The Devil's Fool: A Paranormal Vampire Romance Novel (Devil Series Book 1)

by Raven Steele

  “I’ll pay to have it dry cleaned,” Boaz offered.

  William glared at Liane. “Liane will pay.”

  She laughed as though that was the most ridiculous thing she’d ever heard and walked out the front door. “See you soon!”

  William followed her out, mumbling to himself.

  After waving goodbye and closing the door, Boaz turned to me, his body inches from mine. “You didn’t have to use magic tonight.”

  I swallowed at his nearness, my nerve endings vibrating. “I know.”

  “Then why did you?”

  “It was fun.”

  “It was, wasn’t it?” He grinned, something alight in his eyes.

  I nodded.

  His gaze flickered to my lips for the briefest of moments but enough to make the magic swell within me, taking my breath away.

  “I have somewhere I need to be,” he said abruptly. “Do you mind if I call it a night, too?”

  “Of course not,” I said and feigned like it wasn’t a big deal, but deep down I couldn’t help but feel crushing disappointment. Maybe the kiss we’d shared earlier had only been amazing to me. I faked a yawn. “I was going to go to bed anyway.”

  “Very well then.” He disappeared behind the door I wasn’t allowed behind.

  “No, it’s not very well,” I whispered as I turned to go up the stairs. My whole body was still tingling from using magic earlier. I glanced down at my feet. They were still there and moving, yet I felt like I was floating.

  I spun a few steps before I danced into my bedroom and closed the door behind me, trapping me in a dark room. I reached for the light but then stopped. My arm lowered to my side. Breathing in deeply, I focused on the darkness, the way it crawled over my skin and the way it brushed across my lips, whispering seducing words I couldn’t understand but could feel.

  I opened my eyes as realization dawned on me.

  Darkness felt good.

  That night, I lay awake, unable to sleep. Magic’s power still pulsed through my bones and muscles, and it ached for a release. I rolled over and faced the window. It must’ve been at least two in the morning by the way the moon’s light crowded into my room.

  I thought of the evening I’d shared with Boaz, wishing I could fully enjoy this fairytale that was beautiful, yet dark. Like the fair maidens in the stories, I, too, had been whisked away to a far off, mystical place. But whisked off to where? The fairytales spoke of far off places as being full of light, with colorful flowers, talking animals, and mystical creatures.

  There were beautiful flowers, Hunwald was strange enough that he probably could talk, and Boaz couldn’t be more mystical. But my fairytale lacked the light and the constant beauty that should exist, too. Thinking of that light made me remember the strange man that had been at my parents’ party. The way I’d felt when he touched me. Peaceful. Calm. Good.

  But he’d disappeared just as quickly as he’d come. I’d never see him again. Just like the stories, he was a fairytale. Maybe that’s why they’re called fairytales because something as beautiful as all that just wasn’t possible.

  I moved out of bed and welcomed the moonlight by opening the tall, screenless window. Cool wind rushed in and raced around the room, catching and twisting my long, sheer nightgown in its wake. I wrapped my arms around me and closed my eyes. I could still see the faint glow of the moonlight behind my eyelids.

  I stayed like this for some time, my front bathed in moonlight, my back immersed in darkness. I only opened my eyes when the faint sound of hooves galloping nearby drew my attention to the window. Not far off, a rider dressed all in black dismounted a horse and walked toward me through fog-filled air. My heart skipped a beat.

  The rider stopped just below my window and looked up. Boaz’s eyes met mine, and I sucked in air when a jolt of magical power shocked my entire body.

  I giggled inwardly. This is what I wanted, to feel this every second of every day. My desire for dark magic snuffed out any thoughts I once had for light and purity, all things Madelyn had taught me.

  I stepped up to the long window and looked down briefly before I jumped. I used magic to cushion the thirty-foot fall, then walked toward Boaz, my chin up and arms at my side. I didn’t care that he could probably see my hardened nipples through the nightgown. I wanted him to see.

  Without a word, Boaz held out a dark cloak. I stepped into it. The weight of it seemed to suck the moon’s light away from me.

  Boaz lifted the hood over my head and stared into my eyes, as if searching for something. “Come with me?”

  I nodded and accepted his outstretched hand without hesitation.

  We walked across the cold earth. The heavy mist parted for us as if on command. Boaz’s black horse waited for us at the edge of the forest like a loyal soldier. He stood erect, eyes forward.

  Boaz leapt onto the horse’s back and pulled me up easily. My hands slid across his hard abdomen and locked tightly. Boaz didn’t have to kick the horse to get it to go forward. It seemed to move on his own as if sensing Boaz’s thoughts, even knowing what direction to turn. Boaz gripped the horn with one hand, and he pressed his other hand into mine, our fingers intertwining.

  A strength, intense and powerful, expanded around us, making my muscles tighten and then release. Every last one of them. I moaned from both pleasure and pain.

  The beast beneath us raced across a field of grass. The motion was strangely smooth, like I was being rocked in a boat along the constant waves of the sea, and not galloping at full speed on the back of a massive stallion. I suspected the creature was supernatural in nature, like Hunwald. The rhythmic flow became hypnotic, and the world around me blurred.

  An indescribable feeling of invisibility overwhelmed my entire being, and I threw my head back, sucking in a great breath. It grew inside me like a noxious weed, snuffing out any gentleness, kindness, or good thoughts. I let go of Boaz’s waist and stretched out my arms into the night, feeling that at any moment I might be thrown from the horse.

  I began to chuckle and then laugh. It escaped from deep inside me, from somewhere dark and cold. Boaz didn’t join in my laughter, but I knew from our connection that he was as intoxicated as I was.

  While the horse continued to race across fields, in and out of the forest, Boaz, in a move faster than I could see, twisted and turned until he was riding the horse backwards. I gasped when I realized he’d also taken my legs and wrapped them around his waist. My night gown had slid all the way up to my hips, exposing my bare legs.

  My mouth fell open, and my body quivered at the feel of his torso between my legs. I sucked in a hitched breath.

  Boaz reached up and slid his hands into the cloak and to my shoulders. The cloak fell from me and disappeared into the night. I sucked in a breath as the cold night air nipped at me. But as soon as Boaz touched me again, heat spread throughout me.

  Burning.

  Scorching.

  Consuming.

  I could no longer think. Only feel.

  Staring into my eyes, he hooked his fingers into the straps of my nightgown and slowly pulled downward. I didn’t stop him.

  This is what I wanted.

  For him to see me.

  Touch me.

  My breasts sprung free, and my chest heaved. They bounced in rhythm to the horse’s steady gallop, a motion I thought might’ve bothered me, but it was strangely erotic.

  Boaz clutched one in his hand, rubbing his thumb over my pebbled nipple. I sucked in a quick breath, my nerves on fire. He moaned and hooked his free hand behind me. He pressed it into the small of my back, making me arch backwards to give him better access. He lowered his head and drew my nipple into his mouth. I clutched his shoulders and dug my fingers into his skin, breathless and begging for more.

  With our precarious position on the horse, I thought for sure we’d fall from it, but Boaz managed to maintain his hold over me and the horse.

  Boaz continued to shower attention on my breasts. I began to grind my hips into him. His m
ember had grown hard and pressed into a spot that had my whole body reeling with pleasure.

  “I need more,” I gasped, feeling the desire so strong in my body I thought I might combust into a ball of flames.

  He took hold of my shoulders and stared into my eyes, his brows drawn together. I thought he was going to kiss me, but without warning, he leapt into the air, taking me with him. We floated in the air, my hair and gown whipping through the wind for a moment before we landed on the ground, me in his arms.

  His hooded eyes swallowed me, and I felt everything he wanted.

  To devour me.

  Own me.

  Possess me.

  His mouth crashed into mine as he slowly lowered me to the ground. Before my back touched it, I stretched my hand and pressed my fingers into the earth, thinking of a thick bed of grass. My magic, so willing to obey, flowed into the earth. By the time Boaz had completely laid me down, a full bed of soft plants had grown.

  He remained on his knees, staring at me with hungry eyes. “You’re everything I could’ve hoped for and more.”

  I licked my lips, my body trembling in anticipation of feeling his touch again.

  His eyes wandered down my body, over my breasts and to my legs. “Open them.”

  My bent legs opened a little.

  “More,” he commanded.

  My cheeks tinged pink, but I did as he wanted. My legs spread wider.

  He touched my knees with both hands, and, as he slid them up my legs, he opened them even more until I was fully exposed to him. “You are mine now, Eve. You will never want for anything ever again. Money. Pleasure. Power.”

  “Yes.” The breathless word barely passed my lips.

  His gaze dropped to my sheer underwear. With a single swipe to them, he cut them off me and moaned. “Is this what you want?”

  “Please,” I whimpered. I’d grown so hot between my legs, I thought I might explode. Only his touch could soothe the burning. I shifted my pelvis upward.

  He chuckled, the sound deep and throaty. “It’s not going to be that easy or quick. I’m going to take my time, taste every inch of you, savor your flavor. I’ll fill you so full of me, you’ll never want to leave my side.”

  His words about sent me over a ledge I didn’t know I was on, but now that I did, I wanted to dive off that cliff and never stop falling.

  True to his word, Boaz did all the things to me. He made sure I felt every bit of pleasure with slow and deliberate strokes of his fingers and tongue, making sure I would be ready for him. I might’ve been nervous, but my mind became so consumed with what he was doing to me, that when the time came, I was more than ready.

  Over and over, the rise and fall of my pleasure continued until the moon dipped beneath the tree line, and we were forced to return home. I didn’t watch the sunrise, something I would’ve done before, but I felt differently somehow. I didn’t care to see the sun’s bright light spread across the landscape. Instead, I yearned for the moon to take its rightful place back in the darkness where it could cast its silvery web across the earth.

  That’s what I wanted, for I belonged to Boaz and the night now.

  Chapter 14

  It was a cold winter evening. We had just left the Summer’s Opera House, one of Boaz’s favorite places in Coast City. I couldn’t get enough of my new life. The last several weeks, Boaz had showered me with gifts and opened doors to all kinds of new and exciting experiences. He took me regularly to the opera, plays, parties, and political events. If anything of importance was happening, regardless of where, Boaz and I were present.

  In addition to traveling, Boaz introduced me to many important people. I was amazed at how many of them knew me simply because of my parents. My family name gave me instant respect, especially from other witches.

  I grew to love the attention, so much so that I used my last name as if it were my first. I would say, “I’m Ms. Segur, the daughter of Erik and Sable Segur.”

  I loved to watch their eyes grow big and listen to the sound of their loud gulp.

  What surprised me the most of my newfound life was discovering how many supernaturals held important positions in the governments of almost every country. They used their abilities to pass laws and change their countries into what they desired. Humans were easily manipulated. After seeing what others like me could do, how they could change the rules people lived by, I too, was anxious to get into politics.

  Despite all the experiences and the people I met, I found myself growing bored with it all. Boaz was the only thing in my life that brought satisfaction. Our relationship was a dark and passionate one, both of us being consumed by the other. But it wasn’t just his body I craved, it was the power within him I fed upon. I couldn’t get enough.

  Boaz slid his hand around my back and to my hip. “I couldn’t stop looking at you in the theater. I almost took you right there in front of all those people.”

  I moaned and leaned into him. “I would’ve liked that.”

  And I meant it. It was hard to enjoy anything else when I was around him. I craved his touch, his lips, his body. Every second of every day.

  “One day,” he said, there will come a time, where I ravish you for the whole world to see.”

  Heat burned in my abdomen at the thought. “I’d like that.”

  We were about to cross the street when a tall man beneath a lamp post caught my eye. He wore a long dark coat with a black derby hat. He stared at me beneath thick eyebrows, and his thin lips were as straight as piano wire. Hands stuffed in his pockets, he held still while people shuffled by him, completely unaware of his powerful presence, a power which I could feel even though he stood across the street.

  I tugged on Boaz, stopping him from going any farther. “Who’s that man?”

  “Where?”

  I pointed across the street. Boaz’s hand tightened around mine. “He shouldn’t be here. It’s too soon.”

  “Who is he?”

  “Your grandfather. Wait here.”

  My grandfather? I squinted to get a closer look. That was him? He didn’t look frightening, but a dark, electric force seemed to pressurize the air around him, similar to what one might feel before a storm’s arrival.

  Boaz was saying something to him while pointing his finger toward me. My grandfather repeatedly shook his head.

  I inhaled a deep breath. Time to go see what this was all about. I moved to step across the street but was interrupted.

  “You are to stay with us,” two feminine voices said from behind me.

  I turned around, surprised someone had spoken to me like that, and came face to face with identical twins. Their blonde, almost white hair was cut short, framing their pointy chins. They had large noses to match, but nothing was as unnerving as their eyes. Their pupils were narrow slits swimming in luminescent sea-green eyes — the exact same color as my own.

  “Who are you two?”

  “We are your cousins,” they said in unison.

  “I’m Helen,” the one on the left said.

  “And I’m Harriet.”

  I glanced back at Boaz. “How are we related?”

  “Our mother is your father’s sister,” Harriet answered.

  This sparked my interest. “I didn’t know my father had a sister.”

  The twins looked at each other and then back at me. “She is much stronger than your father.”

  “Awesome,” I said and snickered. As if I cared. I hadn’t thought about my parents for weeks. “You know, it’s great that I have cousins, but I’m sort of busy right now. Let’s do this another time.”

  I turned to leave but found a force blocking my path. Startled, I pressed my palms against the invisible wall. Magic.

  I swiveled around. Both girls smiled, their noses pointed downwards, dipping into their wide grins.

  “Going somewhere?” Helen asked.

  “Trying to get away from us?” Harriet added.

  “Um, you guys are creepy as hell. I need to go talk to Boaz.”

/>   At the mention of his name, a far off look filled the twins’ eyes, and air escaped their lungs in a long drawn-out sigh. The invisible wall weakened, and I quickly moved to take a step forward, but both girls reached at the same time and took hold of my arms.

  “You are not to speak to Boaz,” Helen declared.

  “Ever,” Harriet added.

  “Let go of me, freaks!” I said, struggling against their surprisingly strong grip.

  I tried pushing them away by using magic, but somehow they managed to block my attack. This frustrated me even more. No one had ever stopped me from using my abilities before.

  “You can’t use magic against us.”

  “We’re too strong for you.”

  My gaze darted to Boaz. His back was to me as he was still talking to my grandfather. The girls spun me around, away from him.

  “What do you want?” I asked.

  “To prove to Boaz that we are more powerful than you.”

  “To get what is rightfully ours.”

  “You can’t be serious.” One look at each of their faces told me they were very serious. “Boaz is a grown man. He can choose who he wants to be with.”

  “Boaz will choose who is most powerful,” Helen said.

  “And it’s not you,” Harriet added.

  “That’s ridiculous. Boaz has already chosen.”

  Both girls laughed. The sounds were ugly and cold, sharing pig-like grunts between the both of them. They looked to our grandfather, and their expressions and laughter stopped abruptly. I turned around in time to see him nodding at the girls.

  “Time to go, cousin,” they said.

  “Go? I’m not going anywhere.”

  They tugged on my arms.

  “Boaz!” I called.

  Boaz turned around slowly, his expression blank.

  “Boaz, help me!”

  Still, he did nothing.

  One of the twins opened the rear door of a nearby vehicle, while the other one shoved me in, making me fall onto my back. Why wasn’t Boaz doing anything? Without my legs being visibly touched, they were pushed in, and the car door slammed shut, banging my knee.