by Larissa Ione
“Remove his clothes,” the dickhead said, “and fetch the fluffer.”
Fluffer? One of the imps skittered away while the Nightlash cut away Shade’s uniform and stripped him of his boots.
“You know, it’s not fair that I have to be naked and you’re hiding in that drama-queen robe.”
Robe Man moved forward, just a little, but enough for Shade to feel the male’s vibe on his skin. It was familiar, like a scent that brought back a memory but couldn’t quite be placed. The vibe felt diluted, or maybe masked. A spell, perhaps, had been used to cover it up. But why? So he wouldn’t be recognized?
“You’re close to s’genesis,” Robe Man said. “The Change. I can sense it. Are you ready? Or do you plan to fight it, like Eidolon did?”
Hell, no, he wasn’t going to drag out the final maturation process, the one that would allow him to shapeshift and impregnate females, among other, less pleasant things. But how did this asshole know what E had done to try to stave off The Change?
“If you’re trying to get me to ask how you know about my brothers and about my species, it won’t work, asshole. You got something to say, fucking say it already.”
“Not yet.” Robe Man circled him, his face hidden in his cowl, but the way he moved … again, very familiar. He stopped behind Shade, and then the tickle of a finger trailed down his spine. Shade fought the urge to shudder. “So? Are you going to fight it? Or take a mate? Oh, that’s right, you can’t take a bond-mate because you might fall in love and consummate your curse.” Hot fetid breath heated Shade’s ear as the creature leaned close. “Youthful indiscretions always come back to bite you in the ass, don’t they?”
The son of a bitch knew about the Maluncoeur, a curse that promised if he fell in love, he’d slowly fade away until he became invisible to everyone. He’d live forever, wracked with stabbing hunger pangs, debilitating thirst, and unbearable sexual desire for all eternity.
Shade closed his eyes and tried to figure out who could know such intimate details about his life. The list was short, and those on it wouldn’t talk.
Unless they’d been tortured.
Skulk.
“Again,” Robe Man said. “Inner thigh.”
Shade barely had time to brace himself before the Nightlash’s flail ripped into his flesh.
Robe Man laughed. “Doesn’t this seem a bit like karma, given how many females you’ve strung up like this?”
Shade didn’t bother to argue that this was different, because sometimes the line between pleasure and pain blurred far too much for Shade’s comfort.
“More.”
The flail bit into Shade’s other thigh. Sweat popped out on his forehead, his vision dimmed, and damn, that hurt. How could E stand going through this once a month when he paid for Wraith’s sins?
“You’re wondering how Eidolon deals with this every time Wraith goes over his limit of human kills.”
Shade’s head snapped up and around, but Robe Man had retreated to the shadows. “I’ve had enough of your bullshit,” he roared. “Who the hell are you?”
A sinister cackle echoed through the dungeon. “I’m the demon who is going to make you beg for death. Starting now.”
“Hello, Shade.” The female voice Shade knew well brought his gaze back front and center.
“Solice?” He stared at the brunette vampire nurse who had been working at UG for years, and suddenly everything made sense. Skulk hadn’t talked—Solice had. “You bitch.”
Her sultry smile revealed long fangs as she leaned in and licked up his chest in a warm, wet lash. Her raspy tongue caught on shredded flesh. Pain streaked through him, but he’d suffered worse while playing with some of his rougher bedmates.
“I’ve wanted to taste you for so long,” she murmured against his nipple. “But you never so much as looked at me.”
“That’s because after years of fucking my brother,” he growled, “you were damaged goods.”
She continued to tongue his chest, even sucking lightly on his caduceus pendant, and he wondered just when the torture would begin, because all this was doing was turning him on. Yeah, it was messed up, but shit, he was an incubus, capable of getting it up under the worst of circumstances, and the female in front of him was throwing off arousal like she was in heat.
“We’ll see who is the damaged one.” She dropped to her knees, eyeing the blood on his thigh. And he knew. Oh, shit, he knew exactly how his suffering would go down.
Every noise that filtered through the wood and iron door made Runa flinch. She should rejoice at the knowledge that Shade was being tortured. She should volunteer to help. But damn her heart, she wanted to save him.
So she could kill him herself.
Except, she hadn’t come back to New York to kill Shade. She’d returned to her hometown with military orders to gather intel on a demon hospital, and to locate an ex-soldier and Aegis Guardian who hadn’t been heard from since reporting the existence of the hospital. The Army feared he might have become a traitor not only to the United States, but to the entire human race. And when the U.S. Army’s Raider-X Regiment issued an order, you followed it—and not just because they’d planted a microdetonator in your brain. No, the supersecret military unit inspired loyalty by giving “special humans” a purpose and a sense of belonging in a world that had rejected them.
She hadn’t been rejected, but her situation had guaranteed that, without help, The Aegis would have killed her, but probably not before she slaughtered countless innocent humans. Fortunately, her brother, a high-ranking officer at R-XR, had known exactly what to do the night he found her bleeding to death in the alley where she’d been attacked. The Army had saved her life, had even attempted to prevent the lycanthropic virus from taking hold. They’d failed, but the side effects of their experimental treatment turned out to be handy.
She still turned into a giant, slavering beast three nights out of every month—a beast with no control over her actions and very little memory of what took place while she was in beast form. But thanks to the Army, she could also turn into the beast any time she wanted to. Even better, when she changed form intentionally, she retained her humanity and could control her actions and remember everything once she returned to her human form.
Laughter bubbled up from somewhere, female laughter, followed by a long, drawn-out noise. An erotic growl. Shade’s erotic growl. She’d know that sound anywhere. So what, they were torturing him with sex?
That bastard. She hated him. But she was pretty sure that just before the werewolf attack, he’d saved her brother’s life. And, truth be told, probably hers, as well.
Runa had met him when she’d been at the lowest point in her life. Twenty-five years old but feeling double that, she still hadn’t gotten over the death of her mother four years earlier—how could she when her mother had died alone and miserable, thanks to Runa? But more recently, her best friend had moved to Australia with her new husband, Runa’s coffee shop had been only days from closing, and her brother had been dying. Arik had, in fact, been dying in her house, and the only reason she wasn’t with him was that he’d insisted that she tend to her shop and employees, who would soon be jobless.
One of her employees, a pierced, green-haired girl who called herself Aspic, had been razzing Runa about never taking risks, which was probably why her business had failed in the first place. No risks in love, business, or life. And where had that gotten her?
Arik might have been dying, but he’d lived. Should she be struck by a mysterious disease that killed her by slow measures, would she know the satisfaction of having truly lived life to the fullest?
The answer to that had been painfully obvious, especially because guilt had been killing her as surely as whatever had struck down Arik. She had denied herself anything that even resembled pleasure with the ruthlessness of a religious zealot. How could she allow herself to experience what she had denied her mother?
Not a day had gone by that she didn’t think about how she’d ruined her pa
rents’ marriage and sent her mother into a downward spiral of depression. No matter how many times Arik tried to tell her that she needed to forgive herself for telling their mother about finding their father with another woman, she couldn’t. Because Arik didn’t know her secret—that deep down, Runa feared that she hadn’t done it out of concern for their mother.
She’d done it to hurt their father.
The day Shade walked into her life had been the day she’d wondered, for the first time, if she would have anything to live for once Arik was gone.
He’d sauntered into her coffee shop, huge, impossibly gorgeous, black motorcycle boots thudding on the floor, his leather pants and jacket making that soft rasp, the pirate earring in his left lobe glinting in the light. His right hand had been tattooed, as well as the right side of his throat, and she’d wondered if tats on his arm had connected the two.
All female eyes latched on to him. All male eyes had averted.
“Oh, fuck me,” Aspic whispered. “All. Night. Long.”
There was no looking away from him as he moved to the counter, his gaze locked onto Runa’s.
Aspic started to pant, honest-to-God pant. “Here’s your risk, Runa. Take it. Make a move or I swear I will.”
He stopped in front of Runa. “Coffee.” The word rolled off his tongue as if he’d said, “I’d like to give you an orgasm.”
“Yes,” she whispered, because he could give her … oh, right. Coffee. She cleared her throat. Twice. “Regular, tall, or grande?”
“Whatever your largest size is.”
“Do you have a brew preference?”
“Strong and hot.”
“Milk? Soy or dairy? Cream?”
“Hell’s freakin’ bells.” He planted his palms on the counter and leaned in. “Just. Coffee.” His intense gaze roamed over her figure in a blatant appraisal that should have infuriated her but only made her heart beat faster. “Though I might be tempted to try something sweeter.”
Aspic nudged her with an elbow and then stepped forward. “Runa’s a little shy. Do you have a motorcycle? Because she loves motorcycles. Bet she’d love to see it.”
“Aspic!” Runa’s cheeks burned with mortification.
“Runa,” the leather man said softly, as though testing the feel of her name on his tongue. “Would you like to take a ride?”
“She’d love to,” Aspic said, and plopped his coffee in front of him.
Runa shook her head. “I don’t think—”
“Good,” he said, as he threw down a ten-dollar bill. “Keep the change. Let’s go.”
Before she could utter a protest, he grabbed his coffee, came around the counter, took her hand, and led her toward the back door. She planted her feet at the threshold. “Look, Mr. …”
“Shade.”
Odd name. Then again, she worked with a girl who called herself Aspic. “Mr. Shade.”
“Just Shade.”
“Shade, then. I’m afraid I can’t go anywhere with you.”
He cocked one black eyebrow and pushed open the door. “Who said anything about going anywhere?”
“But, you said ride.”
Her flowing skirt whirled around her calves as he whisked her into the side street and toward the alley. “Yep.”
Panic flared. This man could be a serial killer or a rapist, and here she was, half his size, be-bopping into an alley with him. “I can’t—”
Suddenly, she found herself against the wall of the building, his body pinning hers, his mouth against her ear. Both of his hands were on her shoulders … what had he done with the coffee?
“I can smell your desire, Runa,” he murmured in a coaxing, seductive tone. “You’re blooming for me like a flower.”
He rocked his hips into her. The erection behind the fly of his pants massaged her belly, promising an experience she’d never forget. The man was sex on legs, an overwhelming mass of muscle, testosterone, and sensuality for which she had no defense. Nothing had prepared her for something like this. She doubted any woman could be prepared for Shade. At least not mentally. Her body was preparing itself without her go-ahead.
Her breasts tingled and tightened, her heart pounded frantically against her rib cage, and a rush of liquid dampened her panties. She squeezed her thighs together to relieve the ache between them, but that only made things worse.
The situation was rapidly tumbling out of control, and as his tongue swept along her neck and his hands stroked her hips, she found she couldn’t care.
He fisted her skirt and drew it up to her hips. “Do you want this?” He nuzzled her throat and pressed a thick thigh between her legs, creating the most delicious pressure. “Tell me to stop, and I will.”
This was her out. Her chance to get away from him. To go back inside her failing shop and then home to her dying brother. On the way home she could get robbed and shot. Run over by a taxi. Stabbed in a subway station.
And she’d die knowing she should have taken a risk for once in her life.
Shade’s fingers slipped between them, stroking her core over the wet fabric of her panties. “Well?”
“Don’t stop. Please don’t stop.”
A low, sensual rumble came from deep in his throat as he kissed her. Not a proper kiss, but a lick across her lips and then a deep, hot meeting of tongues that had her panting and clinging to his jacket as if she would never let him go.
The rip of fabric registered in her ears, alongside the hum of passing vehicles, the laughter of someone on the sidewalk. None of it mattered, not even the flutter of her panties against her legs as they fell to the pavement.
God, this was crazy. Sex with a stranger in an alley. In the middle of the day.
A moment of clarity punched through her sexual haze as he unzipped his pants. She stopped him with a firm grasp on his wrist. “Why me?” she rasped. “There were other women in there, prettier, sexier—”
“I sensed your need.”
It was a strange answer, but then he was pushing against her entrance despite her restraining grip, and she didn’t care why this whirlwind had happened. Instinct took over, and she wrapped her legs around his waist and groaned as he eased the tip of his erection inside.
“Oh, man,” he breathed. “You’re so tight.” He pulled back a little, and then pushed inside again, just the head. The mild stretching sensation eased into a shimmer of pleasure as the crown of his penis worked the ring of nerves at her entrance.
“Wow.” She arched her back, and he slid his forearm behind her, cushioning her spine. “More. I want more.”
As though he’d been waiting for permission, he thrust deep, destroying her pleasure with a wave of pain. He froze, his expression tight. “You okay?”
“Fine,” she managed, as the pain faded. “It’s just been a long time.” Years, in fact. She’d lost her virginity her senior year of high school to a boy who swore he loved her, but two days later he’d loved someone else in the same way.
“You should have told me,” he growled. “I could have been gentler.”
“Just finish it,” she said, and with a harsh curse, he started moving inside her.
There was no slow buildup like she’d expected. No mildly pleasant stirring of sensation. No gradual warming.
There was an instant shattering, an explosion that would have had her screaming if he hadn’t slapped a hand over her mouth. His powerful thrusts rammed her into the building but she didn’t care, couldn’t care, because she was coming again and he was shuddering, moaning, jerking in a powerful release.
When they could both breathe again, she lowered herself to her feet and he pulled out, tucking himself swiftly back into his pants. Warm, tingly fluid dripped down her leg, blasting her back to reality.
“Oh, my God. You didn’t use a condom.”
“I’m sterile, and I’m not a carrier for diseases.”
“Still—”
He silenced her with a kiss. When he drew back, she felt dazed. He took her hand and led her toward the shop�
��s rear entrance. Just before she reached the door, a flash of lightning sizzled through her veins.
“Oh!” She gasped as another orgasm rocked her body. Shade held her through it, his massive body taking the impact of her spasms.
“That’s going to happen a couple more times. You might want to hide out in an office or break room for a few.” He waited until she was steady on her feet, and then sauntered off. At the corner, he glanced back over his shoulder. “By the way, I drive a Harley.”
Frowning, she stepped inside the building. Aspic grinned. “So? What kind of bike did he have?”
Runa laughed. “A Harley. He had a Harley.”
Shade had contacted her later, and they’d dated for a few weeks. Then her brother’s medical condition worsened. Shade had come to her house, spent a few minutes with Arik, and within days her brother had made a full recovery.
It was only days after that that she’d been attacked by the werewolf, and Arik had taken her to the R-XR for lifesaving care.
The secret military installation had been a shock—she’d thought her brother was regular Army, just another soldier. But he’d been working for the R-XR for years, along with a select group of about a hundred others, some active duty, some civilians. And a handful were even wargs—military members who had survived attacks and been snatched out of their regular units to work for R-XR.
Because of their lycanthropy, they’d felt isolated from their fellow soldiers, and they’d formed a pack, as their new instincts demanded. They’d allowed her into their inner circle, but without a military background, she’d still felt like an outsider no matter how often they’d invited her to their backyard barbecues and nights out at the base bar.
Arik had not been happy about any of that. He’d been convinced the alpha, a too-hot-for-his-own-good male chauvinist named Brendan, had his sights on making her his alpha female, but then, Arik had always worried about her. From the time they were children, he’d been her watchdog, dragging her away from their father’s fists. Then later, when Arik had been awarded guardianship of her, he’d made sure every high school boyfriend understood the consequences of hurting her.