“Let’s call Campbell and get you home.” Sliding her off his lap, he rose and headed to the cabin. “Just remembered I need to do something.” She started at the uncompromising tone of his harsh, unpleasant growl. Fear gripped her, squeezing her heart like a vise. She raced after him, found him next to the rumpled bed where he’d given her such great pleasure, already half-dressed, yanking his clothes on with spare, lethal movements. He dragged his overnight case onto the mattress to check his weapons. Her jaw dropped as he holstered an array of blades into sheaths he’d already strapped to various parts of his body, then slammed a magazine into the hollow butt of a hand gun.
“No.” She tugged on his arm. “And who the hell brings a fuckin’ armory like that to a romantic rendezvous, anyway?”
“I do. The date’s over. I have something I have to take care of.”
“I am not going to let you do this, Spook Raines.”
He gazed down at her, his eyes like chips of frost. “You really think you can stop me, Gen?”
Spook wasn’t sure exactly when it happened. But sometime during the night or morning of their one-night stand, while he’d been so busy taking possession of her body, Genny had laid claim to his heart and mind, maybe even his soul. He thought of her as his female now. And no one would wrong her without paying a substantial price. Even if he had to blow up all of the mysterious Duyvil Tand to exact it.
But she saw through him as if he were transparent as a window pane. “You’re not going anywhere without me, Spook. I’m not exactly a wilting daisy here. I know a thing or two about demons.”
Apparently, the WOW, who was half his size, had some mad combat skills of her own. She didn’t exactly succeed in disarming him, although she’d given the knife in his shoulder holster a pretty good go. But somehow she’d managed to talk him into taking her along on his quest for revenge. For one thing, without her location memory of the demon stronghold, he couldn’t whiff them to Duyvil Tand.
“My history. My wrong. My vengeance,” she insisted again when they stopped their plunge into the depths of the hidden mountain and the massive, carved doors of Duyvil Tand loomed in the distance.
“No one hurts my woman and gets away with it.”
“I’m your woman now?”
“Aren’t you?”
“Kinda fast work there, Spook, don’t you think?”
“No, I don’t think. And I thought we had that all settled. When it’s right, it’s right.” He glared at her. “Can we have this discussion later? Or are you so hell-bent on distracting me, I’ll get us both killed?”
“Your genius idea. Don’t blame me.”
They continued to trade barbs until a voice boomed out of the darkness.
“Well, well, well. If it isn’t the little, orphaned WOW. And Spokane Raines. Never thought we’d see either of you in Duyvil Tand again.”
Spook froze, his vision adjusting to the darkness until he spotted the immense form of the gatekeeper appearing out of a cloud of mist and blocking their way to the doors of the stronghold.
“Again?” He shifted his position to shield Genny, primed for action, his weaponry within easy reach.
The gatekeeper rubbed his hands together, letting loose an unholy cackle. “Haven’t seen you lot since you were crawlers.”
“We’ve been here before?”
“Well, of course.” The monster snorted. “Don’t they teach you anything topside? So which realm door do you expect to darken today? If you can make it past me, of course.”
Bhyrne suddenly materialized next to them. “Shut it, Boltack.” They gaped at him in shock. “What?” He shrugged. “Haven’t been gone that long. The queen hasn’t even filled my old job yet. I still know people. Got a heads up from one of my boys.”
The creature’s demeanor immediately changed when he spotted Bhyrne. He inclined his gigantic head in what could pass for a gesture of respect. “Enforcer. You have found your brother, it seems.”
Genny pushed forward, shoving the big Raines men away to glare up at the giant. “Are you the creep who barred my parents?”
“No,” said Boltack. “Feemis is long gone. From the gates, from the doors, from the realms. If you’ve come for his blood, you will be disappointed.”
“We’ve come for answers,” Spook said.
“Enforcer?”
Bhyrne nodded. “Ex-Enforcer. But, yeah. Let’s start with Velda.”
“The Queen of the Succubi is not happy with you, ex-Enforcer.” Boltack grinned, making no attempt to hide his glee. “Or the ex-princess.”
“Zena’s still a goddamn princess and don’t you ever forget that. But luckily, she’s expecting my progeny and could not make the journey from the human plane. So Velda will not have to deal with my mate today.”
The guard sighed, as if he no longer found any of them a source of sport or entertainment. He lowered his battle-ax and cranked the chains to raise the gate.
Moments later, they stood in the court of the Succubi Queen. Spook looked at Genny. Her jaw dropped and her hand crept into his. His own mouth hung open. The place was every bit as awe-inspiring as a demonic stronghold should be. Not to mention creepy. Hard to believe that less than an hour before, they’d been making hot, rabid love on Campbell’s yacht, the epitome of human luxury and one hundred and eighty degrees away from here.
“Approach, Enforcer,” Velda bellowed from across the throne room. “And bring your companions.”
When they were a couple of yards from the queen, Bhyrne bowed his head, dropping to one knee and pounding a fist over his heart.
From atop her throne of lethal metal spikes, piled skulls, and jewels, Velda leaned forward, her mouth quirking with irony. “Really, Bhyrne? When you showed me so little respect the last time you were here?” She snorted. “I should toss you in a torture chamber in the dungeon again.”
Spook stepped forward to stand shoulder-to-shoulder at his brother’s side.
“Back, demon,” Velda snarled. “Or I will throw you in with him.” She frowned when Spook and Genny remained standing in her royal presence. “You do not kneel before your queen?” Her voice rumbled with rage along with a sliver of another emotion hard to define. Humor. The thought surprised Spook.
“We are Americans,” Genny spat. “We do not kneel. We’re not succubi. We’re not your subjects. And you are not our queen.”
Velda’s frown grew thunderous. And then, inexplicably, she laughed. “Oh, yes. The American demon spy. And the American demon-hunting WOW. It’s all so very amusing. One day I really must meet this Madame Eve who brings you all together for your little one-night stands that seem to go on forever and eternity. The woman has powers and abilities I’ve never seen. Not to mention hooking up three of my most potent and promising succubi with the loves of their lives and knocking them out of commission and service to me.”
The queen studied them, nodding with satisfaction at last. “Bhyrne is saved today because I would not subject my niece, Zena, to his absence at this trying and delicate time for her. She is well, Enforcer?”
“She is well, my queen.”
“As a wedding gift to you, I will also spare your brother, your blazelet’s uncle.” Her eyes narrowed as she scrutinized Spook. “You look very like your twin, Spokane.”
Twins! So it was true. His thoughts whirled, unfocused, with the confirmation and the just plain, out-and-out weirdness of being a prodigal demon whiffing into the underworld to avenge his lover. But he had not come there for himself, risking unknown demonic wrath.
“And Genny?” he grated between clenched teeth.
“Yes, and the will-o’-the-wisp. She has been through enough.”
Turning to her closest courier, Velda barked, “Prepare refreshments for our guests. Take my scrolls to Finn and Darius, requesting their presence. If they can grant an audience, I’m sure our visitors would love to meet them.” Then she gazed back at them again. “Pity you did not bring Max and Dagney. We could have quite the party.”
�
��We did not come to party,” Spook said.
“Yes, well. As to that, I’m afraid your bloodlust will go unrequited this night.”
***
Genny stared at Finnian Silverthorn, the laird of the Will-o’-the-Wisps. He had a shock of thick white hair and blue eyes of a depth and color that surpassed her own. Despite the kindly crinkles in the corners of his mouth, she sensed his power, the vast well of danger below his benign surface. And Darius, the ruler of the fire-sex demons, did not attempt to hide his lethal air. Huge, well-muscled, and exuding a compelling sexuality that might have had her blood humming had she not been curled against Spook’s side, he clearly shared the Raines genes.
“So you see, Morphang grew more and more envious of your father and the power he’d amassed,” Darius told the brothers. “He lusted after the crown and managed to convince Finn that the power had corrupted Khyllian.”
“He convinced me that your father had turned dark, had become evil. As evidence, he blamed Khyl for atrocities he himself had perpetrated, and I believed his lies. I agreed to take the contract. To my everlasting regret, I gave your parents the assignment. I had no idea what Morphang planned, or that he paid off the gatekeepers to bar their way and prevent their return. The best I could do, when it was all over, was to spirit you away to the human realm when you were a small child and make sure you did not want for material goods.”
“I’ve hunted evil all my life.”
“And you’ve done good work for POLOS, my dear,” Finn said, “Even if those jobs were unsanctioned by us. But perhaps it is just as well you will now leave that organization.”
Spook sat frozen beside her. “Did you know any of this?” he demanded of his brother.
“No,” said Bhyrne. “And Max didn’t, either. We only found each other a few years ago.”
He stared at Darius. “You are our uncle, then?”
“Yes. You’re demon royalty. Khyl was my brother. So is Max’s father. So was Morphang.” He paused. “I beheaded him when I finally realized how sick and evil he’d become. But the damage had been done. It was too dangerous for you to remain together. I had to separate you for your own good.”
“I grew up fighting in the streets,” Bhyrne said.
“That wasn’t the plan. You were both to be hidden, fostered in good homes. But Morphang’s minions continued to search for you. The foster families were destroyed.”
“Who pays for all of this then?” Spook demanded in anguish. “Who do we take out? How do we make this right?”
“No one,” Darius said, shaking his head. “There’s no one to pay. No one for you to slay. There’s no revenge to take. You make this right by loving each other, taking care of each other, and living good lives.”
“All right, then,” said Velda, yawning with boredom. “Now that we’re done with that mess, would someone please pass the Buffalo chicken wings?”
Chapter Eight
“You know what, baby? I think we should take their advice.”
“What advice?” Gen asked.
She’d blotted the last few hours from her brain. Far too cray-cray. She’d grieved her parents all her life, crying her eyes and heart out, the chasm inside of her raw and aching. Nothing left to grieve. But now she had something akin to closure. Spook had given her that.
And she had Spook. Rough and gentle. Damaged and caring. To fill up all the empty places inside her, to plug up the hole torn in her heart. And she had no intention of ever letting that bad boy go. He had his own pain, and she’d give him all the tenderness she could give to ease it.
Back in Sleepy Hollow, in her apartment, they lay naked in her queen-sized bed. And everything seemed all right in her world. Except for a bed too small for Spook. In an apartment too small for Spook. They should do something about that.
He took up so much space when they lay side by side, she seemed in danger of rolling off the edge. He’d never roll, she thought, possessively admiring the sleek muscles of his massive, masculine frame. Which gave her a pretty good excuse to straddle his hips.
His cock instantly grew hard again, long and thick, jutting insistently against her inner thigh. He grabbed her ass and draped her over him, thrusting up and into her until he’d impaled her.
“Ah, goddess,” she sighed, falling forward onto his chest. “Have mercy.”
“Yeah, okay.” He moved again, his cock throbbing and stroking inside her. Pure fucking bliss. “But mercy’s not what you want.”
“What do I want, smart ass?”
“This.” He lifted her slightly then bucked upward until she gasped and cried out.
His scent overwhelmed her, so delicious she wanted to lick him all over. Maybe later. At the moment, she burned for him, her desire so savage and wild, she quivered. Her thighs trembled until she couldn’t maintain her rhythm, couldn’t ride him as fast and fiercely as she longed to.
“Help me, Spook.”
“Your wish, my command,” he grunted. Still joined together in an inferno of carnal sensation, he flipped her over effortlessly and drove into her until they both were beyond words, panting and groaning together in furious primal frenzy. Delirious pleasure engulfed her. And joy. And ecstasy, profound, powerful…and sublime.
“Goddess,” she sighed later. Much later.
“You’re my only goddess,” he said, his voice gruff and raw. “Everything I need. Right. Here.” A lot of emotion for so cool a customer. But then Spook had come in from the cold. And he’d brought her with him.
“Not everything…I was kind of thinking…maybe a bigger bed.”
~ABOUT THE AUTHOR~
Taryn Kincaid lives and works not far from the real SLEEPY HOLLOW, where there’s something in the air, and water. (Currently, what’s in the water are very large barges and pieces of machinery, pounding out a new bridge across the Hudson River.) She loves hearing from you! Friend her on Facebook, follow her on Twitter, and check her out on Pinterest and her website and blog: http://tarynkincaid.com
Lightning
In mystic Sleepy Hollow, succubus Lily Night put her prom date, Campbell Jones, into a coma after a night of wild, unbridled sex. She has steered clear of mortals ever since, afraid of damaging them or worse, not to mention the inconvenience of knocking out the power every time they have sex.
Successful architect Campbell Jones has lived with strange powers and a sexy secret since that prom night. He’s buried himself in work to forget the woman who’d dumped him at the ER then vanished from his life without a trace.
Neither Lily nor Campbell have forgotten that night or the love they’d shared. Will a 1Night Stand help them bury their past?
Thunder
When witchy Veronica Hardwicke hires the By Jones construction company to renovate her spooky Sleepy Hollow mansion, she gets more than she bargained for in her sexy contractor. But the hunky Sean Jones is determined to keep his professional distance. Until one stormy night and one steamy 1Night Stand.
Frost
Dagney Night, a sought-after succubus, is no stranger to blazing hot sex. But as Valentine’s Day approaches, she longs for something more. When oddly erotic paintings arrive for display at her art gallery, arousing everyone who views them, she wonders about the mysterious artist who created the works.
Maxwell Raines, a fire-sex demon, lives a life of solitude and seclusion behind the walls of his compound at Sleepy Hollow, channeling his lustful impulses into his art—until his muse deserts him and his temperature rises past the danger point. He needs sex. Now.
When Madame Evangeline arranges a torrid Valentine’s 1Night Stand for them, will the flames of their encounter be too hot to handle?
Blizzard
Mandy Malone ditches her pharmaceutical convention and the married male colleagues hitting on her to hurry home to her waiting family. But she doesn’t bank on the blizzard that forces her off the road and into a deserted rest stop. When she meets another road refugee, their attraction is immediate and molten hot. Suddenly, getting stranded doesn�
��t seem like such bad luck after all.
Although totally unprepared for Mandy’s unvarnished proposition, Jack is intrigued by the erotic offer of a promising night of no-questions-asked sex. But when he notices the wedding band on Mandy’s finger, will he forego the lure of a torrid clandestine affair, or give in to the fantasy of blazing hot sex on a wintry night?
Heat Wave
Sent into the human realm to retrieve prodigal princess, Zena Night, Bhyrne Raines is shocked and unprepared for his carnal reaction to the sexy succubus. In service to the succubus queen, the rugged enforcer must stifle the instant passion exploding within him. Fulfilling his royal duty doesn’t allow for quickie dalliances. His biological clock is ticking, and he begins to enter breedspawn, an intense and unstoppable frenzy of mating all fire-demon males must endure. But the more he wants to avoid Zena, the more he’s drawn to her.
Reluctant to give up her carefree life of partying among the mortals when the hot-as-sin Bhyrne comes to fetch her for the queen, Zena uses her succubus wiles to entice him, or at least delay the inevitable trip to the royal court. Once in the demon stronghold, hidden deep within the Catskill mountains, she learns the reason for the summons: she must choose a consort within two days.
Zena needs a mate. Bhyrne needs to mate. With time running out for both of them, they each turn to 1Night Stand. With time running out, can Madame Eve come to the rescue?
In From the Cold Page 5