by Zoey Marcel
“What the hell was that?” he asked in his sexy British accent.
“She was wounded, so I thought -”
“What? That you would let her go so she could kill again?”
“She said she wouldn't.”
Blade's blue eyes narrowed. “We both know that's a bunch of bullshit. She's a vampire, Sonya. It's in her nature to kill. She's done it before and she'll do it again.”
Sonya shrugged, trying to feign a nonchalance she didn't feel. “It's only a matter of time before another black angel gets to her.”
Blade tugged her arm to halt her in her tracks when she tried to walk past him. “Well, then why the bloody hell would you even bother to slay any vampires if another is going to get to them eventually? You're slipping, Sonya.”
“I'm not slipping.” She pulled her arm free and started to walk away from him. “Just because I have compassion and you don't is no reason to -”
Her startled gasp resembled a strangled scream as he slammed her up against the wall, face blazing with fury.
“Let me tell you about compassion,” he growled. “I once had compassion on a succubus who had a thing for me. When she tried to attack me I wounded her because I had too much chivalry to kill a woman. Well, that same bitch later captured me. Her friend tortured me and turned me into a demon, all because I had compassion on the enemy.”
Sonya's heart went out to him. That story had become legend and she always felt sorry for Blade and then guilty when she recalled that the man who tormented him for the succubus was Nimbus, the demon who once stole Sonya's heart.
“If you show the enemy compassion they'll use it against you,” Blade told her seriously. “You should know. You lost your soul in the name of compassion.”
That hurt.
“Damn you.” Her eyes stung.
“You'll damn yourself if you pull a stunt like that again. If that had been Nimbus you probably would've shagged him and been halfway to hell by now.”
Her hand flew up to hit him, but he caught her by the wrist before she could make contact with his face. “Fuck you! I would not.”
“Oh please. If that were true you wouldn't have asked Cassiel a couple of months back where Nimbus was.”
“There's nothing wrong with wanting closure.”
Blade snorted. “Your attachment is a hell of a lot deeper than closure. I can tell you that much. I don't know what happened to Delilah and you know what? I don't give a shit. The bitch damned me, so why should I curse myself further by looking back? So what if those demons were great in the sack? I would've thought an intelligent woman like you would value redemption more than getting her jollies.”
He made the mistake of releasing her arm and Sonya punched him in the face hard. “You son of a bitch!”
He had no mother, but that was irrelevant.
Blade snarled and spun her around so the front of her body collided with the wall with a great force that knocked a startled noise out of her. Her heartbeat quickened when she felt his swift fingers undoing her fly just before he yanked her black leather pants and panties down, exposing her bare ass. She yelped when he delivered several fierce slaps to her buttocks.
“You may be independent when you're on your own, but when you hunt with me you'd better follow orders.” Blade struck her ass harder, seeming spurred on by her pained outcries. “I won't tolerate insubordination or soldiers under my command freeing the enemy and endangering the lives of humans. Do I make myself clear?”
Sonya wailed at the nasty stings from the spanking, moaning at the hot fire igniting her backside in erogenous flames. It hurt badly. The man could definitely pack a mean punch, but the discipline kindled something in her long buried in the past. Her quim dampened slowly and it suddenly was no longer enough to sneak admiring glances at the bleached-blond, British crusnik leader. She wanted him inside of her, or merely to suck his cock as means of an apology for misbehaving.
“Yes, Blade,” she whispered, turned on by the obvious arousal in her own voice.
Blade stopped spanking her and she could sense his surprise and the temptation he experienced by her evident titillation.
“Touch me,” she pleaded through a whisper.
The long pause was scintillating.
“You have a problem,” Blade told her as he headed toward the door.
Sonya wasn't letting him get away that easily. He'd turned all alpha male on her and there was no way they were leaving here without at least one of them being gratified. “Blade.”
He turned back to look at her, pupils dilating when his eyes fell on her exposed, waxed cunt. Sonya knew she was rotten for taking advantage of the incubus side of his nature, but he'd done a terrific job of riling up the succubus in her and she couldn't rest until something combustive happened.
Blade swiftly closed the distance between them as he undid his pants, countenance hard with lust and lingering anger over her rebellious conduct. He forced Sonya to her knees and pulled his erection out. She lost her breath when he fisted a wad of her hair and forced her head so her mouth swallowed his stiff cock. It all happened so fast it aroused the hell out of her. She felt helpless sitting on her knees on the unforgiving cement with her pants down as she was forced to pleasure him.
“Suck me,” Blade whispered as he slowly met her suction with the occasional thrust of his hips.
Sonya moaned on his meaty cock and rubbed his ball-sac, feeling a rush of heat sweep over her at the way his nuts drew up into his pelvis and tightened the more she suckled him. The addicting scent of horny male filled her lungs and her snatch felt slick with desire at being used by a dominant male.
His hips jerked faster and his grip in her hair became ruthless as he pumped his dick in and out of her throat, making her gag whenever the tip hit her uvula. He eased up whenever she started to choke on his appendage.
Sonya felt him swell in her mouth and a wild, electric thrill surged through her when Blade jolted and cried out as his release poured down her throat. Her pussy pounded so hard it ached with desperation to be filled.
He withdrew from her mouth and tucked his spent prick away, trying to catch his breath as he looked down at her. She kept her head bowed to show him deference, unsure of how he would respond.
“Thank you for that. It felt incredible.”
“I'm glad you liked it.”
“We won't ever do that again,” Blade said with determination in his tone. “I'm your superior, not your playmate.”
“Yes, Sir,” she mumbled quietly.
His expression hardened and his stride was wide and swift as he walked toward the door. “Pull your pants up and get out. You have the rest of the night off.”
Disappointment crashed through her. Her clitoris pulsed with unfulfilled need and her vagina ached for consummation. Being denied by a man made her almost as crazy as being sated by one, but Blade hadn't sent her away to punish her as a master would his slave. He dismissed her because of honor and devotion to his duty. She could respect that, but it was damned frustrating. They were both cruxim, so it would be permissible for them to fool around, but apparently Blade's head was in his work more than it was in search of a good time.
Sonya stood and pulled her panties and pants back on. She would have to touch herself later to make the pain stop, or better still she could let Tansy take care of that for her.
* * *
When Sonya got back to her hotel room, Tansy had just gotten out of the shower and came hurrying from the bathroom in her purple robe. She threw her arms around Sonya as if they'd been apart forever, or something had threatened to separate them.
“Why didn't you answer your phone? I kept calling you.”
“I'm sorry. I had it on silent.” Her eyes widened when she saw the gauze on Tansy's neck. “What happened to your neck?”
“That's why I called. I just got back from the hospital.”
The news alarmed her. “What happened? Are you okay?”
“I'm fine. I got attacked by a vampire,
” Tansy explained, guiding her by the hand over to the bed.
Sonya's concern mounted and she prayed Demornae hadn't been the one who assaulted Tansy. “What did the vampire look like?”
“It all happened so fast. I didn't really get a good look at him.”
The fiend was male. She exhaled a sigh of relief that her actions tonight hadn't cost Tansy.
“He was tall and really muscular with a bald head and a very bad attitude. I seriously would've died if that man hadn't shown up.”
“What man?”
Tansy shrugged, looking guilty all of a sudden. “Just some random stranger who got in the way. He saved me in a sense.”
“Did he kill the vampire?”
“Not exactly. The vampire was too strong for me. He bit my neck and started drinking my blood. I couldn't fight him off.” Tansy took Sonya's hand in hers and glanced down at the bedspread they sat on. “I thought I'd never see you again. When I saw that man walking past the alley we were in, I knew I had to do anything to get back to you, even if it wasn't very ethical.”
Sonya raised an eyebrow. “Did you trip him and run or something?”
“No. I used an ancient spell – a rather controversial one. It's called Soul Fusion. Have you ever heard of it?”
She stiffened. “The spell where two souls can be combined into one and occupy the same body?”
Tansy nodded, seeming to scrutinize her face for any signs of reproach. “Yes. I cast the spell on them and the stranger disappeared. His soul became trapped inside the vampire's body.”
Sonya felt her mouth hanging open. “Did it make him good?”
Tansy shrugged. “I didn't stay around to find out. I got the hell out of there as fast as I could and went to the hospital.”
Sonya dragged her palm down her face in worry. “My god, Tansy, that spell is dangerous. You could’ve gotten hurt or killed.”
“I was already dead if I hadn't taken action.”
“I'm glad you're okay, but you shouldn't have been out late walking by yourself. What were you doing?”
“I wanted to get us some snacks for our room. I got some good ones.”
Sonya snagged her in a lung-crushing hug. “Thank God you're all right.”
Her mind ran back over the night's events. It was a male vampire who attacked Tansy, but it could have just as easily been Demornae. She could have assaulted Tansy and that stranger might not have happened by and Sonya would've been to blame for her roommate's demise. She held Tansy tighter, silently vowing to never show the enemy any mercy ever again.
* * *
After their raid on the high school, the cruxim moved on, but Sonya and Tansy took a little vacation together in Seattle before they drove home to Portland. Tansy had to get back to her job and Sonya spent the day alone, walking down the busy streets in the cool, crisp fall air.
The sky was a bright shade of blue and the pristine white clouds looked like enormous cotton balls perched on the stark blue canvas. The leaves on the trees were changing to brilliant shades of red, orange and gold. Many of them had already drifted slowly to the ground below in piles which had been soaked to the earth by the frequent rain.
Today the sun shone like a glowing orb and the value of life seemed apparent, though her sorrow managed to overshadow the beauty of the day. Walking through the city on an autumn day always made Sonya happy, but she kept thinking about Sully. Thoughts of her son eventually turned her mind back to Nimbus. Sully was dead and Nimbus was...wherever the hell he was. Everyone else moved on with their lives as though neither of them had ever existed, but the pain of losing them still crippled her. Evil or not, they were her family and they must never be forgotten.
She passed a tattoo parlor and stopped. She'd considered getting a tattoo before, but didn't just want to get random crap inked on her. Now she had a legitimate reason to mark herself permanently. She would commemorate a piece of her skin to them. But where to have their names inked on her? If she had them on a visible place like her ankle, other black angels would see it and be scandalized that she had the names of demons tattooed on her.
Unless she got it done in a place no one would see...like her butt. Well, Tansy would notice of course, but she wouldn't care.
Sonya went inside and the bell dinged. A moment later a young woman whose arms were covered in tattoos walked up. She wore a neutral expression and had plenty of facial piercings.
“How can I help you?”
“Hi. I was just wondering if you had any openings today. I wanted to get something done.”
“What did you have in mind?” The girl's pigtails looked cutesy and like a bit of a paradox compared to the rest of her bad-ass appearance.
“I was thinking of getting two words inked on my backside. Maybe on my right side.”
“On your ass cheek?” The girl didn't seem disgusted in the least.
“Yes. Are you free to do that for me?”
“Well, I'm not, but Dante can help you. Dante!”
Sonya wasn't sure that pulling her pants down and having a man ink her hiney would help to relax her nervousness any, but she reminded herself not to be silly. This Dante person, whoever he was, would likely be professional and - Oh dear god, he was hot.
A man who stood about six feet tall came into the lobby with the biggest guns she'd ever seen that hadn't been inspired by steroids. He was packed with muscle everywhere and the tribal tattoos that decorated his buff arms only added to his insane level of sex appeal. His dark brown eyes simmered with heat and mystery. Any darker and they would've been black. It didn't surprise her that she was hopelessly attracted to the sex god, only that a bald man should drive her this crazy when she'd always been attracted to men with hair.
The black T-shirt was snug on him and his jeans were baggy – an irresistible combination on a hot-looking man.
“I can help you with that,” he said in a base tone that sounded like thunder rolling across a dark summer sky.
Her knees buckled and Sonya suddenly felt weak.
“This is Dante,” the girl behind the counter informed her.
“Hi,” Sonya squeaked, clearing her throat and trying to snap herself out of her smitten stupidity. “I'm Sonya.”
Dante stepped closer with a cordial smile and took her hand in his. His hand dwarfed hers and holding it felt intimate and personal. Good lord, she should really just walk out of here right now. She had no doubt he would remain professional, but she was bound to make a ninny of herself in front of him.
“Nice to meet you, Sonya.”
Holy hell, her name sounded intoxicating in his bewitching mouth. Her stomach felt like it was rising and her heart clenched suddenly as though she were suffocating when she detected the desire permeating from his aura. He wanted her. Sonya knew he did even before his dark eyes gave him away.
“Come with me.”
Come with him? Oh glory be, wouldn't that be heavenly?
She followed him, hands clamming and starting to shake. She'd been attracted to men before, but this was bordering ridiculous. There was only one other man who had gotten her this riled up sexually. A man she would never see again.
“So you want to get some words done on your ass?” Dante asked.
“Yeah, please.”
“Show me where.”
“Oh, you know...around the general area.” She motioned with her hand in a wide, sweeping motion behind her.
His eyes darkened and his voice sounded huskier. “Take your pants off.”
Her pussy gushed. Surely she only imagined his arousal, but no, there it was. The succubus in her wouldn't miss any trace of desire, no matter how small and well hidden.
“Why?” she whispered.
His pupils dilated, but he remained professional. “So I can see the canvas I'll be working on.”
Sonya swallowed and held his hypnotic gaze as she slowly undid her pants, fingers trembling during the whole process.
“Unless you want me to ink the front of you, you should probab
ly turn around,” he said quietly.
Heat swept into her cheeks and her head dropped as she quickly turned her back to him. “Of course. Sorry.”
She blushed again when she caught his amused grin in the mirror.
“That's all right.”
“I've never done this before.”
“I'm your first?”
Her vagina squeezed at the question. Why did it sound provocative on his tongue? “No.”
“You've gotten tattoos before?”
She exhaled, unaware that she'd quit breathing while lowering her pants and underwear just enough for him to get a good look at her posterior. “Oh, no.”
She dared to glance up at the mirror and caught his enthralled eyes glued to her backside. He looked like he wanted to eat her up.
“What did you think I meant?”
Why did he sound as though he already knew the answer to that and was simply messing with her?
Her cheeks burned. “Nothing. I didn't know what you meant. I'm just tired and nervous.”
“I'll say. You're shaking like a leaf.”
Sonya let out a startled gasp when she felt his rough fingertips rest gently on her ass. She sensed a sudden burst of need in him upon hearing her elated sound. Did he know how turned on she was?
“Relax. I won't hurt you. As long as you're mine I'll take care of you.”
“Yours?”
His subtle smile and barely restrained chuckle didn't escape her notice. “My client.”
“Right.” If she didn't have her pants down, she'd run out of there to escape the embarrassment she unintentionally brought herself.
His fingers trailing over her exposed rump felt sensual and she had to wonder if the man was taking certain liberties he wouldn't normally take with his other clients. He'd been perfectly professional, but seemed to let down his guard the more he detected her attraction to him.
“How do you want it, Sonya?” Dante murmured, tone dripping thick and sweet like honey.
Why was her confounded mind in the gutter today? They were in a bloody tattoo parlor, not a bedroom. “What?”
“Where do you want the tattoo?”
