"What do you want from me this time? Last time, you used me. I know you have another plan this time. Tell me what it is." Her voice was soft, her fingers curving into his fine shirt instead of blocking him. "No lies."
"I want you to be my Queen. My eternal bedmate and advisor." He ran his tongue down the side of her neck. "If you want to rule hell, that's fine, too. Whatever it takes to get you by my side."
"What about Mona?" Her voice was breathy, and she knew he noticed by the smile that curved his magnificent lips.
"I want Mona very badly, but I have already proven I want you more, no?"
Damn. He was right about that. "I won't relocate to hell." She sighed and tipped her head back as he showered kisses over her chest, down to the neckline of her black silk gown.
"If you come to hell, you will learn how to torture innocent souls and ruin lives. We will use the misery of others as foreplay for our lovemaking. You will have unlimited access to victims on which to release all your violent and amoral instincts, plus I will adorn you with obscene amounts of the finest jewelry."
She wrinkled her nose. "I don't get joy out of torturing people."
"I would delight in teaching you how to embrace your dark side! Plus I have a most excellent assortment of automobiles and wines. People have traded much to get their most important dreams." He purred softly and nuzzled her neck. "Hell is very nice. Nicer than heaven."
"I thought you were only supposed to take souls, not cars and bottles of wine." She clutched his shoulders as he slid his hands over her lower back, holding her up as he nuzzled the neckline of her dress aside, his lips whispering over the tops of her breasts.
"I am Satan. I break rules. My flat screen televisions and surround sound make me very popular for parties. Best in the Afterlife." His tongue flicked her nipple, and Iris couldn't suppress her quick inhale. "Come for a visit. If you want to leave, I let you go. If not, I worship you for eternity and value your mind and your intelligence. You will grow an enormous ego and be impossible to tolerate. It sounds wonderful, no?"
"But you betrayed me," she whispered. How could she forget that? She could never let herself forget that.
He lifted his head and met her gaze. "I am sorry."
She pulled back, and her heart thudded. "What did you say?" She'd thought he'd apologized, but Satan never apologized. He'd long ago made it clear that he would never apologize for anything because it would make him look weak and flawed, and he couldn't afford that. But it sure had sounded like he'd apologized.
To her shock, he repeated it. "I am sorry. I apologize. I express my remorse. I admit I was a...scum sucking bastard? Is that good? Or, how about...royal pinprick unworthy of dog doo? Or..." He wrinkled his brow. "I know! I deserve to have my manly regions slathered in athletic cream that makes them burn until I scream like a girl."
Her heart flipped, and she couldn't keep from smiling. "You've been rehearsing your apology." For her. Not only had he apologized, but it was clear he'd been thinking about it long enough to actually work on his delivery, so it wasn't a spur-of-the-moment insincerity inspired by the nearby bed. He'd actually made a conscious decision.
Damn.
"Oh, yes, I have worked very hard on fine-tuning the semantics. Does it show? I am very remorseful. Will you allow me now to bring you to ecstasy that only those who have been at my sexual mercy can even begin to understand?"
She tilted her head and felt the ache in her chest. The one that had been with her since the day she'd met him. She swallowed, knowing what she was going to say. Maybe it was stupid. Maybe it made her a pushover. Or maybe, it meant she was grabbing for her one chance at happiness, regardless of what the world might think. "Satan?"
His eyes lit up, and his hands tightened against her lower back, his thumbs rubbing circles against the thin material of her dress. "Yes, my burning hot pile of lusciousness?"
"I—"
A loud knock on the door interrupted her before she could finish. "Mom! Are you in there?"
Oh, no. "Justine? What's wrong?" She shoved Satan off her and lunged for the door, but Satan grabbed her and hauled her up against him, his body hard against hers.
"Satan, that's my daughter. I have to go." She couldn't let Satan and Justine meet. She had to find a way to stop it. "Release me, now."
"Not yet." And with that, he kissed her. A soul-searing, burning kiss that stole her mind, wrenched open her heart and infused her with heat, passion and something else that made her knees tremble and her hands shake.
He broke the kiss and stared down at her, a startled look on his face. "Damn."
His stunned lack of verbiage made her giggle. "Right?"
He nodded. "I hereby declare myself your servant for all eternity, Iris Bennett." The stark honesty and vulnerability in his voice reached her in a way nothing he'd ever said had before.
She was lost to him.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Justine was just about ready to kick down the hotel door when it opened and her mom slipped out into the corridor, still dressed, thankfully. There was no sign that she'd been canoodling with the king of hell, which made Justine sigh with relief. Okay, so maybe Satan wasn't even staying in the hotel at all. Maybe her mom was just doing a girl's weekend in the city. She grinned, feeling so much better now that she could see her mom was fine. "Mom. Hi. How was Hamilton?"
"Brilliant. What are you doing here?" Iris shut the door firmly behind her and leaned against it, keeping a tight grip on the knob.
Justine frowned at the dismissive tone in her mom's voice. "I had a question for—"
"I am your servant," a man's voice said through the door. "I lick the ground you walk on. I cry when you leave my sight."
Oh…no…that wasn't good. "Is that…Satan? In your room?"
Iris blinked innocently. "What? I have no idea what you're talking about."
"It is Satan!" Satan yelled. "I am in her room!"
Oh, God.
Iris's cheeks flushed. "I'm watching Netflix. It's a show about hell. Really educational. What do you need? Talk fast. I'm really tired. Can it wait until tomorrow?"
"I am not a television show!" Satan howled. "I am a virile man of great value and skill! Do not deny my presence, fair lady."
Oh, God. "Mom. You suck at lying. Seriously."
"It's a good opportunity," Derek chimed in. "It might be worth it to have the ruler of the Underworld be your servant. You should consider having him signing that in triplicate."
Oh, she so didn't need him to be making that kind of pro-Satan observation. "If Satan can stop begging for a few minutes, we need to talk to him," she said, giving Derek a sharp elbow to the gut to encourage him not to encourage Satan and her mom.
The ruthless soul-stealer on the other side of the door tapped firmly. "Satan doesn't beg! I throw my offended nature back at you! I worship the woman with the legs most lovely. That is not begging!"
Okay, so she really didn't need the images that Satan was putting in her head. "I'll be really quick. I don't want to stay." Understatement of the year, right? Listening to Satan yell about how much he wanted to shtup her mom wasn't all that high on her list of fantastic ways to spend her evening.
"Nope." Iris shook her head sharply. "You can't speak to him."
"Oh, God." Justine wrinkled her nose. "He's naked, isn't he?"
"I am not naked, but I can be very quickly," Satan yelled out. "Would you like to inspect my manhood before I take your mother to the highest mountains of pleasure?"
"No!" He sounded like a love-stricken lunatic, not a badass lord of the Underworld. "Keep your clothes on!" She caught a glimpse of Derek grinning broadly, and she glared at him. He immediately wiped the smile off his face and pretended to inspect the ceiling.
"Satan! Go lather yourself up in the bathtub," Iris ordered.
"I cannot drag myself that far away from you, my luscious love monkey." There was a thud as if he'd fallen against the door. "I must press myself against this wood until I can feel your
flesh against my body."
Iris's cheeks turned pink as she glanced at Justine. "Can you come back tomorrow? This really isn't a good time."
"Trust me, Mom, I really don't want be here, but we can't leave until we talk to him about Satan Jr."
"Sniveling bastard," Satan announced. "I spit on my velvet soft sperm factory that created him."
Derek turned away and erupted into a coughing fit.
She smacked Derek on the shoulder. "It's not funny."
"I know. I'm sorry." He coughed again, and his eyes were tearing. "I'll stop."
"It's really important that we ask you a few questions," she told the door. "Let us in."
"Certainly. Anything for the daughter of the woman I will caress for all eternity." The knob started to turn, but Iris squawked and lunged for it.
"Don't come out, Satan!" She gave Justine a worried look. "I'm afraid if he sees you, it will stir up longings for Mona that are too strong for him to resist."
"I am Satan. I am strong. I can resist." Pause. "Do you have the Goblet with you, daughter of my fantasy woman?"
"No, I don't." As if she'd be dumb enough to wander around New York with Mona in her back pocket. There was a reason she was the best Guardian in a thousand years. She was confident that Theresa and Mona were safely hidden in Derek's condo, surrounded by pretzels. If anyone came after Mona, Theresa could do serious damage. "She's nowhere near here."
"Then I am Satan. I am strong. I can resist." He knocked on the door again. "Release me, oh beautiful one. Let me assist your daughter."
"You could save her life, and it still won't get me to move to hell with you," Iris said. "Don't even think you can manipulate me."
Justine glanced at Derek for commiseration on the hell of listening to her mom negotiate dating arrangements with Satan, but he was still grinning broadly. "Really?"
He shrugged. "I'm sorry, but this is hilarious. I can't believe I'm listening to Satan try to seduce your mom."
"Man-to-man, if you assist me, I will grant your greatest wish," Satan called out.
"I'd like the Curse ended," Derek replied.
"Oh. Except that. Would you like a larger manhood? I could arrange that."
"I'm all set, thanks." He shot Justine a knowing look that had her cheeks heating up.
And her mom noticed, if her raised brow and stern, albeit disappointed, look on her face was any indication. "Justine? A private word?"
Yeah, she was so not giving her mom the chance to grill her about having sex with Derek. "The Council visited tonight," she blurted out. "They're having a Judgment in two days. If I can't break the Curse by then and prove that I did the right thing by giving Derek the drinks from Mona, it's the Chamber of Unspeakable Horrors for me."
Iris paled and clasped a hand to her chest. "Sweet mother Mary. I was afraid of this."
"My love pumpkin! I sense your distress! I come to your rescue!" With a loud tear, Satan ripped the door off the hinges and flung it behind him. He threw himself through the doorway and hauled Iris against him, pressing her face into his chest and cooing endearingly sweet things into her ear.
Justine was so startled by Satan's appearance that she forgot to be grossed out by the fact her mom was being seduced right in front of her.
Satan was drop-dread gorgeous, no pun intended. At least six four, broad shoulders, dark hair, penetrating eyes and a jawline to die for. No wonder her mom had sex fantasies about him. How could she have resisted Satan's full-court press for so long? Justine had new respect for her mom.
Derek cleared his throat and slid his hands around her waist, breathing softly against her neck. "Don't even think about lusting after him," he said. "He's not that hot."
An unfamiliar flutter danced in her belly. "Are you jealous of Satan?"
"No." He snorted. "I'm just looking out for you. Don't read anything into it." But as he said that, he made a point of kissing her just enough that she completely forgot about Satan.
Until all hell erupted, of course.
"Mother of all evil souls and destroyer of lives!" Satan yelled suddenly. "I cannot believe what I see!" He shoved Iris away from him and gaped at Justine as if she was a...well...she wasn't sure what Satan would find terrifyingly odd, but whatever it was, she seemed to have cornered the market on it.
Iris cursed and tried to shove him back into the hotel room, but he sidestepped her so quickly she missed and tumbled past him onto the carpet. He didn't even notice the woman of his dreams fall. He just leaned toward Justine. Not speaking. Not trying to touch her. Just staring. And sniffing.
"Is it just me, or are his eyes glowing red?" Derek whispered in her ear.
"They are," she whispered back. "Do you think we should be concerned?"
"It's very possible," he said.
"Satan, stop!" Iris shouted. "Get back in here now!"
Satan leaned closer, his eyes pulsating with red and orange as he continued to inhale her scent. She pressed back against Derek's chest. "Too bad we tossed the machine guns in the Dumpster."
"Because I'm sure they would work on the leader of hell."
"Good point." A thin spiral of smoke popped from the top of Satan's head and began to curl toward the ceiling.
"Satan! Help me get up! My heel is caught in the hem of my dress!" Iris tried to get his attention again, but Satan didn't even seem to hear her. He just leaned even closer, staring at Justine.
Derek's arm slipped around Justine's waist and he moved them both backwards, ever so subtly. "I think maybe we should leave."
"No. We need his help." She glanced at her mom trying to untangle her stilettos from the floor length dress. "Mom? Please do something. He's getting a little scary."
"I'm trying! I'm a little tangled!"
"I think it’s the fact that I can actually see flames flickering in his eyes that's really intimidating," Derek said, his arm tightening around Justine as the carpet around Satan's feet burst into flames.
She stared at the golden flames flickering on the carpet. "On second thought, we could come back later." Justine glanced at Satan's red eyes and nodded. "Yeah, I think that might be a good call. What do you think, Derek?"
"I think pivoting would be an appropriate strategy right now," he agreed, as they both began to back slowly toward the elevators.
"Satan!" Iris finally freed herself and climbed to her feet. "You're scaring her."
He whirled around, clutched Iris's shoulders and yanked her close. "What is this about?"
"Hey! Let go of her." Without thinking, Justine instinctively grabbed Satan's arm, and she was instantly repelled backwards and slammed into Derek.
"You all right?" He peeled her off his chest and set her upright again.
"I've always wanted to be flung across the hall by an unseen force emanating from the leader of hell, so yes, I'm great." She took a moment to regain her balance. "We need to save my mom."
"He's too in love with her to hurt her. Look at them."
Justine glanced over at the bickering couple, who seemed to have forgotten they weren't alone. Satan's hands were on her mother's shoulders, but Justine could tell his grip was gentle, even as he was arguing with Iris in low, frantic tones and the smoke coming out of his head continued to thicken. Iris was trying to get him to shut up by covering his mouth with her hands, but she didn't appear to be having any success.
"Does she know?" Satan shrieked suddenly. "You must tell me!"
"She has no idea," Iris said. "And stop yelling!"
Satan screamed suddenly, a horrible noise of anguish and pain and devastating loneliness. It pierced Justine and Derek's ears, and they both dropped to their knees, crushing their hands to their ears to try to drone out the horrific noise.
Then Satan vanished in a puff of gold bubbles, and the pain in her ears vanished. Beside her, Derek groaned with relief and lowered his hands. "That guy has a set of lungs on him," he muttered.
Justine shook her head, trying to clear it after the noise. "He's a whack job."
/> "He's not a whack job. He's just emotional." Iris stomped out the carpet fire. "I do admit, however, that sometimes his temper tantrums are somewhat annoying."
Justine could barely hear her mom over the ringing in her ears. "That was a temper tantrum?" She glanced at Derek, and he nodded he was all right.
"Yes. Don't worry, you get used to them. That noise hardly bothers me at all anymore."
Justine tugged at her earlobes to shake off the residual ringing. "What does he do when he's really mad?"
"He made the Chamber of Unspeakable Horrors. Come on in. We need to talk."
Justine staggered to her feet as Derek rose next to her. "The Chamber? He did that?"
"Yes. He basically poured all his anger and hatred and other negative emotions into it and created the worst hell possible. The Council bought it from him to use for their administration of justice, so it ended up being a great financial boon for him." She flicked on the overhead light and moved Satan's tuxedo jacket off the bed. "Satan created it kind of like an art project to relieve his stress. They actually use it on people. Makes you wonder whether hell is the bad place, doesn't it?"
"Um, no, not really."
Her mom raised her brows. "No?"
Justine sighed as she followed her mom into the room. "Well, maybe a little bit." She wasn't a fan of the Council already, and it felt a little preachy for them to be all controlling about appropriate standards of behavior when they were so quick to use Satan's art projects to torture their loyal servants.
Derek lifted the door off the bed and leaned it into the frame. "What's Satan pissed about?"
Iris gestured toward the armchair in the corner. "Sit."
Justine chose the bed, and Derek sat next to her.
Iris stood in front of them, shifting her weight back and forth, fiddling with her rings, not meeting Justine's gaze. "I'm telling you this only because if I don't, he will."
"Telling me what?" Her mom's agitation was making her nervous. "What's wrong?"
The room shook suddenly and Satan exploded through the wall. He was carrying a five-foot-high teddy bear and a box of condoms. He thrust them at Justine. "For you."
Darkness Awakened Page 60
