Wicked After Dark: 20 Steamy Paranormal Tales of Dragons, Vampires, Werewolves, Shifters, Witches, Angels, Demons, Fey, and More

by Mina Carter

  He opened the car door and stepped out. Hoping to find her more quickly, he checked his phone, just in case she’d left a message. “Of course not,” he growled, clenching his fist, crushing the phone. “Why make anything easier?” The woman was stubborn as hell. He had until the end of time to train her, but deep down in his heart he knew it wouldn’t be long enough for him to teach her to submit.

  There were miles of trails in every direction, and he needed to find her now. He never should’ve let her out of his sight. Slamming the car door, he moved quickly, allowing his finely honed tracking skills to lead him. The warm, muggy air reeked of old blood and decayed flesh. Surely, despite being human, she could smell it, couldn’t she? He grumbled unintelligibly; questioning her ability to detect the presence of danger was senseless. It was his responsibility to guide and protect her. What pissed him off was that he’d told her to stay out of the forest and now, deliberately defying him, she was jogging directly into the path of a vicious predator.

  Haden stopped. The vampire was hunting. Swinging his head to the left, he clenched his jaw, drawing his lips back in a soundless snarl. All senses on alert, he scanned the ever-darkening interior of the forest. Standing completely still, he was silent, barely even breathing, focusing on the vampire, studying the creature’s venomous thoughts. He felt the ferocious, relentless thirst for blood driving it far beyond a state of madness. He felt its depraved anticipation for the kill.

  Then, Haden saw the vampire’s intended prey.

  “Caylee.”

  Absolute fury welled up, stirring the deepest, darkest portion of his essence, the dragon, the living force of destruction feared by even the most powerful, deadly immortals. A deep, ominous growl, a promise of swift, violent retribution to the undead pursuing her, rumbled in his throat as he expanded his mind to pinpoint her exact location. But he felt nothing. No hint of her location.

  Terror instantly replaced fury. It slammed into him so hard and so quickly that he did what a fearless, unfaltering immortal never resorted to doing: he panicked. Heart pounding, he took to the sky, ripping the atmosphere apart, creating a thunderous boom while an enormous mass of black, swirling clouds that completely covered the sun hid his ascent. As he traveled with supernatural speed, he covered her with a hedge of protection, but he quickly realized that he still didn’t know where she was. His heart stopped. With his enormous power and strength, he’d never experienced fear or doubt in his ability to defeat adversity of any kind. But now with her life in jeopardy, fearing he wouldn’t reach her in time, he froze.

  While he plummeted toward the ground, lightning exploded all around, violently crisscrossing the sky. He landed hard, jarring his bones, but ignoring the pain he remained on his feet. Lifting his face to the heavens, he closed his eyes and expanded his mind to search for her. Caylee, where are you? Normally, nothing ever rattled him to the core. He was utterly unshakable, but not now. Show me! He didn’t have the strength to wait for her to answer or to willingly open her mind to him. Sending forth a brutal current of power, he forced his way into her mind.

  Fully merging his mind with hers, Haden was able to see through her eyes. She was scared out of her mind, but she was safe and would remain safe as long as he reached her before the vampire breached the hedge of protection surrounding her. He should’ve felt some relief, but he didn’t. As a demon, he was far more powerful than the undead, but with her life a stake it didn’t matter. You’re safe, Caylee.

  * * *

  Looking down at her foot, Caylee wiggled her toes. “Shit. Shit. Shit.” She yanked on her foot, but it was too tightly wedged between tree roots to move it very much at all. “Oh, God.” She had always joked about having the worst luck, but suddenly, thanks to the fact that Haden’s bossy nature had finally pushed her too far, her lack of good fortune was no joking matter.

  Okay. In all honesty, it wasn’t Haden’s fault. Not really. Sexual frustration was to blame. He wouldn’t have the ability to irritate her so easily if she hadn’t allowed her secret crush on him to spiral out of control. It wasn’t his fault that she’d entertained countless sexual fantasies about him. During the past year, he’d never even pretended to be interested in more than a platonic friendship. He’d always, despite his habit of continually being present and bossing her around, behaved like a perfect gentleman.

  He was a good friend. Besides Mia, he was her best friend. It wasn’t fair, but his willingness to share a long-term platonic friendship with her was what irritated her the most. She craved so much more with him, but it wasn’t an option. She’d suffered a horrifying, violent attack, and now she hated to be touched, so she hadn’t exactly tried to seduce him, to act on her fantasies. Besides, she was fairly certain he was gay. He never dated. In fact, he never so much as even gave any woman a second glance.

  Still, it wasn’t his fault that she’d been too busy wondering how long he’d taken to realize she’d given him the slip to watch where she was putting her feet. She’d veered off the edge of the trail, stumbled, and somehow ended up with her foot wedged in the roots of a tree.

  Caylee turned her head to look for a stick to use to pry apart the roots. She blinked. “No.” Eyes wide, she stared in disbelief. “Oh, no.”

  She had never, not even in her worst nightmare, imagined anything so gruesome. There was so much blood. It was everywhere. The woman’s throat was ripped out, her mouth gaped in a silent cry for help, and her lifeless eyes, opened wide, mirrored the terrible pain and suffering of a death that refused to come quickly. Screaming was Caylee’s first urge, but she knew that making her presence known was the worst thing she could do.

  She desperately wanted to look away from the carnage, but she couldn’t even blink. She tried to take a breath, but the stench in the air was so bad her throat was swollen shut. How hadn’t she noticed it before?

  Gasping for air, she clutched her chest. It felt tight. It was worse than uncomfortable. It was extremely painful. Her heart raced far too quickly, pushing adrenaline through her bloodstream, causing her entire body to shake. Feeling the sharp pain of Haden’s sudden intrusion in her mind, she winced, but she was too frightened to recognize his presence or to hear his voice. She needed to get away! She needed to run! She tried to stand up, but since her foot was stuck she fell back onto her butt.

  Her vision narrowed and darkened. She tried to pull her foot out, but it was no use. Her head was spinning. If she ran, her foot wasn’t going with her. Of course, leaving it behind wasn’t feasible. She was having a panic attack. She needed to calm. She needed to think. It was easier said than done, but it was the only way she would have any hope of coming up with a plan.

  Within seconds, she heard Haden’s voice. She felt his presence enveloping her, surrounding her with protection and warmth. But it didn’t really make her feel better. She knew he wasn’t really there with her. In fact, she sensed he wasn’t close at all. She knew he was able to use spells to create illusions, but an illusion of safety wasn’t what she needed. Haden planned to use a spell to hide the dead body from her, but he needed to take her focus off it or it wouldn’t work. Listen to me, little love. I want you to close your eyes and take a breath.

  His voice was only a whisper, but it was a powerful command that forced her eyes to close, allowing her to escape the grisly sight. But dreading the thought of inhaling the stench of death, she struggled against the command to breathe. Panicking, she started to choke.

  Please, Caylee, do not panic. Her fear pierced his heart so deeply that it was making him insane. He was moving faster than ever before, faster than he ever thought possible, but it wasn’t fast enough.

  The air surrounding you is pure. Just breathe, little love. I’m so very close to you now. But not nearly close enough. Driven by ancient, savage instincts to protect her at any cost, he wouldn’t be close enough until he destroyed the vampire and she was safe in his arms.

  Believing Haden didn’t understand, Caylee continued to panic. The air wasn’t pure. The stench of d
ecayed flesh was so strong she could taste it. Stomach rolling, mouthwatering, she struggled to hold her breath.

  Breathe.

  His voice was a whisper, but it was so powerful there was no fighting his command this time. She took a deep breath, filling her lungs with his familiar scent. And just like that, defying the physical distance between them, she felt his strong arms holding her, protecting her.

  That’s it, little love—just keep breathing.

  Knowing he was so close was comforting until she realized his voice was way too calm considering the situation. He couldn’t fool her. She wasn’t stupid. She knew he was mad. She’d ditched him to teach him a lesson in manners. Sneaking out the backdoor, she’d left him sitting in his car in front of her best friend’s clothing boutique. It seemed like such a great idea at the time. Frowning, she bit her lower lip. It didn’t seem like such a great idea now. She didn’t want him to find her. Putting him in his place, challenging his self-proclaimed dictatorship over her every move was a great stress reliever and a distraction from what she really wanted to do to him. But she’d never pushed him this far before.

  She considered trying to hide from him. She was a strong woman. She didn’t need him. She could pull herself together and get out of the mess on her own. If it makes you feel better, feel free to try to hide, but it isn’t happening. She looked down at her foot and rolled her eyes. He was right. She wasn’t going anywhere. She looked over at the woman’s remains, but there was a barrier hiding it. Still, she knew what was behind the wall of strange black and silver flames. She wouldn’t even try to hide. Regardless of his mood, she didn’t want to be alone any longer.

  * * *

  Lured by Caylee’s mouth-watering scent, Paul was backtracking, returning to where he’d left the body of his last female victim. Cursed for all of eternity, he would never experience the peace of true contentment. His body would always crave more, need more, demand more. He was a vampire, a monstrous creature, a loveless, soulless, living corpse suffering the agony of a perpetual thirst for human blood.

  Recalling his previous killing, knowing he would soon kill again, gave Paul the most perverse joy any being would ever experience. Groaning aloud, he clutched his chest, taking great pleasure in the fact that the blood of his last victim sustained his corrupt heart. Oh yes, nothing was more magnificent than the ecstasy of ripping a screaming woman’s flesh to shreds and consuming every last savory drop of her blood. Lifting his head, he breathed deeply through his nostrils, inhaling the scent of his new quarry. It wouldn’t be long. She was less than a mile away. Soon, he would taste the sweet, exhilarating fear in her blood.

  Hearing Haden and feeling a surge of power, Paul stopped. There was no missing the fact that a demon was on the move. Closing his eyes, he inhaled deeply through his nostrils. Immediately recognizing Haden’s scent, Paul opened his eyes. He’d gone to great lengths to avoid the demon for days. Paul smiled. It didn’t matter. Thanks to his supply of ancient demonic powers and abilities, Paul was confident he was considerably stronger than most vampires and able to hold his own in any fight against any demon. Besides, Haden was moving away from the area, and he was nowhere near the woman. There would likely be no need to fight. He would have more than enough time to drain her blood and leave the area long before the demon was able to interfere.

  Paul was about to attack Caylee, but he hesitated. Lifting his face, he studied the stormy sky. Something was off-kilter. Haden seemed to be moving away quickly. Too quickly. It was as if the demon didn’t know a vampire was in the area. It was a trick. Perhaps it was a trap. Haden was an ancient. There was no way he’d overlooked the fact that a vampire was in the area hunting. Demons never allowed vampires to hunt in peace. Cloaking his presence from Haden, a feat very few of his kind could perform, Paul waited to see what his enemy was really doing.

  About Candice Stauffer

  I live in Zeeland, Michigan, where half the year is winter and the other, much shorter half, is summer. It’s a wonderful place to live as long as you own a four-wheel drive vehicle and happen to get a kick out of measuring the snowfall in feet rather than inches.

  I write paranormal romance because I love to explore and manipulate the limitless possibilities of the genre. To be completely honest, I’m also very fond of taking a totally hot, powerful, immortal hero and using a strong, confident, beautiful heroine to turn his world upside down and make him fight like hell for a victory that seems impossible to achieve. Some might call it torture. I call it entertainment and character building. Regardless, it’s great fun!

  Though she’s afraid, a heroine must always be willing to fight like hell—and, yes, even if the fighting is against the hero. I’m not sure why, but I tend to really enjoy it when the heroine fights against the hero. Putting a hero through the wringer builds personality, right?

  I’m often accused of being a little bit naughtier than nice and slightly rough around the edges. Okay, I lied—very rough around the edges. Life has been a challenge. But I’m grateful for every challenge I’ve faced. Through them, I’ve learned to focus on the goal rather than the walls surrounding it. Basically, I figure that as long as I enjoy life and do all I can to encourage and help the people around me enjoy life, it’s all good.

  To find out more about me, please visit my website:

  http://www.candicestaufferparanormalromanceauthor.com.

  And for the latest news, check out my Facebook page:

  http://www.facebook.com/pages/CandiceStauffer-Paranormal-Romance-Author/135025903252623.

  Change

  Melissa Stevens

  Copyright 2011 Melissa Stevens

  Chapter 1

  IT WAS EARLY June, and I had big plans for the weekend. Today I was going hiking over a new trail with Brandon, my best friend. We’d been friends since kindergarten and I thought of him almost like one of my brothers, only he didn’t torment me like they did.

  It was Friday, and the day had dawned beautiful and clear. We planned on a full day trip, and had already let our families know where we were going to be. I’d even packed my lunch the night before so I had one less thing to do before we could leave that morning.

  At just after six, the sun and I had both been up for almost an hour, and I was nearly ready. I ran the brush through my hair, smoothing it into the ponytail I was forming on the back of my head. Winding an elastic around the tail, I turned and looked out the window, and saw a familiar car pull into a parking space in the lot below me. I picked up the brush again and finished brushing out my hair as I watched the tall athletic frame climb out of the car and head around the end of the building. I was adding the last of my things to my backpack when a knock sounded on my front door.

  “It’s open!” I yelled.

  “You always just holler at anyone who knocks on your door at six in the morning that the door’s open? And why exactly is the door open while we’re at it?” Brandon demanded as he walked in.

  “Just the ones I’m expecting,” I said, zipping my bag before looking up.

  “So you were expecting me, so what? It still could have been anyone at the door,” he said, still intent on the point he was trying to make.

  “Could have, except that I saw you pull in as I finished my hair. And I unlocked the door a couple of minutes ago, just before grabbing my lunch. I knew it was you, Brand.”

  “Ok, fair enough. I’m just looking out for you, Chica,” he said, his tone much calmer now, his hands up in front of himself as if in surrender.

  “I know,” I told him calmly, “and I know you only push the issue because you care. Otherwise you’d be choking on your balls right now.”

  “Jeez, Nickie, don’t bottle up your emotions like that, you’ll get hurt. You need to learn to express yourself or someday it’ll all come exploding out. Then where will you be?” he asked, deadpan.

  I didn’t bother responding other than to flip him off as I turned to go use the restroom one more time before we headed out. When I returned I asked him, “You
got everything you need?”

  “Everything but you and your pack.”

  “Then let’s get a move on, we’re burnin’ daylight,” I said flippantly as I picked up my bag and slung it over one shoulder. I led the way out and turned to wait for him to exit the apartment before activating the lock on the door behind us. He looked confused, as if he didn’t quite understand but I didn’t explain the film reference and let it drop.

  The drive out to the parking area where we had planned to start our hike took us about forty-five minutes, by then it was almost seven and the day was starting to warm up. It was still relatively cool but it was already hinting at the heat that the sunshine and desert floor would bathe us in. We strapped our backpacks onto our backs and I tucked my Personal Communication Device, more commonly known as a PCD, into the pocket of my jeans where I could easily reach it, and we took off.

  We started out headed west away from the cars, the ground was rough and uneven but I was used it and I moved over the loose rubble and small rocks with ease. We followed what appeared to be a wildlife trail. A path made by frequent passage of animals like deer and javelina, it was narrow and winding but had very little overhanging brush, so it was a pretty easy walk. As we walked over the still flat ground I called out to Brandon.

  “What have you been up to lately?”

  “Not much, work, sleep, eat. You?”

  “About the same, throw in spending time with the family and you have my life.”