by A M Boone
She nodded.
Truth be told, the more I learned about Daniel, the more I felt like a failure of an assistant. He was everything I wasn’t. Good-looking, well-educated, graceful and clever… And wouldn’t blow up.
Vincent snapped his head towards me. I froze.
“Miss Delacroix, don’t compare yourself to him.”
“R-right.”
He sank further into his seat and lit a cigarette. Jesus Christ, we were both so broken.
“Are you all right?” he asked.
“I’m okay.”
“Feeling better?”
“Yeah.” I nodded, forcing a smile.
Felicia said something in the demonic tongue, and they chatted about something or other. Probably me. Or something else they didn’t want me to know.
“I think I’m going to go lay down.” I stood up and placed his laptop on the coffee table.
I stumbled into one of the spare bedrooms and passed out as soon as my head hit the pillows.
* * *
Someone shaking me woke me up, and I glanced up at them, my vision blurry.
“What’s going on…?” I mumbled.
“Gloria’s here to check on you.”
Just Vincent.
How long was I out? Even though I was slowly recovering, I’d passed out for the better part of a week?
The two of us walked out to his living room. Gloria was waiting there, scrolling through an app on her phone and sipping a glass of wine.
“She’s awake,” he said quietly.
She poked and prodded at me with both her hands and her magic. I squirmed under her touch, and she gave me a look.
“She’s fine,” she said, shrugging. “I’ve done some research as to why she survived.”
“What happened?” Vincent asked.
“Well, as I said before, some weak witches can channel massive amounts of wild magic to destroy everything in their path. I believe that your mark—” She brushed her fingers over it, and I shivered. “—protected her from burning herself out.”
Burning myself out. I swallowed. If it wasn’t for Vincent’s mark, I would have just died.
“I see,” he said quietly. “At least I’m getting some good news nowadays.”
I took a seat on Vincent’s couch, trembling.
“The damage to your core is healing nicely. You should be able to do magic again starting next week.”
“Thanks,” I said quietly.
She downed her glass of wine, gave us a small smile, and walked out.
Vincent gently sat down next to me. “So…”
“So?”
“How are you feeling? Mentally, that is. It’s not every day you blow up.”
“Fine. Still a bit out of it, but I’m alive and that’s all that counts.”
He gave me a grin and squeezed my hand. Five fingers.
We sat there in silence for the longest time, before his elevator opened. Felix strolled into his living room like he owned the place, smirking.
“So. Vincent. Guess what?”
“I don’t think I’m going to like this.”
“Your mother’s throwing a ball, and—”
“Not going.”
“Let me finish, jeez. Your mother’s throwing a ball, and you’re invited. Well, not invited. You have to go.”
“No.”
He dropped a letter on Vincent’s coffee table. “You’re going, or your mother’s going to rip me a new one. You haven’t seen her in nearly fifty years, and she’s getting up there.”
I held back a snort of laughter. Mr. Big Bad Demonic Billionaire was a Momma’s boy.
I picked up the letter. It was on delicate dark blue parchment, and written in the demonic tongue. Huh.
“Anyway,” he said. “It’s next Saturday in Osienbele, at her castle. You’re going.”
“Fine.” He blew another curl out of his face. “I did say I wanted to take Miss Delacroix there.”
“Is it fiery?”
“Didn’t you ask this before? No. There’s very little fire there.”
“There’s more than you’d think,” Felix chimed in. “But I mean, compared to Hiphate…”
“Which kingdom is that?” I asked.
“The third one, home of the devils.”
“I see.”
“It’ll give you a chance to look pretty.” He turned back to Felix. “What’s it for?”
“Your sister.”
The color drained out of his face. “Which one?”
“Ime’Cahina. Forget her human name… Monica? She finally got her human husband to agree to be turned, and they’re going to be formally married under your mother—”
“Not going.”
“I get that she’s not nice, but Funany’a really wants you to be there. Family support?”
“Family support, my ass. Where was the family support when she threw me out?”
Yikes. What a mess. I couldn’t imagine hating Esme or Elliot so much that I wouldn’t go to their weddings. Granted, Esme went through first dates like a bandit, and Elliot was a fuckboy, but still…
Felix sighed. “You’re going. And Ellie’s going too.”
Ellie. No one ever called me that. Usually, It was Ana, or if I’d pissed off my parents enough, Eliana.
Maybe it’d be a good thing to change up my nickname a little. This was a new chapter of my life, after all.
“What should I wear?” I asked. “A dress? A suit? Go naked?”
Vincent let out a quiet snort of laughter. “As much as we’d like to see that, public nudity is illegal in Thoiriele. You could wear a dress, a suit, or if you’re feeling adventurous, I could get you a traditional outfit.”
Which would probably be like going naked.
“Sure,” I shrugged.
“I’ll put in an order with Marie then…” He crossed his legs.
“I’m glad we had this talk. Anyway, I have some things to go do, so…”
“Stay,” Vincent said quietly.
“What’s up?”
“I need a second pair of hands tonight.”
Stars grew in his eyes, and he pumped his fist in the air. “We’re doing this?”
“We’re doing this. As a treat for Miss Delacroix.”
I glanced between the two of them. “Wait, what?”
“I thought you wanted this. I see the way you look at Felix and Felicia.”
“I do, but…” My face went red hot, and I buried it in my hands.
His voice was kind. “Then let’s do it.”
“A-all right…”
“She’s so cute,” Felix said. For some reason, it felt like an insult, but that may have just been nerves.
I shivered as they took off their clothes. Vincent was more elegant and slow, taking the time to slide off each piece of clothing one by one, while Felix just got to the point. I slipped my robe off.
Even their bodies were similar. Hairless, but Vincent was slightly taller and thinner, while Felix was bulkier and a bit shorter. Vincent’s cock was thicker than Felix’s, but Felix was longer. How was I even going to be able to take them both? I’d be nothing but a husk!
Vincent took both of our hands, and led us into his bedroom. That picture of him and Daniel was still sitting on his desk, mocking me.
“Do you like what you see, Miss Delacroix?”
I nodded, my mouth dry. “So… uh… how are we doing this?”
Tony was my first and only, and now I had two drop dead gorgeous men—demons—getting ready to fuck me silly. My heart pounded away in my chest, and my breaths grew shallow as arousal pooled deep within me.
“Don’t panic,” Vincent said, his voice a low growl. “Just let us pleasure you.”
Something about letting them pull me under their spell and captivate me made me lick my lips.
He nipped at the nape of my neck, and I shivered under his touch, his teeth scraping the delicate skin.
“Wait,” Felix said, “before we go any further with this, we nee
d to set a few boundaries.”
“Boundaries?” Vincent echoed.
“I don’t want you going apeshit on me because I touched your cute little witch in a way you didn’t like.”
“You have such little faith in me.” He shrugged.
“I’ve known you for six hundred years.” Felix matched his shrug. “But if you say so.”
They needed to get on with it before I lost my nerve and ran out the room screaming.
Vincent led me over to his bed, and I swallowed. They both smelled of smoke and roses, and it was nearly overpowering. My head swam, and I stumbled with him, my body pulsing with heat.
“Just think of this as a business transaction, Miss Delacroix. We give you pleasure, you give us energy.”
Energy. They could drain me dry, and then…
All those pesky thoughts fell out of my head when he pulled me into his lap. His cock rubbed up against my clit, and I shuddered, a moan bubbling up in my throat.
“Good girl.”
“Turn her around,” Felix said. What was he getting ready to do?
He nodded, then turned me around so I was facing Felix. His eyes glanced over my naked body, and my heart skipped a beat. Did he even find me attractive? It was like he was glancing into my soul—
Vincent cupped my right breast and gently rolled my nipple between his fingers. Heat pulsed between my legs, and I writhed under his touch. I bit back another moan, his breath hot on my neck.
“No one can hear us,” Felix murmured. “Be as loud as you want.”
I couldn’t help it. I cried out, my body tensing up, everything tight and throbbing and too much—
My vision whited out as soon as Felix buried his face between my legs, and Vincent forced me onto his cock. Another cry tore from my throat, but Vincent jerked my head back and pressed his lips to mine, silencing me. He parted my lips and his tongue slithered down my throat, and delved into the deepest part of my being.
Felix’s tongue doubled in length as he slowly—fuck me, too slowly—dragged it against my pussy, taking his time to savor every last bit of my skin, my soul, my energy…
He pulled back, and my hips bucked on their own, even though Vincent was pumping his against mine, filling me up to the point I was sure my mind would shatter.
Black smoke seeped from my body, and they both shuddered.
“Fuck,” Felix groaned, “she’s so good… so delicious…”
Vincent pulled back and murmured something in approval.
Something about them coming undone like this was strange. Vincent was always put together, and Felix was always snarky and fun, but now… Just because of me, because of my body, they were nothing but trembling wrecks. A knot of heat pooled deep withing me, even as they both rent energy from me. It was peaceful, even as we panted and keened under each other’s touch.
Vincent ran his tongue over my mark, and my breath hitched in my throat. I trembled, my body on fire, every last bit of me aching for the two of them.
“Don’t stop.” The words came out a mere whisper. “Please, don’t stop…”
Felix dove back between my legs, and that was all I needed. I came, tossing my head back and screaming to the heavens above, heat and pleasure radiating throughout my entire body.
It didn’t stop there. Vincent tossed me onto the bed and crawled on top of me, licking and sucking at my mark, draining every last drop from my spent body. Every little movement made me see stars…
Felix joined him, kissing the other side of my neck. But it turned into a tangled mess of limbs, sweat, kissing, and rubbing… Was I kissing Felix? Vincent? Were they kissing each other? Did kissing another cubi even do anything for them?
They dragged me to that peak again and again, to the point where I was sure I’d be changed forever.
I collapsed onto Vincent, gasping for air. “I… I can’t go any further.”
“Okay,” he said, patting my head. “You did really well.”
“We haven’t had fun like that since Daniel died,” Felix said.
Vincent stiffened a little.
“So… Does fucking another cubi do anything for you?” I asked, fighting to keep my eyes open.
“No,” Vincent said. “We usually only fuck each other for procreation. We can only take energy from non-cubi.”
“Oh.” Nervous laughter escaped my lips. “I was kinda afraid you’d drain me dry.”
“That’s illegal,” Felix chirped. “Vincent’s mom will come after anyone who fucks someone to death.”
Vincent squeezed me a little tighter, and I rested my head on his chest. His heartbeat and breathing echoed in my ears, slower than a human’s. His heartbeat still came in threes. Strange.
“We should do this again sometime!” Felix stretched out, then pulled back on his clothes.
I was over-thinking this. Vincent was right. It was just a business transaction. One thing for another.
“I probably won’t have to take for another month after doing that. Thanks. I’ll see you both at the ball.” He tugged on his shoe and walked out.
“So…”
“So?”
“Did you, Daniel, and Felix have threesomes? You, Daniel and Felicia?”
“Just Felix. Daniel was only attracted to men.”
“I see.”
“Truth be told, I kind of missed fucking women.”
I stayed silent, my eyes fluttering shut on their own. I was going to be sore tomorrow.
“Daniel said he was all right with me going off to get energy from other people, but I was loyal to him. He was always afraid I’d get bored of him, but…” He trailed off, shivering.
“And me?” I asked. Could he get bored of me? Throw me to the wolves after the ten years were up, leaving me empty and alone?
Well, I wasn’t alone. I had Santi, and he’d be there for me no matter what Vincent did.
“Depends on what you need. And right now, you need to sleep.”
“But…” I snuggled up a little closer to him.
“Sleep. Now.”
“Okay…” I dozed off in his arms, lulled to sleep by his breathing.
* * *
The next morning, I woke up alone. I rubbed my eyes and glanced at his alarm clock. Eleven AM. Had I really gotten fucked so hard I slept for over fourteen hours?
A note was pinned onto my pillow with Vincent’s handwriting on it. Working, will be back ~3 PM. You can do whatever you want in my apartment, but don’t leave.
The gilded cage. Once again.
Santi’d probably lost his mind and came to the conclusion that Vincent murdered me and tried to wear my skin.
I pulled on my robe and went to go have breakfast.
My cellphone buzzed as I was digging into a bowl of slightly stale cereal. Santi. Man, being right—I couldn’t think this way. He loved me, and was just worried, after all.
“What’s up?”
“Are you okay? I haven’t heard from you in a while… Did Tony’s parents come after you again?”
“I’m fine.” I shrugged. “Just been hanging out at Vincent’s place. I’ve more or less recovered, so we can chill eventually… They haven’t called me, and overall, it’s been quiet.”
Too quiet. Did Vincent use his spooky demon powers on them? Eat them? Make them promise to never fuck with me or Santi ever again?
“Yeah, yeah. Well, just keep me posted. Let me know when the shyster finally lets the princess out of his tower.” He laughed, and I couldn’t help but giggle with him. It was times like this when I could forget what happened. Forget about Tony. Forget about those two years of hell on earth.
I smiled and hung up.
The next few hours went by normally, with me just vegging out on Vincent’s couch and running up his Pay Per View bill.
Vincent came back, sighing and running his fingers through his hair. “Miss Delacroix, I trust you’ve been enjoying yourself?”
Heat rose to my cheeks. “Yeah.”
“Good.” He settled down next t
o me, and I couldn’t help but feel… unclean. Dirty. Less than a day ago, he’d practically run a train on me.
“How Puritan.”
“Stop reading my mind.”
He just gave me a small smile.
We sat there in near silence, the only noise the droning of the television. Truth be told, I hadn’t been focusing on it for a good two hours.
“A question,” he said.
“What is it?”
“How do you feel about Mr. Dominguez?”
I froze up, the words spilling out of my mouth. “I don’t know. He loves me, and he was there for me, and sometimes I can see myself with him, but…”
“I’m going to give the two of you rope. If you want to explore yourself with him, so be it, but if he hurts you, he’ll wish he was never born.”
Was this a trap? He was a demon, god only knew how his mind worked… Something about this seemed wrong. Part of me did want Santi, I’d admit that, but…
I glanced at him. “What’s with the change of heart?”
“I had a conversation with my mother’s lady-in-waiting, and she said I was being ‘too possessive,’ and if I really wanted you to be happy, I should let you be free.”
“Okay.”
Something about this much freedom made my heart race. Could I take that step with Santi? Smash the friendzone into tiny pieces?
“One more question.”
I gave him a look.
“Have you ever seen anyone about what he did to you?”
I froze again, ice going through my veins. “No,” I choked out. “Never. No one ever needed to know.”
“It was just a suggestion.” He leaned back.
“Did you ever see anyone about Daniel?”
His eyes narrowed. I’d said too much. I cringed, trembling, but he merely sighed.
“Yes, I did…” he said softly. “I promise on my magic, the memories of my grandmother, and the throne of Thoiriele, that I’ll never hurt you.”
“I… I know.” The words came out barely a whisper. “It’s just hard. Once you get into the habit of walking on eggshells—”
He put a finger to my lips. “Don’t think about him. You’re in a new chapter of your life now, and you should act like it.”
Chapter Ten
Two days later, Vincent and I went back to Marie’s.
