by R. Scarlett
Tensley rubbed his forehead and watched the hippie warlock carefully.
“She fought for you,” Lance said as he brought Tensley his waffles and eggs. “She carried you four blocks. She wouldn’t let me give her herbs, was too concerned about healing you, but she—”
Tensley gripped his arm tightly. “She’s hurt?”
Lance looked taken aback by Tensley’s wild expression. “Yeah, they gave her a few bruises and a black eye. She didn’t tell you?”
Tensley didn’t waste a second and spun, ascending the stairs and heading back to the bedroom.
Molly stood by the end of the bed, the light from the windows rushing in around her full figure. She tucked her shirt into her skirt and parted her lips in a shy smile. “Good morn—whoa!”
Tensley brushed back her hair and saw the ugly bruises on her face, the black eye, her cut lip, the deep gash on her forehead—
“Fuck, Molly,” he whispered, tugging her into his chest and avoiding her many bruises as he stroked her cheeks. The bruises had already begun to heal, most likely from their exchange the previous night.
“I’m fine, Tensley, really,” she said, pushing away slightly.
“Let me heal you.” He kissed her cheek and she sighed, melting into his embrace. “You healed me, now let me heal you, my brave dolcezza.” He peppered his lips along the bruises before moving to her mouth.
Molly’s hands ran along his neck and up into his hair, massaging his scalp. She willingly touched his darkness, his poison, and he wondered if her fingertips would be tinged with his toxin when she brought her hands back—the toxin he’d release in his bite when he claimed her.
“Be careful, sweetheart. I’m pure poison.”
She smoothed her knuckles across the hollows of his cheeks, her powerful eyes like the sun rising, radiant and glowing, her sunrays meeting his shadows. “I’m not scared of your poison, Tensley.”
Tensley sat with her on the edge of the bed and slid his palms down to her waist. “Do you hurt anywhere else?”
“You just want to kiss me.” She smiled, inspecting her limbs. “Hmm, maybe on my elbow.”
He laughed and took her arm, leaning down while keeping his eyes on her. He kissed the bruise, the rush of biochemicals instantly healing the wound. “Better?”
“Much,” she said, those adorable dimples appearing on either side of her mouth.
He kissed one and hummed against her soft skin. “I have a business party to attend tonight, so I won’t see you until later.”
Molly rubbed his shoulders, releasing some of the tension perpetually gathered there. “Or you could just take me with you.”
“Molly.”
She took his large hands into her own and the gesture calmed him. “I’ll lay low, won’t make a peep. I’ve survived two very different kinds of demon parties, so I think I can handle one more.”
He grinned at her, unable to hide his pride. She wanted to be a part of his world, and he wanted to be in hers—but she still wasn’t marked, and he didn’t want to bring her anywhere near his demon circles without that protection.
Unless Lance had something…
The door swung open and Pearce glowered at Tensley. “I need to speak to you.”
“Can it wait?”
“No.”
Tensley sighed and kissed Molly’s hand before exiting. Pearce shut the door behind them and they stood in the shadows of the hallway.
“She’s not human,” Pearce snapped.
Tensley bristled and glared back at him.
“She almost broke my arm last night. Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Pearce,” Tensley said, ignoring his nosiness. “You won’t go near her. You won’t go near any of her friends, got it? I told you, she’s off limits, and that includes everyone she cares about—especially after what happened with Stella.”
Pearce’s nostrils flared, and Tensley itched to punch him. “Does the High Court know?”
Tensley shook his head. “No, and they won’t until Molly and I announce our engagement, so keep your mouth shut.”
“Once the High Court finds out, they’ll be all over this, Tensley. Every demon will be looking for a loophole to take her for themselves,” Pearce hissed.
“Trust me, Pearce, I know.”
Pearce’s shoulders lowered, but the lines on his forehead deepened. “I’m gonna try to track Cree, find the bastard and gut him.” With that, he marched off, muttering about daemons and the High Court and why Tensley always got the best of everything.
TENSLEY TOSSED THE cigarette onto the ground and continued on his walk of destruction. It was fifteen minutes to eight, and he’d lose his patience if Molly wasn’t ready. His day had been crap—from business meetings to dealing with Evelyn brushing up against him to having to lecture a soldier on what their role was.
All he wanted was a hot shower and some whiskey to cool him down.
He didn’t want to go to the damn event, where he’d have to primp and preen in front of the high-powered families of Scorpios. He just wanted to spend time with Molly alone.
He clicked his tongue. He’d go, socialize, keep a decent distance between himself and Molly lest anyone see how much he’d fallen for her, and then take her home with him.
Tensley marched up her stone steps and inside the apartment building. The grimy walls greeted him, stained from water damage and years of wear. When he got to her door, he simply had to lift it upward, twist the handle, and he was in.
September sat on the table, naked from the torso up and with a paintbrush in hand. “Hey!”
He cursed under his breath and glared in the opposite direction. “Put some fucking clothes on.”
“My boobs needed freedom”—he heard her stand and march to her room—“and it’s my apartment, asshole.”
As he scanned the kitchen, he noted the scattered papers and books there. Tensley picked up one of Molly’s papers, admiring her tiny, perfectly straight handwriting. They were notes assigned for one of her classes that didn’t even start for a few weeks. Well damn, she was an overachiever.
“Tensley.”
He turned and nearly dropped the papers.
Fucking hell.
Her hair was in soft, large curls, cascading over her shoulders and down her back. She had pinned one side back, leaving the other waves to curve attractively around her face. The blood-red satin dress she wore accentuated her full figure, the tops of her heavy breasts teasing him, her tiny waist creating the ultimate hourglass shape. The dress cut off mid-thigh, and her shapely calves seemed to call to him, asking to be shouldered apart so he could devour her.
What aroused his beast was his scent on Molly. His eyes went to the necklace Lance had created, infused with a mixture of Tensley’s scent to create the illusion of a mark. There was no shadow around her neck, but his strong, powerful scent alone would deter everyone but the most determined demon trying to uncover their secret. No high-borns would attend, only middle class, so he didn’t have to worry about them not seeing the mark.
Fucking hell, his demon side roared viciously. He wanted her more than ever, and he wasn’t sure whether he’d be able to keep from pouncing. “Molly,” he hissed lowly.
“Can you smell me?” She smoothed her hair to the side to give him a clear view of her neck, and his scent stormed him. He swallowed thickly.
“Yes,” he bit out.
She frowned. “You don’t like it?” she asked, sounding worried.
He laughed bitterly. “What would make you think that?”
She paused. “I don’t know. You look…uncomfortable? Like it’s causing you pain. Like you don’t like it.”
“If only that were the case,” he said through gritted teeth. “It’s not that I don’t like it, Molly. I like it too fucking much. It’s making me absolutely crazy.”
“Oh,” she said on an exhale, a shy smile on her lips. “Well…you look handsome.”
She leaned on her tiptoes and pressed a chaste kiss to his cheek
, but it did nothing to quell his desire. Her entire body pressed against him and he knew she could feel his evident desire on her stomach. “Oops,” she whispered, licking her thumb and beginning to wipe his face. “Lipstick.”
Fuck, he thought. She knew exactly what she was doing to him, the little temptress, and she was enjoying it.
“Let’s go,” he said, taking her hand in his. “I want this night to be over.” So he could do what he so desperately craved and finally mark her.
MOLLY FIDGETED WITH the hem of her red dress, trying to keep it from riding up too high.
Remember who you are: a force to be reckoned with.
She wouldn’t be afraid of any demons at the party. She was all venom and claws now.
And with Tensley’s scent on her, she was sure none of them would question her.
It didn’t surprise her when they showed up in front of the same townhouse as the last event, nor did the fact that everyone looked well dressed and elegant.
What did surprise her was how quickly Tensley abandoned her to go talk business.
Most of the men looked, but didn’t approach, while those Molly had spoken to at the last party swarmed around her by the fireplace. Waiters in all black slid around them with trays of champagne and caviar, ignored except by those who craved an expensive hors d’oeuvre.
Molly glanced over at Tensley where he was seated on a black sofa, surrounded by tittering young women. He worked the room effortlessly, leaving each individual he spoke with wanting more.
Molly glared at the redhead who was currently stroking Tensley’s thigh in a way she must’ve thought was imperceptible, but her shoulders relaxed as Tensley removed the woman’s hand, twisting to talk to someone else.
“Don’t you look edible,” Gabriella said with a small smile and a peck on the cheek. “You may dress like the devil, but you have no fire, sweetie.”
Molly dragged her attention from Tensley and smiled to mask her anger. “I wouldn’t want to burn a future sister-in-law.”
Gabriella rubbed her round belly and nodded. “You might just be able to handle my moody brother.”
Molly hummed thoughtfully to herself. “I suppose we’ll have to see.”
Gabriella made a show of searching through the crowd. “Speaking of my brother—where is he?”
Molly gazed into her flute of white wine. “Business matters.” She gulped the drink down, wincing at the dry, tangy flavor.
“Hmmm.”
“Why don’t you two get along?”
Gabriella’s brown eyes flitted to hers and she flashed her too-white teeth. “Tensley’s overly sensitive when it comes to his charity case. I never hid my dislike of his friendship with Illya Black, and perhaps I took it a bit too far at times, but no one with Tensley’s status should be seen associating with the likes of a Black.”
Molly didn’t hide her scowl.
Gabriella snapped her finger at a waiter and he stopped to receive her order, a bead of sweat rolling down his temple. “Water, two lemons, leave them in.” He nodded and vanished wordlessly.
Molly ran her finger along the cool glass of her flute. “Hmm, I would think someone who’s dealt with the impact of a scandal would show some empathy to others in similar situations,” she warned. “I know I’m the cure to your family’s scandal, Gabriella, and you’d do best to remember that Illya Black is a close friend of mine.”
Gabriella swallowed, taking her time before responding. “Thank you for the reminder.”
Molly glanced back at Tensley to see him glowering in her direction. She frowned. What’s wrong with him? The whole party he’d kept his distance, only stealing irritated glances her way every so often.
“Where’s the bathroom?” Molly asked.
Gabriella gestured with her drink to another hallway. “Third door on your left.”
Molly nodded and marched through the crowd of demons with her head held high, hand on the necklace Lance had made.
Once she got to the hallway and found the third door, Molly stopped. She needed a breather, a moment to get away from the moody Tensley and his dramatic sister.
She took a deep breath and examined the wall filled with portraits of past Duxes—stern and lethal, never smiling—and another of Fallen and a red-haired woman Molly assumed was his wife. Lilith’s hair was wild and fiery in the portrait, and Molly couldn’t decide whether her pretty mouth was arranged in a smile or more of a sneer.
Molly passed by a door that was slightly opened and peeked inside to find a towering shelf of books. After a quick look around to make sure she was alone, she stepped inside.
The room was lit by a dust-covered lamp sitting in a far corner and appeared to be someone’s office. The books were hardcovers, with swirling golden signatures adorning their spines. A crimson red book entitled Health of Demons caught her eye, and she tried to wiggle it from the others.
She dislodged another book as well, called High Court Laws and Regulations, and Molly tried to hold them both in her free hand.
Then someone cleared their throat behind her.
She jerked back, dropping Health of Demons to the hardwood floor with a bang.
Molly stared into the darkest recesses of the office, barely able to make out the shape of a large figure leaning against a desk.
“Who are you?” she said, hoping he didn’t hear how frayed her nerves were.
“I can smell him all over you,” the husky voice said.
Molly swallowed thickly.
The figure moved closer, his stance wide, and the closer he moved, the larger she could see that he was.
His shadowed features soon became familiar, chiseled ones—and Molly’s heart lurched. “Beau.”
There was no humor in his eyes, and the way he moved was unnerving, like a hungry wolf stalking its prey, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.
She’d been told Beau had lost all his humanity, but hearing it and seeing it for herself were two completely different things.
“Tensley was my replacement,” he said, voice raw, and Molly wasn’t sure whether he was talking to her or himself.
The closer he got, the more every fiber within her screamed to run—but she couldn’t. She was frozen, trapped in his dark, empty eyes.
“What are you doing here?” she managed to say, heart beating a thousand miles a second.
He turned his head to the side, as if he could hear it. “Just like all the others,” he muttered. “Afraid of the big bad monster, are you little daemon?”
“What do you want?” she shouted, her bravado achingly false.
He smiled, and it was menacing. “What if I said I wanted you? Would you scream for help, daemon? Would you scream for my little brother? Or would you let me have a taste?”
“I wouldn’t need to scream,” she said, glaring at him.
“No?”
“No.” She shook her head, backing up only to realize he’d only cornered her in another part of the office.
She tried to calm herself enough to channel her powers, to warn him away, but she was out of her depth—Molly understood Cree and his motley band of demon hunters, but Beau was an entirely different force, and it terrified her.
Beau licked his lips, scanning her from head to toe. “I was the one meant to have you—but that human scum tempted me and I lost everything.”
“How can you call her that? You loved her,” Molly shot back, immediately regretting it.
“Loved her?” He chuckled. “She destroyed me—ruined me. She got underneath my skin and poisoned my nature. Fallen ripped her heart out, and then he ripped mine out too.”
The closer he got, the more his nostrils flared. He towered over her as he sniffed the air and reached for her neck, startling her.
She gripped his wrist and bared her teeth. “Don’t.”
He blinked, and then a devilish smile appeared. “He hasn’t marked you. How fucking stupid! A fake mark,” he began, his hand lightly closing around her delicate neck. “Why don’t we show him wh
at his foolishness costs?” he said, his intent clear in his expression. The wolf was about to pounce on its prey.
Molly’s mind went blank with fear and she pushed against Beau, waiting for her powers to engage. “Get off of me!” she screamed as Beau leaned down, bringing his mouth to the crook of her neck and scraping her skin with his teeth. “Tensley!”
The door slammed open and Tensley stormed into the room. “Get your fucking hands off her!” he roared, his rage hitting them in palpable waves.
“Look who arrived just in time to enjoy the show,” Beau said without even looking at Tensley. “Should I rip her heart out now, brother? Save you the trouble for when she betrays you later on? I’d most certainly enjoy the feeling of her life draining away beneath my fingers, it’s been a while…” Beau’s fingers traveled roughly down the column of Molly’s throat to her chest, stopping above her left side, where her heart was.
“If you so much as leave a scratch on her, you’re a fucking dead man,” Tensley began, his voice so low and menacing that Molly didn’t recognize it.
“I’m already as good as dead, idiot.”
Tensley moved forward on a warpath, but Beau let go, chuckling. It was all a game to him.
Molly stumbled farther away from Beau, making sure he couldn’t reach her again.
“I’ll see you around, brother,” Beau said, the word like an insult.
Molly watched Tensley’s shoulders stiffen and a deadly growl left his mouth.
As soon as Beau disappeared, Tensley’s dark eyes turned to her, full of a dark, vivid night as he marched toward her, grasping her face in his large, powerful hands.
“Are you hurt?” Tensley asked when they were by themselves, his thumb skimming along her jaw down to her neckline.
“I’m fine, Tensley,” she whispered, squinting in the muted light. She caught his wrist and stroked it while he held her face still. She watched his intense eyes, terrified, but fascinated by their darkness. “Are you okay? Your eyes are pitch black. What’s wrong?” she asked, anxious.
He caught her gaze, that lethal stare making her stomach flip. “When we feel threatened, angry or…aroused…our eyes tend to turn black.”