To Win a Demon's Love

by Nadine Mutas

  And before he could stop her, she’d slipped off his lap and between his legs, pulled down his boxers, her lips closing around his cock.

  Alek’s eyes rolled back in his head at the intense pleasure of feeling Lily’s hot mouth swallow his dick.

  “Hot damn, woman,” he rasped out, his fingers tangling in her hair.

  In response, she fluttered the tip of her tongue against the sensitive underside of his cock’s head, then sucked on his shaft with vigor.

  His breath stalled in his throat, heart pumping exquisite pleasure through his veins until he was all but consumed by it. Holy hell. That mouth of hers… His balls grew heavy, aching with need.

  As much as he was on board with everything she was doing to him with her wickedly talented tongue, he had to redirect the action now. Tugging up her head with a gentle pull on her hair, he flipped her around to face away from him before she could voice her sure-to-come protest at being interrupted—again.

  “I love your mouth on my cock,” he muttered in her ear, placing her on the couch with her arms braced on the backrest, her knees on the cushion, “but I love the feel of your pussy clenching around me even more.”

  A violent tremor of lust set off fireworks in her aura, and if he’d had any doubts about whether she liked dirty talk, her response laid them to rest. He reached around her, opened her jeans, and shoved them down to her knees along with her panties. The scent of her arousal—which had already curled around him before, tantalizing and eroding his ability to think—now hit him full-on, a feast for his senses.

  He yanked her pants and panties from her knees to her ankles so he could spread her wider for him. The next second he had his mouth on the glistening wet, flushed center of her, lapping up the delicious evidence of her need for him. Lily uttered a throaty moan, her aura a wild tapestry of pleasure and passion. He gripped her hips to hold her in place, and ate her like a starved man would devour a sumptuous buffet.

  “Oh gods, Alek—” The distinctive sound of claws ripping into fabric.

  When she came, her orgasm lit up her energy pattern in an explosion of rapture.

  He’d never seen, never felt, anything more beautiful.

  And he never, ever wanted to let her go. He wanted her as his with a primal possessiveness that was raw, uncivilized, and unrelenting. The thought of watching her walk out of his life, of her seeking—finding—this kind of pleasure with another male, would drive him mad if he dwelled on it. So he didn’t.

  Instead, he focused all his attention, all his power, on drowning her in sexual ecstasy, on fulfilling her sensual needs until she glowed with satisfaction, on showing her, in the only way she allowed him right now, the depth of his determination to take care of her.

  He finally stopped his uncompromising sensual assault after he lost count of her orgasms. Having shredded the backrest with her claws—Ava would shred him for that—Lily hung her head between her outstretched arms, breathing in quick, heavy pants, her legs trembling under his steady grip. He half-expected her to collapse any second, but then she threw a glance over her shoulder that was so unabashedly lascivious, it had his already aching cock harden impossibly further.

  “Are you going to fuck me now, or what?”

  Lust pulsed in his groin. “You really do enjoy talking dirty, don’t you?” Not just hearing it, she had no compunction to shoot back some saucy words as well. Just one more thing he adored about her.

  “Only when it’s paired with action.” She wiggled her hips suggestively.

  And how could he pass on an invitation like that?

  Renewing his grasp on her hips, he thrust into her. Ah, the feel of her, it all but shattered his mind. None of his previous lovers had this effect on him. He’d enjoyed them, but he’d been able to leave each and every female afterward without a second thought, their sexual encounters brief and singular as agreed upon, no strings attached, no follow-up. None of them had kept a hold on him—no one but Lily.

  And that was what deepened every sensation, highlighted every touch, turned every caress into a permanent, cherished mark on his soul. It elevated the basic, pleasurable feeling of having a welcoming female underneath him into something that went far beyond the physical, an experience that left him bare in a way he’d never been. With anyone.

  More than ever, he craved the culmination of that experience yet out of his reach, trembled with the need for it. The unyielding belief that he’d soon get to share it with Lily—only ever her—was the one thing that soothed the voracious yearning.

  He’d waited all this time. He could be patient a little while longer.

  The bouquet of her feminine excitement thick in the air, he thrust into her heat, increased speed and force when she begged him for it until he pounded into her. A husky moan escaped her throat, and then her inner muscles clenched around him, squeezed his cock in a rhythm that had his mind blanking.

  Still on the precipice—always one fucking step away from what he could sense would be devastating pleasure—he kept up his pace, shoving into her with the kind of power that made her aura scintillate and ripple until she climaxed again. Judging by the way she all but melted onto the couch, she was ready for him to finish.

  It was probably too much to hope that he’d be able to fuck her into unconscious bliss a second time, so she’d miss the fact that he wouldn’t finish—again.

  He had to hold her up during her final orgasm, helping her ride out the pleasure and realizing she definitely couldn’t go another round, so he gave her a few hard thrusts and withdrew. She collapsed in his arms, wheezing into the cushion.

  Having stuffed his aching cock into his jeans—damn, that hurt—he sank onto the couch next to her, stroking her back, her hair, petting her down.

  It was a solid five minutes later when she stirred. She sat up with the languidness of a well-pleasured female, her lids still heavy over eyes once again a deep indigo, and stood to pull up her jeans.

  Would she notice?

  A frown gathered on her forehead like a thunderhead. She studied the rock-hard erection easily discernible under his fly. “Did you not get off?”

  Yep, she’d noticed.

  He shook his head, so not looking forward to the impending conversation. In hindsight, he should have used condoms to disguise that little tidbit, but—the allure of feeling her in the most immediate, intimate way, without barriers, had kicked that idea out the window.

  Lily blinked at him, her aura a still life of perplexity. “Why?”

  Here we go. “Male duhokrads can’t come until they’re mated.”

  Lily’s mind scrambled to make sense of what Alek just said. “What the what?”

  He let out a long exhale. “Our ability to climax is tied to mating status. The process of bonding to a female duhokrad unlocks that ability.”

  Dumbfounded, she looked back and forth between his face and the still-prominent bulge in his jeans. “But—you’re obviously able to be aroused and…functional.”

  A flicker of mischief in his eyes. “Want me to show you again how functional?”

  “Alek.” She shoved her fingers through her hair, paced away from him, turned back. “But you’ve had sex before, right? How—?”

  He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “I’ve been with females, yes. Most male duhokrads gather some experience pre-mating, part of wanting to increase their eligibility as mates.” One side of his mouth tipped up in a half-smile that had her stomach flutter. “Duhokrad females tend to favor males who know what they’re doing in bed.”

  She kept on pacing, her hand on her forehead, her emotions a maelstrom of confusion. “So, you’re twenty-eight, and you’ve had sex, but you’ve never had an orgasm?”

  He simply raised a brow.

  She stopped pacing. “But—but—” Her hands flailed wildly. “How have you survived until now?”

  “Well,” he drawled, “you know how they say you can’t miss something you’ve never had?”

  She nodded.


  “It’s bullshit.” He gave her wry smile.

  Processing that for a minute, she swallowed hard. “Aren’t you…in pain a lot?”

  “Nothing I can’t deal with.” He shrugged. “From what I’ve heard, we don’t suffer from blue balls as much as others until after we’re mated.”

  She shook her head, unable to believe what she was hearing. “This is so fucked up. How did you explain your inability to orgasm to the females you’ve been with?”

  “Some were demons who knew and were okay with it.” He leaned back. “With humans I used condoms and they didn’t notice.”

  Pressing her lips together at the surge of irrational jealousy about any ex-lover he ever had, she started pacing again. Stupid. How could she be jealous of something that happened before her time?

  “You wanted to know.” Alek’s voice was gentle, his eyes hard.

  She paused and faced him fully, something dark boiling up inside her. “So that’s why you’re so eager to mate? So you can get off?”

  “What?” He sat up with a start, his aura flashing with anger. “Hell, no. Is that what you think of me? Have I given you the impression I only care about sex?”

  Crossing her arms, she returned his hard stare, some anger of her own sizzling over her skin. “All I know is you haven’t exactly been honest with me.”

  “I didn’t lie to you.”

  “Maybe not, but you conveniently left out some vital information. Why didn’t you tell me about this before?”

  A muscle ticked in his jaw. “It never came up.”

  “Right,” she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. Unbidden, her eyes darted to his groin, and her unruly mind brought up tantalizing images of what had come up. Several times. Mouthwateringly so.

  “Lilichka.” Alek stood, walked over to her. “I want to mate because I want a family. I want a home, a female to call my own, kids, the whole thing. And you’re the only one I want to have that with.”

  He cupped her face with both hands, his palms cradling her cheeks with heat and care. “You’re the one for me. The first time I saw you—when you were still a witch—I forgot to breathe for a moment. I’ve never believed in love at first sight, but you…”

  The look in his eyes blasted open the cracked wall around her heart, tore into her in a way that stole her breath.

  “You just hit me,” he rasped, his raw voice stroking along her senses, sinking into her. “Like a freight train. I couldn’t stop thinking about you, craving you. You were the one bright spot during endless nights of watch duty. And now that I’ve felt you, now I know what it’s like to be with you—” He shook his head. “I don’t ever want to let you go. I know I said I wouldn’t push you, but—”

  “Don’t,” she croaked, her throat raw, the heat of tears threatening at the back of her eyes. “Don’t ask me again.” Raising her hand, palm out, she took a step back, broke the gentle hold he had on her face. “Don’t make me give you an answer that’ll hurt us both.”

  “Lily.” He reached for her, his eyes so forlorn, it broke her inside.

  Shaking her head, she whispered, “I need some time to think. Away from you.”

  He stilled. “What do you mean?”

  “I can’t stay with you anymore.”

  Mind racing, heart a confused mess, she rubbed her temples. His revelation about male duhokrads not being able to climax seemed like such a small, inconsequential piece of information, when in reality it had sucker-punched her in the guts. Up until now a fledgling hope had grown inside her, ready to unfurl its wings. The idea that maybe, maybe she could keep Alek without mating with him—that she could turn back into a witch and still hold on to this male who challenged so many of her beliefs—it had become stronger, made her dream and yearn.

  Knowing he couldn’t orgasm until mated blew that idea to smithereens. Because how could she keep him, continue any kind of romantic relationship with him when he’d never be able to have a fulfilled sex life with her? The impossibility of that scenario was a slap in her face.

  Which meant the only way she could keep him was to stay demon and commit to a bond that would tie her to him for better or worse, in life and death. A decision she couldn’t just make with a snap of her fingers, no matter how tempting, not when so much more than her heart would be affected by it.

  She was the heir to the Murray family, next in line to become Elder witch, meant to carry on the blood and magic of her ancestors. Staying demon would break that line. Since Basil was a male without powers, there was no way of knowing if his future children would inherit the family’s magic.

  Time. She needed time to think and get her head—and heart—on straight, figure out how to deal with this.

  “I don’t think it’s safe to go home yet,” she muttered, more to herself than to him. “Or to Merle’s. But maybe Rhun can ask Bahram—”

  “The incubus?” Alek’s energy darkened like an approaching storm cloud. “Fuck that.” He whipped out his phone, started dialing. “Like I’m going to watch you move in with a fucking sex demon.” The growl in his voice curled her toes, sent a pleasant shiver over her skin.

  Her heart ached for having to forbid herself from reaching out to him. “Who are you calling?”

  “Dima.” His look slammed into her, red embers glowing in obsidian. “You’ll stay with him.”

  Chapter 19

  “So,” Alek said, while he and Dima walked out of the club’s back door into the dimly lit alley behind the building, directing the two human males whom they’d chosen as prey to follow them quietly. “How is Lily?”

  He’d tried not to pester his brother with questions about her, even though he was going crazy wondering how she was doing. Several times over the course of the day he’d been close to calling her, his finger hovering over the call button. He’d typed ten texts, then deleted every one without ever sending it off.

  She wanted space. And he’d hack off his own arm to give it to her.

  Dima checked his phone. “Wow. You made it to one hour and three minutes before asking about her. Held up pretty well there, Sasha.”

  Alek glowered at him.

  “She’s…” Dima huffed out a breath. “She spent most of the day sleeping or holed up in the spare bedroom. Heard her on the phone a few times.”

  Probably talking to Merle or her family.

  “She ate with us, but was quiet,” Dima said, steering his human to punch his companion in the jaw, then let him draw the knife Dima had conveniently deposited in the guy’s jacket, and ordered him to stab his buddy in the gut. “Last I saw her before I left, the boys had roped her into playing a video game.”

  Alek kept his hold on the mind of his own human during the staged fight, and then directed the jerk face to slash at Dima’s human with the switchblade Alek had so graciously provided. And even though Alek’s human already bled like a stuck pig, he did deliver what could later be read as a killing blow to his former partner in crime, his movements still coordinated thanks to Alek’s mind control. Dima grabbed the collar of his prey and leaned in. The human’s aura flared up, the glow almost blinding, and then his duh left his mouth as Dima extracted it with skill. His own energy now a radiant gold, Dima let go of the dead human, watched him slump to the ground.

  Alek maintained a mental grip of steel around the remaining man’s higher functions, and stepped up to slake his own hunger. The vile darkness in the human’s mind assaulted him, the lack of empathy or compassion sending chills down his soul.

  He and Dima had chosen these two by following the nauseating trail of their auras into the club. When they took control of their minds, the human males had been in the process of spiking the drink of a girl with a drug that would leave her unconscious and at the mercy of both men. They’d done this before, several times, and had never been caught. Judging by the festering evil spreading in their minds like the sickest sort of cancer, they were well on the way to escalating their MO from sexual assault to murder.

  After Dima and Alek disc
arded the contaminated drink, they took the men outside, where they could feed in privacy. These scum would never be able to hurt this girl, or any other one, ever again.

  Alek made it quick, feeling no desire whatsoever to stay in the man’s mind any longer than necessary. Lifeless, the guy’s body joined his friend’s on the ground. To the authorities, it would seem as if they’d died of the wounds from their fight.

  Turning his back on the two humans, Alek left the alley with Dima, making sure they remained in the shadows and unnoticed by passersby. They’d also taken care to slip into the minds of the people who saw them leaving the club with the two guys, had made sure no one remembered they had any contact with the now dead men.

  “Did she say anything about me?” Alek asked his twin, hope and anxiety twisting his heart.

  Dima cut him a glance that raised his hackles.

  “What? What did she say?”

  His brother shook his head, looking away. “You’re so full of shit.”

  “The fuck?”

  Skewering Alek with a look that practically drilled a hole in his brain, Dima stopped at a crossroads. “Why do you want to mate with her?”

  “Because I love her, you dimwit.”

  “Yeah,” Dima said, crossing the street when the light turned green, “I’m calling bullshit on that.”

  “Care to explain?” He ground his teeth together so hard, the pain shot straight through his skull.

  “You don’t really love her.”

  The only thing keeping Alek from smashing in Dima’s face was that his twin was the person closest to him, who knew him best, who never sugar-coated his opinion. He might be an irreverent pain in the ass more often than not, yanking Alek’s chain to the point that he wanted to throttle him, but when Dima delivered something that sounded like a dressing down? You listened. Because he never said stuff like that without reason.

  So Alek took a deep breath, fought down the storm of emotions, and carefully relaxed his fists, which were itching to do some damage. “Go ahead. Enlighten me, brother.”