StrangeDays

by Rebecca Royce

  He grabbed the condom out of his pocket and laid it on the desk next to him. They’d get to that. First he had to make her ready. No matter his level of desperation, he would never have sex with his girl without making sure she enjoyed every single second of it.

  He pulled down her pants, throwing them wherever her ripped-up shirt had gone. They’d find it all later. His needs were basic and begging to be fulfilled.

  This time she actually wore panties and he quickly discarded them. She lay bared for him, her beautiful full bush opened wide for his inspection. He slipped a finger inside her. She felt silky, warm and inviting.

  Christian groaned. He hadn’t even gotten the condom on yet. Somehow he had to get control of himself.

  “Hurry, Christian.”

  Hell. He dropped his pants to his ankles. Pulling out his dick, he wrapped himself up in the condom. Some day they wouldn’t need anything between them. They’d be nothing but skin-to-skin. For now they’d stay protected.

  “You ready for me?”

  She whispered her reply. “Every time I look at you, I’m ready.”

  Dodie couldn’t have done more for his ego if she’d stood up at a podium and announced he was the best lover she’d ever had for the entire world to hear.

  He positioned himself near her and slid his length inside. Her muscles welcomed him, cocooning him snugly between her folds as if he’d been made to fit inside her.

  Maybe he had.

  Christian threw the thought away. He didn’t care if fate or luck or the devil himself had brought them together. Dodie belonged to him and he never intended to let her go.

  Grabbing her wrists tightly in his hands, he pushed them above her head so he could control how she moved. He wanted her to come when he did, when he could be sure they’d do so together.

  She moaned and smiled up at him. “I had no idea I’d like that. But I really do. Anytime you want to hold my wrists like that, please do.”

  He smiled. “I’d do anything to please you, baby.”

  “I know you would.”

  Dodie clenched her muscles around his cock, sending pleasure shooting up his spine. He closed his eyes and dug his teeth into the inside of his cheek. Somehow he wouldn’t come too soon.

  Christian moved in and out of her, quickening his pace to match his growing need. There would never be a time he didn’t want this woman, never a time his passion for her would dim.

  She wrapped her legs tighter against his waist and he tried his best to not slam her into the desk with each movement he made. His need for her bordered on obsessive. With every slapping sound their bodies made together, he could prove to the disbelieving part of himself, the bit that always thought doom resided around the corner, that she lived.

  He hadn’t stepped into some delusion when the reality was that Dodie lay dead in a stairwell, butchered to death because he hadn’t gotten there in time.

  “Oh Christian.” She called out his name as her muscles spasmed around him bringing on her orgasm. Her back arched and he bit down on one of her nipples. Dodie cried out again, over and over, the most beautiful sound in the world.

  Finally, with pressure mounting all over his body, his ears ringing, and his breath locked in his throat he spilled inside her. Nothing had ever felt sweeter.

  Chapter Ten

  “Do I look as if I just fucked on a desk?” She wore his shirt and her pants since her own blouse had been torn up in Christian’s mania. Never before in her life had she felt so completely taken and she loved the sensation. He had just laid claim to her body.

  If she examined herself, she’d probably identify some of the pangs on her arms as his digging his fingernails into her skin. She shook her head. Who knew she had a wild and sexually uninhibited side? Or maybe it was Christian losing control and needing to regain it within her that turned her on.

  Either way, she’d never forget this day. For a number of reasons.

  “You do appear to be a woman who was well loved.” He bit down on her shoulder and she shuddered.

  A knock on the door stole her attention. Christian turned toward the sound. “What?”

  Jonah’s voice responded. “Your boss got wind that you’re here and she’s looking for you.”

  “Crap.” He closed his eyes. “We’re going to have to leave.”

  “Why?” She fiddled with her hair. Not that she could do much without a brush. She had nothing but the clothes on her back.

  “She’s going to want me to dance since I’m here. I’m obviously not getting on the stage while a demon posing as a clown is after you. Or anybody else for that matter.”

  “Why not?”

  He opened his lids. “Because you’re at risk.”

  “I don’t think I’m in danger here in the club. He wants me alone. Or asleep where he haunts my dreams.”

  “What?” He slammed his fist on the desk. She’d forgotten she hadn’t told him that.

  “Yes. But that’s neither here nor there at the moment. We’re safe here because it’s likely BoBo is not going to want to expose himself to a room of people.” Not that she considered herself an expert on the subject but she’d had a little time to think about what had happened. He only came to her when they were basically alone. “If people start talking to the news about him he’ll lose his edge of fear.”

  Why had she been able to get away after Mindy sprayed him? Well, because the white foam had pushed away her fear and temporarily replaced it with laughter.

  A clown who couldn’t be laughed at or he could be beaten…

  “What are you saying? You want me to dance?”

  “I think if it buys us some time without having to figure out where to go next, then it’s worth it. Personally, I need to sit still. I’m not built for all this running around.” She held up her hands before he could comment. “I’m not criticizing myself. When this is over, I’ll go to the gym more.”

  “Believe it or not, I’m not cut out for this either. I think you took ten years off my life today, sweetheart.”

  He was so cute. In other circumstances, she’d just want to rub up against him and get him hard again. For now she needed him to get a bunch of other women hot so she could have a cold drink and process the demon BoBo and what she needed to do to make sure she never froze like that again.

  Mindy might not be there to come charging in with a fire extinguisher.

  “All right. Then I’ll go find her and then I’ll get ready. Come with me. First, I’m going to leave you with Jonah.”

  He held out his hand. She wouldn’t be his cowardly girlfriend. Somehow she had to be his partner or at least not such a burden. Who knew what Christian could have accomplished that evening if he hadn’t had to go rescue her?

  * * * * *

  She sat next to Jonah who had Mindy to his right. Her best friend sipped at a Coke and he drank a beer while he occasionally stared at Mindy’s legs. Dodie tried not to notice since Mindy didn’t seem to.

  Dodie took a big sip of her ginger ale.

  “You’re okay with this? With your boyfriend getting up there and taking off his clothes?”

  She smiled. “I hope so. I’m the one who told him to do it tonight so if it upsets me, I don’t have anyone to blame but myself. Besides, after having nearly been chopped up by a demonic clown tonight, I think I can have a little perspective.”

  Well, the clown and the fact that Christian had fucked her hard up against his boss’s desk the second they’d walked in the building. The other women could do what they pleased, trying to grab at him and stick dollars down his shorts. She’d go home with him—wherever that happened to be.

  “Do you think?” Mindy slammed down her drink. “We could make some plans while we sit here and wait for Christian.”

  “Look, I get it. You’re frustrated. So am I, believe me.” Jonah took another swig of his beer. “But unfortunately there isn’t much I can do until I can figure out how to get you ladies somewhere safe so I can go kick some clown ass.”

&
nbsp; A passing waitress paused to give Jonah a questioning look. Nothing should be amusing to Dodie, but the raised eyebrow of the woman who must think Jonah crazy caused Dodie to giggle. Laughing at inappropriate times had become a thing for her.

  The woman walked on and Jonah rolled his eyes. “You and Christian are made for each other. Did you know that?”

  “Oh yeah?” She sat back in her seat. “Why is that?”

  “You’re both out of your frickin’ minds.” He shook his head. “And I say that in the rudest possible way.”

  Mindy elbowed him. “Enough with the sarcasm. Say you find this so-called den of safety where you can leave us, what do you plan to do then?”

  “I plan to help Christian take BoBo’s head off.” Jonah imitated a guillotine using his own neck and his hand as the blade. He even went so far as to demonstrate the noise the slicing would make.

  “You know how you have to do that, right?” Dodie turned to look at Jonah straight on. “I mean, you understand how the game has to be finished.”

  “I know how I would do it, but Christian will never allow it.”

  “He will.” Dodie sighed. “Because ultimately he has no choice and I intend to force the issue.”

  “Okay.” Mindy held up her hands. “You two geniuses sound as if you’re talking in some kind of code. But for those of us who have never played a role-playing game or designed them or anything, can you fill me in?”

  Jonah put down his drink. “Dodie has pointed out that the only way this ends is with you both being used as bait.”

  “It’s the plot. We come to the end and the hero of the game has to put what he loves the most at risk. Every time.” Dodie continued where Jonah finished. She knew Mindy understood when her friend sat back in her chair.

  “I’m tired of sitting here like some kind of ridiculous girl who can’t take care of herself.” She pointed at Jonah. “You said I could be taught how to be strong.”

  “And you can. Absolutely.” Jonah didn’t raise his voice to match Mindy’s. Dodie couldn’t help but be impressed with his calmness. “But right now we’re under attack. Training will come when we’re not.”

  “Sure.” Mindy nodded. “Unless you and Christian go splat on the floor, leaving Dodie and me defenseless to do anything but follow you into death.”

  With that charming thought percolating in Dodie’s mind, she watched the lights come down on the stage. From her distance, she couldn’t be sure who stepped out from the side of the stage to go front and center, but she quickly recognized Christian’s swagger. No one else moved like he did.

  “Ladies and gentlemen.” A husky female voice drawled over the microphone. “Although he was supposed to be out tonight, he simply couldn’t stay away from all of you.”

  An eruption of female screams bounced off the walls. Jonah rolled his eyes and covered his ears. “Seems he’s very popular.”

  “How could he not be?” She smiled at Jonah’s horrified look. If he didn’t have to sit with them, she doubted he’d be hanging around the tables. Probably he’d sit at the bar with the other boyfriends dragged along for a night at Brass.

  The woman continued to speak. “Put your hands together for the one, the only, the irreplaceable Christian.”

  When the spotlight came back on, Christian stood center stage, his back to the audience. He twitched his hip and the audience went nuts at the movement. A peek over his shoulder prompted another round of shouting.

  The three times she’d seen him perform before had been a different experience. She’d been a stranger, sort of, experiencing him the way these women did. A fantasy for her to carry around in her pocket.

  But now? She knew his body, knew how those hips moved when they were on top of her. She associated his smell with comfort, his arms the embrace she never wanted to lose.

  He turned around and faced the crowd. The music played louder, each beat eliciting a hip bump or a sway of his entire body. Dodie gasped. He really was…beautiful. With a quick jump, he leapt from the stage, landing in the center of a table. Surrounding it were eight women who must have been part of a bachelorette party. One of them wore a hat that read Bride-to-Be.

  They clawed at his body, pulling at his pants, which she knew would come lose from their Velcro restraints any second. He grinned at each of them, raising his head to catch her eyes. He winked and her panties creamed.

  This was what he’d meant when he’d told her he could dance for a room and only have eyes for her. Hell, she wanted him again. Clowns be damned.

  * * * * *

  The crowd thinned out in the club when he finally got to sit down next to his girl. She looked half-asleep in her chair but smiled at him when he approached. The fact that she could doze at all spoke volumes about her bravery. Other people would be eternally terrified to close their eyes after what she’d seen.

  He took her hand. “You okay? Not too freaked out by watching me take my clothes off?”

  She let go of his fingers and fanned herself. “Better than okay, Christian.”

  He kissed her knuckles. “Had to check.”

  “Somehow we all managed to survive seeing you mostly naked. I might never see straight again, but we lived.”

  He punched Jonah in the arm. They fought like brothers and Christian knew he’d never be able to do without him. He shook his head. Sentimentality had no place right now. They had to be willing to be brutal.

  Still, they’d all pledged an oath to Master Foy and to one another. He would honor his until the day he died. Jonah wouldn’t abandon him, Dodie or Mindy before this ended. He thanked fate for that.

  “Where should we spend tonight?” Christian ached to get back to searching for BoBo.

  “Is the clown able to get us anywhere?” In the dimmed lights of Brass, Mindy’s white hair appeared fierce. The woman had developed more backbone just in the time he’d been away from her. He could see why Jonah liked her. Neither one of them would ever fold. They’d both faced horror and come out the other side.

  “Unfortunately, it’s not a real clown.” He answered Mindy and then looked at Jonah. “Did you not explain any of this?”

  “Nope.” Jonah rubbed his forehead. “How could I do that when you were up there dancing? I wouldn’t want you to miss all the fun of demons 101.” Jonah got up and stretched. “I’m going to wait outside. Scan for BoBo. Make sure he’s not circling us.”

  “We won’t be here much longer. The fewer people, the more at risk we are.”

  “Right. Give me ten minutes to scout. Then I’ll come back in and get you.”

  “Yep.” He nodded before turning back to the women. Dodie really needed to go to bed. “Demon teaching can wait.”

  “No.” His girl sat up straighter and took a big sip of her drink. “I need to hear about this. Now. Please.”

  “Why the rush?”

  “Christian.” She took his hands. “Let’s face it. We don’t have ‘let’s ease Dodie into this’ time. I need to know now. He could come tonight. He could bust through the door instantly.”

  He doubted that scenario would happen. Not with Jonah and Christian around. Attacking innocents constituted one kind of evil, coming at him would require the demon to gear up for a real fight. BoBo tended to cut and run when things got hot. It might already be all over.

  Still, he wouldn’t say that. Why get their hopes up if the clown waited outside?

  “There are different levels of demons.”

  Mindy sat up in her seat. “I remember something about this from Sunday school or something growing up.”

  “It’s not exactly the same. I never attended any religious training. This is purely about fighting. BoBo is a class two demon. He’s not the easiest to kill, he can’t be sent back to hell just by ordering him there, and he preys on the week. A class one would be worse but BoBo is not a joke. We’ve been looking for him for a long time.”

  “Why?” Mindy shouted out. She really seemed to be eating this up.

  “Because he slaughtere
d some people a long time ago. A family in Chicago. Then he dropped their heads off on Master Foy’s living room.”

  Dodie hissed in her breath. “My god, sweetheart.” Her endearment warmed him. “You’ve really seen so much pain, haven’t you?”

  “I forget all of it when I look at you.” He knew his words defined the term cheesy but he meant them, he had to say what came from his heart.

  “If the two of you wouldn’t mind.” Mindy grinned when she shook her head. “I would like to get back to BoBo the head-chopping demon.”

  “Right.” He cleared his throat. “Well, we’ve obviously been hoping to take him down ever since. But he’s tough to get. Flies into places, causes havoc and runs. Most demons want to stay and fight. This guy likes the games—hence the clown persona and the stupid name.”

  “Christian.” Jonah’s shout caught his attention and Christian jumped to his feet. “Incoming.”

  Jonah jumped to the side as five Hell hounds busted through the door. Blood ran down his friend’s face and Christian would bet money Jonah had taken a few out before he’d rushed in here to warn everybody.

  “Dodie. Mindy.” Christian kept his voice steady even though adrenaline had made him want to rush, to fight, to holler. “Get behind the bar. Stay there.”

  Mindy might have argued, he could see from the set of her jawline. The girl itched for some more action after spraying BoBo with the fire extinguisher but his girl had brains and she grabbed her friend by the arm before pulling her toward the bar.

  Christian turned his attention to the dogs. “Really, Jonah?” He called out to his friend but really for the Hell hounds’ benefit. “You could handle these mangy, pathetic creatures all by your lonesome?”

  Jonah pulled a small black glasses holder out of his pocket. They’d all gotten really good at disguising their weapons so they could bring them out in public. Jonah tapped the side and the case expanded until it became a very long, skinny sword.