe and reassuring presence, and he deterred anyone who might bear her ill will. She could take care of herself, but it was nice having the demon to watch over her, at least on an occasional basis.

  Back at her apartment, with him having followed her without any discussion between the two of them, she led him inside and locked the door behind him. There was a moment of awkwardness as they stood staring at each other, and she braced herself for the lecture she was sure was coming.

  “You’re doing a wonderful thing, Naiya. It’s reckless, but it’s also wonderful.”

  She grinned at him, pleased he had defied her expectations. “Thank you.”

  “I plan to come with you from now on, to make sure you’re safe, and then you can focus on healing rather than looking over your shoulder.”

  Her eyes widened at the statement, and she moved closer to him instinctively. “That sounds kind of long-term, rather than one night.”

  He shrugged. “After last night, I’m sure one night would never be enough. I could spend one million nights with you and not get enough.” The words were sweet, but he seemed uncomfortable uttering them. He didn’t seem to be lying to her so much as he was just discomfited by the confession.

  She lifted a hand, cupping his cheek. “How many serious relationships have you had?”

  He let out a laugh, and it had a hard edge to it. His warm breath wafted over her face, making her flinch a little from the heat. “None. I don’t really do relationships. Or I didn’t. You have me tied up in knots, Naiya. I’m not sure what I want.”

  She bit her lip as she contemplated what to say next. She didn’t want to move too quickly for both their sakes, but she also didn’t want him walking away. The vow she’d made to herself seemed silly now, the kind of decision a child would make just to anger those around them.

  It was just as silly to arbitrarily cut herself off from all relationship possibilities as it was to keep making the same mistake over and over again with a lying cheater, as she had done with Jeb. She had to be open to all possibilities, including the idea that maybe she’d found the person she been looking for. Or the demon, as the case may be. “Let’s just take it a day at a time then. I’m not sure what I want either. I know what I want tonight, but who knows about tomorrow?”

  His dark eyes gleamed. “Tell me more about what you want tonight.”

  “I’d rather just show you,” she said with a lecherous grin. His expression took on an edge of hunger, and it was almost enough to send a bolt of fear down her spine, but anticipation easily won out.

  “There are some things I’d like to show you too.”

  Chapter 4

  True to his word, Bach accompanied her on her nightly visits for the next week, showing no inclination to stop meeting her at the hospital or her apartment on her days off so they could make her “rounds,” as he called them. Tonight was different though. She could feel it as they turned the corner, the hairs on the back of her neck rising as she responded to the violence permeating the air.

  She gasped and jerked to a halt, causing Bach to collide with her from her abrupt stop. Her eyes widened with horror at the sight of three men kicking a fourth one lying on the ground. He’d clearly already been battered extensively by the group, but they showed no signs of stopping. She started to step forward, not entirely certain what she was going to do to them, but determined to make the three leave the victim alone.

  Before she could, Bach put a hand in front of her and stepped around her, shielding her body with his. He didn’t bother to issue a warning. He just lifted his arm, and in the blink of an eye, a long line of fire was in his hand. As it unfurled, she realized it was a fire whip, and the first man to feel its molten flames across his back screamed in agony as he jerked away, clearly struggling to reach the source of pain as he stumbled backward and fell to his knees.

  Their comrade’s cry caught their attention, and the other two interrupted the beating to turn toward Bach and Naiya. They stood defensively, hands up in fists, which made it plain they weren’t armed with anything besides their knuckles. Had they been, they surely wouldn’t have hesitated to whip out their guns or knives. They probably would have already used them on the man they were beating.

  Still without speaking, Bach swished the whip with a gentle flick of his wrist, making it seem graceful as the deadly fire shot forward and wrapped around one of the men, clinging to his torso like a lover as he started to scream.

  His cries of agony were awful, and in spite of herself, she touched Bach’s arm, hoping to get him to release the other man. If he was willing to beat someone else to the point where the man on the ground was, he probably deserved whatever he got, but she was tenderhearted and moved by compassion. Hearing his screams of suffering as he’d been entwined with the whip seemed like punishment enough.

  With only a nod of acknowledgment, Bach retracted the weapon, focusing the whip on the last of the three. That man took one look at it, peed his pants, and ran off.

  Her nose wrinkled at the bitter sting of urine permeating the air as she moved closer to the man who’d been beaten. She knelt down beside him, running her fingers just above his body as she searched for the hotspots that indicated pain. He had a lot of them, and she paused each time she found one, spending a moment healing him before moving on.

  By the time she was done, he looked far different than he had just a few minutes before. He was still dirty and in rough shape, but the cuts and bruises were gone, and he wasn’t making that ragged, gurgling gasp that had escaped him when she’d begun healing him. His voice sounded shaky, but he no longer appeared injured. “Thank you. How did you do that?”

  She just shrugged. “Magic.”

  He scoffed. “No, really.”

  Naiya shrugged again. “It doesn’t matter. You shouldn’t need to go to the hospital, but if you do, we can help you get there.”

  He shoo
k his head. “I haven’t felt this good in years. Thank you, little lady.”

  It was a strange term to hear from the ragged-looking man, but she found it sweetly old-fashioned. “Take care of yourself, and try to steer clear of those three people that were hurting you.”

  He shot a glance at the two, who seemed to be slowly recovering from their encounter with the whip. “Yes, ma’am. I surely will.”

  She moved back as he got up, getting up out of the crouching position to move back toward Bach. “What are you going to do with those two?”

  He shrugged. “I guess just leave them here?”

  She nodded. “That sounds like more than they deserve.” Without a glance at either one of them, she took Bach’s hand, and they moved away from the alley, heading back to her apartment.

  She barely made it around the next corner before she suddenly pushed him against the wall, overcome with her need for him. Bach seemed surprised, but amused, when she began tugging at his clothes before unzipping his jeans and pushing them down. “What did I do to deserve this?”

  She shrugged. “It was unbelievably hot watching you stand up for someone else, seeing you dole out justice, and knowing you were taking care of that trash. What can I say? I liked watching you punish them.”

  He laughed, but didn’t try to push her away. Instead, his hands moved under her jacket and shirt, pushing up the fabric to below her armpits, so he could reach her breasts. They didn’t fully disrobe. They just removed enough to have each other right there in the alleyway.

  As he turned her in his arms, lifting her with his hands under her buttocks and her back supported against the greasy bricks of the building, she didn’t even care if someone saw them. They could have an audience gather around to watch and discuss her every move with Bach, and she wouldn’t have cared. She didn’t care about anything except having him inside her at the moment, and he satisfied that need a second later.

  She was already wet and waiting for him, and the walls of her sheath clung to him as he began to thrust rapidly in and out of her. He held her so her back wasn’t banging into the wall, and it was also a reinforcement of the realization that without his supporting hands, she would fall. The only things keeping her aloft were his hands on her buttocks and his cock inside her. A small shiver went through her at being at his mercy, but it was one of pure delight.